Fort George

The making of my mango chutney was put on the back burner on Friday as I went on a school outing with my daughter's class. It had been years since I visited Fort George and I enjoyed it so much , I had to post the pictures. The fort was built in 1804 by the British as part of a defence strategy to protect the island and main harbour. While the fort ceased to be a military outpost in 1846, it was converted to a signal station in 1902 and functioned as such until 1964. Located on a breezy picturesque mountaintop 1,000 feet above Port of Spain, it was built to provide impregnable fortification against hostile rival colonial powers.

Ross, my husband, grew up on a ridge just below the fort and spent many a summer holiday trekking up the hill with his brothers to look for grapeshot. Among other things, they unearthed a stash of grapeshot (large, rust-encrusted ball bearings used as ammunition), a sword handle and a metal plate. The canons, the dungeon (with its gun barrel bars) and the typical period architecture are well preserved reminders of a different world.

This moth landed on the balcony of the verandah and was quite oblivious to our presence. Look at his patterns. Isn't nature's symmetry beyond amazing? No doubt this is a sophisticated camouflage for a predator and serves our moth well , but that should not take away from the miracle of his design. My friend Geoffrey Gomes, a well known nature guide, once told me that he sometimes goes up to a forested bluff after nightfall, sets up a white sheet in front of a light, and sits back for the show. What comes out of the inky darkness can defy description. Odd things like blue cockroaches. Moths and others insects of all colours and shapes gravitate to the light and land, to be showcased, on the white sheet. At the end of the day, we sometimes forget how lucky we are to live in the rainforest.

This is the view of the mountainside, just beyond the giant mango tree. The abundance of bird and wildlife in these hills is remarkable, a constant reminder that we are really South American in our terrain rather than Caribbean. From the Western end of the fort, there is a clear view over the small island chain that dots its way to the Venezuelan mainland , a mere seven miles away.
TThe children were fascinated by this dungeon (I was a bit as well!). Look closely at the gun barrels that make up the bars. I wonder who made this decision? And how many lonely and frightened men slept here?

Produce

Generally I'm a dry season kind of person. January is our spring. The air is crisp and the sky has a particular blueness that is good for the soul. By the end of December I am usually drowning in humidity and gasping for the dry season. So much so that I forget the richness of our rain. The big fat heavy drops and the rolls of thunder rumbling down the Northern Range. I am glad to see the rain this year. I woke to heavy rain this morning and the murmurs of a satisfied garden. June is the time of mangoes and with the cocoa tree still bearing, I am feeling rather estate-ish. Below is a picture of cocoa as it is off the tree. The creamy sap that cloaks each pod is sweet and mild and rolls around the mouth comfortably. The actual cocoa bean is quite bitter and almost purple in colour. As teenagers we would grate the cocoa pod (i.e. the nubbly skin) put the slimy product in our hair and leave it in all afternoon believing it to be the best conditioner in the world.
With the mangoes turning ripe faster than we can eat them, it is time to make chutney. We will spend most of tomorrow peeling green mangoes and preparing the bottles. It is somehow fitting that the first recipe post that I make should be mango chutney. I use my mother's recipe and it is an old local one that is lovely. Mango Vert generally makes the best chutney but I have Julies which are unbeatable for fresh eating but (according to my mother) are not the first choice for chutney. I made a batch last year and was very happy with the results so we will see what happens this year.

The reason that the cocoa often goes unused is that it is so beautiful on the tree. I leave them so long that the squirrels eventually get to them and enjoy them more than we do.

Market Day

The Central Market on a Saturday morning is amazing. You can get anything from shrimp to plants, curry powder, St Vincent yam and other weird and wonderful things. It can be a bit salty at times but is well worth the entertainment. Visiting the market with a camera can be rather offputting as reactions run the whole gamut. Most people beg to have their picture taken but there are some like the baptist lady who took GREAT umbrage to me taking a photo of her chicken. I had asked permission but apparently requested it of the wrong person. BIG BUFF.
Then there were the odd plastic-y looking things next to the nutmeg and spices. Who would have thought, cow hooves? Hmmm. For what purpose I had to ask. For the obeah women, I was told. I could only think of "chicken lady" and prayed that I had somehow dodged the "cowhoof/chicken" malju that I was sure was directed my way. As usual I came home laden with chataigne, shrimp, fresh tumeric, fat cocoa balls that are about a million calories per serving. My favourite market purchase is always vertiver grass which comes from St Vincent. There really is no smell like it. Vertiver or KhusKhus is traditionally used to line babies' cupboards and the smell takes me back like no other. If you are ever able to visit the Market it is best to go early to get the real cream of the crop. Go into the second building where the dry goods are sold and look for the chutneys, curry powders and real old time red mango. You can also get imported fruit for a much more reasonable rate than the groceries. Just don't take any pictures of chickens.

Flowers in all Forms

Each orchid is a miracle of perfect form and colour. No artist could imagine the colours, patterns and shapes of the orchids of the world. According to my “Tropical Garden Plants” book, there are some 20,000 to 25,000 orchid species, making the orchid family one of the largest clan of flowering plants. Primeval with their beauty and their hothouse fragrances, they sum up the exotic. Whether a spectacular white spray of The Virgin orchid on a towering Samaan or a bright Vanda like the one below, they never fail to delight. Orchids have been popular since the early 19^th century when they were grown in the hot houses of Europe. Seen as highly sophisticated, they were much sought after as a status symbol. In the early collecting frenzy of the 19th century, the most popular orchids were the species orchids, which are indigenous varieties in their natural habitat. Wealthy aristocrats sent scouts out to tropical locations to bring back the prime specimens and highly contested auctions were often held to bid for rare samples. By the end of the century, hybrids had begun to take the place of species orchids. Even today, species varieties are primarily grown by collectors. Orchids have long been associated with the tropics but they can also be found in temperate climates. Most found in the tropics are epiphytes which is to say that even though the structure of the plant consists of roots, stems, leaves and flowers, they are not terrestrial but rather grow on trees or rocks and source their nourishment from rain, dust and debris. While the expression "hothouse orchid" was coined to describe a delicate and frail beauty, the namesake is actually a tough plant which has evolved to thrive in the most inhospitable of places.

Aren't these cakes gorgeous? Wedding cakes are still a big thing here and the making of icing flowers is an art. I was really blown away by the time spent by these two students in creating such fine work. While I was visiting, (Dawn is actually a physical therapist who does work with a laser) I took the opportunity to shoot some of her father's orchids. All in all quite a flower filled morning.

Hayley and Dante

Hayley and Dante have grown up together. He is our de facto baby and is spoilt rotten. He enjoys kisses, being held upside down and lying on my page and blinking at me while I'm reading. His other pet projects are torturing Suzy, our other feline, and lying on his back thinking about the world. Keep an eye out for his blog which should be on line soon,

This is my home. Everyone is having a really lazy morning and just lolling around. Today was Corpus Christi and I didn't plant anything. It's a big tradition here in Trinidad that anything planted today will do very well and the plant shops usually do a booming trade.

My miniature pink banana is about to bloom. If you look closely in the picture you can see the little pink bananas developing. I really like this banana because of its size. Most of the heliconias and bananas tend to get very territorial and march their way across everything in their paths.
It will be a pleasure to grow one that is manageable.
It is too early to photograph them but my Sexy Orange heliconias are right on schedule. They are seasonal, unlike the Sexy Pink and the Sexy Red which bloom all year round. Sexy Orange begins blooming at the beginning of June and runs until about September. I'm just starting to see the tips of the blooms.
I am hoping to have shampoo gingers for the first time this year. I planted them last year and they are quite sturdy and should bloom soon.

My Petrea is dropping all of its flowers. By the time they dry on the tree , they become little airborne helicopters that whiz down to the ground. This particular bunch collected in the leaves of my "She" heliconia which is just below the petreas. My petreas are not spectacular. I think that it must have something to do with the soil. My mother lives in Blue Range which is quite a lush valley and there is a huge difference in her tree. My soil , I suspect, is not rich enough as we are on a slope.

Shower of Gold at UWI 07

Shower of Gold at UWI 07
Originally uploaded by shrn_millar

This is my absolute favourite tree. It is Cassia Fistula commonly known as Shower of Gold and they have been magnificent this year. There is a really outstanding one in the Scouts Headquarters in St Anns.
This particular one I shot late in the evening up at UWI when we were going to hear V.S.Naipaul read so it was part of a very auspicious evening!

Michelles Photos 005

Michelles Photos 005
Originally uploaded by shrn_millar

My friend Michelle Jorsling, who is an amazing professional photographer, shot my coffee tree earlier on this year. She really does justice to it as it was quite unusual to have both berries and flowers at the same time. The blooms sometimes last only 24 hours. They are very strongly scented with a lovely, almost jasmine like smell but much stronger. When they are in bloom my entire garden is fragrant. I can only dream of what a coffee estate up on the Blue Mountains of Jamaica must smell like when in bloom. Heaven.