My instant headache

 Pride of Dominica (sabinea carinalis)

I was visiting a nursery earlier this week and discovered this amazing shrub and I had an instant headache! I had to have this plant! My breath got short and my heart was racing as I inquired about it. I was told it was called Pride of Dominica (sabinea carinalis). I found out that it was the national flower of Dominica and was propagated by seed. It grows on rocky scrub land by the seaside  and requires very little care. It is a great plant for drought prone areas. I snapped up two of these and am carefully planning on where I am going to install them. This shrub or small tree grows to about 5-6 ft in height and about 5-6 ft wide. This will make a stunning conversation piece when in bloom.

Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day February 2012

Bougainvilla nursery

  

 

 local orchid that grows wild in trees

 

this species of shaving brush tree (Bombax) is new to me 

 Vanda orchid

 Another local tree orchid, I have some like these and they have never bloomed for me. I wonder what must I be doing wrong?

 Angel's trumpet (Brugmansia) is hallucinogenic

 Hello and a warm welcome to garden bloggers' bloom day where gardeners from around the globe post what is blooming in their garden. For some it is chilly and for us it is hot and dry with some brisk trade winds. Many of the blooms shown here are from  the  open garden program held by our local Horticultural Society. Bloom day is the brainchild of Carol at May dreams gardens. To see more of what is blooming around the world take a short walk over to Carol's.

Happy Valentines and Happy Blooms day.

A day out in the bush

 The group minus Virginia who took this photo, what a rag tag bunch we resembled!

Wild man Terry having some fun, imagine meeting him for the first time in a setting like this!

 Juliette all decked out with her gloves et al.

 I found a palm that is indigenous to Barbados and many of the other Caribbean islands Cocothrinax Barbadensis, so I decided to dig it up with my new fork.

 Well the new fourk became a twork after attempting to dig the palm up!

 Virginia, Terry and myself in front one of the many shallow caves found in this area.

 Juliette joining Virgina and I

 Andrew reflecting on the morbid past in an area known as Negro's Rock. He related a story known to many in that area, about plantation owners during the time of slavery hanging their slaves there. Over time the name has been distorted and vulgarized and is now known as Nigga's Rock. Andrew who hadn't been into the woods for several years was surprised at some of the damage done by Hurricane Tomas two years ago. There were lots of fallen trees and thick underbrush that covered many of the tracks.

 These roots from trees located on the cliff  above have grown down unto the floor of the gully to anchor themselves.

Maiden hair ferns grew naturally on these damp rocks

ferns dotted the floor of the gully

Thunbergia fragans

 Cabbage palms found growing along the stream bed

 

 wild hops Flemingia  strobilifera were plentiful

 Job's tears Coix lacryma-jobi

 This morning I took a trek with some friends to a former dairy farm on Mount Wilton which borders the parishes of St. Thomas and St. Joseph. It is co-owned by Andrew the group's leader and his brother. The farm covers some ninety acres with small sections under cultivation. We trekked into the wooded part of the hilly terrain  and there we found  many species of palms  growing wild; there were  Cabbage palms, MacArthur  palms, Macaw palms with their menacing spikes and the Barbados palm Cocothrinax barbadensis. We came across a plant by the name of job's tears Coix lacryma-jobi that has been used by  indigenous peoples around the globe for centuries in jewelry making. As a child I remember making necklaces and bracelets with its beads. We are planning another trek soon in that same area and I can't wait to see what we might discover.