Galingale See The "P" Page PALMS, Umbrella Palm

GARDENING IN THE TROPICS

Surprisingly, a tropical climate is the most difficult environment in which I have ever had a garden. And, I have been gardening since I was a youngster growing up in Rhode Island, a tiny coastal state in New England, the most northeastern part of the United States. As an adult I have had beautiful and very productive gardens in Rhode Island, Washington, D.C., and in Taxco, Mexico.

Gardening on the Caribbean island of Montserrat has proved my greatest challenge. Instead of being the garden of Eden I envisaged when we bought our property, it challenges everything I know. It seems that every gardener arriving to live in Montserrat does so with the same enthusiasm and unbridled hope as I did; here it is sunny and warm year round and there are many months of rain -- what a garden I will have!

When we bought our property in Montserrat in the West Indies several years ago, I fell in love with the overgrown garden, the views and the national park that lies behind the property. The house was comfortable and the pool was lovely, but the garden was not exactly as it appeared. In the garden, the first two inches or so of the soil was pure volcanic ash, a fine grained powdery cement-like material. Below that, we found about two inches of rock hard barren generic dirt and rocks and below that we found even harder clay. None of our familiar garden tools were up to the job of dealing with the ground so we turned to the local favorite, a mattock. The mattock redefines what you may think of as a "pick." I can barely lift it and by the time I've carried it to the garden I am exhausted and there the tool lies till tomorrow.

With my over riding gardening optimism and my husband's desire to make me happy, we dug out a fifteen by fifteen foot garden the first year and I began to enhance the soil -- making good dirt is one of my passions. We have now been here for several years and often when local farmers come by delivering produce that we don't grow, we'll hear comments like, "Look at that fat soil." Fat soil is prized here in Montserrat as the best place to grow vegetables.

CARIBBEAN OR TROPICAL GARDENING HINTS

Gardening by the Moon

Listening to local farmers and asking many questions we have learned that planting by the moon is a Montserratian traditional practice.

New moon to the Full moon
Sow seeds and transplant seedlings

Full moon to the New moon
Cultivate the soil, weed and harvest

New Moon to the First Quarter
Plant above ground plants including flowering annuals

First Quarter to the Full Moon
Sow the seeds of above ground plants

Full Moon to the Last Quarter
Plant root crops, bulbs, perennials and biennials

Last Quarter
Turn over the soil, but do not plant

Soil pH

The sweetness (alkalinity) or acidty of your soil will affect the health and productivity of your garden plants. A pH on the sweet side is normally considered beneficial for most vegetables. Gardeners routinely apply agricultural lime to sweeten the soil before planting. Here in Montserrat there is no lime available so farmers tend to use wood ashes or nothing at all. This has a decided impact on the quality and quantity of vegetables that are produced here. The pH scale runs from 0 to 14 with 7 being just about neutral. Numbers above 7 are alkaline and below 7 are acid.

Summer vs Winter Planting in the Tropics

One of the most important things I have learned (finally) is that the most successful vegetable gardens are planted to be harvested in the winter. Here in the Caribbean, summer is a time for letting the garden rest -- with very few exceptions. Mung beans, yellow/orange sweet potatoes and..... I'd love to hear if you have had real success planting other crops.

GARDENIAS

Gardenia #1 Gardenia augusta
This the most wonderful flowering bush I've ever met. It has deep green 2 to 3" shiny leaves and bright creamy white flowers that smell like heaven. I've had them as house plants in Boston, Massachusetts, Providence, Rhode Island, Washington, D.C., and outside in gardens in Oaxaca and Taxco, Mexico. This variety prefers a neutral to acid soil and light shade when planted outside. As houseplants they'll do well in a sunny window with regular misting. They do not like dry air.
Text Copyrighted © KO 2008

**Garlic Herb Allium sativum L.
Planting and Growth: Buy a nice looking head of garlic and let it age naturally on the shelf outside of the sun until it begins to sprout. Break apart the head into its cloves and fill an 8" wide 6" deep pot with good soil. Push the individual cloves into the soil until only the head remains visible. Water and place in the sun. With regular sun and water you’ll not only have lovely plants, you’ll have leaves that you can add to salads and eventually new heads of garlic. This method worked fine when I was planting in pots, but when I turned to planting in the garden I had very disappointing results.
This is an alternate planting method I found. Take a fresh head of garlic and break it apart into cloves. Soak them for two hours in water with a heaping tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda which is said to neutralize fungus. Drain the water and remove the skins. Next soak the cloves in alcohol a few minutes and plant immediately about 3" deep.
Benefits: An anti-oxidant, garlic is also rich in sulfur compounds, it is a stimulant to the immune system, it lowers blood pressure, cholesterol and triglyceride levels, as well as reduces the blood's tendency to clot. It is also a natural antibiotic and it contains selenium, an essential amino acid. Text Copyrighted © KO 2007

Geiger Tree See The "C" Page Cordia Tree

Geranium Pelargonium sp.
A geranium always seemed the preferred plant of people who had no interest in plants or in gardening. The geranium performed the function of having a colorful and green bush at the front door during summer. In the fall, a planter of chrysanthemums fulfilled the same function. In the northeastern United States, the chrysanthemums were followed by a big pumpkin.
Having lived in Mexico and recently traveled in Greece, I gained a new respect for geraniums. I had some growing nicely a couple of years ago until we began having routine acid rain and then ashing and acid rain from the Soufriere volcano here in Montserrat. Plants with shiny tough leaves handle ash and acid rain rather well, plants with hairy leaves like geraniums and tomatoes suffer greatly or die right away when exposed.
Planting and Growth: This tough flowering plant prefers neutral soil, full sun and relatively dry conditions to be at its happiest.
Text Copyrighted © KO 2007

**Geranium Tree See The "C" Page Cordia Tree

**Giant Yucca See The "Y" Page YUCCA - Spineless Yucca

GINGER

**Cardomon dwarf shell ginger Elettaria cardamomun
This is an attractive non-flowering type of ginger that grows to be about three feet tall. It does fine in a shady environment, though I think it would like a little sun.
Text Copyrighted © KO 2007

**Ginger (edible flavoring) Zingiber officinale
Originating in Southeast Asia, this ginger grows two to three feet tall in a beautiful plant that looks much like a dwarf bamboo. It likes a lot of water and partial shade. Ginger is related to tumeric, another great spice from India.
Planting and Growth: Soak a perfect root overnight and plant just under the soil with the buds facing up in a wind free and lightly shaded spot in your garden and water regularly. Ginger is a heavy feeder which quickly uses up the soil, so plan on using fertilizer or a rich organic soil for best results.
Harvesting: At any time feel free to cut stalks and use the stems. When the leaves begin to die back after nine or ten months it is ready for harvesting. Dig out the roots and after washing them well, dry them for two to three weeks. Root crops should not be planted for two years where ginger has grown.
Benefits: Drinking ginger tea will help with indigestion and tossing a bit into beans is said to reduce gas. Nausea and morning sickness may also respond well to a ginger tea.
Recipe for Ginger Tea: Peel and thinly slice a thumb sized piece of ginger root. Place in a two quart pan with one quart of water and two cups of sugar. Heat covered and keep at a slow simmer for about one half hour. This will produce a ginger syrup which should be refrigerated. Use the syrup to make cold ginger drinks in a fifty/fifty mix using either purified water or carbonated water to make a ginger soda. The syrup will last one week in a cold refrigerator.
Text Copyrighted © KO 2007

**Kahili Ginger Hedychium gardnerianum
We found this plant in an area of the property that had long ago gone back to being a truly untamed tropical garden. The kahili looked much like a spathphylum plant I'd had years ago so I transplanted it to see what it would do. Not much was the answer for a few years and then suddenly it flowered with very muted colors and very unflower like flowers that did in the end have a strange appeal.
Planting and Care: This type of ginger like so many of the others seems to prefer a semi shady area with bright light and routine rainfall or watering. It should be planted where its foliage will be the highlight rather than its infrequent and unusual flowers.
Text and Photographs Copyrighted © Krika.com 2008

**Shell ginger Alpinia zerumbet
This large variety of ginger will grow to about nine feet when planted in its preferred partial shade and given adequate water. It is a tough plant; ours survived a recent drought with no watering as we were away for several months. Its sturdiness is wonderful, but its flowers are the real reason to have it in your garden. They are lovely!
Planting and care: Shell ginger loves water and will do well in a sunny to semi shady setting flowering usually in the spring. It should be fertilized about twice a year.
Text Copyrighted © KO 2007

**Spiral Ginger, Crape Ginger, Crepe Ginger Costus speciosus
From: Tropical Asia
Planting and Care: This lovely spiral stemmed ginger well situated will grow to about six feet tall and will have lots of lovely flowers and the foliage all by itself is very attractive. It will grow best in a bright semi shady area with routine rainfall or watering.
Text and Photo Copyrighted © KO 2008

Ginger Lily Alpinia purpurata
Lost to the volcanic eruption 7/03. A native of Malaya, it blooms most of the year.
Text Copyrighted © KO 2004

Glue Berries Tree See The "C" Page CLAMMY CHERRY TREE

**Goat Horn Tree
Goat horn is a meddlesome tree that resists elimination; cut it back and it simply grows again. It has sharp thorns and seems to find ideal growing conditions, right within the root base of some of your favorite plants and trees. Its only saving grace apparently it that once mature it can be used in making charcoal.
Text Copyrighted © KO 2007

**Grass See The "Z" Page ZOIZIER

Great Morinda See The "N" Page NONI

Greek Akanthos See The "B" Page BEAR'S BREACH

Greek Oregano See The "O" Page OREGANO

**Green Beans See The "B" Page BEANS

Green Peas See The "P" Page PEAS

**Green Peppers See The "P" Page PEPPERS

Groundleaf, Sea Grape, Tin Roof Tree Coccoloba pubescens
This is a common tree in the Caribbean growing in full sun or semi shade with no care. It is small with very large round rough leaves. We had a few of them in the garden, but to us they seemed to fall into the "weed tree" category so we had them removed.
Text Copyrighted © KO 2008

**Groundnuts See The "P" Page PEANUTS

**Ground Orchid See The "O" Page ORCHIDS

**Guava Tree Psidium guajava L.
Growing to between twenty and thirty feet tall, the guava gives us not only its delicious fruit, but many curatives as well. We had a lovely guava tree in our Taxco garden which required absolutely no care and annually gave us bushels of fruit. That was a tree after my own heart! Here in Montserrat, in an area called St. George's Hill, there are beautiful groves of guava trees. We were able to visit that area of the island a few years ago when it was not included in the volcano exclusion zone. Sadly, St. George's Hill is now off limits to all of us for the foreseeable future.
Benefits:
1. Its leaves and bark may be steeped as a tea to treat diarrhea.
2. Guavas are very high in vitamin C, much higher than oranges, and they are a good source of vitamin A.
3. To treat colds and inflammation of the legs, blend peeled guavas with orange juice and strain for a delicious and hopefully helpful drink.
4. To treat itchy insect bites, crush guava leaves and apply to the bite.
From: Florida, Mexico through Central America and the West Indies
Planting and Care: This very pretty tree is known to be a heavy feeding fast grower, producing its wonderful fruit in its second or third year. The guava grows best in full sun in a warm and sheltered setting with a rich moist soil that is more alkaline than acidic (a pH of 5 to 7). It will also give its best if you provide a generous amount of fertilizer on a regular basis.
Text Copyrighted © KO 2007
For more information see http://www.crfg.org/pubs/ff/guava.html