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MAHOGANY TREES

** West Indian Mahogany Tree Swietenia mahogani (L.)
Native to the West Indies, the mahogany is now said to be protected in Montserrat, though we are unsure what that means as we see so many cut down. Among several young trees, we have one very tall old tree on our property which truly is the garden's centerpiece as well as being a stunning survivor of the 1989 devastation wrought by Hurricane Hugo. It is a West Indian mahogany which is said to have a better wood grain than the other mahogany on the island which is called Honduran mahogany, but it seems to be much slower growing than its Honduran cousin. West Indian mahogany trees lose their leaves in the spring dry season in April and May, though the old leaves are almost immediately replaced by new growth. The mahogany can be most readily identified by the rounded oval pods at the top of the tree which come from nondescript flowers born in late spring to early summer.
From: The Caribbean and South Florida.
Photographed: In our garden at our home in Montserrat.
Text & Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2008

**Honduran Mahogany Tree Swietenia macrophylla
In our first few years here in Montserrat, we worked hard clearing our land. We got to a final corner two years ago and discovered a lovely, straight as an arrow, mahogany growing in the center of a large nondescript tropical forest area. We cleared all of the less appealing trees and brush and were left with a mahogany about six inches in diameter. That small tree has grown at an enormous rate and is now well over a foot in diameter. In its native environment this tree will grow to be one hundred and fifty feet tall. It is the tree now used for mahogany wood the world over.
Photographed: In our garden at our home in Montserrat.
Text & Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2007

Mamey Sapote Tree, Mamey, Mamey Apple, Manseport (In Montserrat) Mammea americana or Pouteria sapota
The fruit of this large tree are baseball sized with a light brown rough skin. The interior is yellow/orange in color and very sweet. For those of us who have developed an allergy to mangos, this might be a close alternative fruit.
Benefits: Aside from the lovely fruit it bears, many parts of this tree can be used for their natural insecticidal properties. For more information take a look at this website: click here!
From: The Caribbean, Central America and the northern countries of South America
Planting and Care: Growing up to seventy five feet tall, the mammy is a truly tropical tree, hardy in almost all conditions in the tropics, but not at all resistant to COLD. It will do its finest in full sun with routine rainfall or watering.
Text and Photographs Copyrighted ©Krika.com 2008

**Mango Tree (Julie variety) Mangifera indica L.
Here in our garden our mangos bloom most heavily in January with the harvest beginning in May and continuing through August. The trees bloom again in September, but lightly, just enough to give us some fruit in time for Christmas. Mango trees can become huge, up to about ninety feet, but ours are not yet so big.
Benefits: Its leaves make a great yellow dye and are sometimes used for cattle fodder. If you ever wanted to cut one down, you could use the bark for its tannin and the wood for ship building. It should not be used in making charcoal.
According to author David Eric Brussel who wrote Potions, Poisons, and Panaceas: An Ethnobotanical Study of Montserrat, a tea made from the leaves is used “. . . to treat colds, sinus congestion, asthma, coughs, and arthritis. The leaves are chewed to expel intestinal worms. . . . The resin from this tree is said to have anti syphilitic properties. A decoction of the bark or the dried pulverized seed is taken internally for chronic diarrhea.” (p 18)
CAUTION: The mango tree is in the poison ivy family so if you are allergic to one, you may be allergic to the other and this is something to be careful about. After living for years in Mexico mangos became a staple in our diet. BUT, having bought a property in Montserrat with two mango trees I developed an allergy when I harvested the fruit over the several weeks of ripening and peeled and chopped it for the freezer almost every day so we would have mangos all year. At first I became red as if I had a sunburn, then blisters grew on my swelling hands and face. I resisted as long as I could, but after a week or so I finally succumbed to a doctor's prescription for Prednisone as the burning and itching became insupportable. This is a serious allergic reaction and sadly I will probably never be able to eat or touch a mango again.
Diseases and Insects: The most common disease anthracnose is indicated by black spots on the leaves and can be treated with a natural fungicide. As for insects mangos are not bothered too much except for nematodes. Plant marigolds under the tree to repel these nasty critters.
From: Although they are now common in many
parts of the world, mango trees are originally from India.
Fruit: Mangos should be picked when ripe as green fruits do not ripen well. Unfortunately, ripe mangos are very appealing to our garden thrushes.
Photographed: In our garden at our home in Montserrat.
Varieties: It is said by some that the best variety to grow if you are starting fresh is “Bombay” because it is less stringy than other mangos. In Mexico we were enamored of the petecón mango. Here in Montserrat our Julie mangos are already mature so we’ll stick with them, but a tree bearing petecóns would have been a real treat.
Text & Photographs Copyrighted ©Krika.com 2008 and 2009

On the left our mature Julie Mango in full bloom and on the right our young Julie

**Manseport See Mamey above

Mexican Petunia, Mexican Blue Bell Ruellia brittoniana
This long blooming plant and its pretty foliage belie its hardy nature.
Benefits: The sweet flowers on this plant will draw butterflies and hummingbirds.
From: Mexico
Photographed: In the Botanical Garden at the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Planting and Care: Plant it in full sun or in the shade and give it abundant water or keep it dry and it will do just fine. Its flexibility is a real plus and it is very pretty as well.
Text and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010

Mexican Purslane, Moss rose, Perslane, Purslane, Portulaca Portulaca grandiflora
This is a delightful tough ground hugging flowering ground cover. It can handle full sun and comes with flowers in a range of bright Mexican colors.
From: Southern Brazil, Uruguay and northern Argentina
Photographed: On the shore of Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Planting and Care: Planted in poor soil in bright sun, with regular ground level watering these plants will be looking good and in full flower. They are also drought tolerant which is a real plus.
Text and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010

**Mile a Minute, Cardinal Climber, Cupid’s Flower, Cypress Vine, Star of Bethlehem Ipomea quamoclit
This is a lacy delicate trailing vine with small red flowers. It is an annual, but I suspect it will self seed without having to be replanted.
Benefits: This sweet vine is a hummingbird attractant.
Photographed: In our deck garden at our home in Montserrat.
Planting and Growth: I was given seeds and planted them along with some others in a large seed bed. The other plants were up and transplanted to the garden before the mile a minute ever showed up. When it did, I no longer remembered what I had planted, but waited to see what the little plants would turn into. My patience was rewarded as a couple of weeks later they had developed enough so I realized what they were. They will grow best in full sun or semi shade with a medium amount of routine rainfall or watering and will bloom in the tropical summer months of June, July, August and September. You can expect the vines to reach up to fifteen feet in no time at all as the name implies.
Text and Photograph Copyrighted © Krika.com 2009

Morning Glory Vine Ipomoea
This is one of those great garden standbys. They twine themselves around everything and bloom continually with flowers opening every morning. In Mexico they grow wild by the roadsides and are called platos quebrados or broken plates.
From: The Americas
Photographed: In a garden on the bay in Warren, Rhode Island, in the United States on the left. On the right at the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Planting and Care: Pick a sunny spot to plant the seeds and provide routine watering or rainfall to keep them happy. They are fast growing and come with purple, blue (my favorite), pink, red or white flowers.
Text and Photographs Copyrighted ©KO 2009/2010/2011

**Morning Glory Bush Flowering Bush Ipomoea carnea or Ipomoea fistulosa
This soft looking flowering bush growing over 10 feet tall thrives in rough conditions here in Montserrat. It is more beautiful if cared for, but it seems to be one of those plants that has a will of its own to survive and to be stylish while doing so. We had one by the wall just inside our driveway entrance and its three inch lavender flowers were a continual delight. We liked it enough to use it as a hedge. It is fast growing and continually covered with flowers.
From: This glorious flowering bush originated in the tropical areas of the Americas.
Photographed: At our home in Montserrat.
Landscaping ideas: As you can see in the photograph to the right, this flowering bush will make a beautiful informal and carefree hedge. Ours in the photograph replaced a very tall and very old red hibiscus hedge which died while we were away in Greece. Surprisingly on a small island with folks who resist giving compliments, our new hedge has drawn quite a bit of attention.
Planting and Care: Bright sun, not infrequent fertilizing, and routine rainfall or watering will keep this shrub/bush at its best. G
Text & Photographs Copyrighted ©Krika.com 2008/2010

MUSHROOMS

Edible Mushrooms Agaricus
Planting and Care: Mushrooms like a warm, moist and dark environment and monitoring the pH of the growing medium is also important. Given a place to grow with these qualities, mushrooms are said to be a self sustaining crop.
Text Copyrighted ©KO 2008

MUSSAENDA FAMILY

Dwarf Yellow Mussaenda Pseudomussaenda flava or Mussaenda lutea or Mussaenda luteola or Mussaenda glabra or Mussaenda incana
Benefits: This is a butterfly and hummingbird attractant.
From: Tropical Africa or maybe the far east
Planting and Care: This is a small member of this lovely family of plants so choose its place in the garden carefully to show it off at its best. It prefers a bright semi shady area or full sun and a good bit of rainfall or watering. It is not winter hardy.
Text Copyrighted ©KO 2010

Mussaenda Frondosa
This bush struck my eye from all the way across a terrace filled with beautiful plants. It was so striking because of the bright white leaves you can see in detail in the photograph on the right. Surrounding the small flowers and lying against the deep green of the other leaves these white leaves made something almost magical.
Photographed: In the garden of the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010

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