**Okra Hibiscus
esculentus
Benefits: I consider okra inedible, but the
dried vegetables are beautiful and make a wonderful dried flower
arrangement with
just a little imagination.
From: Africa
Planting and Care: This is an easy grower in a Caribbean environment.
It seems to require little, but hot sun and sometimes water to thrive
and produce prolific amounts of the vegetable okra. Unfortunately,
I can't bear the slimy quality of the vegetable, but if you can this
is one of the best plants to get started with in your hot climate
garden.
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Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Oleander Nerium
oleander L.
You'll see no stars by this bush; we eradicated every one on the
property as it is too known to us as a California highway bush -- they
are planted everywhere along major highways and roads in California
because they are indestructible. Sadly, they have become popular here
in Montserrat for the same reasons that the California Department of
Transportation chose them -- they can't be killed even by the gardeners
here on island! But, in truth they just aren't that interesting and
I think we can do better.
Benefits and Cautions: Oleanders are producers
of serious allergens, so anyone with a lung disease or plant allergies
will
suffer dreadfully
if an oleander is in the neighborhood and blooming. As well, a
tea made from its leaves is a traditional abortifacient. Indeed
the plant is poisonous and can cause dreadful reactions and death.
From: Far eastern Europe.
Text
Copyrighted ©KO 2008/2010 |
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Olive
Tree Olea with Olea
Europea being the main source of olive oil
These twisted centuries old looking trees need a cool winter and a long hot summer
to produce the olives that are our main source of olive oil. In Greece on the
island of Corfu in areas away from tourism, lands in the center of the island
away from the heavily visited coastal beaches, much of the dry rocky land is
devoted to growing olive trees. Beside winding narrow almost maintained roads,
there are groves of olives -- beautifully shaped trees appropriate to this harsh
environment. Beneath the trees are black carpets of net to catch the falling
fruit (along with leaves, bugs, bird feathers and bird poop). The nets are gathered
up; the contents emptied into the back ends of small pick up trucks which are
driven a short distance to the local oil factory where these olives become a
coveted liquid -- virgin olive oil.
Varieties for eating: Manzanillo, Picholine or
Ascolana.
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ONIONS |
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 Climbing
Onion, Sea Onion Bowiea volubilis, Schizobasopsis
This is a strange little decorative plant that I would not
recommend trying to eat.
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Planting and Care: Plant this strange little
plant in a pot that will reside in the sun or in a semi shady
place. Don't
give it too much water and you can sit back, watch it grow
and wonder at nature's varieties.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Onions
Photographed: On
Hacienda San Buenaventura land by Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
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and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010
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Orange
Tree Variety Unknown
Photographed: In our apartment courtyard in Oaxaca, Mexico.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010
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ORCHIDS
**Ground
Orchid Spathoglottis
plicata or Orchis or Oncidium
We have read that to get the best these plants have to offer, they should
be planted it in the sun where their purple flowers will be a delight. Equally
as often, we have heard that the ground orchid is happiest when it lives in
partial shade in a sweet (limey) soil where it will produce magenta or white
flowers in early summer.
Text Copyrighted ©KO 2004 |
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**Lady
of the Night Brassavola nodosa (Linneaeus)
Lindley
This is a white flowering orchid that is not so showy as to be coveted, but wonderful
in its hardiness and in its habit of blooming frequently.
From: Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean
Text
Copyrighted ©KO 2008 |
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 Orchid
(unknown variety)
This is a plant I bought several years ago at the market in Taxco just before
Christmas, when many villagers from small outlying towns bring plants and mosses
to be used in making creches. I don't know where it came from or what it is
called, but it thrived in a pot on our terrace and flowered regularly.
Photographed: On our apartment terrace in Taxco, Mexico.
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and Photographs Copyrighted ©KO 2008
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**Orchid Brazilovia
This is the orchid that lives in the small tree by our lower vegetable garden.
It was a gift last year so we don’t know if the flowers will be white
or yellow.
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Copyrighted ©KO 2004 |
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Orchid Phalaenopsis
orchid
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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**Orchid
Dendrobium
This is our ever flowering orchid that finds its home in the crook
of our largest mahogany tree. You can’t beat this plant for
its stamina or for its hardiness. It survived the volcanic ash fall
of July 2003 with flying colors. It was blooming the day we arrived
and is still blooming today, six months later. Cut stems last a week
or more.
Photographed: In the crook of our largest mahogany
tree at our home in Montserrat.
Text & Photo Copyrighted ©KO
2004/2010 |
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**Orchid Schomburgkia
We have two varieties. One has a dark purple flowers and thrives in the big
tree closest to the house and the other with an orange-brown flower
lives at the base of the big mahogany tree. Though wonderful in bloom,
the flowers do not last very long.
Photographed: At the base of our largest mahogany
tree at our home in Montserrat.
Text & Photograph Copyrighted ©KO
2004
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**Vanilla
Orchid Vanilla planifolia or Vanilla fragrans
From: Tropical Central America and Mexico.
Planting and Care: This orchid originated in a
moist tropical environment; it likes a semi shady place to grow
and abundant moisture. When also given a humus rich soil, vanilla
will be off and running, growing as much as 100 feet in just a
few years.
For
more information: http://www.faeriesfinest.com/faerie-notes/N001.html
Text
Copyrighted ©KO 2008 |
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Orchid
Mystery 1
This one goes to prove that not all orchids are exquisitely beautiful.
Photographed: In
the Botanical Garden at
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 2
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 3
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 4
Photographed: Growing
in a tree at the lower edge of our property at our home in Montserrat.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010
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Orchid
Mystery 5
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 7
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 10
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photographs Copyrighted ©KO 2010
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Orchid
Mystery 12
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 13
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 14
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 16
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 17
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 20
Photographed: In
the Botanical Garden at
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 21
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 22
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 24
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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Orchid
Mystery 60
Photographed: At
the Hotel Atitlan on Lake Atitlan in Guatemala.
Text
and Photograph Copyrighted ©KO 2010 |
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**Orchid
Tree Bauhinia
spp. or Bauhinia purpurea
This relatively small tree has lovely orchid like flowers and large
light soft green butterfly shaped leaves. It is charming in the
garden and requires very little care.
From: India and China
Planting and Care: Plant this small flowering tree
in full sun in an acid soil with a pH less than 7.5 and it will
zoom to its 25 or 30 feet of height. It is a fast grower and once
settled in, it is a tough tree highly resistant to drought.
Text
Copyrighted ©KO 2008
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Oregano,
Greek Oregano Herb Origanum
heracleoticum or Origanum vulgare syn. Majorana
From all I've read and from all the folks I've talked to in Taxco, Mexico, and
in Tobago, oregano and marjoram are the same thing. I don't really think this
is true, but I don't have anyone nearby to give me an alternative. I do know
that when we cook with Greek oregano it really is a different experience from
cooking with our local marjoram/oregano. Who can imagine living without a fresh
sprig of oregano; not us. We had big pot with a thriving plant in Taxco, but
we gathered from the plant no seeds for our garden in Montserrat. A
wonderful substitute in the Caribbean is local marjoram which tastes almost like
Greek oregano. Spread liberally on a homemade pizza along with fresh basil; it's
an unbeatable combination.
Benefits: Oregano is said to enhance your bodies ability to more effectively
deal with bacterial or viral diseases. As if that weren't enough it also aids
digestion. Inhaling the steam from oregano tea may give you some relief from
a chest cold.
From: The Mediterranean. In 2007
we traveled to Greece, visiting many islands along with the mainland.
Wherever we went I asked about Greek oregano seeds and was always
told that the plant was essentially a weed. It grew everywhere so
no one grew it in their garden and no one saved the seeds. I was
very disheartened.
Photographed: In our banana garden at our home in Montserrat.
Planting and Growth: If you have Greek oregano seeds think
of them as similar to marjoram. Oregano likes a sweet soil (alkaline), full sun
or semi shade
and a reasonable amount of water.
Text and Photo
Copyrighted ©KO 2008 |
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Organic
Foods and Organic Farming
Reasons
for eating organic foods and raising organic produce are evident,
but when the bugs get going all too often it is easy to reach for
the commercial poisons. And, doesn't the idea of not ever having
to weed sound wonderful? Well....here are some reasons you might
want
to put a little more commitment behind your choice to go organic.
This excerpt is from an article on the web that I saw in Yahoo
Shine.
12
Foods That Are Worth the Organic Splurge, Sarah McColl,
Yahoo Shine staff, on Tue Feb 16, 2010
"The
dirty dozen below have the highest levels of pesticides when grown
conventionally. The thin skins on many of them make it easy for
pesticides to penetrate to the food and impossible for us to wash
away the chemicals. Opt for USDA certified organics of these foods
and you're ensuring your salad wasn't raised using man-made chemical
pesticides, fossil fuel- or sewage-based fertilizers or genetically-modified
seeds.
1.
apples
2. sweet bell peppers
3. carrots
4. celery
5. cherries
6. grapes (imported)
7. kale
8. lettuce
9. nectarines
10. peaches
11. pears
12. strawberries" |
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| **Oyster
Plant Please
See the "B" Page -- Boatlily |