Published on Saturday, June 21, 2025

By Victoria Torley

We have a small SUV. We used to have a big 4x4 but it broke and no one seems to be able to fix it. So we have a small one.


Yes, the SUV has much better gas mileage, about double what we used to get, and yes, it can carry quite a bit, but Metric Man has some objections. Mostly, he wants it to be clean.


Can you imagine telling a gardener to keep a car clean?


If we had a pickup, he wouldn’t notice the dirt because it wouldn’t be anywhere near the passenger section. Imagine what I could put in a pickup. Why, I could go to La Garita canton in Alajuela province and visit a dozen different viveros. I could come home with small trees and large shrubs and flats of this and that, but we have a small SUV.


If we had a pickup, Metric Man would never notice the odor of manure. I gather my manure myself – after all we have cows in the fields around us and they make plenty of manure. Seems a shame to pay someone for it when you can gather it (properly dressed and gloved) yourself. Throw some of it on the compost heap with the cut grass and veggie scraps or put it in a bag to make compost tea, but no. Metric Man doesn’t want manure in the back of the car. He seems to think it smells funny.


If we had a pickup truck, transporting a small pig would be no problem. Just toss it into the back and drive away. I once put my caretaker’s Easter pig in the back of the old 4x4, which didn’t work out too well. 

Now and then I see a branch by the side of the road with orchids and bromeliads that need new homes covering it. Can I get a big branch into a small SUV? I don’t think so.

Instead, I have to salvage what I can and put it in the trunk. Then, even if I have the plants bagged, the trunk is dirty and I have to get out the vacuum. Or maybe I just toss the plants in the vacant front seat and have to vacuum that. I don’t like to vacuum, it reminds me too much of housework. I don’t like housework.

Well, anyway, we have a lovely car. Metric Man says the ride is smoother than the ride of a pickup. He’s got me there and the gas mileage is great. Score two for him, and he doesn’t mind if I make two trips to the vivero.

Plant for the week. Today, my car carried the Hoya carnosa, commonly called hoya, wax flower, or porcelain flower. Mine came from our local vivero. I love it there. The hoya is a vine with small bouquets of highly fragrant flowers that attract bees and butterflies. Plant on a trellis in sun or partial shade, or try it in a hanging basket on the patio. It’s also easy to propagate from woody cuttings, leaves, and corms.

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Find more interesting stories about gardening in Costa Rica on the AM Costa Rica Garden page. Questions on this article, Ms. Victoria Torley, gardener columnist, can be reached by emailing victoriatorley1@gmail.com
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