Published on Friday, February 23, 2024

 

By Victoria Torley

I drove into the clouds.

Where there was a road, it was badly rutted by the rains. Where the road ended, there was mud and gravel but four-wheel drive made it, if not friendly, at least passable.

So, what was I doing in the clouds? I was out looking for plants, of course, especially orchids.

Orchids do not do well on downed trees because the roots are usually firmly attached to the furrowed bark not to the underlying wood. When a tree is down, insects begin their destruction in the bark. Wind and rain take their toll as well and the bark detaches from the branch or trunk and falls to the ground taking the orchid with it.

If an orchid species can be both epiphytic and terrestrial, the plant can survive, but a strictly epiphytic orchid will die from lack of nutrients when separated from its host tree. My mission was to rescue those epiphytic orchids and find them appropriate homes elsewhere.
 
Orchids are not the only plants damaged by rain. Many of the bromeliads fill with water and the extra weight begins to pull them from the tree. Add some nasty winds making the branches smash against each other and you have a recipe for bromeliads hanging from branches or littering the ground.

You don’t have to look far to find something interesting. We have had some minor mudslides up and down the road and they usually take something with them. Ferns often end up in the middle of the road, roots exposed and endangered.

At that point, it is best to gather them up and put them on the roadside or take them home. Replacing them on the slide area itself is often a good option. Just cut the fronds down, dig a small hole and replant them. Ferns are often the first plants to repopulate a slide area so you have started reclamation.

Of course, if the slide area is on your property (we have two) or on the road near your property (we have 3), your very best option is to plant vetiver. Yes, we are back to vetiver. There are few things like it for holding soil in place and it boggles the mind that road crews are not out there replanting slide areas with vetiver and maní.

Does anybody want to explain this to all those folks at the municipality road maintenance department and ICE?



Plant of the week. The vetiver (Chrysopogon zizanioides) is a perennial grass from the Poaceae family whose roots yield an oil used in fragrances. The plant is native to tropical Asia and has spread to the tropics of both hemispheres, where it has escaped cultivation and become a weed in certain areas. It is often cultivated as a hedge and aids in dryland restoration by reducing soil erosion.

Vetiver is a big tufted bunchgrass that grows up to 5 feet tall. The thin leaves and stems stand tall and hard, and the plant produces little brown-purple flowers in long spikes. The aromatic roots grow downward in the earth and can reach depths of over ten feet. The plant is highly drought-resistant.

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Find more amazing stories about gardening in Costa Rica on the Costa Rica Garden website. Regarding questions on this article, Ms. Victoria Torley, gardener columnist, can be reached by emailing victoriatorley1@gmail.com.