Introduction
THERE IS A LOT OF HISTORY HERE. Floyd and Jane Wray came to South
Florida from Michigan in 1926. They built their house, which is still
here, around 1932. It was actually their weekend home because their
main residence was in Hollywood, Florida about 10 to 12 miles from
here. At that time it was too much of a trip to travel from the orange
groves here to their home in Hollywood every day. So, they would stay
here during the week and go home on weekends. The picked the site for
their house carefully. It sits on higher ground. The house is situated
on an oak hammock which is a whopping 14 feet above sea level. The
surrounding areas are pretty much 3 to 4 feet above sea level.
Click here for more info
Oak Hammock
MANY HAMMOCKS IN FLORIDA ARE COVERED WITH TREES. This hammock has some
open areas. And there is a very good reason. 2 hurricanes have recently
hit the area. Katrina breezed by in 2005 and they were fortunate, they
had limited damage. However, the eye of Hurricane Wilma came very close
to Flamingo Gardens. She came from the southwest part of the state and
built intensity across the Everglades. This is an Oak hammock, which
normally would be well protected, and some areas did hold up well, but
some areas here were planted with tropical trees that are not native
and as a result many of them turned over or blew down.
Click here for more info
Palm Damage
SEVERAL PALMS ARE LEANING WAY OVER. Laura and her crew have been doing
their best to keep the load on the Palm light by keeping the fronds cut
down or reduced. Eventually they'll turn and straighten themselves up.
But, the trunks will always be leaning.
Click here for more info
Champion Trees
THEY STILL HAVE SEVERAL FLORIDA STATE CHAMPION TREES ON THE PROPERTY.
One Joe could get lost in. It is a Ficus racemosa 'Cluster Fig' tree.
It has the largest circumference for a single trunk tree in the state
of Florida. It lost quite a few leaves and branches in the storm and
when one deals with a tree this big one of its small branches is huge.
Click here for more info
Staghorn Fern and Epiphytes
JOE FINDS A PLATYCERIUM BIFURCATUM 'STAGHORN' FERN. Staghorns are great
examples of tropical plants and epiphytes. These are plants that grow
on other plants in warmer climates. Staghorns don't require a lot of
watering, they do need a high humidity situation and warmth. They don't
need a lot of direct light so the shade provided by the Oak trees is a
great compliment for their needs. If they have roots at all the roots
are more designed to anchor themselves to the trunk of the host plant.
Staghorns derive their nutrients from runoff that comes down the trunks
of the trees.
Click here for more info
Heliconias
HELICONIAS ARE ANOTHER EXAMPLE. They are heavy feeders and like a lot
of water. When one takes away the competition from the roots of other
plants and gives them additional light, the flowers do well. This is
exactly what the hurricane damage did. Accordingly, they have some
great specimens at Flamingo Gardens. One of the most common types of
Heliconias they have here in South Florida is the Heliconia caribaea x
bihai 'Jacquinii.' It's one of the upright types of Heliconias. The
bloom actually comes up and grows upright out of the cane. The bract is
the part people find most attractive. The flowers are down in the
bracts thus one doesn't see much of them.
Click here for more info
Take Away
JOE FEELS WE'VE LEARNED MUCH TODAY, a lot of lessons apply to gardeners
everywhere. First we've learned that there is always hope for tomorrow.
Gardens are never a finished product. The hurricane damage we've see in
this garden has given this garden character. Gardens are an evolution,
they're never finished. Even though natural disasters are devastating,
there are things we can do. Nature is resilient but we can add a little
extra care. An example would be the Palm trees that were blown over.
Laura lightened the load of the canopy, supported the front or added a
bolder at the back and the trees have survived. And they are now
unique, they tell us about the history of Flamingo Gardens. We were
reminded that trees aren't arbors although they do coexist with
epiphytes, for example. Don't allow a lot of heavy vines to grow on
trees and weigh them down. Nature is always changing, we can learn to
deal with that change and benefit from that change. It's what makes
gardening fun and exciting.
Click here for more info
LINKS:
Flamingo Gardens
Hyatt Regency Pier Sixty-Six
Complete transcript of the show.
711. Flamingo Gardens
As every gardener knows sooner or later Mother Nature will wreak havoc
on our garden. In this show we visit a garden that has survived several
hurricanes. We take a close look at some of the plants and how they
have adapted after the storm.
We first visit with Nicki Grossman the President of the Greater Ft.
Lauderdale Visitors and Convention Bureau. Nicki tells us the idea for
Ft. Lauderdale started about 100 years ago. As Miami was being
developed as a playground for the rich and famous, Broward County was
developed for people of more modest means, allowing them to enjoy the
same experience. The hospitality industry has grown over the past 100
years. There was a long period of time when college students came here
for spring break. But during the past 20 years the emphasis has been
more on families. Now approximately 10 million people come and enjoy
the area each year. There are 47,000 yachts registered in Broward
County by people that either spend all or part of their time here. It's
called the Venice of America. It's a place where the nation's winter
fruits and vegetables were grown for many years. Now a lot of those
previous farm areas have become gardens. Ft. Lauderdale is a place
where people get a chance to enjoy the outdoors and the beauty that
nature has created year round. Ft. Lauderdale doesn't close down in
wintertime. Nicki says there is room for everyone to come and visit and
welcomes everyone to come and enjoy Ft. Lauderdale.
With cool breezes and bright sunshine it's no wonder that everything
thrives in South Florida. From the peacocks and flamingos to the
beautiful trees and plants. In this show we visit Flamingo Gardens and
the Director of Horticulture, Laura Tooley.
Laura grew up gardening and loved it. Her mother would send her outside
to put Epsom salts on Coconut Palms. She knew that this was something
she wanted to do. She went to college and studied horticulture. It was
there that she realized why she had been putting Epsom Salts on the
Palms. As well, she learned why soils require different fertilizers.
After graduating she put her degree to work maintaining her 150 acre
college campus. She worked there for 7 years, then came to Flamingo
Gardens almost 11 years ago. She started here as Director of
Horticulture and has found it an interesting task overseeing so many
different collections that had been developed over the years by many
different directors. Their interests are shown in all the different
parts of the garden. They have a lot of land but a limited staff.
Flamingo Gardens has approximately 65 acres overall. And there are only
3 gardeners, 1 irrigation person and 1 nursery person.
THERE IS A LOT OF HISTORY HERE. Floyd and Jane Wray came to South
Florida from Michigan in 1926. They built their house, which is still
here, around 1932. It was actually their weekend home because their
main residence was in Hollywood, Florida about 10 to 12 miles from
here. At that time it was too much of a trip to travel from the orange
groves here to their home in Hollywood every day. So, they would stay
here during the week and go home on weekends. The picked the site for
their house carefully. It sits on higher ground. The house is situated
on an oak hammock which is a whopping 14 feet above sea level. The
surrounding areas are pretty much 3 to 4 feet above sea level. They're
close to the water table in this part of Florida. So the 14 feet is an
amazing elevation for most parts of south Florida and it is well
drained, thus not prone to floods. The house is very well protected by
native Oak trees.
The 14 feet difference in elevation makes a big difference in what will
grow versus what grows closer to the water table. A lot of Palms and
other plants can establish a deep root system whereas in the lower
elevations the roots will stay shallower because the ground is soft and
the plants don't like wet feet.
The Wray's grew citrus on this land as a business. Citrus groves at
that time were in the lowlands which were eventually drained of most of
the water. It was swampland but the organic soils were very good and
citrus did very well here. The Wray's had upwards of 500 acres at one
point.
This property has some diverse conditions. For example it has both
alkaline and acidic soil. Most of South Florida has alkaline soil. Here
they're fortunate they have very rich, organic soil in the lowlands and
a terrific acidic sandy soil, which is most helpful for drainage
purposes, in the highlands.
Joe and Laura first look at the elevated area. We see the soil is
sandy, but it is also acidic with a lot of organics in it. Although
unusual for South Florida it is great soil to work with. Normally sandy
soil is the kiss of death because it doesn't hold nutrients and it
doesn't hold moisture. Here with the breakdown of the organic material
working into the soil one gets the acidity plus better drainage.
Drainage is always an issue in South Florida. With sand acidity makes a
huge difference in its ability to take up nutrients. Since its a very
deep soil it is helpful for the larger trees that need a deep root
system. When they go down about 14 feet before they hit the water
table, they're happy to grab hold
Top
Oak Hammock
MANY HAMMOCKS IN FLORIDA ARE COVERED WITH TREES. This hammock has some
open areas. And there is a very good reason. 2 hurricanes have recently
hit the area. Katrina breezed by in 2005 and they were fortunate, they
had limited damage. However, the eye of Hurricane Wilma came very close
to Flamingo Gardens. She came from the southwest part of the state and
built intensity across the Everglades. This is an Oak hammock, which
normally would be well protected, and some areas did hold up well, but
some areas here were planted with tropical trees that are not native
and as a result many of them turned over or blew down. They had 12 feet
of debris piled up after Hurricane Wilma came through in 2005. To
compound the problem, Wilma came late in the season, in October. Their
first cold front came in 2 days later so things didn't really have a
chance to re-grow right away. However, on a positive note, this meant
they had a chance to start over with some new opportunities. Thus, it's
been an interesting progression of events since the hurricanes.
Top
Palm Damage
Laura and Joe look at some of those examples. SEVERAL PALMS ARE LEANING
WAY OVER. Laura and her crew have been doing their best to keep the
load on the Palm light by keeping the fronds cut down or reduced.
Eventually they'll turn and straighten themselves up. But, the trunks
will always be leaning. They do make for interesting conversation, they
tell the story of what happened here.
Another Palm is also leaning. Again they did the same thing, they kept
the fronds short but didn't remove them completely. By doing this it
gave them a chance to start making a turn back upright. Here they
cheated a little by putting a bolder on top of the root ball to pin it
in place. Another option might have been to support the trunk with a 2
by 6 or a wooden teepee to provide support until the tree recovers.
This tree is starting to recover because everything is now growing in
the right direction.
Laura has noticed the hardwood trees have an amazing capacity to adapt.
The Oaks, for example, lost every twig, small branch, every single leaf
was gone but the structure was sound. Some large limbs were lost but
the trees were left standing.
Most of the tropical trees, those that were not native, blew over but
they continued growing, even with only half the roots in the ground.
They started turning up just like the Palms. Whether they make a decent
tree in the future is another question. Even in some instances new
growth started from the exposed roots. Half the root ball was in the
ground but it didn't stop the tree. It just kept growing.
They next look at one of their champions that was lost in Hurricane
Donna in 1960. The whole thing blew over. If one looks carefully one
can see the roots of the tree have completely covered over. On one side
is a big hole which originally was the trunk. It lived and adapted.
Top
Champion Trees
THEY STILL HAVE SEVERAL FLORIDA STATE CHAMPION TREES ON THE PROPERTY.
One Joe could get lost in. It is a Ficus racemosa 'Cluster Fig' tree.
It has the largest circumference for a single trunk tree in the state
of Florida. It lost quite a few leaves and branches in the storm and
when one deals with a tree this big one of its small branches is huge.
The Ear Pod tree lost all of its leaves and a significant number of
limbs 40 to 60 feet in the air which makes it very interesting getting
it pruned and getting the limbs and the hangers, as they were, cut out
of the tree. But it too has survived.
The Khaya ivorensis 'African Mahogany' is another champion. It's a very
fast grower. Although it's a Mahogany it does not have great timber
wood and is prone to breakage. But it covers up its wounds quickly.
Champions are champions because they can withstand the good times and
the bad and are still standing today.
The tropical Corylus Americana 'Hazelnut' tree had a canopy twice as
large as it is now. The hurricane reduced its canopy but it is still
extremely tall, roughly 80 feet tall and is still a significant
champion.
When referring to a champion one isn't talking about a trees height
compared to every plant in the plant kingdom. They're being compared to
height relative to its own species. Some of the trees discussed are
huge, huge trees. The Parmentiera cereifera 'Panama candle' is a much
smaller tree. But for the species this is a huge tree. And unusual
looking, the seedpods are dramatic.
Top
Staghorn Fern and Epiphytes
JOE FINDS A PLATYCERIUM BIFURCATUM 'STAGHORN' FERN. Staghorns are great
examples of tropical plants and epiphytes. These are plants that grow
on other plants in warmer climates. Staghorns don't require a lot of
watering, they do need a high humidity situation and warmth. They don't
need a lot of direct light so the shade provided by the Oak trees is a
great compliment for their needs. If they have roots at all the roots
are more designed to anchor themselves to the trunk of the host plant.
Staghorns derive their nutrients from runoff that comes down the trunks
of the trees. Most of their moisture is absorbed through their leaves.
In most parts of the country a greenhouse is a perfect environment for
plants like the Staghorn. But most don't have a greenhouse. Many of us
do, however, have an environment in our home that is similar. One needs
3 things to grow houseplants indoors successfully. One is high
humidity, the next is bright light and the third is warm temperatures.
Typically our indoor environment has low humidity. Our bathrooms are a
place in our house where we have at least 2 of those conditions-heat
and humidity. If you have a good light situation there you then have
the 3rd needed condition.
Bromeliaceae "Tillandsia' is a tillandsia that is a epiphyte and native
to Florida. It is often started by a seed blowing in, it might become
lodged and then roots. Once the mother plant flowers she'll send off
seeds again but additionally it will pop at the base, which is the
habit of Bromeliads. Once they bloom they send out sprouts from the
base and occasionally from the top, like a pineapple. It's a survival
mechanism and an important one. Because once the mother plant dies, it
flowers.
Joe likes the way nature works. One can have a tree, a branch
structure, then add extra punch by putting in an epiphyte such as a
Staghorn Fern or even Orchids. And there are some beautiful Orchids,
Ochhidaceae, here. They have Dendrobiums, pink, white, purple, all
colors of Orchids in the trees and they make the ultimate tropical
statement. There is a potential downside to epiphytes or other plants
growing in trees. Laura noticed that during hurricanes the primary
reason for tree failure was from night blooming cactus that were
allowed to grow up into the trees. The extra water weight totally
changed the aerodynamics of the tree and its ability to withstand winds
and the hurricane. At home we may not have night blooming cactus
growing in our trees but if we allow vines to grow up and out of
control we run the same risk, we set ourselves up for potential
failure. So keep an eye on vines growing up your trees.
Top
Heliconias
The hurricanes have devastated and decimated parts of the area. But,
some things have responded tremendously to the advantages of more light
and less canopy. Heliconiaceae is a great flower and popular with
florists. It is the ultimate tropical flower and will last weeks in a
vase. It's related to the banana so it comes from the herbaceous plant.
It has very interesting characteristics and there many varieties, much
like the rose. HELICONIAS ARE ANOTHER EXAMPLE. They are heavy feeders
and like a lot of water. When one takes away the competition from the
roots of other plants and gives them additional light, the flowers do
well. This is exactly what the hurricane damage did. Accordingly, they
have some great specimens at Flamingo Gardens. One of the most common
types of Heliconias they have here in South Florida is the Heliconia
caribaea x bihai 'Jacquinii.' It's one of the upright types of
Heliconias. The bloom actually comes up and grows upright out of the
cane. The bract is the part people find most attractive. The flowers
are down in the bracts thus one doesn't see much of them. Another
upright Heliconia is the Heliconia Caribaea 'Cristwick' which has deep
red bracts with a little yellow lip at the top with a little splash of
white. It doesn't have as many different colorations as the Jacquinii
but it does get a very large bloom. One of the pendulum varieties of
Heliconias is Heliconia rostrata 'Lobster Claw.' And it looks like a
lobster claw. The bracts hold the flowers on top. Another that is more
unusual, the Metusiana has a bit of a twist and a more open bract and
doesn't have the typical lobster claw bract.
Costus barbatus is a close relative of the Heliconia. It's a type of
Ginger and is called a Spiral Ginger. When looking at the base of the
cane it has a spiraling effect. The underside of the leaf has a
wonderful pubescence. It feels like lambs ear, is very soft and has a
tremendous bloom. They came through the hurricanes well. Within one
season they were back to normal, blooming better than ever. The bracts
are a colorful red and the flowers are yellow. There are many types of
Gingers. One is called Zingiber spectable 'Beehive Ginger.' Its a neat
plant, the flower is waxy, it doesn't flower a lot but the bracts hold
the flowers and the cone looks waxy and holds up well as a cut flower.
And it looks like a beehive. Another is Curcuma alismatifolia 'Siam
Tulip Ginger.' The blooms come directly from the ground, they
eventually open up and have a beautiful red bloom with lots of little
yellow flowers on the inside. It looks like a tulip. It is a great
option for people in this area that can't grow tulips. It comes out in
the springtime, just like Tulips up north.
Top
Take Away
JOE FEELS WE'VE LEARNED MUCH TODAY, a lot of lessons apply to gardeners
everywhere. First we've learned that there is always hope for tomorrow.
Gardens are never a finished product. The hurricane damage we've see in
this garden has given this garden character. Gardens are an evolution,
they're never finished. Even though natural disasters are devastating,
there are things we can do. Nature is resilient but we can add a little
extra care. An example would be the Palm trees that were blown over.
Laura lightened the load of the canopy, supported the front or added a
bolder at the back and the trees have survived. And they are now
unique, they tell us about the history of Flamingo Gardens. We were
reminded that trees aren't arbors although they do coexist with
epiphytes, for example. Don't allow a lot of heavy vines to grow on
trees and weigh them down. Nature is always changing, we can learn to
deal with that change and benefit from that change. It's what makes
gardening fun and exciting.
We've learned a lot and Joe thanks Laura for the lessons. Flamingo
Gardens has been a great learning experience.
Top
LINKS:
Flamingo Gardens
Hyatt Regency Pier Sixty-Six
