Gardens Of The Caribbean

The warm climate and generous rainfall of the Caribbean islands, together with rich soils, provide excellent conditions for growing a great variety of plant life. Columbus discovered that the indigenous peoples of the region were successfully growing an extensive range of plants and crops, and successive settlers of many cultures have introduced their familiar species. There are few places in the world with as great a diversity of plants as found in today`s Caribbean. This book tells the reader how to acheive the best results by learning more about the plants and how to grow them in particular situations. It covers all aspects of Caribbean and tropical gardening. It discusses climate, soils, drainage and irrigation, feeding, pruning and propagation. A chapter on landscape introduces the basics of garden design, and shows what to grow where. The section on plant competitors focuses on pest, disease and weed control in a tropical context. Iris Bannochie won the Gold Medal on three occasions at the Chelsea Flower Show in London, and was awarded the Gold Vietch Memorial Medal by the Royal Horticultural Society in 1977 for her contribution to tropical horticulture.

Whether read in the comfort of an armchair or while actually exploring a particular island, this beautifully illustrated work of reference is an ideal guide both for the professional horticulturist and keen amateur. Written from an historical perspective, the book also gives an up to date description of the indigenous plants peculiar to each island and examines the crucial differences in climate and soil. It also details the origins of the Botanical Garden and its importance in the protection of rare species. A wide selection of gardens is featured which provides a real feel for the diversity of plant life in the region as well as shedding new light on the complexity and beauty of the Caribbean as a whole.

"The continuing struggle to preserve the ecological abundance of the eastern Caribbean is a recurrent theme in this collection of essays on the gardens (both botanical and small holdings) and the forests of such diverse islands as Martinique, St. Vincent, St. Domingue (present Haiti), and Barbados. It pays homage to the indigenous Caribbean people and imported slaves and their descendants, who fashioned gardens in remote jungles to achieve both personal dignity and independence from the slave and post-slave plantation economy. The book's pioneers include botanists and gardeners from many countries, who strove to introduce food crops and medicines to the Caribbean for an ever-growing population, and enlightened local administrators, who tried to prevent the rashes of deforestation and its consequent climate changes wherever they could. This includes, in contemporary times, Dr. Earle Kirby of Kingstown, who has studied and acted on these questions all his life, and in whose honour this book is created. The contributors' essays allow readers to understand the interplay of very local conditions and individual initiatives with larger global dynamics and structures, in order for all interested parties to build the environmental institutions needed to protect this region from growing multi-national exploitation."--BOOK JACKET.

Showing a wide spectrum of West Indies gardens, from a tiny garden in an urban backyard to spectacular places designed by renowned landscapers, this book provides a fascination and passion for tropical gardening with a lively touch and detailed research. The texts are lightly translated to French, making it a bilingual book for a wider audience. The gardens on display here includes the Montreal Gardens on St. Vincent, Diamond Gardens on St. Lucia, and Hunte's Gardens on Barbados. The final chapter demonstrates ideas for flower arrangements using tropical flowers and step-by-step instructions of three flower arrangements done by fine flower designers from Grenada, with their original comments.

Gardening in the Tropics contains a rich Caribbean world in poems offered to readers everywhere. Olive Senior's rich vein of humour can turn wry and then sharp in satire of colour-consciousness, class-consciousness and racism. But her predominant tone is the verbal equivalent of a pair of wide-open arms.

Everything needed to plant a home garden, plus every vegetable, fruit, root grown throughout the tropical latitudes, history, nutrition and homeopathic uses for these fruits and vegetables.