Spindalis zena.......REINA MORA POR PRIMERA VEZ

Eso de ver, poder identificar un ave de tal hermosura por primera vez en el entorno urbano, pasados los sesenta de edad, ha sido realmente un viaje impresionante e imborrable.

Hay que agradecer a Juan M. Arias, un compatriota del Caribe que habita en Canada,
su constante interes en la flora/fauna, biodiversidad, ecologia de su entorno, que a diario comparte en FB.  Su influencia me obligo a comprar el libro que hizo possible identificar al ave mencionada arriba, una de las mas hermosas de la region y a observer mas cuidadosamente la biodiversidad flora/fauna en el contexto urbano concreto/asfalto predominante en Santurce.

La rareza de no haber avistado el Spindalis zena, nunca antes, se explica en su habitat: bosques de toda altura y montanhas, de acuerdo a Herbbert A. Raffaele, en Birds of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.

Para terminar, he observado por los ultimos meses, que que tanto aves como insectos tienen sus preferencias, habitos de alimento, lugares para posar, descansar, hacer sus nidos.  Por el momento me limito a las aves. En adicion, que a los canticos de Ruisenhor...que ya no se escuchan....le han seguido los de Pitirre....que no tienen la hermosura de aquel, pero es major que nada.

Chrotophaga ani
Garrapatero

Thevetia peruviana

 

 

Margarops fuscatus
Zorzal

Ochna thomasiana
 

 

Chlrostilbom Maugaeaus
Zumbador

Hibiscus *

Calliandra haemathocephala**

Pseuderantemun reticulatum

 

Coereba flaveola
Reinitas

*

**

 

En el caso de las ultimas, han construido diez
nidos durante el tiempo que llevamos residiendo en la calle Bouret: 3 en el norte en la enredadera Cissus hipoglauca, los demas en el este, y oeste, en Bouganvilleas para un total de diez.

Otros que frecuentan, pero jamas de rama en rama
sino que se posan en el tendido electrico:

Mimus poliglotus
Ruisenhor

Tyrannus dominicensis
Pitirre

Quiscalus niger
Chango

Exhorto a los pajareros, los que observan religiosamente y a los fotografos que hagan el esfuerzo de documentar las aves del entorno urbano, una vez mas.

Aca un enlace con la relacion de vegetacion y aves que frecuentan, habitan o circundan el entorno.

http://noalpendejismopaisajista.blogspot.com/2016/08/sociedad-horticultural-bouret-pajaros.html

 

 

 

 

SOCIEDAD HORTICULTURAL BOURET: PAJAROS DEL ENTORNO URBANO

ESPERE durante una decada que aquellas personas cuyo interes en la avifauna consiste en fotografiar aves que el ciudadano/campesino promedio jamas llegara a ver, en los lejanos jurutungos insulares, montes, costas, playas, mares y oceanos se tomaran la molestia de sentarse en alguna plaza, patio, parque en el contexto urbano, fotografiando, identificando esas aves que son parte de la inmensa mayoria de la poblacion pero no pudo ser....predomina lo otro, las aves de jurutungo, etcetera.

Asi que aqui comparto el comienzo de este proyecto de identificar todo lo que habita o visita nuestro jardin, pero primero el enlace del inventario de la vegetacion en nuestro jardin, el mas documentado del Caribe. 

http://noalpendejismopaisajista.blogspot.com/2016/01/shb-families-botanical-inventory-2016.html



El tema de la avifauna, su estudio no es coconut skin, requiere disciplina, rigurosidad. En mi caso la importancia del jardin, es su relacion con el entorno que me rodea, el urbano.  Lo que colecciono, siembro, propago se decide respecto a la biodiversidad/ecologia/medioambiente, no por capricho.

INVENTARIO MINIMO DE AVIFAUNA EN LA SOCIEDAD HORTICULTURAL BOURET

Tyrannus dominicensis

Margarops fuscatus

 

Cordeiles sundalchii

 

Coereba flaveola puertorricensis *

Lonchura oryzona

 

Chlorostilbon Maugareus

 

Buteo jamaicensis

 

 

Crotophaga ani

 

Columba livia

 

 

Eylampis holosericeus

 

 

 

Orthophyngus cristatus

 

Mimus poliglotos

 

Quisqalus niger

 

Estas aves son las que con mayor frecuencia visitan, se dejan ver muy cerca o a lo lejos en la altura, se escuchan, en ramas de arboles, electrico alambrado o como la que aparece con asterisco. Esta especie ha decidido habitar en nuestro entorno con diez nidos en la ultima decada. La mayoria construidos en ramas de Bouganvillea (7)

(3) en Cissus hypoglauca.

 

Coereba flaveola puertorricensis, es una golosa para las flores, valiente, territorial y en el pasado fui testigo de esto cuando un Eylampis se acerco demasiado mientras un par  de estas disfrutaba del nectar de un arbol difunto.

 

REFERENCIA

 

 

Birds of Puerto Rico and

the Virgin Islands

 

Herbert A. Raffaele

Princeton University Press

1989

 



BOUGANVILLEA SURGERY IN THE NEW SOUTH

AFTER SOME  deliberation, multiple bumps on me head I decided to get rid of this branch for aesthetic, health reasons.  After I started I got a little anxious worried more than necessary about the task.

An hour and 20 minutes later, I was happily done with it. Besides the clean view from either perspective east/west, there is going to be less shade for the plants that have been recently relocated to this corner in the new south.

that is that

A DECADE SHARING A CRITICAL FOCUS IN THE DESERT/OCEAN

I HAVE  taken some photos of the east, north, west side gardens for fun and the kind of feedback one can not get from eyes only at one moment or time. Light makes a powerful difference in any photo of any garden, for example at
9/12/5 PM depending on which cardinal point you are standing, not to get into photograph equipment, something irrelevant to me.  The garden is remarkable or not, period. In me eyes or one or two beyond the enclosure.

I committed the same sins of the average joe/jane six pack in gardening then. Took care of lawns, polluting with noise, fumes, gases, oil/gasoline without thinking of the extreme foolishness of having a garden or working for pay, making life for other flora/fauna and neighbors, miserable or impossible.

However, with constant investigation, research, collecting, planting, propagating and monitoring, I made amends. I decided not to buy plants from silly nurseries selling the exact same crap most gardeners in USA, from Florida and else think is a tropical garden and the owner retards sell in Puerto Rico.

To do that rigorously, consistently, it was necessary to maintain a botanical inventory to know what I have, to share with one or two people so far that have a similar perspective.  

It has been a decade of reading, following blogs, gardening sites in FB, in England, Spain, USA, Australia, India, Mexico and the worst, the isle where I live, Isla Estrella.

In every one of those places the most ignorant people think of a garden as a bunch of flowers in the soil, tomatoes/lettuce, or a pot, a planter.  Much worse is the lack of information on climatic change on one hand, the other is the infantile infatuation with lawns/palm trees.

There is no concept of composition, aesthetics, the flora/fauna in their context urban concrete/asphalt or merely boondocks in the middle of nowhere. Always the same crap from the equally crappy nurseries, no matter latitude/longitude,
geography.

Besides this, there are the edible, medicinal, bromeliads, orchids, roses and you name it freak collectors, forgetting the most simple principle in agriculture...when you have only one species planted in any context without biodiversity, then you have the perfect environment for disease, insect pests.

With 31 botanical families and 60 species there is not such a problem in our garden,http://noalpendejismopaisajista.blogspot.com/2016/01/shb-families-botanical-inventory-2016.html but people have great difficulty to look at the big picture, the environment, the flora/fauna in a biocentric context, not the silly anthropocentric dominating.

Last but not least, I have noticed that no matter the stupid garden or flowers someone his/hers is, the wolf pack will jump to say/write how 'beautiful', 'pretty' the awful photo is...beyond criteria or credentials.  Now I better go...I am worn out.

NEW DK ARRIVALS TO SHB COLLECTION

Usually I do not share photos of creatures in the collection without the botanical name. Let this time be the first.

The yellow flower is a bush/tree that spent almost a decade in a porch without receiving any straight light. It was a present/adoption.

The white flower seems to be some Japanese jasmine, but I will have to research, not sure. Some stems collected during me walks.

The last one is a present from me wife's pedicurist from China, the 'flowers' are cherry red with seeds inside, hard petals, one of the strangest I have seen.

CIUDADELA DESTROYS WHAT SHOULD THEY PAY?

THE 36 Murraya paniculata, planted by some wise, intelligent unknown person in Calle del Parque, Santurce are priceless.

Of the total, 5 in the sidewalk in front of Ciudadela's new 25 stories tower have been damaged by construction workers and scaffold.

Murraya paniculata is one in the top five species  for tropical urban contexts. Their size, shape, flowers, fragrance, beauty, lacking any need for maintenance and above all their age, over 40 years. 

Here is the formula to be used to determine how much Ciudadela should pay for destroying these priceless trees, until you find a better way....

Reference 

 Pirrone's Tree Maintenance

Oxford University Press/2000

Pages 8-11

 

 

Tree Size

 

Tree size is expressed as the number  of square inches calculated for the area of the trunk cross section at 4.5 feet above ground. A price based on cost per unit of trunk area can be determined by calculating the cost per square inch of a transplantable tree. For example, if the cost of a 3-inch diameter tree (cross sectional area of 7 square inches) from the nursery is $300, then

the cost per square inch is about $42.50.  The size based value of a large, 16 inch diameter tree

 (trunk cross section area of 4.5 feet above ground is 201 inches) can be determined by multiplying $42.50 times 201, which computes to $8,545. When trees reach a certain size, additional trunk diameter does not add appreciably to the value, so adjustments need to be made in these calculations.  Also, trees with multiple trunks or low branching require special consideration. These issues are addressed in the guide. The tree value one obtains will need to be adjusted for species condition, and location to make the final appraisal.

 

I am not going to get into,  Tree species, Tree condition and Calculating the Value,  since  Isla Estrella de estatura galactica, Puerto Rico lo hace major, all the above information is irrelevant, meaningless, but for yours truly is an exercise of discipline,  critical, pragmatic, biocentric horticultural practice.

 

Get the book in amazon if you will, you will never regret it..



 

 

 

THE SOUTH SIDE

THE SOUTH SIDE, is narrower than the west and north side gardens, making it one with much more depth with the vegetation in both sides framing it perfectly.

A couple of trees were eliminated for different reasons but  no one can tell the difference...

INDIVIDUALITY IN FRANGIPANIS/PLUMERIAS

I HAVE NOTICED after some time that these trees flower at different times even if in the same urban context, residential, parks, gardens.

Ours are no different the first photo shows the only Frangipani I have seen with seeds every other five years. The flowers remain all the time.

However the following 3 flower in order.  February, March, April...The leaves fall, as the flowers twice a year. 

The cycle is completed with the visit of Seudophinx tetrio, a moth, twice a year. One, weird habit is that those munching in the yellow seem to like only yellow flowers.  And so on..
 The problem with these nice looking caterpillars is that in the absence of leaves, they will munch on the branches...destroying some of the beauty...

At any rate, these trees are among me favorites...Only the first, flowering the whole year, was bought in a nursery, the rest propagated at home...every flower has a different scent...the yellows for example remind yours truly of peaches.

Diseases? Rust...is the only one detected so far in almost a decade...that is that...

AGAVACEAE NORTH & WEST SIDES

YOU probably noticed climatic change in your eco-region/garden, high temperatures and/or drought. Here are some tokens of plants that may be useful in your garden in terms of resistance.

Thick leaves are perhaps your best bet.

Cryptostegia grandiflora FINAL RELOCATION

This vine was originally planted from seed in the north garden for privacy, noise reduction in 2014.  Some time later, I noticed too many  branches  growing mostly towards the next door property.

I decided to relocate it 30 days ago in January 2016.  The task was not as difficult as I thought,
however, I had to cut a great amount of thick roots, the most I have found in this kind of project so far.  A clean cut, with a hand pruner, increases significantly the possibility of survival, fast recuperation.

The need to cut every branch is also a difference from previous relocations, since it leaves the patient in absolute stress, decreasing the possibilities of recuperation, at that point I gave a 55 percent chance of total recovery.

The appearance of leaves 15 days later, gave me lots of joy, since it was the fastest recovery of any tree, vine or bush I have relocated.

Here is now in the east side garden, Cryptostegia grandiflora, with the Antigonon leptopus and a dead Bouganvillea.

WEST SIDE GARDEN FROM THE GROUND AND AIR

OUR GARDEN is really four as in cardinal points, rectangular with a different feeling/atmosphere in each side by the selection of plants in one hand, light exposure and width.

With climatic change some species have been relocated from one side to the other with more shade, but about the same temperature, others have been eliminated.

Some gardeners, the public in general believe this change is a scam, not true.  If you take gardening seriously, be aware, the high temperature increases transpiration tremendously, a problem not solved with irrigation.

Finally, even when some sides of the garden may seem more attractive than others for the beholder, I collect with biodiversity, the urban asphalt/context, other flora/fauna in mind, not just aesthetics.

At one point we had over 115 species, with the botanical inventory available for those interested and my own use.  It is useful to remember what is there and to solve problems of any kind.

The other important aspect of botanical inventories is the opportunity to understand that some species growing  spontaneously in our garden/yard are not as insignificant many may have think as in our previous post: Datura Stramonium.

INVENTORY
http://noalpendejismopaisajista.blogspot.com/2016/01/shb-botanical-inventory-2016.html
 

http://noalpendejismopaisajista.blogspot.com/2016/01/shb-families-botanical-inventory-2016.html

BETWEEN LONDON AND SAN JUAN: DATURA STRAMONIUM

I HAVE BEEN collecting and propagating plants for many years, however, it was not until the last ten years that I became aware through the practice, reading, investigation and research that gardening for lawns, palm trees, the focus on pretty flowers and or aesthetics/history was rather a sterile proposition.

Two books helped tremendously to change my ways:
The Once and Future Forest,  Leslie Jones Sauer, Island Press, 1998.
The Ecocriticism Reader, , Cheryll Glotfelty and Harold Fromm,
University of Georgia Press,1996.

More recently, The Unnofficial Country Side, Richard Mabey, Little Toller Books, 2010,  has given me a lot of pleasure and insight regarding biodiversity and ecology in our environment, urban/asphalt/concrete context, applied to our garden and/or any other garden in terms of focus/perspective, what a garden, landscape and parks should be.

One of the plants in our collection, Datura Stramoniun, is described and discussed:

"Late in 1970, I came across a case not unlike the hogweed scare. I was coming home on  the train one night, and for want of something better to read  picked up a copy of  British's Rail's Rail News that had been abandoned on the carriage floor.. On the news page was this report:

Hard on the heels of the giant hogweed reported in August Rail News, comes another rare and dangerous plant-the thorn- apple.
  It was spotted at New Milton station by retired chemist and local botanist, Bernard Hannan.  He told his next-door neighbor, Llewelyn Trudgeon, one of Waterloo's assistants. 
  The thorn-apple has a strong smell and its flowers are either purple or white. The nasty-looking seed pod is like a horse chestnut with spikes.
  Mr. Trudgeon was told by his botanist friend that the plant was poisonous and contained drugs which produced hallucinations and dilating pupils of the eyes.
  "It is very rare ans was last recorded in this country in 1962,' he added.
  Apparently the drug stramonium, which came from the plant, was once used for the alleviation of asthma. And it is believed wizards in medieval times used it.
  New Milton SM Desmond Mantle was told that the plant was in the station car park and arranged for it to be destroyed.
  After hacking down the 3 ft plant they dug up its roots and burned the lot".

Page 84

The Unnoficial Countryside

 

 

 

"What, then, are thorn-apple's credentials, that might justify it being offered a little more respect?

It was originally a native of Peru, and it was John Gerard who first grew it in  this country, in his garden in Holborn. So delighted was he by its showy trumpet flowers that he dispersed (it) through this land' -  as well as having fun with it in his 'surgery':

 

The juicy of  Thorn-apples boiled with hogs grease to the form of an unguent or salve, cures all inflammations whatsoever, all manner of burnings or scaldings, as well of fire, water, boiling lead, gun-powder, as that which comes by lightning, and that in very short time, as my selfe have found by my daily practise, to my great credit and profit.

The first experience came Colchester, where Mistress Lobel a merchant's wife there being most grievously burned by lightning, and not finding ease or cure in any other thing, by this found helpe

and was perfectly cured when all hope was past, by the report of Mr. William Ram publique Notarie of the said towne."

 

 

Now, it is time to rest. I have only one request, if you have a garden requiring irrigation, gas/oil/propane/electricity...then your garden does nothing to improve the countryside/urban context where you live, therefore, useless, sterile for biodiversity, ecology, landscape and the environment. 

that is that

 

Para quienes practican el asunto

planteado, con algun conocimiento en

Spanish, este solidario/irrefutable argumento

de lo que pretendo, un blog fuera de orbita, consistente en sus argumentos, enfoque/perspectiva . .

http://www.elblogdelatabla.com/2016/02/flora-espontenaea-vs-flora-arvense.html

SHB SPECIES/ FAMILIES BOTANICAL REVISITED INVENTORY 2016

I joined for a short while some group with the name 'society' where I reside, however, there were no gardens, not one, period. Even though, the group complained about the lack of information regarding horticulture in general, within the group there were just isolated plants and irrelevant, useless comments in their company.

Here, for the first time Sociedad Horticultural Bouret, botanical families of most of our collection. I believe a garden, rigorous gardeners should have an available inventory for documentation,  it is helpful for oneself and may  be  to others.

SOCIEDAD HORTICULTURAL BOURET
 FAMILIES AND SPECIES INVENTORY
JULY 2016

 

ACANTHACEAE
Asistacia gangetica
Barleria repens
Dipteracanthus prostratus
Thumbergia erecta
Pseuderantemun reticulatum

 

AGAVACEAE
Dracaena marginata
Sansevieria
 

 

AMARILLIDACEAE
Crinum
Eucharis amazonica
Hymenocallis
Amarillis

 

AMARANTHACEAE
Alternatera brasiliana
Gomphera globosa

 

APOCYNACEAE
Catharanthus roseus
Plumeria rubra

 

ARACEAE
Aglaonema
Alocasia cucculata
Caladium

 

 

 

ASPARAGACEAE
Ophiopogon

ASCLEPIADACEAE
Cryptostegia grandiflora
Hoya 

 

 

CAMPANULACEAE
Hippobroma longiflora

 

COMMELINACEAE
Commelina elegans
Tradescantia pallida,
spathocea

 

CYPARACEAE
Cyperus involucratum

 

EUPHORBIACEAE
Jatropha
Pedilanthus tithymaloides
Euphorbia tirucallis

 

LILIACEAE
Aloe vera
Asparagus densiflorus/setaceum
Gloriosa superba
Hymenocallis

 

LOMARIOPSIDACEAE
Neprolepsis falcata
Microsorum scolopendum

LAMIACEAE
Plectantrus amboinicus

 

MALVACEAE
Hibiscus rosa sinensis
 

 

MALPIGHIACEAE
Malpighia glabra
Tristellateia australasie

 

NYCTAGINACEAE
Mirabilis siciliana
Bouganvillea
 

 

OCHNACEAE
Ochna thomasiana

 

OXALIDACEAE
Oxalis

 

OLEACEAE
Jazminun multiflorum/grandiflorum

 

ORCHIDACEAE
Phalaenopsis
 

 

PIPERACEAE
Peperonia pellucida

PORTULACEAE
Portulaca oleracea


POLYGONACEAE
Coccoloba uvifera
Antigonon leptopus

 

RUTACEAE
Murraya paniculata
 

 

RUBIACEAE
Gardenia augusta

 

URTICACEAE
Pilea serpilea

 

VERBENACEAE
Duranta erecta
 

 

TURNERACEAE
Turnera ulmifolia, subulata
diffusa

 

ZYGOPHYLLACEAE
Guaicum officinale


For Reference
Tropical Hornamentals
W. Arthur Whistler
Timberland Press 2000

Flowers of Puerto Rico
Edwin Miner Sola
Ediciones Servilibros
2008

http://noalpendejismopaisajista.blogspot.com/2016/01/shb-botanical-inventory-2016.html
 

 

SHB BOTANICAL INVENTORY 2016

UPDATING the inventory is a tedious job. However, it helps to focus, prepare for the future when you know what is there in the garden, particularly with the climatic change and coming dry weather and drought to pick plants that will be fine and eliminate those that will not.

Aloe vera
Amarilys
Asystacia gangetica
Asparagus  setaceous/densiflorus
Antigonun leptopus
Alternatera brasiliana
Allocasia cucullata
Aglaonema commutatum
Bryophylum pinnatum
Brunfelsia pausiflora
Barleria repens

Coccoloba uvifera
Cyssus hypoglauca
Capsicum frutenses
Cyperus involucratum

Commelina elegans
Crynum asiaticum
Cryptostegia grandiflora



Dieffenbachia maculata
Duranta erecta
Dipteracanthus prostratum
Dracaena marginata
Euphorbia tirucallis
Epyphillum oxipetalum
Hymenocallis
Hyloceres undatum
Eucharis amazonica
Hoya
Hippobroma longiflora
Hibiscus canabinus/rosa sinensis
Guaicum officinale
Gloriosa superba
Gardenia augusta


Jazminum grandiflorum
Malpighia glabra
Murraya paniculata
Mirabilis siciliana
Neomarica caerulea
Ochna thomasiana
Ophiopogon
Oxalis
Pedilanthus tithymaloides
Pylea serpyllicea
Plectantrus amboinicus
Plumeria rubra/lutea
Poliscias guilfoylei/fruticosa
Phalaenopsis
Pleomeles
Proiphys amboinensis
Pseuderantemum carrutersii
Rhipsalis
Ruellia/brittoniana/tuberosa


Stachytarpetha mutabilis
Sanseveria trifasciata/cilindrica
Scadoxus multiflorum
Cryptostegia grandiflora
Thunbergia erecta
Tradescantia pallida/spathocea
Trimezia martinisensis
Tristelatea australiasiae
Tulbaghia violacea
Turnera ulmifolia/diffusa/subulata
Zamia
Zephyrantes citrine


Another benefit of keeping an updated inventory is knowing those plants you have eliminated for particular reasons or those passing away.  This is vital when you decide to get new ones or decrease the lot.

This may help to realize if you are making mistakes in terms of maintenance, or weather, insects, pests are the culprits.

Attached is the link for the previous inventory, those readers/gardeners into research will notice the difference between then and now.

http://noalpendejismopaisajista.blogspot.com/2014/06/botanical-inventory-2014.html

that is that