THE FICUS POST

I DO NOT KNOW   when it started.  Judging from the excessive amount of dying Ficus benjamina in Parque Luis Munhoz Rivera in San Juan, I will take a wild guess: 1920.  I could be earlier, but that is when the planting Ficus of any type epidemic infected the Puuertorican minds or whatever is they carry in that head cavity.

The Everest of stupidity in landscape installation and maintenance is planting Ficus of any kind for hedges. I have denounced this practice with all the humble, kind, abrasiveness and bluntness I was capable of in the past.  Edwin Gonzalez Bauza, an agronomist, took it so personally that created:
econuco.blogspot.com, to counter attack my irrefutable arguments. By the way, the blog was a still borne. You could reach him at www.gramaslindas.com, if interested. 

I contacted the retarded above, to comment on a picture in their gramaslindas site showing leaves of grass cut with a dull blade or trimmer. The picture is still around. 

BACK IN THE STUDIO

The justifying issue with Ficus of any kind, it is similar the reasoning about the gastronomy in  BK, KFC or Mickey Dee, they are killing people, particularly the morbid obese, some of these monsters can we observed in Total Transformation.  But amazingly they junk fans,  ALL have a reason to justify their non stop eating of the wrong foods and lack of exercise.

The people in landscape, architects of the pendejismo paisajista school, and residence owners plant them Ficus alone or as in hedges with their reasons.  When alone, these species destroy sidewalks, gutters, all water pipes, any pavement in brief.

Imagine trying to keep one of these monster trees as an eight/ten feet hedge? Well, that is custom and use down here.

But NO ONE seem to notice, or care.  Only Antigonum or yours truly.

Almost forgot, if you live in Pueto Rico I invite you to visit the sterile/dull/ugly, Minillas Government Center. These stars in the post are planted in a mass grave like concrete circular hole around twenty feet below ground level. I am referring to those embracing the concrete to death.  Just like those temples in Thailand or Guatemala are strangled by criminal trees..

But if you observe carefully there is also a row planted on ground level, to leave no doubt as to the stupidity of the architects, contractors and government officials. Instead of fifteen Ficus in hole and ground level, a total of FIVE would have been enough, considering their canopy can reach fifty feet wide, in the worst scenario, imagine ten in less than four hundred square meters!

DISCLAIMER

Let the record show that I do not question the beauty, aesthetics of any Ficus planted in great open spaces anywhere in the tropics, the right context.  Like the hemorrhage of palms in Puerto Rico, the epidemic of Ficus should be STOPPED now by law.

Or provide a stiff  fine to  anyone responsible whose Ficus destroys public or private property on ground or below ground, including government agencies.

that is that.

apago i me voy.

PITHELOBIUM PLUS POST

I thought that no one would mind if I present  other photos with the subject. After all, I only learned about Pithelobiums five years ago when I moved to Santurce  No one knew the botanical.


The first Pithelobium I recall, not in these posts, caught my attention for the majestic projection even growing in the wrong place. It may still be,  in Tapia street and Eduardo Conde avenue.  It was not the beauty presented here, but it shows some character. Guama americano is the popular name.  

Here are some of the best I have seen. They happen to be triplets, I did not pay attention to the third previously. Two in the median, one south sidewalk of Baldorioty the Castro Avenue, near by Diez de Andino street.

As time goes by, I am more convinced there is no better tree for big spaces in the San Juan Metro Area. Tolerating  no maintenance or the custom/use wrong ones,  hot, surrounded by concrete, asphalt, fumes and salty breeze. 

The tens of dying Ficus in Parque Luis Munhoz Rivera, and the hundreds of abused Ficus species planted in public areas should be replaced with Pithelobiums. The  ones shown create no problems with their root or branch system. It is incredible, that no juan has ever noticed them.

THE PITHELOBIUM POST

THE BIGGEST  seeds one could find in the tropics are Cocos nucifera and Barringtonia asiatica..But in our guest of honor case, Pithelobium dulce, the seeds are about a quarter of an inch long.


Also known a Guama americano among the non initiated, has captivated your humble servant with this powerful architecture, umbrella like canopy. It is totally unknown, disrespected, underestimated, monumental tree. Why?


It grows where it wants, dispersed by wind, birds eating it sweet pod insides, almost like a weed.  Surely it does not interest those fools I am mocking constantly. It will not provide profits since it is found in streets, sidewalks, highway medians, concrete cracks.  But when these seeds  fall in an adequate spot it is impressive, as these pictures show.

Some people, without any planting, collecting or propagating, researching skills and without consulting with yours truly, went ahead and declared Thespesia grandiflora as the national flower.
Let the record show, I believe it was a stupid decision. What were the judges credentials? What were they thinking?  At any rate, Thespesia populnea has a much better attractive flower and it is resistant to salt water.

I declare Pithelobium dulce 

a patrimony of Puerto Rico 

and the Caribbean.

  I have the credentials.  

Dario apaga la luz.

REMEMBERING THE FUTURE

DURING the nineties while living in New York,  I had the opportunity to practice the skills learned while working as an editor, proofreader, copy/paste,  at a now defunct regional newspaper, LA SEMANA.

The illustrations were samples from magazines and newspapers. The magazine, the whole 3 issues, black and white typewriting paper, printed in an electrical Smith-Corona, with the assistance of Gladys Munhiz.


I want to thank Tito Collazo, graphic artist, from Espiral Inc., for the courtesy of scanning and enhancing this 21 year old prints. Mr. Collazo, across the street, neighbor and fellow part time gardener, appreared in this virtual space recently, along his pony sized dog Dalila and Diva. 

The magazine was the original ANGLOSPANO REVIEW. 

POSSIBLITIES OF URBAN FARMING IN THE FIELD VIRTUAL VS REAL

RECENTLY, three people wrote on the doomed picture of Puerto Rico's future in terms of food and its huge population, 3,400,000.
Only one will be mentioned for his consistent honesty, he does not plant, but knows the issues in terms of water and soil uses, family agricultural background,  history and  close observations planting of edibles in pots by his wife. Check: Planificacion Necesaria, Tema 1 Agricultura Urbana, alcantarillaalquimica.blogspot.com.

My constant practice with collecting, propagating and planting gives me a somewhat different approach to the possibilities in the field regarding ANY plan with a narrow or wide focus.  What you see below is applicable anywhere in the world, since agriculture is practiced by people.

If you have a concrete yard, most of it, and you decide to plant you could. However one needs a chisel and sledge hammer to break in.

A trowel, spade, bucket and place to put the debris.  The soil will not be in great shape. Solve that with your own compost. Dry leaves, coffee grounds, onion/garlic skins, earth worms added to it, will allow anything to grow, believe me.

Gardening demands some fitness.

Good knees, back, arms, stamina and guts are also necessary to dig one or five as I did in the north garden.  I walk between 2/3 miles daily. If you work in an office, sitting for forty hours at work, plus twenty watching television, gardening may not be for you or your children. Keep that in mind.

You need to know before hand what could be planted.  Do you live in the neck of the woods, high, or low, flat, close by the ocean? Is it humid, hot, wet, dry? Lots of shade or no shade, some shade?

Clay, sand or loam?  Or a mix of all or just one? Percolation is it excellent, medium or poor?  

Once you determine type, quality of soil, you could plant anything considering climate and weather conditions for your area. 

You will need tools, gloves, a cushion for your knees, a light seat,

weeder, hand pruner, A one gallon sprayer or smaller to irrigate, spray pests and kill weeds.  Are you keeping track?

To have any type of garden, edibles or ornamentals require tools and some notions of what you are doing.  Lets take plant selection for example.

Most people go for the monkey see monkey do: tomatoes, lettuce, peppers to name three.  Decide to plant seeds or grown plants.You need to learn how to care for them plants since they get particular diseases from the soil or insects. You need to learn to identify damage from chewing or sucking insects, and to read signs of stress to irrigate.  Leave some spare time for weeding, on your knees...

Once you got that, decide if you will  follow the organic or chemical path to solve the problems as you think suitable.  If you have a lawn, a trimmer, blower, or lawn mower, polluting with fumes and noise, I do not think flora, fauna or your neighbors will notice if you kill every beneficial insect and other living creatures with pesticides. Alberto Areces Mallea did not why should you? 

I repeat, decide what could be planted before you engage in any GARDENING. Make sure you get a fifty five gallon can to collect rain water. If not watering by hand, get a hose with adequate sprayer, do not use your finger, as so many imbeciles do, even in nurseries.  The water pressure will erode the soil around your plants!

Food is not only something that has to be cultivated or vegetarian, consider goats, chicken, but not roosters, I HATE their noise, rabbits, anything that could be eaten, if not violating the law.  Those former pets, green iguanas should become part of our diet. 

Besides the real planting, the one I do, other virtual possibilities should be explored. An inventory in EVERY urban context should be done to determine what fruits, vegetables, tubers are  already planted in housing projects and private residences. 

The possibility of a bank should be studied. Most people do not care about anything planted in their yards any longer, not even in the country side where I have seen piles of mangoes and oranges rotting in cart wheels offered for free.  Once this inventory is created the chance to exchange and/or sell will be there.

Finally not everyjuan cares for edibles, most people care only for aesthetics. Lets bring them in the bag. I am certain many in this segment would not mind swapping ornamental plants of aesthetic/resistance merits  for avocados, lemons, papayas or breadfruit to name four.

This post could go on forever. But it is enough to demonstrate the complicate simplicity of cultivating anything  worthy of time, effort and energy, with an above average rate of success.

Antigonum Cajan has spoken. Demos gracias a Dios. Show your colors. It is now or never....

apaga i vete. 

PUERTO RICO LEAKS!

I FIND certainly odd, the worries of the people. Wikileaks for example. Or the insurrection in those countries of the Islamic persuasion in the north of Africa. Freedom, liberty, or is it jobs, food and shelter?

IN Puerto Rico there are REAL issues to worry about. Let the people in othe geographies solve their own dialog bombin g each other, after all, IRAK with the democratic help of the USA and Europe is worse than it was with Sadam or not?  

Water is the most important resource we have, along with air.  We could not survive too long without water, or irrigate, wash, or drink. Nothing.

However, in Puerto Rico Does it Better, I can not walk four hundred meters without a water leak in sight. Millions of gallons of clean water down the gutters, night and day. 24/7, twelve months or the whole year.

Multiply the gallons, add the cost of OIL to operate the filtering equipment with electricity, the pumps, the cleaning of fecal waters, all that money in the millions of bucks, night and day down the gutters.

Meanwhile the puertorrican pundits in the newspapers and the MINGA/PETRACA NEWS BLOG COLOR COMMENTATORS, worrying about university students, freedom of this freedom of that...In a country crumbling in huge chunks without anyone concerned about REAL issues. These blind hogs only worry about problems of a meaningless segment of the population.

Lets fix the SPIKIE, leaks modersuckers!  NOW! 

IN THE GARDEN

THE RARE temperatures under 80, make life easy, contrary to Gershwin's well known composition.

INSECTS DEPARTMENT

One dead wood  cockroach, flat and ugly, was found close by the north garden wall while pruning one Turnera subulata.  The good news is that they feed on dead matter.

On Sunday, one amusing green caterpillar found in the Capsicum florescens, pelleted poop all over the concrete.  These creatures like it hot considering they also feed on the pods.

That night a couple of brown beetles were executed flip flop like.

The culprits were caught in the act munching on the Coccoloba uvifera.  I know it may affect me karma in next life.

Miscelaneous

The Carica papaya is looking like crap.  Tens of small flying insects were discovered while spraying.  The attack a little while longer was quick with Antigonum's secret pest formula.  But I am afraid it will not suffice.  Every time the leaves turn brown, shrinking in the process, they pass away.

The basil, oregano and Rosemary propagated recently with rooting hormones are doing well and will be transplanted soon.

If you are into the edible gardening fad I would recommend this procedure.  It is faster than planting seeds, with high survival rates.

Now if you have time to check other blogs with a great possibility of learning something new,  here are 3. 

alcantarillaalquimica.blogspot.com  Puerto Rico
desertedge.blogspot from USA
and 
naturaoxalis.blogspot.  Mexico