Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain

[Kim]

It was kind of distressing for us to see many palms afflicted by massive infestations of whitefly. Carlo explained that this is a seasonal phenomenon, and would disappear in another month. Until then, certain palms are washed down regularly to reduce the damage.

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One of those special moments you sometimes get -- here John Dransfield poses next to a Tahina spectabilis, a palm whose discovery is linked to a discussion here on Palm Talk, and which he described and named.

Another special Palm Talk moment -- this Borassus flabellifer, if I have the story correct, was grown from seed donated by forum member Kris from India. Kris, your palm has the most fantastic view of the ocean!

Another very rare palm, Medemia argun, thought to have gone extinct but rediscovered in Sudan by Toby Spanner and his business partner Martin Gibbons. Toby is pictured here (center) recounting details of the adventure to Bo and Horace.

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[Walter John]

It was kind of distressing for us to see many palms afflicted by massive infestations of whitefly. Carlo explained that this is a seasonal phenomenon, and would disappear in another month. Until then, certain palms are washed down regularly to reduce the damage.

..

One of those special moments you sometimes get -- here John Dransfield poses next to a Tahina spectabilis, a palm whose discovery is linked to a discussion here on Palm Talk, and which he described and named.

Another special Palm Talk moment -- this Borassus flabellifer, if I have the story correct, was grown from seed donated by forum member Kris from India. Kris, your palm has the most fantastic view of the ocean!

Another very rare palm, Medemia argun, thought to have gone extinct but rediscovered in Sudan by Toby Spanner and his business partner Martin Gibbons. Toby is pictured here (center) recounting details of the adventure to Bo and Horace.

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A super special post there Kim. Thanks for pics and commentary.

[Mandrew968]

Copernicia ekmanii and others enjoying the sunshine

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Carlo explains more about the collections and how they are organized geographically

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The pond area . . . . . . . . . . . . Madagascar palms D. leptocheilos, D. decaryi, and others

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The spiders seem to have decorated the bromeliads for Halloween

Kim, those are Copernicia rigida, not ekmanii

[Jeff Searle]

Hi Kim,

C. crinita? Hmmm. Love this thread, you've included all the great palms that this unique garden has to offer, including a vast collection of other goodies. People pic's are always great to see as well, so many are able to put faces with a name. And of course, your pictures are beautiful, as always, thanks!

Bo, how's the back? Lol.

Jeff

[Kim]

Sorry about the errors, guys, I was falling asleep while posting last night. I can't be sure which Copernicia, Andrew, if you say rigida, it's probably rigida. Jeff, that's Copernicia baileyana, not crinita , sorry! I will correct the text, thanks guys. Glad you are enjoying the thread, Jeff, and I have more pix coming.

[Mandrew968]

Kim, thanks for posting the photos

[bgl]

Jeff,

Thanks for asking and my back is doing great! There was no effort involved, certainly not compared to what I'm doing on a daily basis in my new garden. It's all about having fun!

Bo-Göran

[DoomsDave]

Kim!

More pictures!

[Expletive!]

More commentary!

[Expletive expletive!]

[Carlo Morici]

Thank you for this nice thread. It is also great to see me doing the hula!

I felt the visit to the Palmetum was too short, I had lost the sense of time and it felt like we stayed less than one hour, while we stayed three... I could not show everypalm to everybody! I think it is wonderful that group shot at the palmetum in the freshly paved plaza of the Caribbean section.

Regarding whitefly, ALL palms are washed about every 10 days in Sept-October because those are the worst months (rainless, windless, warm nights...).

I was back there two days ago. That Tahina has just unfolded the new leaf and it is huge!

Carlo

[paulgila]

wonderful thread, kim,et al!

thanks posting these fantastic pix!

[bgl]

Carlo,

That reminds me - I forgot to give you credit for providing the group shot in #39 on page 1. Thanks a lot! A great memory of a very special day!

Bo-Göran

[Carlo Morici]

I forgot to give you credit for providing the group shot in #39 on page 1.

No problem... To be precise the picture was from Manolo Caballero's camera!

[bgl]

Thanks a lot! I'll add that to post #39.

[Kim]

Not far from Santa Cruz is the original capital city of the Canary Islands, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, or La Laguna, founded between 1496 and 1497. Its historic center is a World Heritage Site, the carefully preserved architecture, colorful building fronts, and very old palms making for a delightful afternoon stroll. I exhausted the camera's memory card here but I will offer only a small sample to feast your eyes on.

We were welcomed into the courtyard of this building, which serves as a museum for the city, and given a map and a book (mine didn't make it home ). Then we were set loose to wander the streets and enjoy the charms of La Laguna.

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Typical interior tiles

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Cathedral of La Laguna

[Kim]

Note the succulents that have taken hold among the roof tiles, a fairly common sight here. The streets feel rather narrow, with traffic prohibited, allowing for leisurely walking and gawking.

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Bold paint is a signature of style in this part of town.

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Now and then an intersection would be devoted to a large open plaza, always punctuated by massive Phoenix canariensis or Dracaenae draco

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[Kim]

More colorful palms, bougainvillea, and vibrant architecture for your enjoyment...

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There are many shops located here; it's only quiet now because it's the midday break.

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The view in the distance is irresistible.

[bgl]

Kim,

Thanks a lot for the additional photos and commentary. La Laguna was indeed a very special little town. I'm sure we would all have enjoyed more time there!

And in the name of balance, two photos with our photographer in them: with a Coccothrinax crinita at the Palmetum and a street scene in La Laguna. Almost the same as the last photo in #55 above. And some of these Phoenix canariensis were very impressive, and reportedly this particular one was more than 100 years old.

Bo-Göran

[Patricia-CR]

I keep drooling, dreaming and wishing...

[mike in kurtistown]

I've really appreciate by Kim's beautiful photography, and it motivates me to add some shots of mine. Assuming you don't mind, Kim. My camera failed after the second day, but I got some fair shots at the Palmetum. Here we see Copernicia rigida up really close, a group of Coccothrinax macroglossa, and a Coccothrinax spissa (with swollen trunk).

[mike in kurtistown]

Here's a view of the coast from the Palmetum, a view of Santa Cruz (I don't know what the building in the foreground is), and my take on the opera house.

[mike in kurtistown]

Finally, here's my shot of the Teide volcano, taken using my zoom lens. This one broke my camera, and there are no more photos after this.

[bgl]

Mike,

Those are all great shots! Sorry to hear your camera broke. That must have been very disappointing since there was so much more that we saw. And I know there'll be more shots of Teide, and that amazing landscape, coming soon.

Bo-Göran

[Kim]

Hi Mike, thanks so much for adding a few photos. I just wish you had more. I had a similar experience with my camera at the Rio biennial, very frustrating and disappointing. Feel free to chime in with commentary any time.

[Kim]

No trip to Tenerife would be complete without an excursion to view Mt. Teide, the dominant feature of the island. While I had expected we would be going to the summit, this was not the case. Instead we drove to Los Roques de García, an area of extraordinary rock formations with a clear view of Mt. Teide behind. I will quote a description from The Lonely Planet:

"A few kilometres south of the peak, across from the parador, lies this geological freak show of twisted lava pinnacles with names like the Finger of God and the Cathedral. Known as the Roques de García, they are the result of erosion of old volcanic dykes, or vertical streams of magma. The hard rock of the dykes has been bared while surrounding earth and rock has been gradually swept away.

The weirdest of the rocks, the Roque Cinchado, is wearing away faster at the base than above, and one of these days is destined to topple over (so maybe you shouldn't get too close). Spreading out to the west are the otherworldly bald plains of the Llano de Ucanca."

A map for orientation:

Our group descends from the bus and fans out to view the formations closer.

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[Kim]

Posing for FaceBook? It's one of those places where you must get your picture taken. And climbing the rocks is irresistible.

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More information about Mt. Teide:

"Mount Teide or, in Spanish, El Teide, is an active though dormant volcano which last erupted in 1909 from the El Chinyero vent on the Santiago (northwestern) rift and is located on Tenerife, Canary Islands. The volcano and its surroundings comprise the Teide National Park (Parque Nacional del Teide in Spanish). The park has an area of 18900 ha and was named a World Heritage Site by UNESCO on June 29, 2007.

At 3718 m above sea level, and approximately 7500 m above the floor of the Atlantic Ocean, Teide is the highest mountain in Spain, highest point in the Atlantic Ocean and the 13th highest mountain in European Union (highest mountain not in the Alps). (Note: The actual summit stands 3 metres (10 ft) higher than the triangulation station, and associated bench mark, which has an altitude of 3,715 m (12,188 ft)). The island of Tenerife itself is the third largest volcanic ocean island on Earth by volume. Teide is also the third highest volcano on a volcanic ocean island. It is also unstable and possibly in a more advanced stage of deformation and failure than the much publicised Cumbre Vieja. The United Nations Committee for Disaster Mitigation designated Teide as a Decade Volcano, because of its history of destructive eruptions and its proximity to several large towns, of which the closest are Garachico, Icod de los Vinos and Puerto de la Cruz."

I heard there was an underwater eruption of a volcano in the Canary Islands while we were there; however, we didn't feel any earthquakes.

El Cinchado is the thumb-like erratic rock in these photos. (A couple of pix are repeats from the first post in this thread.)

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The area has a dry and severe beauty to it; Faith capturing the dried flower stalks of what she thought might be a 'silver sword'. A little research indicates it is likely Echium wildpretii which has red flowers when in bloom.

[bgl]

Kim,

Thanks for the photos and that was definitely a very memorable afternoon. I was surprised by the warm temperature there, considering the elevation (around 2,200 metres, or just over 7,000 ft). Pretty obvious from the photos how pleasant it was. And irresistible indeed to climb some of those impressive rock formations! Lots of people taking photos, and here are two more. Wish I had taken more.

Bo-Göran

[Carlo Morici]

Wonderful report!

Please give a look also here: Pictures in the Spanish Forum from the visit to Jesús Fernandez Garden

Mike, the two large building by the Palmetum are the Auditorio and the Recinto Ferial, both designed by Santiago Calatrava.

Kim, the dry "Silver swords" pointed out by Faith on Mt. Teide are the beautiful Echium wildpretii, of the Boraginaceae family. They look similar indeed to Hawaiian silverswords (Argyroxiphium sandwicense, family Asteraceae) but they belong to an entirely different plant family. Both plants evolved to converge in a similar structure because of living in similar environments.

[Kim]

Thank you, Carlo, for adding a little information here and there.

Sunday morning, the group trickles slowly into El Jardín de Aclimatación de la Orotava, a short distance from Hotel Botánico. This is a very old garden as can be seen on the inscription on the stone wall.

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This charming engraving depicts the garden in its earlier years; today the cow pastures are replaced by hotels, restaurants, and shopping centers, but inside the garden walls, peace reigns.

These antique renderings of the garden plan give you an idea of the layout. It is not an especially large garden, approximately five acres, but additional acquisitions are allowing for expansion.

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Our very congenial and gracious host, Manuel Caballero Ruano, was pleased to guide us.

A few impressions around the entry court...

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[Kim]

Staghorns adorn the steps... A Pitcairnia maidifolia catches my eye in front of a silver Brahea armata (I'm guessing, feel free to offer corrections.) An old, weathered Pinus canariensis flanks the trail on the left. The massive tree to the right of the trail behind the palm is a Ficus macrophylla.

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Closer look at the pine and ficus; and a photo of the ficus in its youth. The Ficus was planted toward the end of the 19th century.

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A very tall, strangely unbranched Dracaenae draco; the central pond/fountain; photo of the fountain with mature Roystonea and Caryota (?) behind it, since disappeared.

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Reflection. Some of us enjoyed the dappled foliage of this Ficus aspera and the unusual --things-- on the trunk.

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Sorry, it's getting late for me. I will add more from this garden tomorrow. (yawn!)

[DoomsDave]

Ah, good, keep the pictures coming!

Expletive . . . .

[bgl]

Kim,

Great pictures, and that was definitely a very special morning. I only took a handful of photos, knowing how meticulously you covered everything! Anyway, I'm squeezing in two of mine here, taken at the exact same location and in the same general direction. The first one looking down the main pathway of the garden, with Mike Merritt just barely visible in the lower left, and the second photo, taken within seconds of the first one, showing a common sight that morning: lots of palm enthusiasts with their cameras! Here's (from left to right) Kathleen Grant, Horace Hobbs, Jeffry Brusseau and Christine Brusseau with Mike Merritt in the background.

Bo-Göran

[Kim]

Okay Dave, since you asked so nicely, more photos! And thanks for adding your own, Bo. Anyone else, feel free to toss in your pix.

...continuing in the Jardín Botánico (it's known by both names)... While wandering the garden paths, we learn a lot of tree canopy was lost to a hurricane about a year ago. Many plants, suddenly exposed to more sunlight, are blooming for the first time in memory, and can finally be properly identified. We have made our way to what appears to be the rear wall of the garden, just past an entire bed full of Alcantarea imperialis, where a slice of water rolls down the surface of the wall. But what is the source of the water? Follow a stairway up, and under an arbor covered in Ipomoea coccinea, and the source is revealed. I"m uncertain, but it seems this is a natural spring-fed pond.

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Descending again to the garden, past many more bromeliads, and we exit a massive gate to the anterooms where the compost is piled high. This area is available for expansion, and further behind us, we are surprised to see a very major building nearing completion.

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A grand Chorisia speciosa adds a dappled pink canopy above the garden wall.

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Even the plants hanging over the wall from the neighboring property are exquisite.

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[Kim]

The building sits mostly below grade, built from poured-in-place concrete, and lit from above by skylights. Although the space appears to be nearing completion, it will be three to four more years before the convention facility is open to the public. The spare design and dynamic volume suggest a modern art exhibit space, but this will be devoted to botanical meetings, education, and similar endeavors. An herbarium already exists toward the front of the garden whose objective of cataloguing all manner of plant life on the Canary Islands is well on its way to completion. It also houses a seed bank to repopulate the islands with native plants in the event of a disaster.

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This expansive exterior area will eventually be ponds with planters, and successive waterfalls. All the concrete surfaces will be covered with plants. With Mt. Teide in the background, it will be quite a spectacular sight. (Note: there are nearby housing complexes with views directly into the waterfall areas. )

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A different aspect of the massive Chorisia speciosa; puff of Calliandra haematocephala v. 'alba'

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Dracaena marginata, astonishing for its size; Mike Merritt examining a beautiful silver Brahea armata

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[Kim]

It was explained that the entire garden is hand watered, if you can imagine that! Average annual rainfall here is perhaps 15 inches, so irrigation is required.

Bust in honor of the garden's founder, el marqués de Villanueva del Prado, and allegorical bas-relief; inviting bench scene; Christine and Jeff Brusseau admiring a candelabra-shaped Pandanus (?)

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Thriving banana patch; bananas are grown commercially all over this part of Tenerife; door to a secret garden?

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Sorry, didn't get the name on this one; Livistona chinensis? (Edit: correction; Coccothrinax sp.) One of the anthurium wings...

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Right about now would be an excellent time for someone to add the group photo that was taken at the end of the tour -- anyone?

[Kim]

After a short bus ride to La Matanza, the group descends toward the Canarian restaurant La Cuadra de San Diego. Carlo explains to Bo that this place was a large farm, growing grapes to the edge of the cliffs above the sea, and "la cuadra" refers to a building where animals were housed. This old building has since been converted into a very stylish restaurant with tables inside and out, and in fact some of Carlo's wedding festivities were held here.

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The local dishes were brought out, one after another, and finally this enormous platter heaped with barbecued pork ribs. Delicioso!

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[Kim]

After lunch, and on to Santa Ursula, where we were surprised to learn the mayor wished to address our group. Inside we were met by Jesús Fernández whose garden we would soon visit, the mayor of Santa Ursula, and the Minister of Agriculture. The mayor welcomed us to this thriving agricultural center of Tenerife, describing the year-round mild climate and the various crops produced for both export and local consumption, and the Minister of Agriculture gave us the same general information. We were each given a book, Prehistoria de la Comarca de Acentejo. El Menceyato de Tacoronte (Tenerife). The stained glass windows with palms were very distracting! Note the palms in the coat of arms.

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On to the beautiful palm garden of Jesús Fernández, where we are met with welcoming banners, flags, musicians, and champagne! The extent of the hospitality was quite impressive.

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While walking up the drive, many were delighted to see this bonsai fruiting mango. ...a flowering passiflora...

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...one of several gates to the house... The Canarian flag, featuring Canarian dogs. A little background: "One of the first reliable reports of the islands comes from Pliny who, in the 1st century, spoke of an expedition sent by Juba, King of Mauritania, which brought back giant dogs as a souvenir of the adventure. This is the origin of the name of he islands: Canary Islands, from can or canes. Magnificent examples of these fierce-looking native hunting dogs can still be found in the islands."

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Carlo describes Mr. Fernández' interest in palms and the forty years he has devoted to the garden, first growing a protective canopy and then adding more and more rare and tender palm species over the years. His interest continues, as we see by the potted palms growing in the back holding area.

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[Kim]

We enter the garden up some steps, through one of the gates, walking past the house and around the corner, where we descend more steps into a lush and vibrant garden, alive with water, and stuffed with palms and flowering plants. Walking the narrow paths among the plants you begin to feel as though you are in a jewel box where each object is a special treasure.

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[Kim]

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The master gardener Jesús Fernández with his daughter Elena; again with IPS President Bo-Göran Lundkvist.

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And soon it is time to bid this lovely garden goodbye...

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[Kim]

Pressing on toward Icod de los Vinos. This is the one and only run-down house I saw on the entire trip..... various sights on the way to view an icon of Tenerife...

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A very curious multi-headed Livistona

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And finally, the reason for this leg of the trip, the Millenium Dragon Tree, rumored to be 1,000 years old, but nobody really knows its true age for certain. Don't miss the little tiny people off to the left of the tree.

[mike in kurtistown]

In the Wikipedia entry about the Canary Islands, it is stated that the "dogs" referred to by Pliny might have been a species of monk seal that has since been extirpated in the Canary Islands. And a close examination of the multi-headed Livistona will show many vertical and horizontal iron bars supporting the branches and holding them together.