Sword Bush

Posted on September 17, 2009 by marta

I found many beautiful flowering Sword Bush shrubs all over the property at Harbour Club Villas

This is an amazing looking shrub when you get up close to it. The leaf like branches are elongated and flattened but what’s interesting is that there are ridges or toothed areas along the leafs edge. From these toothed areas, minute little clusters of flowers appear.

Toothed ridges burst out in clusters of red miniature flowers

The Sword Bush is fairly common in our area and I found both pink and red clustered flowers as I wandered around the bush here at the villas.

This Sword Bush was loaded with clusters of pink flowers.

The bright red flowers make for quite a showy sight on this Sword Bush.

In bush medicine, the Sword Bush can be used for coughs and colds………….I’m not quite brave enough to try this but I am fighting through a sore throat, cough and cold as I write this! The leaf like branches can be chewed and then spat out. The bitter tasting leaves can be boiled into a pretty bad tasting tea which supposedly stops vomiting.

The flowers develop into seeds and it really does look quite spectacular

I’ll let you know if I do decide to chew on some leaves.

Oct 3………..I did chew on some leaves for a couple of days. They were very bitter but I can’t tell you honestly if my cold got better because of this or because it had run its cycle. Next time though, I’ll try chewing on the leaves right away!

Marta

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Sea Purslane

Posted on August 8, 2009 by marta

A grasshopper sits posing on a pretty, pale pink Sea Purslane flower

Sea Purslane grows abundantly in salty and dry habitats such as on the tiny cays just out from Harbour Club Villas and Marina. We decided to explore one day and stopped on a little cay with a spectacular view of the Five Cays shoreline.

View of Five Cays shoreline from one of the tiny cays where Rock Iguanas have been introduced

We spotted some Rock Iguanas but they scurried away quickly as we approached. I did manage to get a photos of one though!

This rock iguana was very wary and was ready to take flight if I came any closer

On one of the slopes of this little cay, a carpet of sea purslane cascaded over the rocks. Some had star shaped pink flowers that bloom throughout the year.

Sea Purslane carpets the rocks on this little cay

Sea Purslane is a succulent herb that makes for a great ground cover. It grows along beaches and along the edges of salinas and has smooth, fleshy leaves. The leaves are edible and have a salty taste. I’ll have to find out if iguanas eat the leaves as this island seemed pretty limited in the way of food.

Sea Purslane is also know as Sea Pickle and can be used medicinally for treatment of scurvy and kidney disorders

What a great plant and useful for so many things!

Marta

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Passion flowers

Posted on May 18, 2009 by marta

This pale wine coloured passion flower vine was found on Venetian Road not far from Harbour Club Villas.

I mentioned in a previous post “Passionflowers on the Beach” that I had old photos of a bright red passion flower and the one above which was growing along side Venetian Road and had a paler wine coloured flower. Both were very striking and in colours that I’ve never seen before.

Several varieties and colours of passion flower vines are found on Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands

These flowers are showy and frequently appear after spring and summer rains. The filaments that are around the central column can vary in colour from yellow to orange to red.

Red passionflower vine that I used to have growing along the pool fence in the early days at Harbour Club Villas

This passion vine had flowers that were a bright red and very striking.

Pretty, bright red passionflower vine that used to grow here at Harbour Club.

Hope you enjoyed taking a look at these extraordinarily beautiful flowers. I love them!

Marta

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Wild Flowers

Posted on May 14, 2009 by marta

Flowering Broom Bush with it's delicate white flowers

On a recent tour of Cheshire Hall on Providenciales, I snapped a photo of this lovely plant. The Broom Bush looks a little like dried twigs but once it gets some rain, it takes on a green tinge and then flowers. It is endemic to the Turks and Caicos Islands. Endemic means that this species is limited to a geographic area and not found anywhere else.

The Broom Bush thrives in open and rocky areas such as Sapodilla Hill where I found the above growing

The Turks and Caicos Islands contain a number of endemic species. Look out for our many wild flowers and plants as you wander and visit our beautiful islands.

Marta

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Sapodilla

Posted on April 27, 2009 by marta

Sapodilla fruit and flowers locally known as the "dilly" tree

I just thought you might like to know what a Sapodilla is…………this tropical tree is called a “dilly” locally and grows here in the Turks and Caicos Islands. The fruits are favoured by our island iguanas and the taste is sweet and pleasant, ranging from a pear flavor to crunchy brown sugar.

The flowers of the Sapodilla are quite beautiful and I hadn't noticed this until I went out to take photos.

The bark of the Sapodilla tree produces Chicle which is a latex that has been used for many years as a chewing gum base .

Marta

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Spring Orchid

Posted on April 6, 2009 by marta

I noticed this beautiful orchid growing at Harbour Club Villas today. I've been looking for it as I know it should be starting to bloom about now.

Encyclia Rufa is the name of this orchid and the yellow flowers grow in clusters. They are often found growing on thatch and silver palms and flowers can start to appear from early February until July. The Spring orchid is currently listed on the endangered species list.

Yellow flowers of Encyclia Rufa our Spring Orchid that is found growing wild throughout Providenciales.

Have a look in the bush as you travel around Provo……….you’ll be sure to see the Spring Orchid.

Have fun,

Marta

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Sea Ox Eye Daisy

Posted on March 14, 2009 by marta

The Sea Ox Eye Daisy found growing right off the sand among some rocks at Long Bay Beach

I’m just amazed at how many wild flowers I see that are growing here in the islands. Some grow in the most precarious positions just out of pockets of dirt or sand in the rocks. There are two species of Sea Ox Eye Daisy found in The Turks and Caicos Islands. The one above has the official name of Borrichia Frutescens whose succulent leaves are covered in a fine silver fuzz. Until I took a close look at my photos, I didn’t realize there were two species.

Bright yellow flowers resembling a daisy appear throughout the year

This Sea Ox Eye Daisy is named Borrichia Arborescens and has leaves that are a deep green and smooth. These beautiful flowers are used by the locals and brewed into a tea for calming nerves and the stomach. The tea also treats colds, asthma, allergies and food poisoning. You can also eat the leaves in a salad to boost your Vitamin C content.

Watch for these pretty flowers the next time you are out for a walk.

Marta

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Passionflowers on the beach

Posted on February 28, 2009 by marta

Our trip to the beach today was spectacular as I found these beautiful passionflowers growing along the sand dunes.

This flower is also called a Wild Apricot and a number of them are found in the Turks and Caicos Islands. I wanted to take some photos of the water through the waving sea oats and discovered passionflower vines blooming, some with pinkish red fruit and the flowers were also a little different. The one shown below had a pale pinkish tinge to the petals.

A delicate passionflower with a pink tinge to its petals

This passionflower had a deep purple centre...........just so beautiful so look for them on your next trip to the beach

I’m still looking to find some red passionflowers and also I once saw a deep crimson one. I believe somewhere in my photos I do have pictures so I will look for them and put them up in another post.

Marta

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Wild Cotton

Posted on January 29, 2009 by marta

The Sea Island Cotton flower is a beautiful pale yellow at first and grows wild on Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands.

The Wild Cotton flower is a beautiful pale yellow or white at first and grows wild on Providenciales, Turks and Caicos Islands.

From a very pale yellow, the cotton flower turns into a pretty pink

British Loyalists who were taking refuge from the American revolution set up Cotton and Sisal Plantations in the Turks and Caicos Islands. These were worked by imported slaves with the Cotton and Sisal being sold in London and New York. The cotton plantations were doomed as the competition was fierce and the soil was thin and not very fertile. After a hurricane in 1813, the cotton plantations were to perish.

After the blossom falls the Sea Island Cotton forms a tiny fruit called a boll.

After the blossom falls the Wild Cotton forms a tiny fruit called a boll.

The cotton boll bursts open when ripe to expose the packed seeds that are surrounded by the cotton fiber.

The dominant plantations in the Caicos Islands were those growing Cotton and apparently, cotton needed one slave for every 5 acres compared to one slave per acre on sugar plantations. Many of the plantation owners left the Islands because of the hurricane of 1813 and also the pest infestations. Many of the slaves were left behind. Apparently by 1820 many of the plantations had been abandoned but we do know that Wade’s Green (North Caicos) was still in use. It is also likely that Wade Stubb’s other interests at Cheshire Hall and Haulover were still in operation. The Turks and Caicos Islands have a short and limited History in the cotton industry.

All the cotton photos are taken of the plants growing at Harbour Club Villas ……… Yes, you too can grow them or come and see us in the islands as it grows wild here in different spots.

Cotton flowers and pods ready to burst forth with cotton fibres

: My cotton plants are loaded with cotton bolls right now and I’m sure to see more cotton plants sprouting up all over Harbour Club Villas

Enjoy the photos as this plant is quite showy when flowering as well as when full of cotton. The local birds here use this cotton when making their nests.

Cheers,

Marta

http://www.harbourclubvillas.com

Wild Ipecac

Posted on January 9, 2009 by marta

My mystery plant bloomed today and what a colourful flower it has.

It’s been a few weeks now that I’ve been watching and waiting for this plant to bloom. I had thought it was a purple ruellia but when the red balls opened and flowers started to appear, I realized it was something else. Well, today there were five flowers that opened and what a treat. Bright red petals around a central yellow flower. I looked it up and it is called a Butterfly Weed or Wild Ipecac and is much loved as a food by the Monarch butterfly. It grows throughout the Turks and Caicos Islands and has been used for medicinal purposes. You can make a poultice from the crushed leaves that emit a white milky latex and apparently the plant has antifungal, antiviral and anticarcinogenic properties. Poultices have been applied to warts, ringworm and tumours and a powder made from the crushed roots of the Wild Ipecac is said to induce vomiting.

Closeup of the vibrant red-orange and yellow flowers of the Wild Ipecac

The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands have some 1400 different plant species and approximately 120 of them are unique to the region.

Enjoy the flowers of the Turks and Caicos when you come for your vacation.

Marta

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MyTurksAndCaicosBlog.com

Turks and Caicos Vacation, Travel, Fishing, and Diving

Tag Archives: Flowers

Sword Bush

Sea Purslane

Passion flowers

Wild Flowers

Sapodilla

Spring Orchid

Sea Ox Eye Daisy

Passionflowers on the beach

Wild Cotton

Wild Ipecac