Date: Sun, 28 Dec 1997 02:23:40 -0500 From: MARK POGANY <MARKP@CRSCMS.COM> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg4843$foo@default> Subject: Florida land use
I have just returned from a short stay in SW Florida. While there I
visited Bruce Bednar of Lee's Botanical Gardens in LaBelle. His
greenhouse outback housing many species and hybrids of Nepenthes was an
"eye-popping" experience! Bruce also grows Sarracenia, Ultricularia,
Drosera, and etc. CP's. He was very informative and helpful and even
offered directions to some local CP haunts within driving range. If you
ever find yourself in SW Florida by all means check out his collection!
Since I had a very limited stay in the area I managed to hit as many
habitats as I could. I realized the only plants that I'd find would be
D. capillaris and some ultrics. I stopped at promising wetland areas.
Nothing! I stopped at the Corkscrew bog. Nothing! I stopped at a portion
of the Big Cypress Swamp. You guessed it, nada! Checked out drainage
canals ("Honey, what's that guy doing over there on the roadside with a
camera?").
I can't say that I was dissapointed since this IS the dormant season and
I really didn't get much of a chance to explore in detail, but one thing
that I saw first hand really disturbed me. Vast sections of natural
wetlands being dug up and drained for yet another strip mall or golf
resort! Hey, I'm all for making a buck, but to see countless hundreds of
acres every few miles being bulldozed for progress can start to bother
you when one thinks of the animals and plants that rely on these
wetlands. No wonder native plant populations are endangered!
On a more pleasant note I also had the good fortune of visiting Marie
Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota. The collections of epiphytic plants
and exotic flowers are first rate! The size of the Banyon tree they have
growing in the garden takes up half a city block! Only one CP though, a
robust N. mixta growing in the greenhouse. All in all, a nice breath of
summer for this winter-weary Ohioan.
Wishing everyone a grand holiday and lots of rooted n' shooted cuttings
in 1998,
Mark Pogany
Cleveland, Ohio
markp@crscms.com
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