Starting to fill in.......

Well my time in Barbados and this garden project is drawing to a close....Now into my 15th week and coming home to Toronto next week. Its been a challenging go of it but rewarding none the less. Several pounds lighter and several shades darker I prepare to hand over the garden to mother nature and the capable hands of a gardener neighbour to look in on things. Here are a few pics of how things are looking these days. Its amazing how quickly plants grow and mature here. And how quickly they can be destroyed by munching pests too!!!

In the Home Stretch.........

Its hard to believe that I've been in Barbados now for just over 3 months.....the time has flown by from being continually occupied with building this garden from scratch. Ive had some help but it has mostly been done by yours truly. The dry season is well underway now with several weeks of no rain and searing temperatures. The 200 gallon and 400 gallon rain barrels have now been emptied this week. The rainy season usually doesnt begin until april or may. This was me returning from the annual garden and farm show "Agrofest" it was a treasure trove of plant vendors and prices very reasonable. It sort of like the CNE, Royal Winter Fair and Canada Blooms rolled into one. This new cultivar of Gloriosa rothchildiana given to me by Anna Leggatt has grown from a humble finger like tuber out of the ground 5 feet and blooming in 2 months!!! This cultivar has a much darker wine coloured flower from the usual yellow or orangy/red. Thanks Anna !! The dry garden is really doing remarkably well. Ive only watered sparingly a few times in the evening i will top dress with some more sand and compost mix then gravel on top.....most of the plants here were brought in as cuttings from ontario. But I have found some interesting specimens here in Barbados.