charliedoggett.net
My profession is to always find God in nature.
– Henry David Thoreau
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| Whack! Whack! and Drop the Machete! All before I can turn on my cellphone & photograph it! 2 limbs of my Guarumo Tree were banging against roof in the wind. My yard, Atenas, Costa Rica |
Photo gallery of My Home Gardens
And for anyone planning to drive a car here in the near future, Ruta 27 will get a little faster next week and the La Patina Bridge repairs & widening is to be finished by April 30 according to this article in Tico Times. And it will speed up the buses to San Jose also!
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| Corteza Tree or Tabebuia ochracea On the hill just opposite by house Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica |
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| Seen from my Living Room Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica |
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| And seen from a walk today over the hill. The big yellow tree on right is same as other photos. Look carefully to see 3 other yellow trees & a light lavender one. My house is left of center, the small orange roof below or to right of the big orange roof with solar panel (landlord’s). Cellphone shot, Atenas, Costa Rica |
This Corteza Tree is not to be confused with what I call “Yellow Bell Tree” or some call Yellow Trumpet Tree that bloomed earlier here and which I have in my yard. Earlier this dry season on the same hill above was a beautiful orange blooming tree, called the Oro Tree and I shared a photo on my blog when at the apartments, follow the link. But can’t find one made on this hill.
In the last month and currently are also some pink blossom trees called Roble de sabana or Pink Trumpet Tree which I also showed a photo of when at the apartments. There will also be a few lavender trees and some with white blooms too.
Why do so many trees bloom in the dry season? They defoliate or lose their leaves and the new growth starts with blooms that turn to leaves that will soon be nourished by the coming rainy season which is also called the green season here! I’m ready for rain! It usually starts in May.
See also my photo gallery Walking in Atenas for more trees and flowers around town.
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| Inca Dove on Nest She sat on this for about 3 days in terribly fierce winds, palm fronds like sails! |
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| Empty Nest this Morning Was the wind too much? Did something happen to her? I never saw a mate and wondered where Daddy bird was! |
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| Eggs Rolled down Palm Frond & Cracked I’m so sorry to miss the birth of two Inca Doves & Sorry for the Mom! I have no way to save them and doubt they could be. |
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| Poor Choice of Nest Tree The nest is in this small palm surrounded by red/yellow crotons below my deck. Nest in lower of two fronds on the left, tiny gray spot halfway up. |
Check out our Weather and note that right now the wind is at 42 mph with gusts to 61 mph. The poor bird never had a chance! January-February is the usual windy time, but last year was never with as strong a wind as we’ve had this year. and it is still blowing strong into March, but hopefully dying down soon! Then a couple of months of windless, hot, dry days before the rain starts, May-Oct.
POSTSCRIPT: Before dark I checked the palm again and both eggs were gone, maybe by wind or maybe by an animal.
PS again: Today I finished my Income Tax with only one call to the TurboTax help desk! 🙂 The problem was not with the form but getting past their security into my file online. It seems that I had two accounts with them with two different user names and passwords and I was mixing them up. Crazy! But done now!
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| On one of my two walks to town today, I snapped these with my phone. You do know that the red of Poinsettias is actually leaves & not flowers? |
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| Yes. Poinsettias grow in yards here and in different months. I’ve seen them in February & March now. |
See my Photo Gallery called Flora & Forests
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| Flowering “Mother-in-law Tongue” plant In my neighbor’s yard Atenas, Costa Rica |
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| Flowering “Mother-in-law Tongue” plant In my neighbor’s yard Atenas, Costa Rica |
My plant like this is in a pot in my bathroom, so I guess it is not as likely to bloom as these that are outside getting sunshine and rain. Interesting! My first time to ever see this plant bloom. I did not know that they had flowers!
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| The Greenest & Happiest Country! |
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| Walking out my back door is always refreshing! Atenas, Costa Rica |
If you are tired of my garden shots, day after tomorrow (Thursday) I go to San Jose for a series of city shots that will be different! 🙂
Photo Gallery of My Home Garden
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| Close-up of an open bloom, Flamevine or TriquiTraque in Costa Rica In my garden, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica My favorite shot so far. |
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| At first the blooms are “capsules” or little tubes before opening up. My TriquiTraque in Atenas, Costa Rica |
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| TriquiTraque looks best when massed on a wall like I have in my garden. Atenas, Costa Rica |
There is not much online about this flower in the way of information. As “Flamevine” the best I could find was at the University of Florida website. When I Google triquitraque it is my blog that comes up in addition to a lot of photos by different people. So I can’t tell you much about them. I did find this page article in a botanical gardens book which is kind of scientific. And I think I have already noted that in Spanish dictionaries triquitraque means “clattering noise” or a “string of firecrackers.”
Click to preview the book online. Best if viewed full screen.
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| Heliconia & Blue Plumbago My Garden, Roca Verde, Atenas, Costa Rica |
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| Red Ginger among the Maraca Plants My Home Garden, Atenas, Costa Rica |
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| “Parrot Flower” or a type of Heliconia |
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| Fern My Home Garden, Atenas, Costa Rica |
See also my photo gallery of Flora & Forests
