Thursday, May 17, 2007

Chifre de veado (Deer's horn)

This Platycerium was given to me two or three years ago by Dona Yaco Rodrigues and her daughter, Nelly, who are proud owners of the largest private collection of orchids in this region. It was attached to a small piece of xaxim-like material and I was told to put it onto a larger plaque of the same. After hanging it up in one place and another for some months, I finally put it in a small vase made out of coconut fibers. Xaxim is much better but the palm from which it comes is on the endangered list, so most gardeners use coconut fiber and other materials for their epiphytic plants. Some more time passed and I was feeling guilty about it not growing properly. What if the donors showed up to find their gift in this state of affairs? My next move to save face was that of placing the vase with the "chifre de veado" into the hollow of a wooden log that had become too rotten to use as a vase stand. This was just a few months ago and I'm surprised how well the plant has done in this environment. It continues to produce "horn" after "horn" and there are many off-shoots coming up from the sides of the vase. The light intensity seems to be perfect here too because it's on the edge of a shady forest area but with plenty of indirect light getting to the plant.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hello Steven,

I just discovered your blog. I googled Amazon tours, checked your web site, and clicked your blog link and have been here for a couple of hours, engrossed with your words, photos, and life.

We have some things in common. We are old gringos passionate about tropical bio-diversity in the Amazon. I live and work in and around Iquitos Peru. One of my projects is a photo gallery to promote interest in the diversity of the Amazon rainforest. It is quite a challenge to list the common English, Spanish, and scientific names of my subjects.

I have added your blog to my favorites. I will definitely check back periodically to learn more that you know. I like everything about this blog, including that you make regular entries. You have set a good example for me.

If you are interested, my Amazon biodiversity photos are in the last link below my name in my flickr photo gallery. Any help with identification would be appreciated.

Thank you sir,
Bill Grimes
www.dawnontheamazon.com
http://dawnontheamazon.com/blog/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dawnontheamazon/

Anonymous said...

In our place, it called "pakis tanduk rusa". See http://rwsphoto.blogspot.com/2008/09/platycerium-pokok-tanduk-rusa-gold-fish.html