Palms at Belize Botanic Gardens

[TerdalFarm]

Here is a slideshow of palms at the Belize Botanic Gardens ( http://www.belizebotanic.org/).

http://picasaweb.google.com/terdalfarm/ ... nicGardens#

I start with Schippia concolor ("silver palmetto palm"). Belizean botanists are proud of Schippia as they claim it as an endemic palm genus. Personally, I'm skeptical. I have seen it pretty close to the border with Guatemala. I suspect it grows across the frontier, but it is too dangerous to do field work there. Also, the forest on the west side of the line is being rapidly cleared for agriculture, so even if it once was found in Guatemala, it might not be for much longer.
I then go to bayleaf palm (Sabal mauritiiformis). I am a Sabal fan as this genus is native all the way up here to Oklahoma. This particular species is economically important as the leaves were traditionally used for roofing. The leaves are said to last up to 20 years as roofing material--longer than any other palm. Belizeans have shifted to corrugated metal roofs, but the tourism industry now demands a lot of leaves for "traditional" lodging. This has made the bayleaf palm leaves valuable, leading to over-harvest and scarcity. The BBG is experimenting with bayleaf palm agroforestry.
The next section is on Chamaedora spp. I am a fan of these as my C. radicalis grows very well for me. Leaves of these palms are referred to locally as "Xate" and are valuable for the international florist trade. Guatemalan "xateros" have decimated these on their side of the border and so are moving into Belizean forests. The BBG has more information here: http://www.belizebotanic.org/xate.html
The xateros are relevant to my work as they live off the land, poaching deer, tapir, gibnut, agouti, peccary, etc. as they go. Those same animals are key food for jaguars. Xateros shoot jaguars when they encounter them so they can sell the hides. Xateros also loot ancient Maya artifacts from caves and pyramids. The government of Belize has limited resources to combat the problem, and is wary of offending Guatemala for political reasons dating to the colonial era.

After a snapshot of a peach palm as a stand-in for all the other indigenous palms of Belize, I move to a series on the Bizzy grove. Bismarckia is not native to Belize, but the BBG Bizzy grove is stunning. I finish with a snapshot of a Washy for sale at the BBG store. My wife has a lovely W. robusta in a pot in the dining room. I like to think that if we lived in Belize we could plant it in the ground. And then worry about the humidity....

[lucky1]

Erik, thanks for the picture album.

First...appreciate your insight on what's occurring, in particular that tourism demands "traditional" lodging, which serves to increase scarcity of Sabal.
Sad that povery and greed are such a lethal combination in many countries.
It never occurred to me that the "Xate" in a flower arrangement are decimating Chamaedora sp.
Who would've thought! Will keep an eye on what comprises flower arrangements from now on.


Without prying (too much), your job must be edgy at times if the xateros are relevant to your work.
Is there security for you or are you on your own?
Adjacent Guatemala has some pretty serious problems, I've heard.

I've never seen a Bayleaf sabal, a lovely palm.

I was surprised to see a Washy there...didn't think they were well suited to that latitude. Good price!

That Bizzy grove! Wonderful eye candy.
That'll be quite the canopy as they grow and totally close in the area.
Pleased to see the International Palm Society involved with the BG, likely the source of the Bizzies.

Erik, thank you for taking the time to explain the circumstances within Belize.
Let's hope that country's beauty can be sustained.

I bet it was tempting to "save" a few seedlings from roadside ditches...
Barb

[TerdalFarm]

As palm lovers, we can help educate our neighbors about palms. There are so many, and thus so much to learn.
About the bayleaf palm, when I am deep in the forest (e.g., rode a horse vs. walked from nearest road) I see quite a few, but I never see large specimens within walking distance of a road. It would be great is farmers would raise them, but as we all know palms grow slowly vs. alternatives such as Zea mays ("corn"). Why bother?
A few resorts, such as DuPloys (on the grounds of Belize Botanic Gardens) use tile roofs and try to explain to visitors why, but most tourists (including me) love the ambiance of a palm roof in the jungle.
About Xate (Chamaedorea spp.), I see this a big problem. A few years ago I had the chance to go out on patrol with a squad from the Belize military special forces on the border with Guatemala. The xateros are often veterans of the civil wars from the 1980s - 1990s and so may have military assault rifles and not just shotguns, plus extensive knowledge of the forest. Collecting Xate leaves pays the bills on a day-to-day basis, but the real money is in jaguar hides, Maya artifacts and Scarlet Macaws for the pet trade. They sell to middleman with government ties in Guatemala who can provide "documents" to satisfy overseas buyers that all laws were followed, everything is sustainably harvested, etc. Thus, the responsible thing to do, IMHO, is to not buy any floral arrangements with Chamaedorea leaves. They were almost certainly harvested illegally and destructively despite sincere assurances otherwise from your local florist.
However, I have a Belizean friend who has invested a lot of time and money to grow Xate for sale. He is very responsible. If the xateros do not steal his crop, I think he should be rewarded for his effort over several years to grow a crop of Xate leaves. Thus, I really do not know what to say.
As to my security, that is tough. I do not get to travel with military special forces often! I accept that my job has risk. However, I have children, so I must balance conflicting responsibilities. I used to work in an African war zone. I had assault rifles pointed at me nearly daily. I got used to it (hey, there would be no pain! These guys are pros!) but as a parent I did not think that was appropriate. I feel much safer in Belize. I do try to work away from the border when possible. I also try to get local information about xatero activity so I can stay away from places where they are known to be active.
On happier subjects, the Bizzy grove at BBG is absolutely stunning. My snapshots do not do justice to the feeling of being in the midst of them.
The Washy surprised me, too. They have one tall, mature specimen on the grounds so they must be able to deal with the humidity.
They also have Butia, but that just reminds me I need to go outside and check on mine. I uncovered my palms for the good weather, but the local forecast says that will end soon....
--Erik

[lucky1]

Appreciate you sharing your feelings and observations about the sensitive issues you face while working in troubled regions.
Most people can't even imagine how difficult a job would be when personal safety isn't assured.

I have a Belizean friend who has invested a lot of time and money to grow Xate for sale

He may inadvertently become a victim of any future restriction on Chamaedorea leaves sold to wholesale florists.
A parallel would be recent efforts in many areas to eliminate puppy mills. As people tune in to the idea of NOT buying puppies from a pet store, numerous qualified and bona fide breeders of healthy and well cared for animals are painted with the same brush, which affects their sales.

Thanks for this, Erik.
Barb

[TerdalFarm]

Here is a photo of my friend showing me his Xate:

[url=http://www.postimage.org/image.php?v=aV1W0LG0][img]http://s4.postimage.org/1W0LG0.jpg[/img][/url]

--Erik

[TerdalFarm]

Here is another try:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/Lx ... directlink
I'm still having trouble putting photos on this board.
--Erik