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Seaside garden

Hammock between cabbage palms

BY CATHERINE MACGILLIVRAY

blooms

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InsideOut Autumn 2015 | 107Photos by Stephen Clarke

Having a garden by the sea on the south shore of Grand Cayman is a challenge.

The salt air and the sand are permanent problems that daunt all but the most determined of green-fingered

enthusiasts.However, one couple has

designed and created a flourishing oasis thanks to patience, trial and error since

they began planting in 2008 at the same time as building their

beachside house.“We’ve had to experiment with

what would do well front-line by the sea and have come up with a fairly

good variety of plants that can take the heavy salt,” explains the lady owner, who is a member of the Garden Club of Grand Cayman.

Fruit trees and less-tolerant vegetation have been planted away from the shoreline, at the back of the house, which provides some shield from the harsh elements.

“The sand is more of a challenge then the salt air as nutrients leach out very easily,” says the owner. “Another challenge is the crabs constantly digging under the plants, but the biggest challenge of all is the ‘husband with chainsaw’. Earlier this week, he trimmed a palm tree and reduced a beautiful five-foot symmetrical cactus to a two-foot ugly stump.”

If they find that plants are not thriving they simply move them to another location.

“We relocate what doesn’t work until we find the right spot and reluctantly use crab bait but I have not found a solution to the ‘husband with chainsaw’,” the owner jokes.

Experimental gardenIt’s the couple’s first garden in the Cayman Islands and the initial design was created in conjunction with East End Garden & Gifts as a “no-grass” concept.

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Pergola with bare-root orchids

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“ In Cayman, gardening can be year-round provided you are up and out early in the summer, and things grow so fast that if you make a mistake in pruning (short of taking off the entire top of a cactus) you won’t be able to tell in a couple weeks.”

Above: vanda bloom, below: Broughtonia sanguinea.

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“We looked at it as our experimental garden,”

says the owner. “Some things worked and some

did not work out very well and were changed.”

The garden spans around 1.75 acres, half on

the seaside and half across the main Bodden

Town to East End road that splits the property.

It’s mainly the area by the sea that has

been developed, with the area across the road

featuring only a pond, cacti and citrus plantings.

Although there are no formal demarcations,

the owners refer to the different sections as the

seaside or beach area, fruit tree area (although

some have spread elsewhere), orchid shade

house and pergolas, with the xerophitic – or

cactus area – across street.

Mixed plantsPlants that do well in the garden include fruit

trees and cacti as well as orchids, with both

native and imported plants featured in mix.

“The native plants are generally easier and

Left: pineapple; right: Tahitian gardenias behind bench.

require less water and other maintenance, but

I like the variety that mixing them together

can give,” says the owner. “Just recently, we’ve

developed more of an appreciation for bromeliads

and have started to grow more of them.

“And the pink-flowered ceiba tree is such a

treat when in bloom and it is totally covered in

pink lily-like flowers. Of course its thorny trunk

stands out as unique even when there are no

flowers.

“Orchids have to be mentioned too. Mostly

I grow cattleya and vanda types along with the

standard dendrobiums, etc. I particularly like

the orchids because there is so much variety. In

fact there are more species of orchids than any

other plant, although I have only a very small

percentage of the more-or-less 24,000 species.”

And there are plants galore in this seaside

garden with the owner giving many away.

“I hate to waste, so cuttings and seeds often

get planted,” says the owner. “I usually trade

plants started this way with friends, or put

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them in the Garden Club/Pink Ladies sales, but sometimes I get carried away and have far more than I can give away.”

Water featuresDespite the often-arid conditions, the garden has three water features.

There’s a large pond across the street, containing fish, which birds flock round. A tiny pond by the pergola has just water lilies in it and the small rectangular pond outside the dining room windows contains decorative glass balls.

“It has sun in the summer and none all winter long,” explains the owner. “We’ve found that this extreme change required constant re-stocking with water plants, so we have opted for a very contemporary glass approach.”

The couple can be found working in the garden most days in the early morning and then relaxing on the screened deck overlooking the sea in the afternoons.

Above: aloe vera and firecracker bush; below: gloriosa lily.

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“The beauty and fragrance of some of the flowers is amazing and the fruit is delicious,” says the owner. “The garden is productive and yet relaxing, providing exercise without the hassle and monotony of a gym.

“In Cayman, gardening can be year-round provided you are up and out early in the summer, and things grow so fast that if you make a mistake in pruning (short of taking off the entire top of a cactus) you won’t be able to tell in a couple weeks.”

While neither of the couple are professional

or trained gardeners, they say the hobby is in their blood.

“No proper training or courses for either of us, but lots of reading both in books and the Internet,” says one of the owners. “When something looks interesting, we research it. We’ve both been gardening since we were kids. It’s exciting to watch things grow – and you can bury your mistakes.

“With both of us, if you scratch the surface, you’ll find a farmer underneath. We are happiest working in our garden.”

Clivia lilies and cabbage palms in foreground; bromeliads, Baccharus

dioca and Carissa (natal plum) seaside.

White frangipani

Myrmecophilia tibicinis on royal palm

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InsideOut magazine is delighted to have become a “Platinum Friend” of the Garden Club of Grand Cayman.

As the club welcomes new members, it has recently opened up sponsorship to friends, benefactors and supporters of the horticultural organization.

Levels of support range from “Personal” at an annual endowment of $100, to “Silver” at $200, “Gold” at $300 and “Platinum” at $500.

Each category offers a rising scale of benefits, from a simple listing on the club’s website (caymangardenclub.com) to acknowledgement of the supporter on an electronic monitor at meetings and events.

“We are pleased to welcome InsideOut magazine as a Platinum Friend of the Garden Club,” says Ora Hollebon, president of the Garden Club. “As a publication that features prominent homes and gardens around Cayman, we look forward to a great synergy between our organizations.”

InsideOut, which is published in the autumn and spring, showcases some of Cayman’s most fabulous gardens and includes other gardening-related topics in every issue.

“We are thrilled to join the Garden Club and anticipate highlighting some of the most creative gardening projects on the island,” says Catherine MacGillivray, editor of the magazine.

Founded in 1957, the Garden Club has an active membership of more than 60 gardening enthusiasts, more than half of whom have joined in the last five years.

Pioneer members included Joyce Hilton, Ena Watler, Dorothy Roulstone, Frances Bodden, Una Bush and Corrine Thompson, all of whom have now passed on.

However, their strong legacy of commitment to beautifying and strengthening the community continues to flourish.

Club ethosThe aims of the Garden Club are to:

gardening and all things related to the natural beauty of the Cayman Islands

in concert with others, to beautify the community

understanding among persons of all races and nationalities who share an interest in gardening

The Garden Club is a registered not-for-profit organization, with members generously donating their time to numerous projects within the community.

These initiatives include work on the gardens at the National Gallery of the Cayman Islands; enhancing the grounds of UCCI; landscaping at The Pines Retirement Home, Francis Bodden Girls Home and Bonaventure Boys Home; organizing projects at the Queen Elizabeth II Botanic Park;

InsideOut joins Garden Club

Left: Ora Hollebon, current president of the Garden Club; above: National Gallery gardens where club members

helped with planting.

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Anyone wishing to become a sponsor of the Garden Club of Grand Cayman can do so by emailing gcosprey@gmail.com, tel: 925-5531 or 925-6520. For individuals who wish to join as ordinary members, the fee is $25 per annum.

InsideOut is also a new member of the Cayman Islands Orchid Society, which meets on the second Saturday of every month.

Members enjoy talks and presentations by local orchid experts and guest speakers, and stage the two-day annual Orchid Show jointly with the Botanic Park.

Monthly meetings are held at various venues, including members’ homes, with an annual membership fee of $25 to join the society.

Anybody interested in becoming a member can call society president Helen Hislop on 949-9346 or email orchidsociety.cayman@gmail.com.

Join the club

Orchid Society

and holding a bi-annual flower show.“Our new “Friends” initiative was created to provide

additional resources to take the club’s community involvement to greater heights,” says Ora. “Hopefully, this new relationship with one of Cayman’s premier magazines is an additional opportunity for our talented members to demonstrate their creative efforts and enhance this new initiative to greater success.”

MeetingsThe Garden Club meets on the first Thursday of every month, apart from July and August, usually at a member’s house or garden.

Either a guest speaker gives a talk on a garden-related subject, or a garden tour is held, with refreshments provided.

Gardens