Tropicallvr

During the summer, and early fall the jungle is really beautiful, and well watered due to the summer rains, that were heavier than ussual in 2008.
Definatly a nice time to check out the Puerto Vallarta Botanic Garden, which is actually not even in the city, but about 20 miles south east in the coastal mountains. You can find it by taking the $2.00 El Tuito bus from the south end of PV(around aguacate street/ave).
Once the native bamboo (Rhipidocladum racemiflorum) starts showing up along side the highway, you know you are getting close to the park. The workers at the park have given it the name "fox tail" bamboo.

The field of Musa veluntinas is at the beginning of the trail leading to the "native" section of the park.





Leaving the banana feild and heading up into the native bamboo.


More native bamboo-

Some dwarf native palms, known commonly as the rootspine palm, due to it's spiny trunk.



Some native plants, mixed with not so native ones.






Now up towards the center of the park near the restraunt and bar. Root spine palm grown in full sun.


An amazing Heliconia that resembles a bird of paradise in foliage, but no blooms at this time of year.




Here's a shot from the main building overlooking the brown rain runoff river water, and a couple of taller native palms, that also have alot of spines.

And now down at the river, which is clean and great for swimming when the rain lets up, and tons of blooming bromiliads in the canopy above in late summer.

Tropicallvr

And more native bamboo taken in the rain at the bus stop. It's a type of Otatea, that is larger, and spreads rapidly, but is utilized for it strong wood by locals. There's three types of native bamboo in the botanic area, and about 6 types total in the neighboring states of Jalisco, and Nayarit.

Worm_Farmer

There is so many leafs on that Bamboo, I had no clue it was Bamboo. I am so use to seeing the Bamboo poles.

Great Pictures!

jack hagenaars

Thanks for showing the botanical gardens..I have been there many times and it is maturing nicely...I will be there again in about 30 days...looking forward to it...your pics have got me all excited about going back later this month...

Chironex

Beautiful! I hope to see it someday.

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Scot

southlatropical

I am guessing that is Otatea acuminata subsp. aztecorum 'Mexican weeping bamboo' or some other subsp. of Otatea. The culms are solid. This one is actually a clumper although a loose clumper that can take up quite a bit of space.

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Tropicallvr

It's actually Otatea fimbriata, which grows to about 30 feet, close to 2" diameter culms, and seems to run up to 12 feet or more from one culm to the next. I haven't seen the other specie of the genus(O. acuminata) , but it's supposed to be all over in Sonora, and other dry northwest Mexican states which are north of here.
Thanks for the pic though.