Young Horticulturists of the Year Bursary Report

Winners of the IoH Young Horticulturist of the Year competition receive The Percy Thrower Bursary for travel and are asked to prepare a report on their travels using the Bursary. 2001 winner Mark Duffell visited Ecuador and the Galápagos Islands.

Botanising on tour

Growing up in a home surrounded by animals and plants it was little surprise that these guided Mark Duffell's passions, and as a youngster he was actively involved with local wildlife and nature groups. These interests were amplified by a wanderlust inherited from his parents and reinforced by trips overseas early in his life.

During his time at secondary school he was diagnosed with ME (chronic fatigue syndrome). Whilst incapacitated he put the time to good use reading any books on plants that he could get his hands on, slowly increasing his knowledge of native and exotic flora and fauna that had fascintated him on his trips abroad. It was from this starting point that his career in horticulture arose. He attended night-school and sat the RHS General Certificate, followed by the RHS Diploma in Horticulture. During this period he entered and won the Young Horticulturist of the Year Award in 2001.

Though not fully recovered, he hopes his health will continue to improve and allow him to combine his love of plants and the natural world with travel, photography, writing and practical horticulture.

Intro:
Winners of the IoH Young Horticulturist of the Year competition receive a bursary for travel and are asked to prepare for publication a report on their travels. Mark Duffell was the recipient in 2001. He visited Ecuador and the Galápagos Islands.

Mark reports on his trip:
Lying across the equator, with regions varying from tropical forests at sea level to the bleak Páramo just beneath the snow line in the Andes, Ecuador is a land to delight any planthunter. I jumped at the opportunity to visit, a decision made easier by the receipt of a travel bursary, my prize for winning the 'Young Horticulturist of the Year' competition. I joined an organised tour led by plantsman Roy Lancaster and his wife Sue. After leaving a gloomy UK, I headed south to the Equator and Ecuador's capital city, Quito. Plants were evident as soon as the plane landed, Passiflora mixta, with its upright coral pink flowers growing along the chain link fence, adjoining parts of the airport.

Páramo

Several trips were made to the highlands of Ecuador to look at the unique Páramo flora and fauna. The Páramo is a bleak landscape between the tree and snow line. Very arid and windswept, the region has produced some interesting adaptations in the flora with lots of low-growing, hummock-forming 'alpines'. These include several members of the Gentianaceae such as the only true Gentian (Gentiana sedifolia) with attractive blue flowers, the related pale-blue flowered Gentianella cerastioides and the remarkable bright cadmium yellow Halenia weddeliana - locally called 'Cacho de Venado' or 'Deer's antlers' because of the form of the individual flowers. Often in association with these 'Gentians' are daisy relatives, such as Hypochaeris sessiliflora with yellow flowers and the strap-leaved Werneria nubigena that bears white flowers.

Another composite is the prominent and highly characteristic plant of the region, Chuquiragua jussieui or flower of the Andes. This forms loose open shrubs with small waxy leaves closely arranged on the stems to minimise moisture loss, long roots that anchor the plants in the shifting Aeolian soils. For such a robust plant it bears extravagantly exotic flowers not unlike a Protea. But this is again an adaptation to its habitat, for in this beige and grey landscape the bright orange and yellow flowers light up like torches to attract its pollinator - the Ecuadorian hillstar (Oreotrochilus chimborazo), a stocky hummingbird.

More familiar and recognisable plants include the rich blue Lupinus species affinis pubescens, red flowers of the indians' paintbrush relative, Castilljea pumila, and the commonly widespread members of the Ericaceae, Vaccinium, Pernettya and Gaultheria genera. Seeing these plants in their own environment has made me value them much more. One of the most prominent plants of the region is a grass locally called Ichu (Stipa ichu) with very fine needle-like leaves. This creates shelter in which more exuberant plants can flourish, including Ribes hirtum with stunning red flowers very similar in form to R. sanguineum but much more sumptuous. Interesting foliage comes in the form of the club-mosses such as the rusty Huperzia (Lycopodium) crassa and the domed foliage of Azorella, an umbellifer.

We viewed the slopes of Volcano Cotopaxi, followed a few days later by a trip to Volcano Chimborazo. Both have similar floras but it was on Chimborazo that I spotted a lovely little mallow relative, Nototriche pichinchensis, with oversized and charming flowers of a rich violet blue colour.

Below the Páramo, on the fringes of the tree line, are larger shrubs including the bright yellow Hypericum laricifolium with conifer-like foliage; Baccharis genistelloides, a daisy with peculiar winged stems, and Vallea stipularis, with its beautiful red-tinged new growth and elegant flowers of a rich rose-puce colour. Herbaceous plants are equally diverse with the showy pink Senecio formosus, yellow Bidens andicola and Cortaderia sericantha, a less substantial relation of the Argentinean pampas grass. Near Papallacta we found an orchid bearing small white flowers on a single stem. This unassuming, rather than glamorous orchid has the delightfully brief genus name of Aa. Growing in small colonies surrounding the Aa sp.aff. palacea was Gunnera magellanica, flowering freely with red and yellow blooms. Early one morning, as we headed out to Chimborazo, I noticed a line of Puyas edging one side of a field. They were the only flowering examples of Puyas seen on this trip.

Two of the trips to the Páramo ended in pyroclastic events. Volcano Reventador, some 300km east of Quito, erupted and covered Quito and us in copious layers of fine ash, resulting in the disruption of some of our flights. We watched Volcano Tungurahua belch out clouds of ash and steam; but this time we were not underneath the ash cloud so could stand and admire the spectacle.

Cloud forest

Below the Páramo, at an altitude of between 2000-2500m, can be found the upper montane cloud forest. We stayed at Bellavista - known for its hummingbirds - near Mindo to the north of Quito. Here were many different species of Passiflora. Not all were in flower but we saw the pink P. mixta, the large pendant pale coral-flowered P. tarminiana and P. ligularis, growing on the compost heap and displaying intricate white, violet and purple, sweetly scented, flowers. Another group of climbers to prove common was the Bomarea, with the spotted orange and yellow flowers of B. caldasii caldasii, the pure orange flowers of B. glaucescens and the succulent sausage-like flowers of B. pardina, exotically coloured pink and white with chocolate brown spotting.

Many plants in this area are familiar, having relatives commonly grown in glasshouses in the UK, including several different Fuchsia, such as Fuchsia loxensis, F. petiolaris and F. boliviana alba. Other interesting species are Calceolaria, mostly yellow forms such as Calceolaria crenata, but also the white flowered C. sp. aff. lehmanniana, and a beautiful pink species I have yet to identify. The small blue Salvia scutellarioides forms low-growing herbaceous carpets alongside the vibrant puce S. aff quitensis.

Then we saw more unfamiliar members of familiar genera, starting with Gunnera brephogea about half the size of the more recognisable G. manicata. Euphorbia laurifolius, a common roadside sight, often forming a living hedge, looked similar to E. stygiana or E. mellifera. It has the same milky sap common to all Euphorbias - this sap being utilised indigenously to waterproof ponchos. A noteworthy bromeliad is Mezobromelia sp. aff. capituligera which has a tall upright inflorescence made up of bright red bracts which seemed to be interwoven with the white flowers, and close by Abutilon striatum is a small to medium shrub with elegant crimson, netted orange flowers. In the same area grows a delightful little epiphytic orchid Dracula sodiroi, bearing dozens of small triangular blooms that hang from the side of the plant looking like a flight of exotic red and orange insects, and Streptosolen jamesonii. This is so fittingly called the marmalade bush. It is a lovely member of the Solanaceae with its bright orange yellow flowers set off against the neat green foliage. I have always wanted to see this plant in the wild because when I was younger I saw it growing in my parent's conservatory and it was among the plants that sparked my enthusiasm for horticulture.

One of the most memorable excursions in the cloud forest was a trip to the hot springs near Papallacta. The first plant spotted was the breathtaking sight of pendant, shocking orange blooms, rampaging through the riverside trees. This was the large flowered Mutisia microcephala with flowers 65mm long and nearly 70mm across, hanging like huge lanterns lighting up the surrounding greenery. Crossing the river by means of a slightly precarious weir, we found large colonies of a purple- and magenta-flowered Thalictrum species. Both these plants were seen from the bus, but it was too hazardous to stop on the narrow roads.

Other plants in the locality include the small red-flowered nasturtium Tropaeolum tuberosum; Barnadesia arborea, a spiny shrub covered with pink daisy flowers; Brugmansia sanguinea, the red and yellow angels' trumpet; a parasite called Tristerix longibracteatus with yellow and red pendant tubular flowers growing on a small tree; a bamboo (Chusquea sp.), with a white bloom coating the leaf bracts surrounding the stems, and finally, a peculiar green- and yellow-flowered shrubby caper, Cleome anomala. To top off this day in failing light we spotted a black-chested buzzard eagle in a tree laden with the yellow orchid (Odontoglossum sp. aff. epidendroides), red bromeliads (Neoregelia sp.) and silver Tillandsia.

Amazonian rainforest

The last major mainland environment we visited in Ecuador was a small area of the vast Amazonian rainforest, near the headwaters of the Napo River - already 1km wide. We stayed at a lodge well hidden within the forest, the adventurous trip getting there involving a flight, a river boat trip, a 45-minute walk through the forest, and finally, a short trip in a dugout canoe to cross a black water lagoon to the lodge.

One day was spent walking through the jungle accompanied by a local Quichua guide who explained some of the ethno-botanical uses for many of the plants ranging from fibres used for basketry, fishing nets and hammocks, to the provision of drugs such as hallucinogens. One of these medicinal plants is the beautiful Brownea grandiceps or 'rose of the jungle', a legume whose bark is used as a contraceptive and that bears the most wonderful shining red capitate flowers.

I found the jungle a completely unthreatening place but could easily see how, if the guide had disappeared, I would have become truly lost. Walking proved relatively easy as there is little undergrowth in this true primary forest. Plants such as Fittonia grow in shady areas. In the more open areas, such as those near streams or fallen trees, larger herbaceous plants grow, including the waxy, pendant red- and yellow-flowered Heliconia rostrata, upright orange and yellow flowered H. stricta and the orange H. episcopalis. Nearby grew the ginger Dimerocostus strobilaceus with its pure white flowers and finally a beautiful leguminous shrub called Calliandra angustifolia covered in white and pink 'powder-puff' flowers.

Standing at the base of a 350-year-old kapok tree (Ceiba samauma), I felt real wonder at the girth of such a monument. Standing atop a similar kapok on a wooden viewing platform one evening with the sun setting, I watched parrots come home to roost in neighbouring trees along with toucans and other birds. In the canopy was a bromeliad that I recognised immediately as Aechmea chantinii - having grown this in my glasshouse for several years. Another plant was Psygmorchis sp. aff. pusilla, a delicate little orchid growing as a colony of twig epiphytes in an adjacent tree, bearing tiny yellow Oncidium -like flowers, coming from an even smaller fan of leaves, and measuring less than 50mm. After nightfall we descended the platform in the dark and headed back to the lodge by the dug out canoe, seeing pinpricks of light made by fireflies. By torchlight we watched fishing bats swoop down to catch their prey from the surface of the water.

On the lagoon edges around our camp were apple snails (Pomacea sp.) laying their pink eggs on the floating plant Eichhornia azurea, and an extraordinary few moments were spent watching a small flock of hoatzins (Opisthocomus hoazin), flapping clumsily past the group of trees next to where I was sitting. Sitting back to watch the sun setting over the black water lagoon, I saw lightening light up the sky in the distance as the stillness was broken by the primeval, yet magical sounds of howler monkeys whooping far away.

Galápagos Islands

After dashing around Ecuador it was nice to find the relative quiet of the MV Santa Cruz, our home for a few days as we toured some of the Galápagos Islands. We island-hopped, looking at flora and fauna often unique not just to the Galápagos Islands but to each individual island that forms the Galápagos Archipelagos. On one island a member of the Malvaceae, Galápagos cotton (Gossypium barbadense var. darwinii) blooms; the flowers starting off pure clear yellow, fading to a peach colour, before turning a deeper coral pink, the fluffy cotton bolls dotting the bushes. Visiting each flower were diligent Galápagos carpenter bees (Xylocopa darwinii). Amongst these groves of cotton are land iguanas, each seemingly more colourful than the next, and the Galápagos tortoise.

I felt fortunate to see one of the two native Passiflora, with P. foetida var. galapagensis growing wild on several of the islands. This species had a typical passionflower structure but each individual flower is encased in a nigella-like calyx that envelops the unopened flower and red fruit that follows. A small colony of Clerodendrum molle reminded me of the genus we grow in the glasshouse in the UK but this had a most delicate refined character, with pure white blooms, pleasingly scented. Another native plant that was highly scented was a heliotrope (Heliotropium sp.), but unlike the cultivated cherry pie of gardens, this had pure white flowers on a larger semi-herbaceous shrub. An attractive shrub Cordia lutea produces clusters of bright yellow -flared trumpet flowers, followed by translucent sticky berries that reputedly are used as a paper glue. One large tree that repeatedly caught my attention was Piscidia carthagenensis, with panicles of white-pink to purplish flowers not dissimilar to Robinia. This later develops attractive fruits, typically leguminous, but flattened with four longitudinal wings. Whilst near the shore line, I found a small colony of the Galápagos shore petunia (Exedeconus miersii), an annual member of the Solanaceae with white upright blooms and gummy leaves.

Of course the Galápagos is known more for its wildlife than its flora, and it certainly didn't disappoint with regular sightings of many birds, including Galápagos penguins, blue-footed booby's, flightless cormorants, frigate birds, tropic birds, brown pelicans, Galápagos hawks, mockingbirds and most pleasingly waved albatross, including several youngsters, sitting on nests. Other fauna was equally abundant with lava lizards running underfoot, Galápagos tortoise, marine and land iguanas, sea lions, marine turtles and Sally Lightfoot crabs. I went snorkelling twice, the first time seeing a large shoal of puffer fish, a lone Pacific green sea turtle and the undersides of feeding pelicans. On the second trip further off shore to fish rich rocks, a mischievous sea lion playfully nibbled at my fins, and sitting on the seabed was a white tipped reef shark that could be approached remarkably closely without seeming to be disturbed.

I would like to thank the IoH and the Shropshire Horticultural Society for giving me this opportunity for what was truly a trip of my lifetime; to Roy Lancaster for putting up with someone equally obsessed about plants; to Sue Lancaster for her diligence and organisation on the trip; to Susan Nicholas for her encouragement and work with the Young Horticulturist of the Year competition; and to my parents for their support on the trip and through life. The future holds many exciting possibilities, including hopefully a return to that part of the world, maybe to work within conservation on one of the reserves that I visited.