So I was looking at Craigslist awhile back, and I saw the section for "discussion groups." My eye was caught by the=0A heading "philos." Wow, a whole Craigslist group for discussing philos? Nope. It was philosophy. Oh, well.
Anyway, at the moment, I am in the Dominican Republic. Not one of the richest Aroid regions, perhaps, but it does have a number of Neotropical genera. So far, though, the ones I have seen not that exciting: the ubiquitous Philodendron hederaceum, some little Anthurium which may be A. acaule, Syngonium which may or may not have been planted, and an Alocasia naturalized along the rivers. All are from Espaillat Province, in the forest remnants and riverbanks of what is mostly a farming and pasturage zone. I really must get into the interior, to visit some intact forests!
But the=0A reason I am here is to attempt to put down some roots at last. It is mighty difficult to grow aroids when I move house so often! Soon the question will be, how to get the good aroids. Are there suppliers with decent selection here in D.R.? The obvious Anthurium andreanum hybrids are here, and Spathiphyllum, but I haven't seen much else yet. Anyone have experience with shipping to or from this region?
And on a (slightly) non-aroid note, I wouldn't mind locating a source for Cyclanthus bipartitus, either.
Jason Hernandez
Naturalist-at-Large
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