From: Paradisego at aol.com on 1997.11.04 at 15:05:09(1574)
Hi, everyone - this is my first posting to AROID-L, although I've been
following the discussions for sometime.
My wife and I recently visited Dewey Fisk's place in Davies, Florida. It is
one hour north of Miami or four hours south of Orlando. It is one of the
largest aroid collections in the U.S. and the largest in Florida.
Anthuriums, alocasias, philodendrons and hundreds, probably thousands of
aroid species are on display and for sale. I found his prices to be
reasonable, considering how difficult it is to locate many of these plants.
It took me 2 hours to gain an overview of his collection. If Dewey's time
permits, I suggest allowing more than 2 hours. If you examine the plants
closely and take photographs, you could easily spend a half-day or more.
Dewey is a fine fellow to chat with (as many people in the IAS and AROID-L
already know). He has at least three shade houses plus growing areas under
tall trees. It is a lot to see but the incredible plants, along with Dewey's
wonderful narrative, makes the time pass too fast. As I walked through the
isles of plants I kept thinking that there could not be any more surprises.
But incredibly, each isle contained more rare plants, plants that I had
never seen except perhaps in Exotica. At times the experience was
overwhelming. For people seriously into aroids this is a must trip. It is a
lot easier traveling to Dewey's place than to the many exotic places around
the globe from which these aroids originate.
Also, I have seen several AROID-L postings extolling the new book, The Genera
of Araceae. Having obtained a copy of the book I must agree that it is an
essential work. The price of $135.00 for one book may at first seem very
high. (It sure did to me!) But after reading through it, I am convinced the
book is worth every penny.
A few words about what I'm doing: I am a collector of tropical and
sub-tropical plants. I grow them outdoors in an area of Los Angeles, which
is USDA Zone 10B. The temperature in my garden has not dropped below 40
degrees in about seven years. I started mostly with palm trees and now have
more than 300 palm species. My collection includes tree ferns, cycads,
bromeliads, begonias, orchids and other tropical plants. While collecting
tropical plants I was struck by the beauty of aroids. I tried to find out
more about these beautiful plants and I was able to obtain a copy of Deni
Brown's amazing book. Soon I was searching the Internet for more information
and found AROID-L, which led to my joining the International Aroid Society.
I am also a member of the Southern California Chapter of the International
Palm Society and the Los Angeles International Fern Society.
Michael Regan Telephone 213-932-0634
Los Angeles FAX 213-932-1705
USDA Zone 10B * 40F-100F+ paradisego@AOL.com
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