The 13th Annual Spring - Searle Brothers Plant Extravaganza!

[Palmarum]

cvb7873

That dude on the right is one bad looking mamma-jamma.

It is amazing how Forum members end up in my photos even without trying. I always think I capture one or two that way, but do not realize it.

- 11:53AM: A typical scene out in front of the Barn, showing customers getting in line for BBQ, moving along the left looking at plants, parking a cart full of plants, getting a drink or two...

- Volunteer and FM. Rob Van der Borg (Borgy230) downs a hot dog and washes it down with a Pepsi.

- On top of another ladder, I capture the traffic coming to and fro...

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 11:55AM: Another batch of hamburgers get added to the grill and become the next link in the assembly line of good BBQ food.

- In the seating area behind the grills, Andrea Searle sits with friends and customers at one of the picnic tables. This area has a select grouping of plants that are part of Jeff's collection and have been grown here for some time. They give those lucky few who rest here, rare and exotic palms and plants to gaze upon while eating lunch.

- 11:56AM: A view looking out from behind the BBQ grill area or 'pit' as some refer to it. I forgot how many times I ate lunch on Saturday.

- 11:57AM: The one and only threat of rainfall came on Saturday afternoon and the clouds were starting to form. It did rain at one point but very briefly.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 11:57AM: As the cloud cover decided to rain or move on, customers continued on as expected. The developed trait of 'eating while shopping' was being exercised.

- 11:58AM: A customer will try to get everything in one trip without going to the holding area, but I have noticed this rarely works.

- 12:05PM: Have Plant Questions? No Fear as Derek is here. Volunteer Derek Burch was never too far away to help gardening damsels in distress.

- 12:37PM: "Hmmm..." The Thinking Plantman. Inside the shadehouse, the debate of whether or not to get a palm was ongoing. Friends and spouses were always on hand to make the decision more complicated and interesting to watch.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 12:41PM: A meeting of the minds with the Central Florida regulars. IPS Director and FM. Ray Hernandez (Ray Tampa) takes a moment with FM. Frank (Trópico) to discuss all things palms, in dual languages even.

- 12:47PM: At times, just covering the distance of the sidewalk can be difficult.

- "I like the leaves of this one, lets get it." On the right coming closer, Andrea shows a customer through the shadehouse summarizing the different plant groups out for sale.

- 12:58PM: At close to One in the afternoon, the attendance was strong and so was the BBQ output.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 12:59PM: A view of the main intersection outside, looking south, shows it as busy as ever. This area never sees rest during the Extravaganza as everyone entering and exiting the sales area has to go through here.

- "Look, up in the sky!" Down the road a little ways, Rob points out something for a customer.

- Another view of the main intersection, this time looking west towards the front of the nursery. With all the movement, it is amazing anyone gets anywhere.

- 1:12PM: The scene above also takes place outside the shadehouse entrance. Like as if they were in cars traveling on the road, when it got crowded, customers used basic traffic patterns and movements to get through. Like watching loaded carts as trucks moving through a small city.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 1:13PM: The tires on this cart were thoroughly tested. There was barely any more room for another plant, some where even piled on top of one another.

- The Bamboo section was browsed well on Saturday and some larger specimens went out, usually with the assistance of a tree dolly. The supply got thinned out enough to be moved over closer to the registers on Sunday.

- 1:14PM: The lunch crowd continued until about Two in the afternoon so the tables and chairs barely saw a blank spot for most of the day. After the rush on Friday and the morning fervor of Saturday, the only remaining Orchids can be seen along the walls of the Barn.

- 1:15PM: Busy, busy. The sale continued unimpeded well into the Three and Four O'clock hours, until that spat of rain happened and temporarily caused customers to duck for cover.

Ryan

[ellidro]

Hey Ryan do you have any photos of the Dypsis hovomantsina?

[Palmarum]

- 1:49PM: Complete with a Hawaiian Punch in hand, one customer heads down the sidewalk with her new favorite Vanda cv. in the other. She was quite happy to get one of the last plants for sale and moved right past me too fast for a photo. I had to photograph her going away from me in the other direction.

- 2:38PM: At this point on Saturday, the sales area was running very low on plants. Some items were able to be restocked, but many were not and there was still one more day to go. Jeff, Jim and Ray went on the hunt to find more plants to pull. They found these few stray Begonias, tagged them and then put them on a table.

- 5:36PM: The days activities continued on as expected, except for the short rain shower and we had to wait on a few late customers to leave the nursery. The Post Tour at Jeff's house went on as usual and this time there was a huge spread planned for dinner so the crowd was larger than normal. I started walking through on my own and stopped to photograph one of the Copernicia rigida. This one is mature and has flowered a few times.

- 5:41PM: One of the many Orchids, this huge one was growing well and has gotten massive almost taking over the tree it was mounted on.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 5:46PM: "Woof?" -The Black Ghost watches the people arrive and keeps a close eye on everything.- Jeff's dog Kane was following me as I took photos and kept reacting to the noises heard as people entered the yard. He is a Cane Corso, or an Italian Mastiff, and his breed was recently acknowledged at this year's Westminster Dog show.

- 5:48PM: A fast growing Kentiopsis pyriformis dominates this small patch of the yard. This species has quickly become a favorite of the genus, as it has grown very well here in South Florida and is a counterpart to the K. oliviformis we all know so well.

*** Warning Explicit Photo ***

- not for the faint of heart -

- 6:07PM: Croton sex. This is one way new cultivars come into existence. A little alcohol was involved in the process.

- The tour went on for a while longer, followed by a great spread of food. Soon after the day came to a close and we sat by a camp fire discussing activity at the Extravaganza, future plant events and pondered what plants we could add for Sunday... if any.

Ryan

[BS Man about Palms]

- 11:55AM: Another batch of hamburgers get added to the grill and become the next link in the assembly line of good BBQ food.

- In the seating area behind the grills, Andrea Searle sits with friends and customers at one of the picnic tables. This area has a select grouping of plants that are part of Jeff's collection and have been grown here for some time. They give those lucky few who rest here, rare and exotic palms and plants to gaze upon while eating lunch.

- 11:56AM: A view looking out from behind the BBQ grill area or 'pit' as some refer to it. I forgot how many times I ate lunch on Saturday.

- 11:57AM: The one and only threat of rainfall came on Saturday afternoon and the clouds were starting to form. It did rain at one point but very briefly.

Ryan

Hey Ryan!... You DID manage to get some update pix of those palms I planted a year ago!! In this shot is an Arenga hookeriana to the right, and I think it was a Burretiokentia viellardii to the left. (both small plants planted at under 2 feet tall....that Arenga looks like it has grown quite a bit!

[Palmarum]

ellidro

Hey Ryan do you have any photos of the Dypsis hovomantsina?

I did not take photos of the D. hovomantsina that was out for sale and I do not know if it sold or not. If it is still at the nursery and/or Jeff will have it for sale at the SFPS sale this coming weekend, then I will take a photo of it and post it. If it did sell, then I will see if there are any others in its group and will take a few shots. There are a lot of palms in that section of the shadehouse so I don't know which species is which until I get out there again and look at the tags.

BS Man about Palms

Hey Ryan!... You DID manage to get some update pix of those palms I planted a year ago!! In this shot is an Arenga hookeriana to the right, and I think it was a Burretiokentia viellardii to the left. (both small plants planted at under 2 feet tall....that Arenga looks like it has grown quite a bit!

Well at least I captured those, I did not remember exactly what you had planted. I can only remember a few plantings that I had photographed.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

It rained overnight at the nursery and the rainforest feel was more than abundant. The temperature was mild and great for a plant sale. The amount of plants out for sale was diminished by two very busy days and Sunday looked to be no different. The morning started off slowly, but by Ten o'clock it got busier by the minute and even more so when the BBQ lunch got fired up. I did not get enough opportunities to take photos, so I have only a few to post from Sunday. It was worth it, as I got to talk to many good plant enthusiasts.

- Sunday, 9:54AM: A few of the prime real estate locations next to the shadehouse entrance were emptied of plants near the end of Saturday. Jeff went incognito for a short while to get some plants pulled, tagged and placed without getting interrupted. Short after the Brazilian Snow, Ctenanthe lubbersiana were tagged he donned the trademark red shirt and continued to find more plants. This area was filled with two other groups of plants during the weekend.

- 10:14AM: Many Forum members visited the Extravaganza during the weekend and I only had a few chances to photograph them in action. Jeff took a moment with Andrea and Rob to talk with Biennial veteran and FM. Robin Crawford (PalmXTC). Robin is known for his Brazil Biennial video and his other palm related video work submitted to the Forum.

- The sudden influx of humidity made the remaining palms for sale seem to 'jump' and push forward new leaf spears. The added moisture seems to make each palm more showy and it will often radiate their colors.

- 10:33AM: The morning had a mixed flow of both homeowners and collectors. There were a few patrons who were shopping on their third day. Andrea had one such group focused on her information and vivid descriptions of the same plants as they are growing in her yard.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 12:12PM: Customers were more than ready for their BBQ lunch. They came hungry for burgers and plants today, although some ate first before grabbing a cart.

- 2:15PM: Larry Searle and Jeff share a quick moment in front of the Bromeliad section. Larry was enjoying what I think was a 'Brandy Slushie' (pm me for ingredients) and Jeff was writing a last minute tag for a impromptu palm that was pulled from behind the caution tape in the shadehouse...

- 2:16PM: ... Here comes 'said palm' mentioned above. Normally when the situation is possible, a customer will want another plant in addition to one pulled for sale along the sidewalk. If Jeff has any more and is able to sell the plant, we will grab it and tag it for the customer. In this case, the customer below grabbed a slightly undersized Licuala peltata var. sumawongii from a spot next to the white tent that was off limits, but did not have the tape in front of the row, nor were they tagged. So it was a case of not knowing and a unique spot not covered by the caution tape. Jeff was more than willing to sell the palm, but it was going to be same price as the larger one already sitting on the sidewalk in the same size pot. The tag was written by Jeff in the above photo, and he is seen here approaching the palm.

I switched to a telephoto lens to capture the reactions, so let's watch shall we...

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 2:16PM: On goes the tag...

- "Oooh..." And the sticker shock kicks in right on time.

- 2:17PM: The customer was surprised, apologetic and understood the mix-up very well. He offered to follow Jeff back with the palm and look at the larger one out on the sidewalk. Crisis at the registers averted, as a tag-less plant causes all sorts of problems in the sale's smooth machinery. At this point in the day, there was less than two hours remaining in the Extravaganza and customers continued to arrive and shop.

- 2:18PM: The two customers in the center-background seemed to be both enthusiasts and good friends, as they both wanted unusual palms but wanted to out-do the other one. They spent serious time going up and down the shadehouse sidewalk browsing until the one on the left came out with a Red Sealing Wax Palm, Cyrtostachys renda and a large, Bamboo Palm, Chamaedorea seifrizii was in the hands of the other. Even though they were both happy with the palms they had chosen, they kept admiring the one the other friend had in their hands. It was interesting to watch the enthusiasm unfold.

Ryan

[Palmarum]

- 3:11PM: Must... Shop... For... Plants... It was a good mix of those who have been here all day and those who had just arrived, with less than a hour left in the sale. A few of the late arrivals had just heard about the sale for the first time so they were in a hurry to take it all in. The customer on the far right of the image looks as if he was about to fall over, grabbing for plants.

- 3:16PM: Progress as always. The motions of the sale continued for the entire day, right up until closing time. We had a few customers we had to wait on as they were still shopping for as long as they could.

- 3:18PM: Charlie, the German Shepard Dog. He is Larry's dog, even though he acts like a big puppy and is one of the 'pack' that hangs out at the nursery. Towards the end of the day, he was let out to mingle with the crowd.

- 4:00PM: The last photo from Sunday was taken right at the end of the Extravaganza, even though it wasn't quite finished yet. One customer needed a pair of Lady Palms at the far end of the shadehouse, so while the customer was paying for his plants, Rob grabbed a cart and went to get them. The hours of the sale have been unchanged for some time, but it never fails that we are open for a while longer. All in the name of tropical plants...

It was another great Spring Extravaganza and I believe the upcoming Fall one will be even better with all the planned plant production. See you at the next palm sale or Palm Related Event...

Ryan

--<

[BS Man about Palms]

Thanks Ryan..

[Trópico]

It was nice to see you, Ryan, Jeff, and Ray. It was my second Extravaganza so far, and me and my wife enjoyed the long trip and are now enjoying our newly acquired plants. Even though the selection was beginning to thin out by the time we got there, I scored the last Caryota zebrina seedling , got a really nice Calyptronoma rivalis, a super rare Dypsis , and a very bright blue Sabal uresana. No more Licualas available but there is a next time.

[LauraAnu]

Excellent coverage as usual Ryan . Hopefully I will be able to see it in person one day

Laura