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Plant parents protect their green babies during hurricane season

Published:Saturday | July 6, 2024 | 12:09 AMKrysta Anderson/Staff Reporter
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Not able to prepare as much as she would have liked to, Tara Montaque, said she was happy to be able to conduct some post-hurricane care.
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Not able to prepare as much as she would have liked to, Tara Montaque, said she was happy to be able to conduct some post-hurricane care.
Montaque’s dwarf chin cactus, stunningly white in colour, remained outdoors and managed to pull through.
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Montaque’s dwarf chin cactus, stunningly white in colour, remained outdoors and managed to pull through.
Among her precious outdoor plant babies of pencil cactus, monstera, sansevieria, bromeliads, asparagus fern and staghorn fern, Hall explained that the bromeliads, monstera and the pencil cactus remained outdoors and weathered the ‘storm’ this week. The
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Among her precious outdoor plant babies of pencil cactus, monstera, sansevieria, bromeliads, asparagus fern and staghorn fern, Hall explained that the bromeliads, monstera and the pencil cactus remained outdoors and weathered the ‘storm’ this week. The ferns were taken inside.
As an orchid lover, plant mom Debbie Hall moved most of her external potted plants indoors while Hurricane Beryl made its way across the island.
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As an orchid lover, plant mom Debbie Hall moved most of her external potted plants indoors while Hurricane Beryl made its way across the island.
This beautiful succulent, which formed a short stemmed rosette, is one of Montaque’s plant babies that received too much water during Hurricane Beryl.
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This beautiful succulent, which formed a short stemmed rosette, is one of Montaque’s plant babies that received too much water during Hurricane Beryl.
The fiddle leaf fig plant and dumbcane plant were taken indoors.
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The fiddle leaf fig plant and dumbcane plant were taken indoors.
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This summer’s intense heat has made daily life almost unbearable. And with it comes two other time periods: blooming season and hurricane season. Many braced themselves for Hurricane Beryl’s arrival as she made her way across the island this week, with flora in mind. Plant parents Debbie Hall and Tara Montaque revealed that while they did their best to secure their nature babies, the green mission proved more challenging than expected.

Hall, who made the bold decision to take her leaf loves indoors, explained that she was overjoyed that they pulled through. “My plants survived,” she told Saturday Living, adding, “I didn’t lose any because I moved most of the ones that were outdoors to the inside of the apartment. The winds would have been too much for them, especially my fig plants that I had on the patio. I had to move the cactus plants inside as well because of their fragility.”

She also made special mention of her orchids – her prized plant possessions – noting that those which were mounted lost their bloom, but this is something that she can live with given the devastating outcome that would have presented itself had they been out in the elements.

“I did let my bromeliads stay and weather the storm. They can withstand most conditions and they proved me right,” Hall revealed.

While for Montaque, preparing for a hurricane of this magnitude as a new plant parent was easier said than done. “I was honestly caught off guard,” she admitted, noting that she “didn’t prepare as much as I should have, so they took a battering, especially the succulents.”Highlighting that they don’t usually do well with water overload, she was elated that the sun came out bright and early on Thursday so that she was able to conduct some post-hurricane care. “I had a gardener come in to help me clean up and clear out,” and now her plant babies are better and happy.

For hurricane preparation for plants for the season, Hall noted that you’re going to win and lose some plants in the care process. So be mindful of this and do what you can to double up on your efforts. “It’s important to own more than one of the same kind and share them as well. You can always go back and ask for a piece of it or propagate it and in the worst case scenario buy another.”

The good thing about this, Hall said, is that this is also a seasonal time for plants. “We are not moving them too often as some plants hate to be moved, like orchids, outside of the hurricane season. Plants love the rain, but too much can be a problem. So make sure that you monitor your outdoor babies during these rainy times. Also, ensure the potted plants are drained periodically to prevent rotten roots because potted outdoor plants don’t thrive if too heavily saturated with water.”

In addition to the external green life, Hall recommends catching rainwater for indoor plants, “They will love that,” she added.

krysta.anderson@gleanerjm.com