RARE  REPUTATION

" ... the most important thing we found at Botanics was good advice,"

The Lied Jungle at Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo is the world's largest indoor tropical rainforest. It features habitats of Asian, African, and South American rainforests housed in a 1.5 acre glass atrium containing thousands of plant species and over one thousand animals. Tree sloths, gibbons, lemurs, and howler monkeys can be viewed from an elevated walkway through the upper canopy, while pigmy hippos, tapirs, and rare African goliath herons conceal themselves in dense understory plantings. Since opening in 1992, the Lied Jungle has won many national and international awards including being named "the best total immersion exhibit in the world."

When Zoo Director Dr. Lee Simmons began sourcing plant material for the new rainforest exhibit, they did not have a great deal of money for plants. "The zoo had expended much of its budget on the building and infrastructure, and so we could not afford to hire a consultant that specializes in sourcing unusual plant material for zoos." Instead, Dr. Simmons and his horticulturists simply traveled to South Florida. 'Since we did not know the suppliers, we began asking nurseymen who we should talk to. When it came to palms, all of the roads seemed to lead to Botanics Wholesale," said Dr. Simmons.

Besides being a great source for all types of palms, the most important thing we found at Botanics was good advice," continued Lied Jungle's Dr. Simmons. Owners Jack Miller and Chris Oppenheimer took great care advising the zoo on plant selections and handling. "We felt that Jack and Chris adopted us. And that kind of help is as rare as the unusual species they supplied."

Botanical gardens, zoos, and landscapers frequently turn to Botanics Wholesale in Homestead when looking for unusual species and palm specimens. The nursery's broad range of native and flowering trees, palms, and cycads rivals that of many botanical gardens.

"We had some very specific needs for unusual plants. In our primate habitats we needed palms that couldn't be destroyed, since these animals are notoriously harsh on plantings," continued Dr. Simmons. Botanics recommended a little-known ruffle palm (Aiphanes caryotifolia) whose trunk, fronds, and petioles are covered with spines that repel the aggressive primates. "We had a huge atrium to fill with plants on a limited budget and needed twenty truck-loads of trees to build the Lied Jungle." Virtually all of the palms were supplied by Botanics.

"Botanics is the first place I think of when looking for rare palms, cycads, and trees," adds Ray Jungles, landscape architect in Key West. Jungles is well known for his designs that border on being a botanical garden themselves. "The aspect that distinguishes my jobs is that I usually specify a wide range of plant material, and Botanics has the things I like to use."

Botanics' reputation as Florida's leading supplier of unusual palms and cycads extends well beyond North America. Last year Miller and Oppenheimer shipped more than 20 ocean containers of specimen palms to a palmetum in the Canary Islands off the coast of Africa. The government sponsored the project, reclaiming a public dump by converting it into a botanical garden for their large tourism industry. "The goal is to establish a large, diverse collection of palms, originally to be sourced from many parts of the world," explains Miller. "We were the primary supplier of specimen plants due to their concern over pests from other parts of the world that may harm their native Phoenix canariensis."

The nursery has shipped to five of the world's seven continents including countries in Europe, South America, Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, and the Middle East. Botanics recently shipped a trial sea container of palms to Japan. The zero-tolerance policy of Japan's phytosanitary regulations made it one of their most challenging projects. "Japan has the world's strictest import inspections. It took us four days to bare root and clean the palms," noted Miller, "culminating in dusting inside each individual palm leaf base with a high-pressure air gun. If anyone is capable of meeting these kind of requirements, we are." Botanics believes they can open up the Tokyo-area market for landscape palms in the upcoming years.

Despite Botanics' growing international reputation, Miller and Oppenheimer reluctantly speak of their success. "I suppose that we have gained a reputation for our plant collection," says Miller. "It's a natural outgrowth of the fact that we love new challenges and plants, whether it be introducing new species to the industry or shipping to the far corners of the world."

In their quest to constantly expand their range of palms, cycads, and trees, Botanics has introduced many once-rare varieties to the industry. Years ago, they either introduced or were one of the first to grow these popular varieties on a large scale: Wodyetia-bifurcata (foxtail palm), Bismarckia nobilis (Bismarck palm), Dypsis decaryi (triangle palm), and Alpinia speciosa variegate (variegated shell ginger).

"In the palm and cycad families, we cannot rely on breeding as a source of new varieties," notes Miller, "yet our goal is to offer new introductions and the broadest possible selection in both field and container trees to our landscape customers." Miller constantly seeks out interesting varieties that are not commercially available in Florida. "Worldwide, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of palm and tree varieties that are not available here. But as important as being new, it is vital that our selections perform well in Florida's unique climate and soils. Often, we look to botanical gardens and the private collections of palm enthusiasts to see how the plants perform here. It is a very long process to thoroughly test survivability in Florida."

"Ten years ago I was one of the first landscape architects to specify Bismarckia nobilis on a broad scale," says Ray Jungles. Jack Miller had seen the plant at the Montgomery Palmetum, but it was not commercially available. Botanics saw the appeal of the silver foliage and massive, striking form and began large scale production. Now, Botanics has become one of the largest growers of Bismarckia in North America and has introduced their own Bismarckia nobilis selection called 'Silver Select' with consistently silver fronds.

Jungles continued, "they continue to seek out plants that are not widely available elsewhere, and bring large numbers to the market.

Miller himself has a few surprises that will be introduced in large numbers in the upcoming years, one being Chambeyronia macrocarpa, or red feather palm. The emergent leaf on this spectacular palm is brilliant red and turns green with age. The slow-growing palm is cold hardy to zone 9 and transplants easily.

Botanics has hundreds of field-grown Chambeyronia macrocarpa available over 10' tall. Botanics Wholesale grows more than 100 species of palms and cycads, along with Florida and Caribbean natives, flowering trees, and exotics on 75 acres in Homestead, Florida.

Landscape Images - Ray Jungles Incorporated, Landscape Architect, Key West