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| source: flickr.com |
When we went to El Salvador for our
mission trip with Living Water, I expected to be moved spiritually and challenged physically. However, I didn't expect to be totally blown away by all the amazing flora in the area! I was able to take some time this week to complete a few nature journaling pages, and thought I'd share them with you on today's post.
While we were driving to and from the drilling community site, I kept encountering this amazing tree throughout the countryside. It was of a magnificent scale and had a high, spherical canopy that was quite delicate looking. I later learned that it was what the locals call a "conacaste tree," but it is known throughout Latin America by various names: guanacaste, caro caro, and the elephant-ear tree (named after it's strangely-shaped seed pods). It is actually the national tree of Costa Rica.
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| Conacaste tree (source: en.wikipedia.org) |
One of our national team members mentioned that the wood of this tree makes beautiful, heirloom-quality furniture. A quick internet search showed me that the seeds found inside the pods make beautiful Mayan-inspired jewelry.
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| Conacaste wood (source: maeco-maexpo) |
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| Conacaste seeds (source: amazon.in) |
Another unusual tree I saw in El Salvador was the morro tree. Its trunk and branches were covered in fruit that had a "stuck on" appearance, and it had relatively few leaves.
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| Morro tree |
We were served a sweet iced drink, horchata, made from the ground seeds of this fruit that was quite tasty. The gourd-like fruit can be dried and used to make cups and bowls, too. (The fruit pulp seems to be fed to the horses and only the seeds are used for human consumption).
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| Horchata (source: leannebrown.com) |
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| Morro cups (source: zoom50wordpress.com) |
Another tree that caught my eye was the mango tree. While I am very familiar with this juicy fruit (my son's favorite in smoothies), I had no idea that the ripened fruit hung off the branches from red tethers! And did you know that it is a member of the cashew family?!
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| Mango tree (source: amazon.in) |
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| Mango fruit (source: istockphoto.com) |
We were also served coconuts with straws as a refreshing afternoon drink (or you can just chug-a-lug, like I did!). The coconuts were large and yellow-green. This got me wondering about what the difference was between these coconuts and the brown, hairy ones I am more familiar with from home (at the grocery store, that is). I found out that they are one and the same, just at differing stages of maturity. The yellow-green ones are more immature and contain a lot less meat and more water, while the brown-hairy ones are more mature and contain less water, but thicker, firmer meat.
And finally, I was quite taken with a fringy, broad-leafed tree that I saw all throughout our travels in El Salvador. This was quickly identified by our guides as the plantain tree. I researched a bit about the difference between plantains and bananas, and learned that plantains must be cooked before eaten and are quite starchy, not sweet, like our "dessert bananas" back home. I enjoyed them a few times during our time in country, cooked up warm with some cinnamon.
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| Plantain tree (source: pri.org) |
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| source: bananaprocess.com |
I hope you were able to learn a few new things, like I did, about God's wondrous creation in today's post, dear friend! I also hope you are inspired to look around you, when you are traveling for work or pleasure, or even in your own backyard! You just might be surprised, like I was, to learn more about a new-to-you plant or tree.
To Him be the glory!
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