I get so excited to write about trees but not nearly as much as you probably do to read about them! Right now, there is this stunningly beautiful fig tree that is fruiting much to the joy of its surrounding inhabitants. Not only is she sporting her holiday colors, but she is gifting all our squirrels, monkeys, birds, coatis, even fish with some tasty little treasures to power their active days.
Being the fascinating humans that are our guests, I got to talking about trees with a gentleman who is originally from Jerusalem where they liberally indulge on the sweet and juicy figs of their landscape and olive trees too.
The more we got to talking the hungrier I became for olive tapenade, stinky cheeses, and big juicy figs. Now, to you and I the figs of Panama are neither sweet nor juicy however, to pretty much all the animals around us gorging themselves on this holiday feast the trees are alight with life - a great photo opportunity for wildlife photographers!
In Panama we have only a few different varieties of figs and only just two different sizes of figs that I have seen - the little blueberry sized figs you see in the photo (left) and a larger golfball sized fig that is full of latex when it's green but then dries out as it ripens.
The fig tree, like all trees, has a lot of responsibility to the planet as a provider of food and shelter, and oxygen creator but also, check out their dramatic root system! Those roots are like a beaver and moving water - they do not want the earth underneath them to budge an inch but they do want you to curl up with a book and enjoy their embrace. The roots are strong enough to hold back mountains, protect the walls that create river corridors, and even sometimes murder!
They totally get away with it though. You may of heard of them before - strangler figs. These malevolent fig trees grow from the tiny seeds of the fruit falling into the crook of a tree, growing roots down to the forest floor as well as up to the shining sun to create an intricately woven structure around the original host tree eventually strangling it. Harsh, I know but eventually the end result is this really cool towering jungle gym to crawl up into! It's also a great place for pollinators to hang out like bats and butterflies.
Speaking of jungle gyms and kids. Now that the New Year is upon us, many families are thinking about final school semesters and graduation celebrations. Morrillo is an amazing place to take a breather after exams and celebrate that hard earned diploma. We know how exhausting that time of life is so, let us do that work for you. It's as simple as sending me a message and we'll take it from there.
We hope you have an amazing New Year and that 2025 brings you to us!
Your Friends in Morrillo,
Cari and Ryan Mackey
Owners and Hosts
Morrillo Beach Eco Resort
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