St. Lucia’s Diamond Falls Botanical Gardens
Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a retail nursery located in Bryn Mawr, PA, specializing in showy, colorful, and unusual plants for shade. The only plants that we ship are snowdrops and miniature hostas. For catalogues and announcements of events, please send your full name, location, and phone number (for back up use only) to carolyn@carolynsshadegardens.com. Click here to get to the home page of our website for catalogues and information about our nursery and to subscribe to our blog.
The Petit Piton, one of two volcanic spires unique to St. Lucia, rises over 2,400′ directly from the water on the Caribbean side of the island.
With all the cold weather and snow in the mid-Atlantic US as well as the UK and the rest of Europe, I thought my readers might appreciate a post from a warm climate. I was recently invited by Donna at Garden Walk Garden Talk to accompany her to her cousin’s home on St. Lucia, an island in the eastern Caribbean. Who could resist when the only cost was the airfare? Thanks Donna.
The other side of St. Lucia fronts the Atlantic Ocean. This is a view of the Maria Islands from Sandy Beach in Vieux Fort on the extreme southeastern tip of St. Lucia.
St. Lucia is an island country located in the eastern Caribbean Sea north of Venezuela at about the same latitude as Nicaragua . It is part of the Lesser Antilles and is surrounded by the islands of St. Vincent, Barbados, and Martinique. It covers 238 square miles and has a population of 174,000. St. Lucia was originally colonized by the French, and French influences remain quite strong. However, it ended up in British hands and gained independence in 1979, although it remains part of the Commonwealth. Residents speak English and Patois, a dialect of French with some Caribe and African words.
Lava more than 1.5 miles underground produces steam and heats the spring water to over 300 degrees F at the Sulphur Springs site outside the town of Soufriere.
St. Lucia is a volcanic island and is more mountainous than any other Caribbean island, which makes for quite scenic geography. The area around the southwestern town of Soufriere is a collapsed crater surrounded by dramatic mountain peaks. Two of these peaks, the Gros and the Petit Pitons along with the ridge between them and the underwater coral reefs in front of them form the Pitons Management Area. It is a UNESCO World Heritage site and is one of the most dramatic landscapes I have ever visited. St. Lucia’s climate is tropical although not as hot as other Caribbean islands due to the moderating trade winds. The predominant vegetation is tropical forest which climbs the steep hills and fills the valleys.
A view from the water of the UNESCO World Heritage Site framed on either side by the Pitons.
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Before we visit the botanical gardens, let me show you a few more views of St. Lucia generally:
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The local architecture reflects the influences of French colonization.
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A view of the Gros Piton from Sugar Beach.
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The town of Soufriere where the Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed sits in the middle of the volcanic crater with the Pitons behind it.
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Even when the Pitons aren’t in the picture, St. Lucia rises dramatically from the water.
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Even without the mountains, there is always the gorgeous blue Caribbean to stare at.
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The sunsets were magnificent every night.
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Especially when viewed from between the Pitons.
One of the many highlights of the trip was our visit to the Diamond Falls Botanical Gardens in Soufriere. The gardens are on the site of a 2,000 acre plantation granted by Louis XIII to the Devaux family in 1713 and still owned by the same family. Empress Josephine was a cousin to the Devauxes and played there as a child. Mineral springs heated by the underlying volcano were developed in 1784 into a bathing area for the troops of King Louis XVI. Today, the upper part of the botanical gardens are crowned by the lovely Diamond Falls, and visitors can still bath in the therapeutic mineral waters.
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Diamond Falls
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Steaming mineral water leaves Diamond Falls on its way to the mineral baths.
The botanical gardens comprise six acres along the gorge formed by the mineral springs. Although the plantings have been well established for at least two hundred years, they really came into their own in 1983 when a Devaux descendant decided to develop them as a formal botanical garden. Although I thoroughly enjoyed my walk around the gardens, I don’t know anything about tropical plants so you are on your own with the photos:
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Gravel paths wind through beautifully cared for but dense tropical vegetation.
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Lush vines, I believe this is schefflera, climb all the trees.
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Tree ferns were everywhere.
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I was particularly taken with this flower called lobster-claws in the genus Heliconia.
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Bromeliads and moss colonize a log.
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This tropical begonia looks exactly like Begonia grandis, the perennial begonia hardy in the mid-Atlantic US.
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I have given you a quick glimpse of the beauties of St. Lucia and a short tour of the botanical gardens. St Lucia is the most beautiful Caribbean island I have ever been to, and I am so thankful to Donna and her cousin for making my trip possible.
Enjoy, Carolyn
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Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a retail nursery located in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, US, zone 6b. The only plants that we mail order are snowdrops and miniature hostas and only within the US.
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CAROLYN'S SHADE GARDENS 
February 5, 2013 at 8:30 am
So, so beautiful, and I could feel the warmth, thank you Caroline and lucky you!
February 5, 2013 at 8:55 am
Christina, Then I achieved my goal of warming readers up. Carolyn
February 5, 2013 at 9:07 am
How beautiful Carolyn… lucky you! I have always especially loved the tree ferns and have grown them in my home… unfortunately, they eat up a lot of space inside! Spectaculr…. Larry
February 5, 2013 at 9:55 am
Larry, The only other place I have seen tree ferns like this was in Australia. I am very lucky. Donna’s cousin opened her home and kitchen to us plus provided transportation around the island so I could afford to go. Carolyn
February 5, 2013 at 9:11 am
I just love love this place!! We are going to have to pack our travel bags and visit this paradise!
February 5, 2013 at 9:56 am
Barbie, I would recommend a visit if you can get there fairly easily from South Africa—quite beautiful. Carolyn
February 5, 2013 at 10:42 am
Carolyn, what a beautiful and well researched post. You showed so much of what we experienced and your photos are wonderful. Like I told you at Ladera, you got the best sunset by far. Only five Piton shots? Like you, I had a hard time not photographing them. That was the only time I did feel like a tourist though. We saw so much of the island and experienced like a resident. Barbara is very lucky to live in such a beautiful place, and we were very lucky to visit her. Thanks for posting your trip, I enjoyed how you experienced it.
February 5, 2013 at 12:06 pm
Donna, Five Piton shots out of the hundred that I took—it was hard deciding which ones to use. As you know, I kept staring at the Pitons for the whole ten days we were there and exclaiming that I never expected to be so close to a World Heritage site. Thanks for taking me. Carolyn
February 5, 2013 at 12:27 pm
Add snorkeling at the base of them and seeing them from below the water!
February 5, 2013 at 12:37 pm
You are right that was an amazing experience swimming right below the Pitons and looking straight up their incredibly steep sides—magnificent.
February 5, 2013 at 12:31 pm
Gorgeous flowers and it sounds like a wonderful trip!
February 5, 2013 at 12:38 pm
Jeannine, I didn’t take as many shots of the beautiful plants growing everywhere on St. Lucia as I should have. I am glad I was able to give you some sense of the lushness. Carolyn
February 5, 2013 at 1:47 pm
Loved seeing the bromeliads growing on a log. I always have one on a side table in my living room….the current houseplant looks just like one in the photo!
February 5, 2013 at 2:19 pm
Marian, Donna commented that the plants we saw at the botanical gardens were all plants she had growing in her house. The thing was they were hundreds of times larger and growing closely together in their natural habitat. Not being a houseplant fan, I thought that was much more exciting. Carolyn
February 5, 2013 at 3:54 pm
Thankyou so very much for sharing your wonderful holiday!
Itwas like alitttle bit of a warm respit for me.
sincerely, barbara berlin
February 5, 2013 at 5:03 pm
Barbara, I am glad you enjoyed it. I was trying to make readers warm and sunny virtually. Carolyn
February 5, 2013 at 8:18 pm
What a fabulous trip! Those are some big bromeliads. My little houseplants pale in comparison…I suppose this is what they should look like in their native climate 🙂
February 6, 2013 at 8:20 am
Karin, Bromeliads are native to the tropical Americas and maybe to St. Lucia itself, I don’t know. They were certainly happy there. Carolyn
February 5, 2013 at 10:13 pm
How fun to see your pictures, my next door neighbour is from St. Lucia! He always talk about the beaches and the sun and the plants there. I can’t for my life understand why he wants to live in London when he comes from a place like that, but I guess it is more work here than there. He calls me ‘the Flower Lady’ and always strikes up a chat about the plants in my garden since he doesn’t have a garden himself here.
Loved your pictures and description, I could almost feel the sun on my back 🙂
February 6, 2013 at 8:22 am
Helene, I can see how your neighbor would think a lot about St. Lucia living in London especially in the winter. I am sure there are not many jobs on St. Lucia unless you want to work in the tourist industry. Carolyn
February 5, 2013 at 10:36 pm
Yes, we do appreciate you sharing these “warm” spring break photos. Thanks! I remember seeing Heliconia in Hawaii, and it has been a favorite tropical ever since. Beautiful!
February 6, 2013 at 8:23 am
PP, The heliconia flowers really stood out everywhere in the botanical gardens. I am glad you enjoyed the post. Carolyn
February 7, 2013 at 11:22 pm
BTW, I linked to your Camellia posts in my latest post. Thanks for all the great information!
February 6, 2013 at 1:56 am
So beautiful, love the tree ferns, and heliconia. Thanks for transporting me to a tropical paradise momentarily.
February 6, 2013 at 8:25 am
Bernie, It certainly has been far from tropical since I got home to Pennsylvania, but the really cold weather, single digits, all happened while I was away. I like snow but not cold so I am very happy. Carolyn
February 6, 2013 at 5:12 am
Carolyn, this is a great post full of wonderful images, I like very much to have yours and Donna’s vision of the same landscapes. I can tell you had a fantastic time tere and as I said to Donna, all I can think of is: I want to travel there! you too could be named ambassadors of the island!!
February 6, 2013 at 8:28 am
Lula, I actually wouldn’t say this about every Caribbean island I have traveled to, but St. Lucia is well worth the trip. The beaches actually aren’t the best but the island itself is gorgeous. I was just staring at the landscape the whole time. I couldn’t get “used to” how beautiful it was. Carolyn
February 6, 2013 at 9:42 am
What a tropical paradise! How nice to get away from the cold for a bit, to some sun and warmth. I would LOVE to be lying on Sugar Beach! What a gorgeous place! And those heated mineral waters is intriguing. I hope you went bathing in them!
February 6, 2013 at 10:15 am
Holley, When you arrive at the botanical gardens you can buy an additional ticket to bath in the mineral waters. Being the adventurous garden bloggers that we are, we sprung for the tickets and bathed. The setting was beautiful and I am sure the waters exerted their therapeutic powers on us. We did forgo bathing in the even more therapeutic mud baths at the Sulphur Springs volcano area, although Donna took photos of people doing it. Evidently, you have to sacrifice a bathing suit to this experience which I wasn’t willing to do. Donna is a reluctant bather under any circumstances. Our guide assured us that the mud bath removed “age spots” which I have to admit was tempting. Carolyn
February 6, 2013 at 11:47 am
This was delightful, looked like a wonderful visit.
February 7, 2013 at 8:13 am
Cassandra, It was a great way to avoid the coldest weather around here. Carolyn
February 7, 2013 at 3:27 pm
Stupendous vegetation. Lucky you.
February 9, 2013 at 1:45 pm
What a wonderful trip to take during mid-winter. You must have appreciated the warmth and sun along with all the gorgeous plants. I particularly liked the Bromeliads on that nurse log, they look so natural and exotic at the same time.
February 10, 2013 at 8:45 am
Marguerite, Yes, it was great to miss all the cold weather although it went down to 18 degrees F last night. Carolyn
February 10, 2013 at 1:10 am
So glad you had a great time…what a stunning place with such lush beauty…love the falls and the idea od mineral baths.
February 10, 2013 at 8:44 am
Donna, It was funny to think we were bathing where Louis XVI’s soldiers had bathed. Carolyn
February 13, 2013 at 8:54 pm
Just beautiful. How nice to great a break from winter and all that you do, and just before spring picks up.
We are heading into cold temps again over on this side of PA, though tomorrow is supposed to be 40 first. I saw a few C. tomasinianus peeking out today, so I am hoping they open up before the cold!
February 20, 2013 at 8:35 pm
You have really showcased the visit to St. Lucia quite nicely. What a beautiful place. Love your sunset pixs. I envy your time there, tropical and lush and colorful.
April 24, 2014 at 6:23 pm
Hello, Carolyn, congratulations on your pictures and on your gardens! I am a Brazilian professor and I am writing a book about world natural heritage sites, following UNESCO`s list. The book will be published in English by Springer, in The Netherlands. I am seeking two pictures of the beaches of Pitons, Saint Lucia, to illustrate my book, and you may can help me. All credits would be give in the book, including the webpage. I thank you the kindness of an answer! All the best, Vanda Claudino Sales