Jardin Botanico

Today we took a guided tour in English of El Charco del Ingenio, which is a 170 acres nature preserve in the northeast corner of San Miguel de Allende.

Getting there is Half the Journey

Free Van Service

We are pretty sturdy walkers and considered walking to El Charco. However, the actual entrance was not entirely apparent on our map. Hmmm. Fortunately, Helen discovered on the English language version of the garden's website that a free shuttle van departed at 9:30 am from Calle de Mesones in front of Plaza Cívica. The same shuttle van departs from the garden at 1:00 pm and returns its passengers to the plaza.

As the van worked its way up the ever increasingly steep cobblestone roads to the garden's entrance, we were very glad we discovered this free shuttle service.

The Tour

Norman

We were the only people who showed up that morning for the standing 2 1/2 hour guided walking tour given on Tuesday and Thursdays. Our guide Norman, an expat who has lived in San Miguel de Allende for eight years, was personable and had a knowledge that covered both the garden's flora and it winged inhabitants.

As birds landed nearby or butterflies flurried before us, Norman was quick to identify the species and added a bit of extra commentary.

Given the wide variety of plant life in the botanical garden, Norman spent a good deal of the tour discussing flowering plants, cacti and the many succulents, especially the broad leaf agave, that call the garden home.

Cacti vs Succulent

Agave

But first, let's resolve the "great cacti vs. succulent" battle! Okay, there is no battle, but there is general confusion or, in our case, a general ignorance on the difference between cacti and succulents.

"All cacti are succulents, but not all succulents are cacti," stated Norm at the start of our tour.

Cacti

After touring the garden and its wide variety of cacti and agaves, we achieved a greater appreciation for Norman's observation.

Succulents, we learned, are plants that store water in juicy leaves, stems or roots in order to withstand periodic drought. 

So cacti and agave are both succulents. But for a succulent to be cacti it must have areoles. Areoles are small, round, cushion-like mounds of flesh where spines, hair, leaves, flowers, and more grow from the cactus. Agaves do not have areoles so "ipso facto columbo," they are not cacti. Simple.  Right?

However, becoming cacti savvy observers was not the highlight of our discoveries. Learning the reproduction cycle of an agave was our big "we

Seed Pods (left) - Flower Spike (right)
Click to Enlarge

didn't know that" experience.

The entire life span of an agave (up to ~80 years) is spent maturing and storing enough energy to produce an enormous flower spike that looks like a giant asparagus stalk. For plants grown to make mescal (tequila), the plants are harvested before this tall spine (that takes about 10 months to mature) forms in the central part of the plant.

At the garden there were agave plants in various stages of the reproductive cycle. At its reproductive peak, a 12 foot or higher flower spike extends from the plant's base. Flowers form, seed pods burst open and winds help dispersed the seeds. Once the seed pods are spent, the plant dies.

Other Stuff

We also learned of the cochineal insect that lives on the paddle of cactus plants. For centuries indigenous people created a deep red dye from the insects. The Spanish recognized the export value of this dye and cornered the world-wide red dye market until the introduction of synthetic dyes in the late 19th century.

Another Spanish remnant found is the park is the stone aqueduct constructed by the Spanish to drive

 Dam and Las Colonias Reservoir

a water wheel for milling grains. Only fragments of the aqueduct and the water wheel's stone brackets remain today. A 1580 map of the area clearly shows the water wheel and mill were indeed operational in this location.

Another more visible remnant of the past is the large dam and Las Colonias reservoir  built in 1902. The dam and metal sluice pipes were installed to generate electricity for La Aurora textile factory.  La Aurora long ago ceased being a textile mill and is now an upscale arts center.

We enjoyed our visit to El Charco and recommend a visit if your visit to San Miguel de Allende allows you sufficient time to savor this wonderful central Mexican botanical garden.