Tom Fudge
: San Diego County seems an unlikely place to find a rainforest. But go to Mardy Darian’s property in Vista, and you can feel like you’ve been transported to Colombia, or Madagascar. Dr. Darian is a veterinarian by training. But for 45 years his passion has been exotic plants. His several-acre property is home to some of the world’s rarest types of palms. He grows more than 200 kinds of orchids. Over many decades of growing trees, he’s reproduced a rainforest canopy, under which many species thrive. Mardy Darian has done this through extensive travels to many countries. Some call him the Indiana Jones of plants. His adventures collecting plants have, among other things, gotten him jailed in Africa as a suspected spy.
Guest
- Dr. Mardy Darian, internationally acclaimed palm specialist and horticulturalist.
(Photo: Dr. Darian is a palm specialist, Angela Carone ) |
(Photo: Dr. Darian's Rainforest in Vista, Angela Carone ) |
(Photo: Darian speaks with Tom Fudge about his rainforest, Angela Carone ) |
(Photo: Footbridge in Dr. Darian's rainforest, Angela Carone ) |
