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5 plants worth knowing

St. Vincent & Grenadines

Saint Vincent is a steep volcanic island dominated by the active volcano La Soufrière; its interior is clothed in humid rainforest and cloud forest, and its fertile valleys in plantations of bananas, arrowroot and breadfruit. The Grenadines to the south are lower and much drier, with dry scrub, white beaches and reefs. Kingstown is home to a botanic garden founded in 1765, considered the oldest in the Western Hemisphere.

Hover over a plant to see on the map where it grows.

where it grows

  1. Soufrière tree 1

    tree · National flower of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

    Soufrière tree

    Spachea perforata

    A rare tree from the slopes of La Soufrière volcano, which gave it its name – a national flower few islanders have ever seen in the wild.
  2. Breadfruit 2

    tree

    Breadfruit

    Artocarpus altilis

    Breadfruit was brought here in 1793 by Captain Bligh – today roasted breadfruit with fish is the national dish of Saint Vincent.
  3. Arrowroot 3

    crop

    Arrowroot

    Maranta arundinacea

    For decades Saint Vincent was the world’s largest producer of arrowroot – a delicate starch from the rhizomes of this plant.
  4. West Indian tree fern 4

    fern

    West Indian tree fern

    Cyathea arborea

    Ferns as tall as trees cover the misty slopes of La Soufrière – among the first plants to return to volcanic wastelands.
  5. Sea grape 5

    tree

    Sea grape

    Coccoloba uvifera

    The sea grape, with its round, leathery leaves, gives shade on the beaches of the Grenadines – from Bequia to the Tobago Cays.