The Ark Herb Farm

Recently we drove to the Ark Herb Farm, an interesting botanical garden on the side of the Barva volcano, Santa Barbara de Heredia. It’s a huge operation and well worth visiting. They have over 1600 species of plants.

There’s a closed entrance gate that they will open when you ring the bell. A really nice young lady met us at the sale nursery and gave us brochures and explained where things were. Entry cost is reasonable - 4,000 CRC each (about $7 USD). You can wander around on your own or take a tour with an expert guide. We decided to mosey around on our own. There appeared to be a lot of work going on. A large restaurant was being built and some of the garden areas were not yet planted. The weather wasn’t the best that day so we didn’t go on the trails.

Of course I had to go into the sale nursery and came out with a culantro plant and a sage plant. Every month I get an email from the Ark Farm listing every herb, bush, tree and plant they have to offer that month. You can place your order via email and they will have it ready for you when you get to the farm. One building was called The Meadery and this is where they produce mead using honey from their own bees.

Random photos:

The meadery building:

The sale greenhouse:

Overcast day:

This would be a great place for a plant aficionado. They offer different activities and courses on the weekends, including a “farm to table” lunch. There’s also a treehouse that’s for rent!

Eyes on Costa Rica and Weather Records - July 2019

In July, visits to this blog were received from the following countries:

The total number of countries from which visits have been received is now 126, the most recent being Uganda identified above. The source of the one visit from that country was Kampala (the capital city).

The following is a summary of the weather for the month of July in the area where we live:

The amount of rain was marginally less than that in June. Although there were several days with rain, the amount on most days was quite small - less than 1/10 inch (.025 cm). A number of days were cloudy all day. Distant thunder could be heard but no rain was produced in our area.

The high temperature of 87 °F (30.6 °C) was a one time event. The high on most days was significantly cooler.