We collect:
Anthurium   Philodendron   Orchids   Aroids   Rare Plants
Alocasia  Oncidium  Cattleya  Dendrobium  and Lady Slipper 'Paph' Orchids
This site is intended to be an informational source.  Visitors are Welcome in the Garden.
To our friends in SE Asia: the Exotic Rainforest does not sell Anthurium or seeds.

Looking for information on a specific exotic plant species?  Click here!

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    A Rain Forest in Arkansas?
In 1974 we made our first trip to an Exotic Rainforest.  That one was in Puerto Rico and I was hooked!  Instead of some dark black jungle it was bright and alive with color and life.  From that moment I fell in love with the rare exotic plants that live in any rain forest.  Those jungles are called rain forests because the plants that flourish in their boundaries love rain.  And rain it does much of the year. Even the names of the plants are exotic: strange names such as Anthurium, Philodendron, and Heliconia.

The jungles and rain forests of the Caribbean, South America, Central America, S.E. Asia and the tropical Pacific are alive with a varied selection of unusual and often rare plants.  Regrettably, too many of the world's rain forests are being destroyed and my grandchildren may never see one.  Fortunately, my work as a commercial and underwater photographer would take me often on journeys to these exotic destinations.  In the years that followed our first visit I was privileged to make hundreds of flights to countries around the world that still have living, thriving rain forests. 

I've seen most of the islands of the Caribbean including those with rainforests like St. Lucia,  St. Vincent, and Jamaica.  I've photographed the jungles of tropical nations such as Venezuela, Mexico, Belize, Columbia, Honduras, Ecuador, Singapore and others.  On my first visit to Singapore in 1986 I was escorted on a visit to the national orchid collection.  Instantly my interest in these wildly beautiful flowering plants with "tribe" names such as Oncidium, Dendrobium and Cattleya was ignited.  So now we have hundreds of orchids living in our "rainforest", many attached just like they grow in nature.

Living in Miami, Florida at the time I had the perfect location to house my collection of "house plants".  Everything lived in my yard!  And my entire ½ acre was landscaped with three tropical ponds with flowering water lilies and hundreds upon hundreds of exotic aroids, Philodendron sp., Anthurium sp. , bananas, orchids. and other rare plants.  And unlike here in mid-America, in South Florida there are many places to find the rare philodendrons and anthuriums that tease my interest.  Finding rare plants in Miami is almost too easy and the selections seem endless.  Many plant collectors have small nurseries devoted solely to the rare plants found in the rain forest.   

So just before 2000 when my wife, Janice, began to want to move closer to our grown children and her parents after 25 years in Florida, I was determined to move the collection and make rare tropical plants accessible to folks who have never seen a rain forest. 

I told my friend Tom White, who owns Zone Ten Nursery south of Miami, I was going to build a "rain forest" in Arkansas!  He thought I had lost my mind.  I did have reservations about leaving Florida, but my only restriction on the move was I got to take my plants!   So now, in the tiny rural community of Siloam Springs in Northwest Arkansas, right on the border with Oklahoma and not far south of Missouri we own what is likely the only "rainforest" in Arkansas!  But unlike most plant collections, which reside in pots, our collection resides in an atrium designed to truly be, as close as possible, a rain forest.  Hopefully it gives anyone who enters the feeling of visiting the tropics.  The vast majority of our specimens are planted in the ground which was specially  prepared to be "tropical" before planting.  You can read how we created it by clicking here.  We have not only exotic plants, but also tropical birds, tropical tree frogs, tropical anoles (small green lizards) and other rainforest inhabitants.   And in the background you can hear recordings of the birds and sounds of rain forests  from all over the world.  It's not your typical "tropical plant

collection or nursery"!  It's more like a small botanical garden, a private botanical garden open to visitors. One guest actually called it "Costa Rica Under Glass".  We also make the "rainforest" available to educators as a teaching tool.

We do rarely sell some plants, but it's not a business, it's a collection.  We love to share our plants and gladly answer questions as well as welcome anyone who wishes to visit.  Please just call first!   Also, please understand the majority of the collection is not for sale.  Some of the rarest plants cannot be sold by agreement with the individuals who provided our specimen.  A personal note: This site was not created to sell plants.  We only sell extra plants in our atrium.  We don't attempt to make a living from the sale of specimens.  This site was created to give my adult daughters some insight as to "what is what" in the collection since I know I won't be here to care for them forever.  The site was designed to give them a "note book" to which they can refer along with my photos.  Hopefully you will find the information of value as well.  I attempt to verify all my facts botanically, but I'm not a botanist.  I'm also certain I make errors.  If you find one please drop me a note and I'll research it further.  I sometimes get email telling me the name I use or some fact is in error.  That's possible, but virtually all have been verified from botanical sources.  I don't often use the internet for an ID since many plants are incorrectly identified and I certainly don't use some of the "popular" plant books which are known to be filled with ID errors.  You will find I often point out "bad name" errors on the pages of this site.  Approximately 1/3 of my collection is still not photographed and described and we add new specimens all the time.  I attempt to verify my facts are correct before putting them on the internet.

If you are visiting, or live near the Northwest Arkansas area, and you love exotic plants as much as we do you are welcome to visit.  On the following pages you'll find tips on how to care for many of the Philodendron, Anthurium, orchids, aroids and others we collect.  If you plan to visit NW Arkansas call anytime to see what's in bloom.  There is no charge to visit the garden. 

And by the way Tom.  I built it!

Steve Lucas
Curator
The ExoticRainforest

Before you view the collection take the Rainforest Tour

          LINKS:   Didn't find what your need?  Links to rare tropical collectors, botanical gardens, ecotours, and plant sources.
 

* The  background sounds of the Exotic Rainforest Private Botanical Garden are professionally recorded and used with the permission of Andrew Skeoch & Sarah Koschak's Listening Earth.  You can listen to samples and order CD's of many different rainforest sounds on their website:     http://www.listeningearth.com.au/