Tropical Plantation

Ecological Vacations in St. Lucia

For a unique ecological experience, stay at The Still Plantation, a working plantation just outside of the quaint old Creole town of  Soufriere, St. Lucia.  Here you can watch cocoa and copra being made and view the many acres of banana trees where the bunches of bananas are covered with blue plastic bags to protect their valuable crop from insects and thieving birds.  The Still has ponds which produces small edible fish called Talapia.  These ponds are heaven for many types of  herons and storks.  If you are lucky you may see the ponds being lowered and the fish netted for market.

The Still is a major citrus fruit farm but many other fruits are also grown on the plantation.  Who can forget the pleasure of eating a ripe guava fruit picked directly from the tree or finding a prickly sour-sop and a huge avocado left on your counter by the room maid.  Passion fruit, mango, golden apple, starfruit, tropical apricot, papaya, nutmeg, cashew nut and coconuts also grow in season.

Fountains, waterfalls and artificial ponds are in abundance and artifacts from the early days of plantation life dot the landscape.  Acres of lush growth beg exploring.  Mahogany and red Cedar are in abundance and the lumber is used for construction on the estate and to make some of the furniture in the guest rooms.

The perfume of the flowers with the dew on them is overpowering and the plantation attracts almost every type of bird the island has to offer, from the tiny hummingbird of doctor bird, tome, ramiera and doves.  Sitting on your balcony as the sun sets you will see huge hawks flying through the valley and, if you are lucky, one of the rare St. Lucian parrots settling on the roof below us for you to admire his colourful plumage