Endangered Pitcher Plants
Carnivorous plants once plentiful in the Green Swamp ~

The French Connection

Twenty years ago the Green Swamp was described as a vast tract
of 350,000 acres of jungle. In this untamed eden the flora and fauna
thrived amid islands of juniper, oak, long leaf pine and cypress
trees. Man had never set foot in the darkest Labyrinths of the
swamp ~ home to delicate orchids, lily pads, and roses as well
as panthers, alligators, and water moccasins.

Scattered through the jungle of vines, briars and quicksand
were islands of high ground with names like Honey Island,
Moon Island, and Modes Island. Indian tribes lived on these
islands in the distant past, leaving behind bits of broken
pottery and arrowheads as the only clue to their existence.

The largest of these swamp islands is called Crusoe. Legend
tells that the early inhabitants of Crusoe were descendants
of French aristocrats that fled Haiti following a bloody massacre
in 1794. A few brave families survived the massacre, sailing to the
Waccamaw River and plunging deep into the jungle only
stopping when the cool moss-hung branches of the Green
Swamp enveloped them in safety.

The inhabitants of Crusoe tilled the humus rich soil, planting
crops of corn, potatoes, and rice. Deer, bear, and wild turkey
were plentiful - providing fresh meat for their tables. They
navigated the black swamp waters among the lily pads using
crude bateaus burned and carved from the trunks of huge
cypress trees.

The Green Swamp was theirs alone for over a century, they never
ventured into the outside world ~ and the outside world never
ventured in.

The true story unfolding before you will shatter any preconceived
impression you have of this once wild, beautiful, and moss-draped
woodland.