Guatemalan machete gang robbed us at knifepoint, says plant hunting couple
A couple who spent their lives traveling the world collecting exotic plants have revealed they were robbed by machete-wielding gangsters in Central America.
Intrepid adventurers Sue and Bleddyn Wynn Jones from Gwynedd, Caernarfon, collect species and seeds from their trip to return to the Crȗg Farm Plant Nursery at Griffith’s Crossing.
Their travels took them to countries such as Vietnam, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, Mexico and Guatemala.
Soldiers at roadside checkpoints in Mexico quietly stole valuables from their vehicles when they reported that theft police were threatening to arrest them.
And Bleddyn recalled being threatened with a knife during a 2001 trip to Guatemala.
The 77-year-old said: “My experienced guide warned me not to scare them because they were hitting us with knives, there were more people hiding in the bushes who might have guns.
“They took my expensive altitude watch and camera, walked up to my guide, took his cell phone, and their eyes lit up when they saw his Rolex.”
They were robbed by machete-wielding gangsters while in Guatemala [Bleddyn and Sue Wynn Jones]
The robbers even gave back his digital watch, telling Bleddyn: “Congratulations, signor.
“The fun part about it was that it was a fake Rolex bought from the local market for a few pounds, while mine was expensive even though it wasn’t in the same league as the Rolex,” Bleddyn said.
“Unfortunately, when we returned to our vehicle, we found it had been ransacked and many other items had been stolen.”
The couple discovered hundreds of previously unknown plants and introduced more than 4,000 cultivars to the UK.
These include a new type of lily and a new type of witch hazel.
Sue, 74, said: “In the early days there were no mobile phones, no internet, no GPS mapping and everything was letters, phone calls and word of mouth.”
Sue and Bleddyn’s findings transformed a 200-acre cattle farm into a horticultural treasure.
Couple introduced more than 4,000 cultivars to Britain [Rick Matthews]
The nursery has now been given a royal warrant by King Charles.
The business will take part in S4C Garddio and Mwy [Gardening and More]It has been supplying plants to Buckingham Palace and royal properties such as Balmoral and Sandringham for 30 years.
Sue said they were happy to get a search warrant.
“We’ve done a lot of work to supply most of the royal gardens,” he said.
“The head gardener of Buckingham Palace used to come here to collect plants, and when we went to a garden party on the palace grounds we could see our plants growing.
“It was a great excitement.”
S4Cs Garddio and Mwy It airs on Mondays at 20:25. Sue and Bleddyn will appear on June 29 and the episode will be broadcast on June 29. S4C Click And BBC iPlayer.
