Thorns...thorns...thorns

Most amateur 'green fingers' started off with a simple, low maintenance, non-fussy plant as their first pet project and despite of all the thorns, cactus has always been a beginner's favourite. As for myself, the passion was instilled from the sight of the cactus in a small planter in the IKEA store back home. Most cacti are prickly in nature, so care should be taken when one decided to nurture a cactus plant at home especially where there are young children around.











The passion of collecting cacti continues till now with a small collection given by friends. Cacti are non-fussy plants which don't really need full personal attention for them to grow. It can be left alone for days or maybe weeks without water and yet they still survived. Due to this nature, most cacti can be usually found in the hot, very dry arid areas where the annual rainfall is low. Patience is an important criteria when one decided to nurture a cactus since it is one of the slow-growing plants. It can take years for a certain species of cacti to grow to its full height.












To see the cacti blooming with its exotic, unique blooms will certainly bring much joy & satisfaction for the one who nurtures it. As for me, the joy of seeing the first bloom from the cactus definitely bewitched me with excitement & a sense of achievement. The small pots of cactus that grace the kitchen window sill (below picture).




Most species of cactus are easy to propagate, a few cuttings will do wonders but special care should be taken when handling cactus. A pair of woven gloves or used newspaper are highly recommended when handling cactus especially those with sharp, tiny thorns. A well-drained medium (sand, pebbles, chips of bricks..mixed with soil or compost) is a must for all cactus to grow healthy. The cacti hardly needs fertilising but occasionally if given some, it will actually helps the plant to grow healthier. Here are some of the most popular and favourite among the locals here (below picture). These species can actually reach the height of more than 3 feet (1 metre) upon maturity.

Herbs anyone??? (Part 2) - Betel Leaves

Another useful herbal spice is the Betel leaves (scientific name Piper Betel & locally known as Sireh). I bought a small pot of this herbal plant for a mere $2 (local currency) in mid last year. Now, I have propagated to a few planters & given a few saplings to close friends.











The Betel leaves are said to contain medicinal properties. They are widely used in many parts of Southeast Asia & South Asia. It is easy to propagate Betel plant and it requires a rich soil under semi-shade position. Since it is a climber, it is best to include or construct a small 'climbing' structure for the plant.


In Malaysia, the leaves are traditionally used to relief headaches, diarrhoea, arthritis & joint pains whereas in Thailand & China, the roots are crushed & blended with salt to relief toothache.

In India, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, etc. the betel leaves are stuffed with betel nut slices together with other spices to be taken as snacks or as an offering to honour guests BUT take note that overeating of the concoction is actually bad for oral hygiene.

The Betel leaves are highly valued as a natural antibiotic in Indonesia. The leaves are chewed with betel nut & the juice swallowed to relief coughs & asthma. To drink Betel leaves tea daily is said to benefit one's health including removing bad body odour especially during perspiration. To prepare the special tea, 2 cups of water is bring to boil together with 7 mature size leaves and simmer till the liquid has evaporated down to approximately 1 glass. Strain and drink daily.

The usefulness of the Betel Plant is well-known in many countries where almost every part of the plant is believe to have its own medicinal quality...and its usage list seems to be infinite.

To be continued.....

Herbs anyone??? (Part 1) - Lemongrass & Citronella

We have been collecting & nurturing a variety of Asian herbs and medicinal plants eversince we came here. Some died on us but some really grown to be fine adults which later produce more 'babies'.



There are actually two types of aromatic plants pictured above. In the foreground is the Citronella (locally known as Serai Wangi) whereas the other is the Lemongrass (locally known Serai Biasa). Eventhough both are from the same family, upon close observation the difference being the texture of their leaves. The width of the Lemongrass leaves are thinner and tend to point sharply upwards whereas those of the Citronella are wider and droopy. Both leaves are sharp at the edges, so care should be taken when handling them. Both plants produce flowers which resemble the padi & wheat.

Both plants are easy to propagate, just using the stem together with the bulb. Its best to plant the saplings at a corner of garden (open ground space) rather in a planter since the roots need unlimited space to grow in order for the plant to be bushy & healthy.

The leaves of the Citronella are traditionally included as one of the ingredients in producing medicinal ointment used for massaging. The end product is believed to be able to relieve body aches & pains as well as improving blood circulation thus warming up the body of the user especially for post-natal massages.

The Lemongrass is highly valued for its stem (especially the lighter coloured bulb above the root). Most Asian cuisines especially the Malays, Indonesians, Thai, etc. highly regard the Lemongrass as a 'must' in preparing some special delicacies.

Both plants produced nice aroma thus have always known to be a good insect repellent. So instead of using the insecticide to ward off mosquitoes, why not try using natural & safe method for the whole family. Nowadays, we have been using pure Citronella or Lemongrass essential oils blended with Lavender essential oils in our aromatherapy burners. Not only the scent is so refreshing and calming but it really promise as it claims ie.to keep mosquitoes away...uummmpphh

To be continued.....

Sharing a corner.....

Last Saturday night when we came back from the Mall, my spouse noticed another two new residents taking refuge at the opposite corner of the present resident's home. Looks like our home going to be a refuge corner with all these swallows. We are not complaining but every morning there will be lots of birds droppings that need to be cleaned up...uuurrgghh.

A new permanent resident.

We have two new resident sharing our home. Both are shiny black, small, cute and have a pair of wings each...the swallows.



When we first view the house late May last year, the house was free from other residents. The day came when we started to move our belongings almost two months later, that we noticed a small 'setup' above the drain-pipes at one corner of the porch.

Upon closer observation, it was actually a bird nest BUT where is the resident???? Looks like the whole structure of the nest was made of mud being glued together..or is it something else..till now, we still don't really know the answer. Looks like the whole nest have been abadoned.



Just as we are celebrating the holy month of Ramadhan, a new resident came to built their new 'home' at a different spot of the building. The new 'home' was rather small in size compared to the first. This time around, the parents stayed and guard the 'home' of any uninvited intruders. We were always been swayed by these 'parents' whenever we passed their 'home' surroundings every morning but fortunately, there have been no fatal casualties. I managed to get a glimpse of these 'kids' & a photo shot of them.














It seems the 'kids' have outgrown their home and might just be a tragedy if any of them is to fall. If this unfortunate event is to happen, they will just be an unwilling prey to the unforgiving predators...ie. the neighbour's cats.



This is one of the three 'abandoned' Baya Weavers' nests (above photo) that we bought during our holidays three years ago in a neighbouring country. Baya Weaver (locally known as Burung Tempua) can be commonly found in the South Asia & South-east Asia. They are so-called Baya Weaver because they are great weavers, using twigs & long grasses to weave their nests..just amazing, such a small bird with great patience.

We just hanged the nests among our plants in our potted garden. Sometimes, it did attract smaller birds that occasionally visit the plant and we won't be surprised if we to find another resident to the nest.

All time local favourites

The all time local favourites in this country are the Bougainvillea & the Crown of Thorns (botanical name is the Euphorbia Milli). Almost every household here will at least have a pot of either one of these two plants at the surroundings of their home. This two types of plants are much favoured by the locals because they survive well in the tropical, humid climate of this country and of course, the colourful flowers that they produced.

Cheerful, brightly coloured Bougainvillea to greet every visitor & guest to our home. Bougainvillea actually grows well in well-drained medium & will produce more blooms when they are actually 'stressed' ie. dry, lack of water.










































Our collection of the Crown of Thorns (Euphorbia Milli), bought the first 'baby' back in 2004 and looking forward to add more varieties of different sizes of blooms in various shades of white, biege, yellow and bi-colours.

Simple yet beautiful...Anthurium

Our all-time favourite is the Anthurium or also known as the Flamingo flower. The flower is simple and yet commands its own presence. Altogether, we have 5 pots of anthurium in our potted garden with each type differ in terms of flower size eventhough the flowers are of the same colour. The above Anthurium is the first pot that we nurture, the flower is bigger in size (about the size of the adult's palm) than the subsequent species that follows, with bright cheerful red blooms.

















All these Anthurium produced flowers that are smaller in size (about the size of a child's palm) and they are in colours of mauve, pink and white. Bought them as seedlings in September last year, seller imported them from Thailand and especially for this species (top photo), it just couldn't stop flowering....really gorgeous.

Seen one Anthurium in the nursery during my last visit there with beautiful bi-colour blooms ie. half green/half red...and of course, being a collector's item...well too expensive for my budget.