Cattleyas! How Fertilizing Helped it to Bloom

Not too long ago, there was a dash of really wet weather followed by a spiel of dastardly hot, bright days. It was terrible for human bodies, so many sick colleagues down with a malady of sniffles and aches. Thank goodness for the controlled comfort of the office!

The Cattleyas along the corridor however, seemed to love it and decided to bloom big. This corridor receives late afternoon sun from 3-6pm. Of course the bit of regular fertilizing helped. I have to admit I'm as lazy as they come when it comes to gardening but the first buds which likely resulted from a weekend's whim of gardening and fertilizing spurred me to do more and it really did pay off! I am still no diligent gardener, but I suppose if you want to see the babies with a spot of colour, just gotta do it.

Goniothalamus tapis

The young tree of Goniothalamus tapis was flowering and fruiting when I walked through the under-storey tropical forest of the Botanic Gardens and the clusters of deep maroon fruit dotting the crown caught my eye. Otherwise, this nondescript tree would just have been another random tree to me.

Goniothalamus tapis is from the SEA region and part of the Annonaceae family whose other famous members include the very fragrant Cananga odorata (Ylang Ylang) and the deliciously saccharine Annona squamosa (custard apple). I did not find the flowers of G. tapis to be fragrant, but there weren't many left on the tree to begin with.

According to Dave's Garden, the name is Greek for angle (Gonio) and inner room chamber (thalamus) likely alluding to some structure of the plant. Surprisingly, many studies have also been done on the chemicals elucidated from this species as well as other from the same genus. Many of these chemicals have shown to have cancer fighting properties.

It's the quiet, boring ones that will surprise! 

Cluster of ruby fruits

Not your typical looking flower

Pedestrian Life

I've sensed that I've become a more boring person. That troubles me so much so that I cannot sleep at 3 in the morning. No just kidding, it's the excessive eating I did today but oh lord, it was worth it. But yes, me becoming increasingly boring does worry me a tad.

Trying to figure why that is so has me arriving at some possibilities

#1 I'm getting older and settling into the contented routine life of being married. Tending to the upkeep of the house does take my mind off creative thoughts which in retrospect is terrible! If it were true.

#2 The boy's boring-ness is rubbing off on me. I probably hang around him too much which means I should seek out my friends to unboringfy myself. I do find it disappointing that he stifles me spontaneity so much so that I sometimes censor myself to prevent the disappointment from setting in though I don't believe I'm bitter about doing that.

#3 Jaded. The world and its woes, don't let me begin.

Me thinks it's all of the above. A little bit of each mashed into a giant swirling vortex that sucks the happy, creative, spontaneous fairy that resides within.

I have got to get out of this comfortable rut

Tulips in the Tropics

Tulipmania just concluded its run at the Gardens by the Bay and it really was a fantastic showing. The whole flower dome was filled with the heavenly scent of Narcissus that even my bad nose could pick up on. Strategically placed photo opportunities of potted Tulip displays where tourists naturally teemed which I tried my best to avoid and then the grand centrepiece Tulip field, the sort that harks back to that of Holland, but miniaturised.

I liked it, it was a nice effort to bring some Spring blooms to the tropics although I also heard rather dismissive comments from colleagues who boasted about seeing the actual tulip fields in Holland. That's as good as saying the tropical rainforest greenhouses are incomparable to the jungles of Sabah. Well, duh.

I went with my aunt who wasn't much of a plant person but she was sufficiently impressed by the blooms and scent and the cloud forest conservatory was as usual rather spectacular. It was a nice way to spend the morning out of crazy heat!

Trip up North

I always enjoy the annual trips back to the village for Qing Ming to pay respects to the Hub's paternal ancestors. Kampar is a little sleepy town trying hard to get out of a time warp but that's exactly what I love! Giant supermarket and a Watsons with familiar toiletries set among quaint, old fashioned shop houses and wet markets serving amazingly excellent hawker fare. All that food and there's really no more time for anything else on the itinerary.

(Top left)  Nonya kueh only goes on sale at 6pm on the weekends and typically gets sold out by 8ish. That speaks volumes of how yummy the little glutinous desserts are.
(Top right)  Deep fried suckling piglet for dinner. Disturbing cute and I really did not fancy it.

We headed off to Penang! More food! I also would like to highlight that I got one of my best hotel experiences at Noordin Mews, a refurbished shophouse that provided attentive pampering service. Highly recommended!

(Pictures above) Angsana tree (Pterocarpus indicus) in bloom all over Penang island. A rare sight on our own sunny island.

 (Picture above) Dipterocarps in the canopy in the forests of Air Hitam (roughly translated as Black water) Dam. The town at the base of this hill serves amazing Penang laksa, fresh crunchy mint and basil strewn on  luscious assam base soup, slightly tart without being overpowering and the prawn/ fish(?) paste. Really to die for. No photos cos I chomped it up before it dawned on me that I should.