The Calabash Tree series: 1. The Plant; 2. Flowers and bees. The flowers of the Calabash Tree (Crescentia cujete) begin to bloom in the late evening and last one night (above). By next morning the rings of petals litter the … Continued
My Calabash Tree (Crescentia cujete) has been flowering for months now LINK. A few young fruits were eventually located. Obviously there was pollination. As the flowers open in the late evening the pollinators could be either moths or bats. The … Continued
Caterpillars, beetles and grasshoppers are some of the insects that depend on leaves to survive. While limited grazing poses no threat to the plants, excessive grazing that results in defoliation can have serious consequences. So what do plants do to … Continued
In 2008 Tan Teo Seng brought me a fruit and a cutting of the Calabash Tree (Crescentia cujete) from his farm in Johor, Malaysia (above). I planted it in my garden and now, nine years later. it has fruited (below). … Continued
“Java Sparrows (Lonchura oryzivora) are not a native bird but breed in the wild from released captives (feral population), mostly around limestone caves where they nest very high up. “Saw them collecting Wilga (Geijera parviflora) leaves (an Australian willow) and … Continued
Nearly 400 species of plants are listed under algae, lichens, bryophytes (mosses and liverworts) ferns, non-seed (Gymnosperms) and seed (Angiosperms) plants in this order. Seed plants are further listed under Dicotyledons (two seed-leaves) and Monocotyledons (one seed-leaf). Except for algae, … Continued
An earlier post documented a Whiskered Myotis Bat (Myotis muricola) roosting inside the rolled-up central leaf of my banana plant (Musa “Pisang Raja”). Since then I have been keeping an eye of newly emerged leaves before the plant gets too … Continued
Plants and birds have a mutualistic relationship, meaning that both benefit from the relationship. We are well aware that plants are beneficial to birds. After all, plants provide food to birds in the form of nectar (above) and fruits (below). … Continued
It was a hot afternoon and the flowers of my Bush Grape (Cayratia mollissima) were covered with Common Honey Bees (Apis cerana). They were mainly collecting nectar from the flowers, as seen from their empty pollen baskets. An earlier post … Continued
Banana plants are parthenocarpic, meaning that fruits are produced without pollination. As there is no fertilisation of the ovules, the fruits are seedless (above). Parthenocarpy (literally meaning virgin fruit) is the plant equivalent of parthenogenesis in animals (development of the … Continued
