Firespike

Flowering profusely now is the Firespike Plant (Odontonema strictum), looking gorgeously-red this Christmastime. Its flowers which are on its terminal spikes, have a nectar attractive particularly to sunbirds (leftmost part of the bush in the above image) and have been delightfully keeping me occupied photographing them, both the pompous bush and the perky birds.

When i started having this plant propagated, my head gardener Edwin looked baffled, wondering what beauty I find in this plant which they consider more of a roadside weed than an ornamental. But I insisted we grow it and cultivate it as a hedge, and now I'm vindicated :)

Aratiles

Practically everyone I know has some childhood recollection or even a favorite story about Arátiles (Muntingia calabura, also known as Dátiles or Sarésa, from the Spanish Ceréza [cherry]). Every visitor who comes and sees it waxes romantic and chuckles at some memory of simpler days from yore, with dreamy eyes and a silly smile and soon, they'll be pulling the end-branches to pick the reddest fruits and nibble on them straight from the tree!


Though it sounds omnipresent in Philippine culture and heritage, it is not a local tree but instead, was transplanted from the Americas via the Galleon Trade (thus explaining the Hispanic-sounding local names). It grows very fast; in my experience, a seedling with enough sunlight grew tall and started fruiting in just around twelve to fourteen months. Though the leaves are light-colored and the crown does not look dense, it is an excellent shade tree especially for young gardens where your hardwoods and other fruit-bearing trees will take ages to cover half-sun ornamentals.


The fruits are a bird's favorite, though the seeds which they drop can sometimes be a nuisance once it starts germinating where you don't want them to.

Hoya

Hoya incrassata

Another Philippine jewel from the local rainforests is Hoya, a group of vines and plants from the Asclepias family with small flowers arranged like starbursts and fireworks. Among them is a somewhat popular plant abroad called Shooting Stars (below, Hoya multiflorum, sometimes labeled as Centrostema). Mine came along with some epiphytic ferns and I was delighted to find them one morning, indeed looking like shooting stars. I think they flower all year round, and require practically no maintenance, given that it is planted under the right conditions.

Hoya multiflorum (a.k.a. Centrostema multiflorum)

Ironically, it is more known in other countries than here in its native islands. I myself admittedly did not know about this group of plants until that fortuitous morning I saw it among the ferns. On the other hand, I have come across a zealous native plant collector who has dazzled me with his extensive Hoya collection, with flowers ranging from fuschia to black! So far, I have started sourcing and planting other colors but only the cream-colored flowers are mature enough.


Although it is jewel-like, its name has nothing to do with the Spanish translation for pearl, but instead, named after for an English gardener named Thomas Hoy.

Bagawak

One beautiful plant about to flower now is a true Philippine native, the Bagáwak (Clerodendrum quadriloculare). It has green leaves on the top side but deep purple underneath, with attractive pink and purple flowers that start to emerge at this time of the year. Strangely, it is not common to find these in local gardens despite the fact that it should grow and flower here easily. 

December 2009

 If you leave it untended, it will naturally assume the shape of a small tree. However, from our pilot specimen that produced a multitude of seedlings, we gathered some and clustered them altogether, trying out its ornamental viability as a hedge or a screen. So far, it has taken root but I have yet to see how it will eventually look like, though I imagine it will have to be big and tall, owing to its thick stems and large leaves. It is also only when it is elevated that you will appreciate the leaves' purple underside. 


The experimental hedge will still take some months to define its shape, but in the meantime I am posting photos here of previous seasons' flowers for you to see how uniquely beautiful the flowers are.

January 2010

Puto Lanson

No, it's not fried rice! It's called púto lansón; I couldn't photograph it any better, but I wish I could make you taste through this blog. It's another Ilónggo delicacy made by my caretaker, Bukíng and his wife, Cristina. They made it earlier; giniling na kamóteng káhoy (ground cassava) with gatâ (coconut cream), butter, and toasted coconut. It's also got toasted coconut in between, pretty much like a donut filling.


It's yummy! And I didn't know this before; I don't recall ever coming across this native steamed cake. I'm intrigued what else they can cook from our available produce in the farm?