Confusing Thai fruits
This time of the year we have loads of organic fruit ripening at Dokmai Garden: Choganan mango, bananas, pineapple, passionfruit, santol, bignay and unlimited amounts of longan which are so refreshing to eat when chilled in the fridge. We also have another tree fruiting, a tree that has puzzled me for months.
We obtained it as ‘wa’, the Central Thai name for ‘Jambolan apple’ (Syzygium cumini, Myrtaceae). Ketsanee also keeps telling me this is ‘wa’, but whether her Esan ‘wa’ is the same fruit as central Thai ‘wa’ is uncertain.
The jambolan apple is a relative of previously treated rose-, Malay- and Java apple, and the purple fruits of our unknown tree do resemble those of the local Jambolan apple very much. However, the fruits are larger (20 mm instead of 9 mm in Jambolan apple) and the leaves of the Jambolan apple are maximum 13.6 cm, while our tree has 19-23 cm long leaves, not counting the stalk.
An alternative option is Syzygium fruticosum, but that species has normally a brown bark and decurrent leaf margins. Our tree has grey bark and the leaf margins are not decurrent so I reject that option.
A third option is the edible fruit called ‘mah-kiang’ in northern Thai language, Cleistocalyx nervosus var. paniala (Myrtaceae). It is grown commercially in Chiang Mai to make tasty drinks. It has flowers and fruits very similar to those of the Jambolan apple. It is sometimes called ‘wa som’ or ‘wa nam’ which indeed complicates the identification for the innocent home gardener who might be tempted to use a dictionary instead of a flora to identify his fruit. It seems silly that two almost identical plants belong to different genera, but the genus Cleistocalyx has a ring of calyx lobes (sepals) forming a cap covering the flower, while this is not the case in Syzygium. The native C. nervosus var. nervosus has globose fruits, while the originally Indian/Burmese C. nervosus var. paniala and the native Syzygium cumini have elongated fruits.
There are four Cleistocalyx species and 84 Syzygium species in Thailand, all of which are treated by the Flora of Thailand vol. 7:4 (2002). Kew Gardens Plant List do not recognize ‘Cleistocalyx‘ as a valid genus and so Cleistocalyx nervosus var. paniala is named Syzygium nervosum.
Since the Dokmai Garden specimen has the calyx cap, grey bark, 20 mm long elongated fruits (only 8-9 mm long in Syzygium cumini ) and large leaves (much longer than the 13.6 cm which is the maximum length in Syzygium cumini) I conclude this is Cleistocalyx nervosus var. paniala (syn. Syzygium nervosum). I have had great difficulties finding an English name, which is surprising since this fruit is commercially available in Chiang Mai as well as in India, Bangladesh and Burma. ‘Mah-Kiang’ will have to do for the time being. A troublesome fact is that the diameter of this fruit is only 1 cm, while the Flora of Thailand claims it should be more than 1.5 cm, but the author may have compared the diameter of the round fruit of the variety nervosum with the length of the elongated fruit of the variety paniala (Mah-Kiang). I am most eager to get comments on my identification from our experienced readers worldwide so that we can build up a reference collection with confidence.
The flowering buds look like golden beads.
The small white flowers resemble apothecia of Usnea lichens. The calyx cap is seen in the top left.
The fruits are tasty and ripen in June-July. For the sweetest taste select the dark purple fruits. The birds are very fond of these fruits too.
The bark is grey and the opposite leaves are long (19-23 cm) and leathery.
Text & Flower photos: Eric Danell
A Thai miniature orchid
For the first time ever the Dokmai Garden Smitinandia helferi (Orchidaceae) blooms. It is situated on the same mango tree as ‘knitting grandma’ which I treated yesterday.
This is truly a miniature, with about 2 mm broad green and white flowers. It is not (yet?) reported from northern Thailand but there are scattered reports from the rest of Thailand, Burma, Laos and Vietnam. Since it only blooms in July, I ask the Chiang Mai plant lovers to report any findings to the Orchid Ark when trekking this time of the year. In situ photographs would be most welcome.
This orchid was originally described as Saccolabium helferi in 1890, but Garay wanted to immortalize the Thai botanist Tem Smitinand in 1972 and so he created the new genus ‘Smitinandia‘.
A detailed picture would demand a dissecting microscope. Clearly, the flowers are pollinated by miniature insects. An English name? How about ‘Professor Smitinand’ since the flower, under dissecting microscope and at a certain angle, looks like a lecturing man with open mouth (the stigma) and clasped hands resting on the pulpit (the white lip). Another name could be ‘teapot orchid’ since the flower when seen with the naked eye from the side looks like an elegant teapot with green and white glaze, the flowering stalk forming a slender handle.
Text & Photo: Eric Danell
Hmmmm…..
A few years ago we bought a small native orchid labeled ‘Pelatantheria ctenoglossa‘. Last year I was abroad so I never saw it bloom, and this year I just returned to see one flower in blossom, largely thanks to some enthusiastic visitors from Belgium who stimulated me to take a route at Dokmai Garden I seldom use.
I fear the sales lady and also some common orchid books are wrong, but I ask our readers to make comments: I believe this is Pelatantheria bicuspidata (Orchidaceae) because it has a pointed lip tip, not fringed. That does have implications, because the sister species P. ctenoglossum (this is the correct spelling according to Kew) grows in dry savannahs, while P. bicuspidata in much more wet environments. I planted it in the garden in a drier habitat assuming the original label was right. Still, since it blooms it was apparently a good enough position. I selected an east side of a mango tree at eye-level, and not too far from the cacao plants which are watered in the dry season. In nature, the strict habitat preferences are largely due to difficulties in seed germination and establishment. Once you have a fully grown plant from a nursery, it is in fact quite tolerant in accepting substrates and climate.
I saw some more buds so most welcome to see this little flower, only about 1 cm broad. More importantly, if you see this orchid, or its sister species in the wild, kindly report its habitat to the Orchid Ark.
While the original species was described in 1896, this species was described from China in 1951. The wormlike appendage of the lip is supposedly characteristic. The scientific name ‘Pelatantheria’ is a boring name meaning ‘neighbouring flower’. ‘Bicuspidata’ refers to the tip of the lip sometimes being bifurcate. An English name could be ‘knitting grandma’ since the column looks like a bonnet, the lip’s sidelobes look like chubby arms holding something and the lip with its yellow blotch a skirt with an apron. As stated many times before, the scientific name is the only real and useful international name, but vernacular names are needed to create an interest in orchids with the goal of securing their survival. The situation is alarming as can be seen from yesterday’s article in the Bangkok Post, about politicians illegally encroaching national forests in Surin province to replace the native flora with commercial crops to enrich their private wallets. They even fence their stolen land with barbed wire. In the future we may see signs in national parks such as ‘Keep Out – Stolen Property’.
The green shoot of this orchid is quite characteristic with its short alternating leaves in one plane. The old flowers indicate they form one at a time in the leaf axils.
Text & Photo: Eric Danell
Phuphaman Orchids Ltd has generously donated orchids to the Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden and to Dokmai Garden’s Orchid Ark. Phuphaman Orchids is CITES-certified and can offer many native Thai orchid species, and also ornamental hybrids.
I plan to pick up the orchid donation at QSBG on Tuesday the 10th of July, and I cordially invite any interested orchid lover to join me behind the scene at QSBG and at Dokmai Garden. The aim is to chat about orchids, orchid cultivation, orchid conservation and anything else you want to know about orchids. We meet just outside the QSBG checkpoint by the large dipterocarp at 09.50 sharp, and then we enter together. After packing and tagging the orchids together we eat lunch at the Botanic Resort at our own cost and then we go to Dokmai Garden to unpack orchids and to demonstrate how to remove orchids from the original substrate, how to split orchids, how to mount orchids on new substrate or on a tree, we practice orchid pollination and chit chat. Bring beer or wine if you wish, otherwise you can order from our restaurant.
There is no cost involved, but I wonder if anyone could generously support the Orchid Ark by bringing a pick-up car to Dokmai Garden for transportation together? Our car is preferably needed elsewhere. Kindly e-mail me no later than Monday 9 a.m. if you intend to come: info at dokmaigarden.co.th
Eric Danell
The native Thai orchid Coelogyne rochussenii (Orchidaceae) is not included in the common orchid books, so you can take the opportunity to see it in blossom right now at Dokmai Garden. Our specimen has about 300 flowers, and the longest raceme is 96 cm carrying 50 flowers. To me the flowers have the fragrance of ‘flower shop’ or ‘lily of the valley’ (Convallaria majalis). It is native to the far south of Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia. Although found in wet habitats in nature, it apparently did very well in our Chiang Mai nursery where we kept it dry during October-February. We grow it outdoors, two meters up in a wooden basket in a shaded area, facing east. Note the brown basal bracts which are characteristic. This specimen was kindly donated to us last year.
The hopeless scientific name ‘rochussenii’ was coined by the Dutch botanist Willem Hendrik de Vriese (1806-1862) in 1854 to honour Jan Jacob Rochussen. He became the Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia) in 1845 with office in Batavia (Jakarta). He supported the Indonesian orchid researchers Elias Teijsmann and Simon Binnendijk. An English name? How about ‘orchid of the valley’ or ‘meringue orchid’ due the lip’s resemblance with slightly burnt meringue?
Another amazing feature is the massive pseudobulb, 12 cm long, ridged and reminding one of bicycle handles.
Text & Photo: Eric Danell
A fragrant tree gentian
How about a small evergreen tree with glossy smooth leaves and fragrant blossom? The Ceylon fagraea (Fagraea ceilanica, Gentianaceae) is a good option for a small monsoon garden. This small tree could as well be treated as a shrub or even a climber if supported. I like it for its lovely foliage, thick and firm, and the cream flowers which emerge right now have a very appealing scent.
The plant is native to Sri lanka, India and Southeast Asia including Thailand, and prefers a sunny but wet environment, so do not forget to water it during droughts such as the one we experience now (June 2012 had only 26 mm of precipitation, mostly in the beginning and only in seven of 30 days).
The species name ‘ceilanica’ (not ‘ceylanica’ which is a common incorrect spelling) was coined by Linnaeus’ disciple Carl Peter Thunberg (1743-1828), who visited Ceylon when he returned from Japan in July 1777. The scientific genus name ‘Fagraea’ was also coined by Thunberg after another Linnaeus disciple, the Swedish naturalist and physician Jonas Theodor Fagraeus (1729-1797). The family name ‘Gentianaceae’ was coined by Antoine Laurent de Jussieu (1748-1836). This family name is a recent construction, based on Linnaeus genus ‘Gentiana‘, the blue flowers you see in European meadows, originally from Pliny who named it after King Gentius of Illyria who reigned in 181-168 BC.
The male stamens always look collapsed because with so many other fragrant cream flowers they mainly bloom at night. The flower is a spectacular attraction at any monsoon garden party.
Text & Photo: Eric Danell
Buddha figures in your garden
Yesterday on the plane back to Thailand I read an article in The Nation about a demonstration against the profane use of Buddha figures. During my recent stay in Sweden I saw many examples of Buddha figures used for interior design and in Swedish gardens. I asked a lady why she had one in her bathroom and she replied it looked ‘cute’.
Indeed Lord Buddha was a great philosopher and many westerners like his teachings without necessarily believing that his spirit is still alive. Using Buddha figures in western gardens is to stress tranquility, divinity and meditation. Still, to a Buddhist this profane use of sacred figures may hurt. This is good to know if you ever invite Buddhist friends to your garden in the west, and I think it is essential to consider for westerners decorating their Thai garden. A Thai gardener or a Thai visitor or spouse may suffer as much as a devoted Christian would suffer if he saw you placed crucifixes among your raspberries. Being tolerant, Buddhists generally suffer silently without complaint, so this demonstration shows that some people have had enough. If you want a Buddha figure in your Thai garden, consider erecting a proper spirit house and discuss the matter with the local temple.
A Buddha figure in front of a mural painting at ‘Wat ke chi cha was’ temple in the Namprae subdistrict, just 3 km from Dokmai Garden in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The tree in the background is Ficus religiosa (Moraceae) under which Lord Buddha reached enlightenment. Even planting this tree is considered wrong, according to Ketsanee. It grows at Dokmai Garden since it came by itself (or rather via birds), and that is alright.
Text & Photo: Eric Danell
A tiger in your garden?
What is the future for tigers in Thailand? Would a Chiang Mai gardener ever encounter one in his garden?
There are no tigers left in the Chiang Mai province in northern Thailand. The father of one of Dokmai Garden‘s gardeners claims he saw one “about ten years ago” in Mae Khanin Tai just 12 km west of Dokmai Garden, but since the man is old it could as well have been 20 or 30 years ago. He also brags about killing the last leopard at about the same time.
In spite of three national parks west of Chiang Mai city (Doi Inthanon, Opkhan and Doi Pui/Doi Suthep) it is quite unlikely tigers will ever return to the vicinity of Chiang Mai. This is because they are dangerous to humans and their domesticated animals. The question is, will they survive anywhere in Thailand at all? In regions without human habitation they could theoretically thrive as a reminder of a world before man, but due to beliefs in superstitious medicine they are still being hunted illegally, along with numerous other animals such as pangolins. There is nothing wrong with the Thai laws, but the national park rangers have not enough resources, salaries or education, and the Chinese buyers of tiger products are too selfish to care.
Estimating the numbers of tigers is difficult. Inventories based on tracks, faeces, carcasses and tiger calls can only be rough, and actual sightings are rare due to the density of Thai forests. Five years ago some figures pointed at 500 specimens left in Thailand, figures from 2012 mention 200. However, a recent unofficial estimate from one Thai forest alone points at 600 specimens.
What about the Zoos? They do harbour many tigers and tigers reproduce easily in captivity. Many western zoos are involved in actual rescue of endangered species by returning offspring to the wild, while many Asian zoos use their animals as clowns for income. Animals kept in zoos will quickly degenerate in just a few generations into something different from the original species, with low chances of survival on their own. Without teaching the public and without research or restoration efforts such zoos are just money machines.
Parken Zoo in Eskilstuna, Sweden, have a remarkable collection of Asian mammals. The zoo is so devoted at rescue projects they simply got rid of their white tigers, as these specimens were considered unnatural mutants aimed at the entertainment industry. The real wild population of white tigers in India must not be touched but protected in the wild.
I believe the entertainment has to move out into the forest. Like in Africa, the income from safaris may help the survival of big game by returning the money to the people and to the national park rangers. In an effort to investigate these possibilities Dokmai Garden intends to study a Thai forest with a comparatively ‘high’ density of tigers. At this stage we can only bring personal friends with a love for wildlife to prevent that information may reach poachers. With careful planning and collaboration with authorities and locals it might be possible to go on future tiger safaris. Like with the Thai orchids, such a dream may take decades until superstition disappears and the national parks are truly safe from illegal hunting. It is during this transition stage orchids and tigers are vulnerable, they may disappear for ever like the sperm whales outside Madeira, or they may recover like sea-eagle, otter, bear, lynx and wolverine in Sweden.
Update: sign a petition to protect a tiger habitat!
The tiger head mountain within the Doi Inthanon national park, Thailand. Will future children truly know what a tiger is, or will the tiger be a teddy bear behind bars?
Text: Eric Danell
Photo: Duncan Smart
Food from the forest
Many Thai village children know their plants very well. Sometimes it is enough to show them a picture of a plant and they will get it for me in an instant, or show it to me (if it is a tree). I have previously remarked that Thai village children know more about botany than many Swedish senior high school science students. However, general remarks never tells you anything about the abilities of an individual.
Recently I overheard some Swedish children complaining about the poor quality of their canteen food at their Swedish school. Like any old-timer I remarked that ‘hunger is the best spice’. The children agreed but remarked that if there were better alternatives they would take those, and they began naming berries and leaves they would pick in the nearby forest rather than enduring the stressful queues, the echo of screaming children inside the canteen and the food offered due to low price and nutrition rather than joy of eating. I was really impressed by the knowledge of these youngsters (9-12 years), and I began laughing loudly when they told me about a contest: they tried to find out how many Norway spruce shoots (Picea abies) could be stuffed into a mouth. The winner managed to squeeze in 74, the second threw up already at 56. Obviously the heritage of rural cultures is not only confined to books.
Some Swedish children know their plants as well as Thai village children. A striking difference though is that the season for harvesting forest food is much shorter in Sweden than in Thailand. (Jenny Myrdal is 9 years old).
A Swedish midsummer cake made from basic ingredients. This year it was 17 °C on the 22:nd of June (Nyköping, Sweden). It was the coldest May since 1928, and June seems equally cold. Thailand has a ‘neutral year’ and both countries are right now characterized by a lush green.
Text: Eric Danell
Photo: Karin Myrdal
An evergreen and everblooming tropical hedge
When a northern European moves to the tropics he has to learn about new plants from scratch. Many adorable plants from his home region may not grow well here; they may die or become stunted dwarfs. Changing continents is an excellent opportunity to enhance one’s knowledge about plant life on Earth.
Hedges are often appreciated in ornamental gardens, either as informal cascade hedges to provide screens, or neatly pruned low hedges to mark boundaries of garden rooms. Boxwood (Buxus sempervirens, Buxaceae) is commonly used in warmer parts of Europe and subtropical species could perhaps be used here in Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. I challenge our readers to make experiments and report their results.
A tropical substitute for boxwood, actually even more beautiful and without the somewhat annoying smell, is the Ixora genus (Rubiaceae). Some hybrids and garden cultivars are equally easy to prune into compact forms, while others grow tall and more leggy. A special delight with Ixora is the blossom which comes in white, yellow, orange and red. Some cultivars are almost everblooming and their nectar attracts butterflies, although this is not their first choice.
The experience from Dokmai Garden is that it resists water logging very well, and frequent watering does not seem to be a crucial issue either. If you like a strict formal hedge you can easily prune it, but to save time or money you can allow it to grow more freely and thereby obtain more blossom. When planting it, small 10 Baht cuttings are sufficient, which should be planted in double rows at 50 cm distance. It is tolerant of poor soils, but a 10% addition of organic matter (compost) is appreciated. Generally, addition of nitrogen promotes green growth, while a reduced diet would increase flower formation.
Text & Photo: Eric Danell
Vacation time
June is the early vacation time in northern Europe, and the upcoming Midsummer is a sacred feast. Midsummer occurs during the Thai green season (May-October) which is the season for many perennial vegetables, while the annual vegetables prefer the cool season (November-February).
Lunch at Dokmai Garden, Chiang Mai, Thailand. Cold and hot home-made and home-grown rosella drinks (Hibiscus sabdariffa), Thai omelette with Dokmai Garden duck eggs and stuffed with our own organic vegetables such as shallot and camembert leaf (Acacia pennata), a noodle dish with generous additions of vegetables, fried vegetables of the season and our signature dish ‘Nived surprise’: a red curry with chicken fillet and dried strips of our organic kaffir lime leaves. In May and early June we may at times offer this dish supplemented with Thai truffles (please order ahead). Jasmine rice is most suitable for such a dish.
Text: Eric Danell
Photo: Liz Morrell
Dokmai Dogma 