LANDSCAPE PLANTS

Tecoma stans

Landscaping is a very personal thing because everyone has their own preferences, likes and dislikes. What appeals to one may not appeal to others.

The interesting thing about landscaping is no two individual designs and landscapes are similar, because of the vast palette of plants available to choose from, unless it is a deliberate attempt to duplicate it. Different species and cultivars also have different growth habits and conditions, so it makes a landscape even more personal especially if the owner is involved in picking out the plants for the garden.

Here is a range of flowering and foliage shrubs that I recently recommended for planting although big trees and palms were not included.

Close up of Tecoma stans flowers.

 

Galphimia glauca

Close up of Galphimia flowers

Cuphea hyssopifolia

Close up of Cuphea flowers

Sanchezia nobilis

Caladium bicolor

Codiaeum variegatum

Carphalea kirondron

Close up of Carphalea flowers

Melastoma malabathricum

Justicia brandegeeana

Ocimum basilicum

Aglaonema cultivar

Alpinia purpurata

Xiphidium caeruleum

Asystasia gangetica cultivar

Stachytarpheta cultivar

Nymphaea cutlivar

Arachnothryx leucophylla

Tibouchina cultivar

Xanthostemon cultivar

SINGAPORE BOTANIC GARDENS

These are some interesting flora and fauna at the Singapore Botanic Gardens. 

It's not often that I get to see a white spider. This spider is only at most 1 cm in length but it is so strangely white. I wonder if it bites?

How about a Draco, which is a flying lizard with winged membranes along their ribs. This one camouflaged so well against the trunk of the Midnight Horror (Scientific Name: Oroxylum indicum; Family: Bignoniaceae) tree. The body markings look just like the bark of the tree and I thought I saw a skeleton.

Then there were some white swans and a goose sculpture. The swans were so regal looking and are such beautiful birds. Too bad their wings are clipped. 

Along the pond edge was a fascinating unknown plant from the Malvaceae Family with interesting flowers and dried seed pods. I wonder what plant this is?

On some other forest plants nearby was an entire population of ladybird larvae, which look like mealy bugs except that they move fast. 

There was also a caterpillar on the flower of the Melastoma malabathricum.

The aggressive weeds Mikania and Dioscorea were also sprawling on the forest plants until they are removed someday. The post ends with a common garden snail on a Ruttyruspolia cultivar (Family: Acanthaceae).

NB on 18 Apr 13: The unknown plant is Abroma augustum (Common Name: Devil's Cotton)

draco

Oroxylon indicum (Midnight Horror)

a pair of white swans and a swan sculpture

Abroma augustum

fruit of Abroma

Abroma flowers

seeds in the dried capsule

ladybird larvae that look like mealy bugs

Mikania

Dioscorea

caterpillar on Melastoma

snail on Ruttyruspolia