SENNA ALATA

The Seven Golden Candlesticks in the garden have been flowering continuously for these few weeks already. It is one of the native plants of Singapore and should preferably planted as a background plant because of its leggy habit.

BUTTERFLIES

There are 3 species of native butterflies highlighted in this post. I have not talked or posted about them for a long time now.

The first is the Plain Tiger on the flower of the Tabernaemontana. The second is the interesting Tawny Coster that is often found in wastelands. We do have the weedy climber host plant Passiflora foetida found in certain parts of the garden and the Bidens alba provides the nectar for its butterflies. Finally, the caterpillars of the Mottled Emigrant are abundantly found on the host plant Senna alata planted at several spots in the garden.

SENNA ALATA

I cannot really decide whether I like or dislike this plant. Clearly, I love its inflorescences that earn it the common name Seven Golden Candlesticks but I don't appreciate its growth habit.


Anyway, this one looks slightly different from the ones that I often see or planted. Guess what is the difference? In this specimen, the new flowers are yellow compared to the light brown ones that I showed in some earlier posts. Is this a cultivar then?

BUTTERFLY PLANTS

These are host plants of the Mottled Emigrant and Plain Tiger butterflies.


The former is the Senna alata (synonym: Cassia alata) and even though I have seen it before, I am still not sure if this is a normal or mildly variegated specimen. Perhaps someone can enlighten me about this.


The latter is the Calotropis gigantea that I posted recently. I found the remnant pupal case of the very beautiful butterfly hanging on the underside of a leaf.


And where are these plants found? Head straight to the Hospital in the North and you will have all the answers.

SENNA ALATA & MOTTLED EMIGRANT

I planted the Senna alata (synonym: Cassia alata; Family: Fabaceae / Leguminosae) at the same time when I planted the Calotropis gigantea. Imagine my joy when I saw some of the badly eaten leaves because this is a sign of the presence of the caterpillars.


True enough, I found lots and lots of big and small caterpillars of the Mottled Emigrant on the host plants planted all over the place. This is another success story, so what host plants should I add next?

LUDWIGIA, SENNA & FLEMINGIA

It has always been my dream to green up the pond and concrete banks of the Irrigation Pond. They have finally fulfilled part of my dream.

The Ludwigia sedioides (common name: Mosiac Flower, False Loosestrife; Family: Onagraceae) is growing so well and spreading so much. I just hope they can add more plant species to increase the diversity. 2 links are attached below:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwigia_sedioides
2. http://www.natureloveyou.sg/Ludwigia%20sedioides/Main.html

The Senna alata (synonym: Cassia alata; common name: Seven Golden Candlesticks; Family: Fabaceae (Leguminosae)) was also flowering very well. One of the problems of the Irrigation Pond area is that it is plagued with lots of Fire Ants. They can be found almost everywhere. Short of using pesticides, I am not sure what to do to get rid of them.

The Flemingia strobilifera (common name: Luck Plant; Family: Fabaceae (Leguminosae)) that I posted recently was also flowering spectacularly. The brownish-green bracts really remind me of braided hair pleats.

SENNA ALATA

This is a Senna alata (synonym: Cassia alata) that was in the enclosure of the Butterfly Garden. I haven't been there for a while and when I was there, it was like going down memory lane although it wasn't so long ago when I was still managing the place.

Anyway, I spotted a Mottled Emigrant caterpillar on one of the branches. In comparison, the caterpillar looked small but yet noticeable against the larger pinnate leaves. When the caterpillars are younger, they are harder to notice since they merely look like small green strands and can camouflage perfectly against the green leaves.