ANN SIANG HILL PARK PART 2

Continuing from the previous post, this is the view of the city skyscrapers beyond the low-rise shophouses.

My favourite Muntingia calabura is still standing there. I remember plucking and eating the red berries every time when I was there. This time round, there wasn't a single red berry. They must have been eaten by the birds. Unlike the stands of Muntingia which I planted in HortPark, this particular one is so healthy and the fruits are not diseased at all.

By the way, the pendulous umbels of the Quisqualis indica never fails to take my breath away. If the one planted by me flowers like this, I would never have uprooted it. As I walked down the steps along the timber walkway to the next nearby park, I turned around and took a quick last glance because I have no idea when I would be here again.

BAMBOO & CHERRY

There are two separate plants here.


The first is a clump of golden bamboos previously planted by me in the Golden Garden but they were recently transplanted out to below this Ketapang Tree along the Broadwalk turning to the Heliconia Walk.


Believe it or not, the second is a diseased cherry from the Muntingia calabura (common name: Buah Cherry, Jamiacan Cherry Tree; Family: Elaeocarpaceae). I planted at least 10 of them around the Irrigation Pond with the intention to attract birds with its ripe red berries, which I love to eat by the way, but they were all diseased! Damned. The trees have grown quite big and is giving good shade. Lots of cherries are produced but instead of turning red, they become spotted with lesions. How disappointing. Anyway, a link on this tree is attached below:


http://www.naturia.per.sg/buloh/plants/cherry_tree.htm

ANN SIANG HILL PARK

A stone's throw away from Telok Ayer Green and through a short alley is the jewel Ann Siang Hill Park, that was developed to showcase the cultivation of spice trees and shrubs in the region in its hey days.

One of the historical wells was preserved and highlighted as one of the interesting features of the pocket park. If I remember correctly, the depth of water in the well was around 4 m deep.

A spiral staircase leads visitors to the upper timber, where there used to be a wooden swing. At that vantage point, one could see the big trees within the park, including 2 large Lychee (scientific name: Nephelium litch; synonym: Litchi chinensis; Family: Sapindaceae) trees but they were gone from the site.

There was also a flowering Syzygium with beautiful blooms of white flowers. The Muntingia calabura (common name: Strawberry Tree, Jam Tree; Family: Elaeocarpaceae) at the corner of the upper deck before the turn is still there and the fresh red cherry-like fruits still tasted as sweet as I remember. It is also a favourite with some of the birds. Because of my love for this tree, I planted so many of them at HortPark's Irrigation Pond but they never gave me a single fruit for eating because of disease problems.

Surprisingly, the Rondeletia leucophylla that was introduced back then is still at the site, which is testament of how hardy the shrub is.

2 links on the interesting trees are attached here:

1. http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/litchi_chinensis.htm
2. http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/muntingia_calabura.htm