Penang Botanic Gardens...

         Penang Botanic Gardens is a place where our Monthly Orchid Show was usually held. In Penang this was one of the must visit place for tourist who loves nature..During our show which I've already updated in my earlier post, I managed to take a stroll around the place just to take a photograph for this blog..To those who didn't have an opportunity yet, to visit Penang this is for your viewing pleasure..among the pictures, there was definitely some species of orchids that I managed to see up close growing wild in this botanic gardens..If you want to know more click here and here..

         Kebun Bunga Pulau Pinang adalah salah satu tempat di mana persatuan orkid kami menganjurkan pertandingan orkid bulanan..Kalau sesiapa yang datang ke Pulau Pinang dan sukakan kehijauan alam datanglah ke sini..Pada pertandingan orkid bulanan minggu lepas saya berkesempatan berjalan-jalan di sekitar Kebun bunga ini sambil mengambil gambar untuk dimuatkan di dalam blog..Ini untuk mereka yang belum pernah lagi datang ke sini atau ke Pulau Pinang..Di dalam gambar-gambar ini juga saya selitkan beberapa spesis orkid yang tumbuh liar di sini..

 Water features welcoming visitors outside the gate..

 What you shouldn't do..

  These are the animals that made this place popular..but beware of their mischevious nature..

Signs if you are not sure which direction..

anyway this is not a very big place, but still can make you sweat..

This tree is teem with Dendrobium acerosum..

Walking along the road while looking at the lush greenery.

   Bauhinia kockiana, a climber..native of Malaysia rainforest. 

Providing a splash of colour among the greens during the dry seasons

 

  Yellow Saraca or Pokok Gapis in Malay (Saraca cauliflora) 

a tropical tree originated from India to Malaysia..put out a display of yellow flowers

 A close up on the flower, look kinda like ixora

This is the orchidarium inside the Botanic gardens..

but it was not open to the public..can only see from the outside..

 Another view of the orchidarium

This is a  bromeliad's house..not open to the public, 

may be visitors can get inside upon a special request..

 A colony of Cymbidium finlaysonianum on a trunk of a tree

 This is midday, thats why not many visitors around..

I was walking in the heat of the day..hot and humid..

This is the normal condition in the tropics..

 A palm tree with its clusters of dark coloured fruits hanging among its fronds..

Blocked from view. On top of the Botanic garden, theres a waterfall, 

you can hear it but can't see because it was already turned into water reservoir..

 Until the rain comes the water in this stream will be abundant again..

 A gazebo looking towards the lush tropical forest..

 Dendrobium crumenatum..growing among the lichens..

 Another young Dendrobium crumenatum on a branch of a tree..

A colony of Taeniophyllum obtusum, 

a leafless orchids..the green roots provides the photosynthesis..

 Another Taeniophyllum obtusum..

 Still on Taeniophyllum obtusum spreading its roots among the mosses and lichens.

 Mosses, still green but looking a bit dry because of the dry seasons..

 Mosses growing on a dead twigs..

 Unidentified Eria species..

 Dendrobium acerosum..this can grow into a large clump..

Dendrobium acerosum is a miniature dendrobium, 

though small it flowers frequently right after the rainstorm, 

the habit is quite like Dendrobium crumenatum..

 Flowers usually comes out from the leafless portion of the stem once it matured..

Another close-up view..

Leather fern (Davallia trichomanoides) or Squirrels foot fern fronds 

underneath the dappled sunlight..

 Renanthera elongata seen here growing towards the sunlight..

 Another plant of this common Renanthera, hardly seen with flowers..

Swaying palms against the blue sky..

Its not often that you can get a clear blue sky like this in Malaysia 

especially around the hilly region..guess I got lucky today..

This is the betel nut palm. In Malay language it is called 'Pokok Pinang', 

where 'Penang' got its name from..

 Botanic gardens office located inside the compound..

 In countries with four seasons, this a a normal view in autumn but in tropical country, 

some deciduous tree like this will shed its leaves in dry seasons

A flower of a Cannonball tree. Smells sweet kinda sickening actually..

The tree is native to the tropical forests of northeastern South America, 

especially the Amazon Basin and in the tropics such as in India and Thailand.

 Living cannon ball..the fruit of the Cannonball tree..

 A view through the climbers, Bauhinia kockiana in the formal garden..

Last years Orchid Festival's posters..

There are other orchids here such as Aerides odorata..that I didnt get the picture.. usually grows high up on a tree..While up the Penang hills surely there are more orchids species that can be seen, hope that I can make that post next time..

                                                         Each flower is a soul blossoming out to nature. 

                                                                             - Gerard De Nerval

Jalan-jalan jumpa orkid : Hutan Lipur Bukit Hijau

          Pada hari Khamis lepas, tetiba kawan pulak ajak pergi berkelah di Hutan Lipur Bukit Hijau, Kedah. Kalau dari rumah saya ada la dalam kira.kira 45 minit ke 1 jam perjalanan..Hutan Lipur ni memang popular kepada mereka yang berada di kawasan utara..Lagipun dah lama tak datang sini jadi pucuk dicita ulam mendatang..bukan apa saya memang suka suasana di kawasan air terjun, sungguh tenang dan mendamaikan..Berkenaan dengan orkid, kawasan air terjun atau sungai memanglah menjadi habitat orkid liar..Untuk tatapan semua nikmatilah pemandangan hutan lipur ini dan beberapa spesis orkid yang sempat saya rakamkan..

           I love waterfalls..the sound of cascading water and the green surroundings, makes me feel relax and free, away from the hustle bustle in the city...This time I went to Hutan Lipur Bukit Hijau or in English we can call it The Green Hill Recreational Forest.This place is popular among the northern state people..I've been here before, but quite a long time ago , but this time around I was asked to join my friends for a picnic here. This place is in the state of Kedah..from my hometown it takes only 45 minutes to 1 hour to reach here..About orchids, they love waterfalls, because of the high humidity, they grow so well..These are pictures of the scenery and of course some of the wild orchids that I managed to capture..

Papan tanda yang terletak berhampiran tempat parking kereta..tetapi terlindung sedikit dengan pokok-pokok bunga..

The signboard of the Green Hill Recreational Forest..

Bulbophyllum gracillimum yang sedang berbunga tumbuh di atas batu besar 

yang diselaputi lumut di tepi sungai..Bulbophyllum jenis ini yang paling banyak tumbuh di kawasan ini..

Bulbophylum gracillimum with flower growing on a moss covered stone boulder..

These are the most common bulbophyllum growing here..

Pemandangan dari salah satu tempat yang sesuai untuk mandi-manda..

A view from one of the spot that you can take a dip..

Dendrobium crumenatum atau anggerik merpati..Siapa tak pernah lihat pokok orkid ni..

Orkid yang paling biasa..di mana-mana saja ada, kampung, bandar bercambah-cambah..

The most common orchid in South East Asia, Dendrobium crumenatum or Pigeon orchid growing amidst other epiphytes on a trunk of a tree..

Sungguh cantik pokok epifit yang menyelaputi sebahagian batu besar ini berjuraian seperti tirai..

Epiphytes that grows on a large stone boulder, forming a beautiful cascading veil of leaves.

Sebatang pokok tropika yang mempunyai buah yang berwarna merah jambu..

Tak sempat nak tengok namanya..

A tropical tree with a pink coloured fruits..

Katak berbintik yang sempat saya rakam sedang berehat di atas batu..

tapi kalau tak tengok betul-betul memang tak perasan..

A couple of pictures of a spotted frog resting on a stone..

It camouflage well with its surrounding, makes it harder to see..

Air terjun lata Bukit Hijau ini sebenarnya ada banyak tingkat tetapi tak semua boleh mandi, ada tempat yang merbahaya jadi papan tanda amaran memang diletakkan di kawasan-kawasan yang berisiko..

Another view down stream..water cascading down the flat stone surfaces..Actually this waterfall has  some sort of levels or elevation.some sites are very dangerous..so visitors must be careful, there are warning signs placed near those sites..its either because of the pool was too deep, the stone was too steep, too strong currents or combination of the aforementioned..

Tempat macam ini memang sesuai untuk mandi..arus pun tak laju dan air pun tak dalam..

This type of place is suitable to take nice cool dip, the currents are slow and quite shallow..

Ini pula sejenis kulampair, lumut la senang sikit..yang menarik tu ialah warnanya yang kebiru-biruan..

A beautiful turquoise coloured lichen growing on a tree trunk..

Tangga dan tempat pejalan kaki dibina khas untuk memudahkan pengunjung naik ke tingkat atas air terjun..Kemudahan tempat ni memang lengkap jugalah ada surau, bilik air, pondok berehat, tong sampah, chalet..jadi senang..

Steps and walking lane was built to assist visitors climb high up to the topmost waterfall..Facilities are quite good here, there are gazebos, restrooms and even chalets with recreational activities..

Sebuah tempat yang sesuai untuk merehatkan minda sambil menikmati alam semulajadi..

Flowing water among the stones..a suitable place to relax and enjoy nature..

Gambar di sebelah kiri menunjukkan sebatang pokok yang dipenuhi pokok menumpang. Antaranya beberapa jenis orkid seperti Flickingeria, Eria dan Bulbophyllum kalau tak silap Bulbo. patens..Gambar di sebelah kanan tu pemandangan lantai hutan tropika yang disinari cahaya matahari..

Pictures on the left shows a tree with various epiphytes clinging to its trunk, The tree is so tall so I couldn't close up.. But I can see Flickingeria species. Eria  and some Bulbophyllum, probably Bulb. patens. While picture on the right showing a tropical forest floor bathed in sunlight.

Cendawan hutan yang tumbuh di kayu reput..

Fungus that grows on a rotten log near the waterfall..

Di atas batu besar ini terdapat banyak orkid, lumut, paku-pakis dan beberapa pokok menumpang yang lain tumbuh melata..

A large stone beside the flowing stream where mosses, orchids, ferns and other epiphytes grows..

Air terjun yang paling cantik di Lata Bukit Hijau ini..nak sampai jenuh juga la memanjat..tapi berbaloi dengan penat mendaki tangga untuk sampai ke tingkat yang paling atas..Kawasan ini berangin dan titis-titis air terjun yang ditiup angin akan kelihatan seperti kabus nipis di waktu pagi..memang best..

The most breathtaking waterfall in this recreational forest..a cascading body of water falling into a large pool..Located at the top of the climb..It is windy here where droplets of water blown by the wind forming a thin mist around the area

Di dalam kedua-dua gambar ni, sekali tengok nampak macam lumut yang tumbuh pada batang pokok, tapi sebenarnya ini ialah orkid !, mesti ramai yang tak perasan..Ini ialah spesis Podochilus microphyllus..orkid ini tumbuh di sekeliling batang-batang pokok yang berhampiran dengan air terjun Lata Bukit Hijau ini..Ia tumbuh dengan subur tanpa gangguan..paras kelembapan memang sangat tinggi sebab angin yang bertiup membawa titis-titis air di sekitar tempat ini..Masa kali terakhir saya datang dulu memang orkid ini tumbuh tak sebegitu 'meriah' seperti sekarang..Saya memang kagum...

What appear to be mosses covering the tree trunk in both pictures here is actually a vast colony of orchids! These are Podochilus microphyllus, they are growing so well here particularly on the trunks of the trees closest to the topmost waterfall, because of the constant misting by the water droplets..the humidity is very high..the last time I was here they are not so abundant but now..I'm in awe..

it was an unforgettable sights..

Ini pandangan jarak dekat sedikit..kelihatan bunga orkid ini yang berwarna putih di hujung batangnya..Kalau kita tengok dari dekat nampak sikit warna ungu pada sepal dan petalnya..Ini adalah bunga orkid terkecil yang saya pernah lihat..mungkin yang terkecil di dunia..

(bunga saja bukan pokok) 

Here a close up view of the orchids on another tree trunk..here you can see the very small white flower at the end of the stem..Usually the flower has a purplish tinge when you do a close inspection on it..I can say that the flower is the smallest in orchids that I have seen..

Podochilus ini tumbuh melata seperti lumut yang meliputi sesuatu permukaan..Pada gambar di bawah perhatikan perbandingan saiz pokok orkid ini dengan tangkai daun kering yang lebih kurang sebesar batang mancis di sebelah..

Podochilus microphyllus has a mat forming growth.. Both pictures showing Podochilus covering the trunk and roots of the tree..On the right  picture you can se the size of the orchids compared to the dried leaf stalk on the left, which is about the size of a matchstick..

 

Yang ini memang lumut sebenar yang tumbuh berdekatan akar pokok..

And for the last picture..this is the real moss growing on the roots of a tree. 

I really like the texture of it.

For me, the vast marvel is to be alive. For man, or for flowers or beast or bird, 

the supreme triumph is to be most vividly and perfectly alive. 

-Al Purdy