Tropical and lush greenery at the front garden

Yellow Palm, Carpentaria Palm and Red Sealing-wax Palm at the front garden

 The front garden is looking luxuriously tropical with its many varieties of palm trees.  Colour is provided by the Eugenia oleina tree, flowers of the Drunken Sailor, fruits of the Carpentaria palm and crown sheaths of the Red Sealing-wax palm.  The yellowish feather-like leaves of the Yellow Palm is also attractive in its on way.  Interestingly the Drunken Sailor has managed to hold on to the tall Carpentaria Palm.  Finally I think I have achieved what I wanted to create at the front garden.  A composition of luxury, evergreen and colourful nature to be enjoyed every day throughout the year.

Drunken Sailor (Quisqualis indica) scrambling over the Eugenia oleina tree

CU of the Drunken Sailor flowers

The Drunken Sailor at last managed to creep on to the tall Carpentaria Palm.

Nesting at the back garden

Back garden, view looking east
Taken 7 August'14

Pipit Rawa or Chestnut Munia

 I have been watching closely the Chestnut Munia that is working hard to build a nest at the back garden.  It is starting to bring in grasses from around the garden as material for the job.  Short grasses and long grass blades or stalks, all dried ones are slowly being weaved at the Eugenia oleina tree for home making by the Pipit Rawa (Malay) or Chestnut Munia.  It is clear that in urban settings the Chestnut Munia is  fairly comfortable living in close proximity to human habitations, provided humans take the trouble to plant suitable trees for them and not to catch, eat  or kill them.

Chestnut Munia with a long dried grass in its beak at the oleina tree.

Gardening workout

View of front side garden, looking south-west.
Taken on 6 August'14

 One of the great fun of gardening is the exercise you get from doing some physical workout like cutting the grass, pruning leaves and branches, digging, sweeping the garden floor and burning the debris.  On this 49th trip to Kuching, we managed to clear a considerable portion of the garden.  One activity that is helpful in the clean-up is the burning of garden waste and debris for the preparation of burnt earth.  Burnt earth is a natural way to re-cycle garden waste to good use. A minimum two hours workout a day would be splendid for maintaining one's good health, something I treasure as we progress in life.

Burning garden debris, etc. for burnt earth is an effective method to re-cycle garden waste

Sunset to enjoy after a hard day's workout.

Lime butterfly in the garden

 The Lemon and Calamansi (Limau Kasturi - Malay) are grown in the garden for their fruits and their appeal to butterflies, especially the lime butterfly.  This morning the lime butterfly was also attracted to the nectar of the ixora flowers.  There are many other types of butterflies that come visiting the garden as they should be.  This happening is critical in the Kambatik garden and bodes well for the future.  Of special significance today too is the ixora - a pastel orange that has revealed  its true colours only now.  I guess this variety would best be propagated for more cool colours in the garden in future.

Birds at the garden

Spotted-necked Dove (Streptopelia chinensis)

Common Myna

Little Spiderhunter (Arachnothera longirostra)

Chestnut Munia ( Lonchura atricapilla)

Of the birds that are shown above, two are making home at the garden. The Tekukur (Malay) - Spotted-necked Dove (Streptopelia chinensis) and the Pipit Rawa (Malay) - Chestnut Munia ( Lonchura atricapilla).  The Javan Myna has just been recently spotted befriending  the garden.  It prefers to just hang around the electric post next to the garden fence.