Above & Below

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Shot : "Above and Below"

Black beetle on a floating water lettuce while yellow guppy fish eyeing it from below.

Left: A close up on the black beetle. This is a perfect shot when it flapped its wings.

Below: Look here ! The grasshopper thought I wouldn't be able to spot it as it lay still. See how well it blends with the Sanchezia speciosa. It look rather cartoon-like when compared to the browsed grasshopper guide.

Rose buds in bloom

Spotted two buds in bloom today.

Tips for Growing Healthy Miniature Roses: Like their outdoor cousins, miniature roses go through a blooming cycle and a rest cycle each season. After resting, prune them back to encourage compact new growth. http://www.bachmans.com/retail/tipsheets/indoor_plants/MiniRosesforIndoors.cfm

I did not snip or pull off the fading blossoms previously and left rose's blossoms on the plant and allowed to drop their petals - they will form a seed pod that is known as the rose hips. Forming seed pods takes energy away from blossom production. http://www.wisegeek.com/what-are-rose-hips.htm


















An update on the miniature rose's bloom progress ... the bloom was deadhead after 14 days.














"When you deadhead flowers, you are channeling energy away from seed production and into further flower production. In essence, to "deadhead" a plant is to trick it into forming additional flowers, .." http://landscaping.about.com/od/landscapingdictionary/g/deadhead.htm

To New Life >Happy Bday Dot!

A seedling ? What a luck ! We dug a little hole for seedling to germinate in the same pot - we hope it'll grow like its attractive parents.

Madagascar Periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus); cultivars in this pic are 'Pacifica Red' and 'Grape Cooler'

http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/133857/
May be invasive, drought-tolerant; suitable for xeriscaping. Water regularly (do not overwater!). Self-sows freely (deadhead if you do not want volunteer seedlings next season) and it is suitable for growing in containers. *xeriscaping - landscaping in ways that do not require supplemental irrigation

Day 3 (2nd liquid fertilizing) - since the day we spotted red-tinge leaves, many new buds are emerging ! Can't to capture its first bloom.

At a glance, the mini-rose plant is quite a sight in our garden highlighted by its leaves tinged-red.

One windy afternoon

It was a windy afternoon, the garden seem to sway with the strong winds.

This orange insect was as if "windsurfing" on the Episcia's leaf. It didn't budge giving me ample opportunities for a good snap.

Flower garden showing a good sign

Roses: After two months without flowering (hot season) then rainy weather for 2 weeks, our pale pink mini-rose is branching out new maroonish leaves. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for good news. http://gardening.about.com/od/rose1/a/MiniRose.htm
Master Gardener Kris advises that new growth on the branches tend to have a reddish color and will turn green. It should develop new rose buds within a few weeks. It should get 1/2 day of direct sun, the more sun the more flowers. Water when slightly dry-don’t let it dry out and don’t over water. Fertilize with a rose food or balanced fertilizer (follow directions) during active growth for best flower production. They thrive in sun and even moisture, let it dry slightly between watering. Roses stop blooming when it gets too hot (90’s)outdoors. Also, if the weather has been hot, like many plants, they stop blooming until it gets cooler. When planting, amend the soil with compost or organic material and fertilize once a month with a rose food or balanced fertilizer at the recommended rate. Be sure it get plenty of water-don’t let them dry out. General rule is 1 inch per week, depending on how much rain you get. http://hortchat.com/info/how-do-i-care-for-the-miniature-rose-plant-i-just-bought



Ixora chinensis 'Miniature Pink'. http://www.mayflowersnursery.com/product_details.php?pid=208&sid=47&co=7&ch=1

[Update Mar-30,'09] Strangely Ixora ceased blooming since Jan'08. Types of Ixora at http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/ixora_sp.htm. Closest resemblance would be Ixora lobbii (Family: Rubiaceae) or Glossy Pink Ixora http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/ixora_lobbii.htm

http://www.jaycjayc.com/ixora-species-jungleflame/ For optimum growth and flowering; plant in moist, organic and well-drained acidic soil, with abundant sunlight. Remove flowers when withered and dried leaves if any. Prune annually to keep bush in shape or to encourage flowering, instead of repeatedly shearing off branch tips which will inhibit emerging flower buds. Feed monthly with a water-soluble fertilizer formulated for acid-loving plants. The most common pests of Ixora are nematodes, aphids, scale insects, and mealy bugs, resulting in sooty mold. It is susceptible to yellowing of leaves (chlorosis) when grown in alkaline soil. Hence, Ixora, an acid lover, should not be planted too close to concrete foundation, as it is intolerant of alkaline soil. Read more on how to control these pests and treat severe chlorosis, if affected.

[Update May-1,'09] Weather has been hot, humid and rainless weeks (except for 5 minute showers in every 3 days) - Ixora started flowering and clusters of buds sprouting on every shrub.


Caratharanthus Rosea (Madagascar Periwinkle) blooms profusely during the rainy season.

They fill up the gaps in its pot nicely, just a month since planting. Pebble-washed stones (garden stones) are used to prevent loss of soil from impact during rainfall. Over here, rainfalls (1 to 3 hours) makes great percussion symphony.
They make a fantastic flower garden and attractive garden feature in any homes.

Sparrows in the morn

Watch how close it hops towards the camera. Aren't they tame? They've been our tenants on our roof top, who replaced a couple of Common Mynas (Acridotheres tristis), since we moved in.

The Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus) is approximately 12.5–14 cm long. Two distinct though narrow white bars cross the brown wings. The sexes are practically alike. The Tree Sparrow's call is a shorter chip, and the song, consisting of modulated chirps, is more musical. Their songs are said to be consistently in the key of G Major. A domed nest, like that of the House Sparrow, is sometimes built in the old nest of a Magpie or other bird. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree_Sparrow

Katak Pisang

Yup its raining frogs, ah-hem I mean cats and dogs every evenings here. We found it, measuring 6cm in length, was 4 feet above the ground on our door-grille. Wow can it leap!

http://ms.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katak (language in Malay)









Rainy season at West Coast of Malaysia is like having torrential rain daily, accompanied by thunderstorms, usually in the late afternoon, at night or in the morning lasting 1 to 3 hours. Afterwards the sky is clear with fresh air.

Sometimes heavy rainfall can flood the streets. A few streets are impassable at times and are about a good metre under water!

Creatures of Nature

I have no idea what it is ... please do tell me !
I snapped the photo of this creature stuck to the porch pillar.
Somehow it could feel the camera flash and sound because it crawled up higher then faced me !









Goldfish is hardy and will live 20 to 30 years compared to a well-kept koi will live about 50. Comets are single-tailed goldfish and are considered the most hardy of all pond fish. http://www.ponddoc.com/WhatsUpDoc/Goldfish/GoldfishGuide.html
- "Pond Comet" is a totally orange-red fish.
- "Sarasa Comet" have red spots on a white body.
- "Shubunkin" is a calico fish that has black freckles on its body.

The Sarasa Comet (Carassuis auratus), a type of single-tailed goldfish, is originally from China and over the years has been distributed world-wide. http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?c=16+1950&aid=2597
Sarasa Comet goldfish are omnivorous. Provide a daily diet of high-quality flakes and pellets, along with regular treats of brine shrimp, blood worms and/or tubifex worms. You can also feed them peas, zucchini and lettuce. http://www.ehow.com/how_4506719_care-sarasa-comet-goldfish.html

Patio: Being out in nature

Having a garden that stretches from the front to the back had us unleashed dreams of having a patio for alfresco entertaining, dining, working, etc - just overlooking our garden, our sanctuary, and connecting with nature.

A view of our terrace from patio, jade pothos (Epipremnum aureum) commonly known as 'money-plant' here. Easy-growing-maintenance plant, does well in our humid weather.

[Update May-1,'09] This spot had us the opportunity to capture Tailorbird and Sparrows on video. Do have an entertaining viewing at http://jaimeboey.blogspot.com/search/label/birds





These are my favs and its evergreen but it hardly flowers. Flame Violet (Epicias Kee Wee) http://www.logees.com/prodinfo.asp?number=T5080-2

Episcia - The "peacock plant" or "flame violet". These are the most beautiful of all gesneriads, known for their very colorful, textured foliage. Great under lights or in a warm window. Blooms in blue, pink, red, and yellow. A hint: you'll get more bloom by limiting the number of stolons the plant produces. http://www.robsviolet.com/episcia.htm

[Update Jun-13,'09] Great news, Episcia (mother-plant) has been flowering non-stop since Dec'09. Each bloom could last about 4 days, lipstick red and crispy leaves draws curious stares to touch. 4th propagating-batch started to bud & flower end May'09, all eye-catching on the window sill.




Have fun trying out our reflexology walk, sets for the beginner and amateur.

Stepping on these stones barefeet is almost like connecting to earth.

[Update Jun-13,'09] For beginners, tread the right path and left path for the advance (or the maschochist).

Rose Periwinkle

Catharanthus roseus (Madagascar Periwinkle), a native to Madagascar, is a semiwoody evergreen perennial, usually grown as an annual in the flower bed. http://www.floridata.com/ref/C/cath_ros.cfm

Seen here are cultivars "Grape Cooler' (top), 'Pacifica Red' (right) and 'Apricot Delight' (left).

Here periwinkle major or bigleaf periwinkle, given by in-law. This perennial plant can be weedy or invasive according to many websites ... hmm yet to be seen. We transplant on the ground next to miniature rose after a month to allow it to adjust to a new location.