The Story Of My "tree" Musketeers

[schiz0id 0]

upside down leaf insect : hey what's that? haven't seen it before. does it bite at all? that's apart from leaves...

Haha, nono.. What I meant is it looks like an insect - the leaf is its body and the two dew drops look like its eyes

[edenstrauss 3]

Haha, nono.. What I meant is it looks like an insect - the leaf is its body and the two dew drops look like its eyes

Oh I see

The minute I spotted the 2 beady looking morning dew drops there, I fetched my camera immediately & took photographs of it. I really loved the photo becox the leaf looked really cute when it's adorned with those 2 "earrings"!

By far, I think that's the best photo I've taken.

Edited November 6, 2011 by edenstrauss

[edenstrauss 3]

A photograph on stunted version of the "Ginger" plants :

Edited December 3, 2011 by edenstrauss

[edenstrauss 3]

These are my latest "collection" ...

Edited November 17, 2011 by edenstrauss

[schiz0id 0]

Looking good, eden!

With Xmas around the corner, they'll be a lovely addition to boost the atmosphere!

[edenstrauss 3]

Looking good, eden!

With Xmas around the corner, they'll be a lovely addition to boost the atmosphere!

Hi buddy thanks for praising my plants! Yes it'll be a lovely addition for Chinese new year too!

[edenstrauss 3]

continued from post # 34:

http://www.renotalk.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=44590&view=findpost&p=680643

Edited November 19, 2011 by edenstrauss

[edenstrauss 3]

Photographs depicting the growth of a new "baby" :

This looks like an UFO (Unidentified Object).

Edited December 3, 2011 by edenstrauss

[edenstrauss 3]

I finally found the name of the birds that visited my plants every single day without fail

They are known as Olive-backed Sunbirds (scientific name: Nectarinia jugularis) / 黄腹花蜜鸟.

(copyright Paul Huang, http://www.naturestops.com)

For more information & details about the bird, kindly visit the following website:

http://swapsungeibuloh.wikispaces.com/Olive-backed+Sunbird'>http://swapsungeibuloh.wikispaces.com/Olive-backed+Sunbird

This video clip features a female Olive-backed sunbird returning to her nest after a hard day of flying around. However, it's a pity that the bird in the clip doesn't call out at all. Isn't the birdie cute when she peeps out from her nest?

Disclaimer:

Please note that I do not own any of the photographs & videos of the Olive-backed Sunbirds featured here on this thread. As such, please give the credits of the photographs & videos of the birds to the relevant contributors.

I wish to thank Mr Paul Huang of http://www.naturestops.com for granting his kind permission in allowing me to use his beautiful photographs in this forum. It had certainly made an eye-opening difference to a nature lover like myself!

I would also like to thank the creator/s of http://swapsungeibuloh.wikispaces.com & smalleyes68 (owner of the You-tube video)for their comprehensive write-ups of the birds of Singapore & the video clip featuring an olive-backed sunbird respectively on the internet.

Edited November 26, 2011 by edenstrauss

[edenstrauss 3]

Repotting of plants in progress... Congestion of roots which made the plant root bound meant that it's time to repot these plants...

But I haven't reported any plants before so itx s new challenge. I jux wondered how I'm going 2 losen them out from their old existing pots... Kind of worried that I might jux injure them & they might jux die on me.

[edenstrauss 3]

Photograph of a new adult spotting a very fat stem and a huge, thick red "corn" with a day-old flower bud whose nectar had already been sucked dry by an Olive-backed sunbird.

Edited December 3, 2011 by edenstrauss

[edenstrauss 3]

Repotting process:

Finally, we have completed repotting these "Ginger" plants.

It was an arduous experience & if u asked me whether I would like to go through it again, the answer is a NO becox just once is enough.

We took more than half an hour to repot & clean up the mess.

Firstly, it was our first time repotting plants. We were faced with lot's of uncertainty but we still have to do it because the roots were showing up in an entangled mess at the surface of the pot.

Secondly, the plants weren't standing straight as they were already crooked & bent outwards at an angle to catch the sunlight. It was extremely tough to imagine not damaging any parts of the plants while repotting. And a challenge to figure out ways in minimising any possible damages, injuries on the plant.

It's a pity that we didn't manage to take any photographs of the root-bound base of the plants as we were too engrossed in ensuring that we were doing a good repotting of the plants.

Edited December 3, 2011 by edenstrauss

[edenstrauss 3]

Step 1:

We tried extracting the plants with its existing roots from the pot.

However, it was a tall order as the plants were already root-bound from the interior of the pot.

The plant & its existing soil were stuck fast inside the old flower pots which were made of plastic.

As such, my hubby broke the plastic pot by breaking it up in sections after pulling at its tapered rim. It was only then that we manage to free the plant with its existing roots & old soil from the old pot.

Step 2:

We cut out a section of green gauze such that it was large enough to be placed inside the flower pot at its base to

cover the holes.

This is to prevent the soil from being washed out of the flower pot when watering the plants in the morning.

Step 3:

After placing in the green gauze, gardening soil is then poured into the pot such that the new soil level (with the plant & its old soil) should fall a couple of inches below the rim of the new flower pot.

As we were filling in the sides of the pot with new gardening soil, we had given the pot a little shake on & off so as to allow the new soil to fall through the gaps. To ensure that there are no "air pockets", we had used a small spade to tuck in the new soil.

Step 4:

Once repotting is completed, we had watered the plants at the soil bed generously until water had trickled out from the bottom of the new flower pots. This is an indication that the plant already had a sufficient intake of water.

We are keeping our fingers crossed that they would work out well in their new homes!

Edited December 3, 2011 by edenstrauss

[edenstrauss 3]

Purchasing my gardening supplies ...

Eversince I started gardening, I had been obtaining my gardening supplies from the following nursery which had been reputed to be in business for a very long time:

The nursery is within walking distance (2-minute walk for fast strollers like myself) from Kovan MRT station & Heartland Kovan, located infront of the carpark (and across the wet market).

The gardening supplies I've bought from this nursery thus far includes gardening soil (of both organic & non-organic nature), water (pressure) sprayer, fertiliser, flower pots, plants, etc.

There's a huge variety of plants available for sale & I love the hibiscus plants, orchids which are evergreens that were found in their nursery. However much as I liked these plants, my flat has got limited access to the morning sun which is necessary for gardening.

So to date, I've not bought that many pots of plants from any nursery.

Edited December 19, 2011 by edenstrauss

[edenstrauss 3]

Outcome of repotting

Hi guys,

I'm so sorry for the repetition of photographs in this section. However, it's a pity if I do not share these pics because the outcome of the repotting for these "Ginger" plants are best encapsulated in them (photographs).

Please bear with these repetitions but I didn't know which photograph to select so I had decided to launch all of them.

This is how my plant is faring on Day 2 of the repotting...

The outcome was wonderful & it was a magnificent sight to behold when we were greeted by such a huge surprise in the morning: the plants were blooming just 1 day after the repotting!

Edited December 7, 2011 by edenstrauss