We Have Tico Berry at KLCC Park

Do you know what is Tico Berry?

Have you ever heard of Tico Berries?

I think most Malaysians would have never heard of tico berries until they watched the 47th episode of Ugly Betty titled, "Ugly Berry". In this episode, Ugly Betty found out that super sexy super gorgeous supermodel Adriana Lima was a fan of this super rare fruit, the tico berry!

Is tico berry a fictitious name created for the show?

Well, most of us who saw the ' rare berry' know that it looked like our rambutan. If you google for tico berry, wikipedia will lead you to rambutan!

Rambutan is a Malay word. "Rambut" means hair while "rambutan" means lots of hair.

This is a young rambutan tree at KLCC Park. It is our indigineous tree. Rambutan trees grow wild in the tropical rainforests of Malaysia and Indonesia.

In the "Eat, Pray, Love" movie, Julia Roberts and her Brazilian partner went shopping at the wet market in Bali and came across this exotic, 'hairy fruit' called the rambutan.

Scientific name: Nephelium lappaceum

Family: Sapindaceae

Common name: Rambutan

Origin: Malaysia, Indonesia

Sapindaceae is also known as the soapberry family and it include lychee, longan, maple and horse chestnuts.

“We Have Tico Berry at KLCC Park”, a copyrighted post, was written for My Nice Garden blog by Autumn Belle @ http://www.mynicegarden.com/ on November 5th, 2010.

The rambutan fruits turn from green to bright red or yellow when riped.

Rambutan trees are commonly found here, especially in the villages and countryside. When I was little, we had a rambutan tree in my house compound. Whenever rambutans were in season (usually twice a year), the tree would be loaded with rambutan fruits and we would have so much we could not finish all, so we distributed them to our neighbours in bunches and baskets. The tree was just next to my bedroom window and I used to fantasized how nice it would be if there was a tree house/playhouse with a ladder from my window to the tree!

If there was a rambutan tree at home, there was bound to be a family member who can climb this tree. In my case, it was my dad. Some moms, grandmas, sisters and kids could achieve this feat too. It was quite necessary to climb the tree to harvest the fruits, eventhough we had a long stick or pole with hook attached. When rambutan fruits were not in season, people might also climb the tree e.g. to get a clearer view of certain exciting events or happenings, e.g. a street magic show, street medicine man demonstrating his stuff within a large crowd of people. That was old times, old times .....

When I got married and moved to the city, I had a big rambutan tree, a jackfruit tree and also 2 mango trees in my corner house compound. The trees provided shade for my children to play their outdoor games and they enjoyed riding on the wooden swing that was tied to the branches of our rambutan tree. It was home to the birds, some ferns and even provided food for the bats. It also was a good aiming target for some neighbouring kids to practice their lastic (catapult) skills on the poor little tweety birds.

When I moved to my current house, the new owners didn't want any plants or trees because they wanted to cement the whole area for parking their lorry and cars. I had to cut them down. Soon the trees were gone forever, and now, only cherised memories remain.

The rambutan is closely related to the lychee and longan. To eat the fruits, we need to peel off the skin first. We can just do this using our fingers. We eat the whitish, translucent flesh wrapped around the single seed. The best varieties have thick, sweet flesh. Rambutans are full of vitamins and minerals.  When buying rambutans, it is better to select those that are still attached to the branches as these fruits last longer in storage.

As a safety precaution, we do not give the whole fruit to young children as they may accidently swallow it and choke to death. You can see that the fruit is round and slippery, so we peel off the flesh before serving it to them. Peeled rambutan flesh can be easily stored in the fridge.

Rambutan flesh can be used to make rambutan jam. You can buy canned rambutans stuffed with pineapple and use them to make fruit punch.

Rambutan trees can be propagated from seeds, by air layering or grafting.

Andrea has a picture of the young shoots of the rambutan tree in her latest post titled, "New Growths New Life!

Do try the rambutan when you visit Malaysia!

Do you have a rambutan story to tell?

Wishing all my Hindu friends,

Happy Deepavali!

Updated: 1st Feb 2013

The following are some pictures of a matured, fruiting rambutan tree taken in Kampung Baru Kampung Timah in Tanjung Tuallang.

Me, My Brother, Our Pomegranates and My New Camera

Recently, when I went back to Ipoh, I discovered that my brother's pomegranage tree has grown by leaps and bounds. It is full of flowers and pomegranate fruits at different stages of ripening.

Like many Chinese who believe in fengshui, my late father has placed the pot of pomegranate plant outside the house, just beside the entrance gate. As you can see, there is little land here but the height of the pomegranate has reached the top of the house. The seedlings for my brother and me were purchase at the same time and randomly selected by us. Even the flower pot is the same size as mine!

Why is his plant so much bigger and more productive than mine?

Height about 8 ft tall.
Productivity: 10 or more fruits, flowering throughout the year
Fertilizer : none, except for the occassional add-on soil taken from the rubbish dump nearby.
Soil: soil from the roadside
Watering: twice a day, directly spray from a hose
Gardener: my brother

This is my pomegranate plant, also grown from a flower pot.  For a few years, I had placed a dish below the pot to prevent roots from growing out. Now, I have taken out the dish so that its roots can grow deep into the ground. Hopefully the plant will grow bigger.

Height: about 5ft
Productivity: 1 - 3 fruits, flowers
Fertilizer: organic chicken manure pellets, liquid organic fertilizer
Soil: mix of organic compost and burnt clay soil
Watering: twice a day, use a watering can with sprinkler, water is declorinated.
Gardener: me

“Me, My Brother, Our Pomegranates and My New Camera”, a copyrighted post, was written for My Nice Garden blog by Autumn Belle @ http://www.mynicegarden.com/ on November 1st, 2010.

A macro shot of the pomegranate

Pomegranate seeds are used to make a dessert drink (tong shui). The ingredients used here are barley, green cendol, starch, fu-chok (soy bean skin), beaten egg and fresh pomegranate seeds. To know more about 'cendol', click on the link.

Starry, starry night!

Some night scene shots at i-City, Shah Alam.

For further details, i-city's official website is here and details at Tourism Malaysia, here.

Its a magical wonderland of colourful, glittering lights!

I went to i-City, Shah Alam to test out my Casio Exilim EX-Z16 camera for night scenes. These are artificial trees made from eco-friendly LED lights. This place with state of art technology is a tourist attraction among foreigners and locals. It is very popular for photography enthusiasts.

Autumn in Malaysia!

All the shots in this post are taken with the Casio Exilim EX-Z16 compact camera.

Good points: The auto focus is fast and sharp and the shutter speed is very fast, even for night shots. I do not use/need a tripod. It is also very user friendly. The battery is compatible with my old Olympus FE-4000 so I can use my spare batteries for both cameras. The macro shots and zoomed pictures are clear too.

I discovered that the offer price in Malaysia for Casio Exilim EX-16 camera is RM 399.00 or USD 89. Very good buy for entry level compact cameras. I like this camera very much.

Note: This review is purely personal and I am not paid anything for my views.



I have since change to a Panasonic Lumix DMC FH-1. The offer price of this Lumix DMC FH-1 camera in Malaysia now is RM 550.00

Reason: It is the same 12 mp with intelligence auto (iAuto) mode and stabilizer but the colours are more vibrant. The macro shots are clearer and can be taken at a nearer distance. The wide angle (28mm) is larger, zoom better (5X optical) and clearer. It has HD movie recording feature and uses Leica (German technology) lens, which My Dear has high regards for. The rechargeable Li-Ion battery can last about 200 photos. I first saw a higher end Panasonic Lumix FZ-100 camera that I like from Diana of Elephant Eye. Then I was very encourage with positive feedback by commenters of my previous post, e.g. Bom of Plant Chaser blog, my daughter and also a few anonymous blog readers who wrote to me.

My next target will be the Canon Powershot S95 or S90, a high performance compact camera. The Canon S90 price has dropped to about RM 1,200 with FOC extra battery and comes with 8G memory card, waranty 1+2 years (until 31 Oct 10) due to introduction of new model S95 at RM 1,500 but it has exceeded my current budget.

Thank you so much for your pointers and valuable feedback from real personal experiences.

I am joining Noel of A Planatic Blog on The Hot, The Loud and The Proud #8, the link is here.

My Pomegranate is Smiling !

Remember my ripe pomegranate that was dangling from the plant in my previous post?

Well, it is smiling now!

Due to space constraints, I grow my pomegranate plant in a flower pot. Eventhough it is less than 5 ft tall, it does bear a few edible fruits every year. The fruit in the first picture is just ripe for picking if I want to eat it. This time I had waited a little bit longer for it to split open. When it does so, it would have been too riped as the skin has hardened and some seeds are exposed to the external elements.

If you wish to know more about my attachment to this plant and my grandmother story, you can read more from my 2009 post titled, "Its Pomegranate, Not a Pomelo and a Grenade", link here.

“My Pomegranate is Smiling”, a copyrighted post, was written for My Nice Garden blog by Autumn Belle @ http://www.mynicegarden.com/ on October 21st, 2010.

This post is for Kitchen Flavours and Malay Kadazan Girl who commented that they'd like to know how a pomegranate fruit look like when it splits open at the bottom.

This pomegranate looks like it is smiling with opened mouth, gums and teeth. Smiling denotes happiness.

In fengshui and also Chinese culture, the pomegranate is regarded as a lucky fruit and a symbol of fertility and prosperity. The ripe fruit is auspiciously red in colour and when it bursts open, there are many many seeds inside. Now we use the same word, 子 (zi) for seeds and sons. Therefore, many seeds = many sons = many offsprings or children.

We use the pomegranate fruit as an offering during prayers. During festivals like the Chinese New Year, married ladies eat the fruit in the hope of being blessed with many sons to carry on the family surname for many generations. Pictures of the ripe pomegranate fruit bursting open with seeds are also hung in homes to activate fertility luck.

After harvesting the fruits, I will prune my pomegranate plant. It can withstand hard pruning and very soon, new shoots will appear. Ideally it should be planted on the ground where it can reach a height of 15-20 ft.

My pomegranate plant usually start to bear flowers between Arpil - July and it takes a few months for the fruits to ripen.

Pomegranate plants have many sharp thorns which are like poison arrows in fengshui. We usually plant it at the front portion, i.e. outside the gate of the house, not inside the house compound. This was also my late dad's advice to me.

There are some smaller varieties with beautiful double petaled flowers for ornamental use. Mine is the fruit bearing type. The pomegranate plant can also be cultivated as a bonsai plant.

Scientific name: Punica granatum

Family: Lythraceae (Henna family - e.g. Cuphea, Lagersroemia, Henna)

Common name: Pomegranate

Malay  name: Pokok Delima, meaning ruby tree.

Chinese name:  石榴 (shi liu), meaning stone grenade

Origin: West Asia

The name "pomegranate" is derived from the Latin words "pomum" meaning apple and "granatus" meaning seeded.

The pomegranate is an ancient fruit that had been mentioned as early as The Iron Age in prehistoric times. It has a calyx shaped like a crown and was the inspiration for King Solomon's coronet. According to the Quran, pomegranates grow in the gardens of Paradise. (Source: Wikipedia)

How do you eat the pomegranate fruit?

Does it hold any special meaning in your culture?

I would like to welcome my new followers, Siti Ajar of Laman ct.com, Wancuyan from Malaysia and Amy from USA of In The Orchid House With Amy blog. Selamat Datang and Welcome to My Nice Garden!

Update: This update is for Natti from India of The Balcony Garden blog, in answer to his comment.

This is how my plant look today. Mummy's vital statistic is as follows:

Flower pot is medium sized of 1 ft diameter and 10 inches height. The plant is about 5 ft tall.

Other requirements:
Soil - use well draining soil.
Water - twice a day but the plant is quite drought tolerant. It may shed all its leaves but the shoots will grow back soon.
Fertilizer - use general purpose liquid organic type or organic chicken manure pellets. To encourage fruiting you also use the fertilizer for citrus fruits. This time I didn't use it.

Note:
1. If you use a bigger pot, (e.g. 3 times mine) it can grow to about 6 ft tall.
2. I think my plant was propagated from a cutting and not from seed. My late father purchased the seedling from his friend who owns a nursery in Ipoh. Fruit plants propagated from cuttings or grafting flower earlier, bear better tasting fruits and they are more hardy against pest attacks. My plant started bearing fruits after 1 year.
3. If a plant is grown from seeds, it takes about a year or 2.5-3 years before it starts flowering. It takes another 5-7 months for the fruits to mature.

This is for Melanie of Nothern Gardener's Blog - here's a video of how to seed a pomegranate from Produce Picker Podcast(The URL is here.)

This is my entry for Fertilizer Friday, the link is here.

Mid Autumn Festival - Why the Pomelo Fruit and Where to Buy Pomelo

I have a pomelo tree which I grow in a big flower pot. A normal sized tree when planted on the ground can reach up to a height of 5-15 metres (16-50 ft).  Pomelo leaves are constantly needed for prayers and cleansing. We add some pomelo leaves to our washing basin/tub or bath water to cleanse the hands and body before prayers or after a visit to the hospital, graves or funeral. Taoist masters sometimes use a stalk of pomelo leaves to sprinkle sacred/charmed water in cleansing rituals.  Pomelo leaves have a mild fragrance similar to that of citronella.

The flowers are fragrant and they can be used to make aromatic oils and perfumes.

Scientific name: Citrus maxima

Synonym: Citrus grandis

Family: Rutaceae

Common name: Pomelo

Native to: Southeast Asia

Pomelo is the word to use for the plant as well as the fruit. In Chinese it is called 'you zi' (柚子). In Malay, it is called 'limau Bali' meaning Bali lime/orange.

The pomelo is the ancestor of the grapefruit which is a cross between the pomelo and orange. It is the largest citrus fruit at 15-25cm (6-10 inches) in diameter and weighs between 1-2 kg. The skin changes from pale green to yellow when ripe. It is much bigger than the grapefruit and the flesh tastes better.

Like mooncakes, pomelo fruits are traditionally associated with the Mid Autumn Festival. You can say that it is a must have during this season. We use it as a prayer offering and place it on the altar. Pomelo fruits being round in appearance signifies family unity and togetherness. Pomelos are called 'you zi' in Chinese which when pronounced, 'you' sounds like 'having' and this signifies abundance and wealth. 'You zi' also sounds like 'having sons or off-springs' which will thus ensure the continuity of the future generations. Either way, these are symbols of prosperity and good fortune.

“Mid Autumn Festival - Pomelo Fruits”, a copyrighted post, was written for My Nice Garden blog by Autumn Belle @ http://www.mynicegarden.com/ on September 19th, 2010.

The above is a concrete replica of the pomelo fruit erected by the Ipoh City Hall in front of a stretch of pomelo stalls along Jalan Gopeng opposite Hillcity Hotel and Sam Poh Tong Cave Temple. This area is a tourist attraction and they arrive here by the bus loads. There are several famous cave temples nearby, e.g. Ling Sen Tong, Guan Yin Tong, Nan Thean Tong and Sam Poh Tong.

Visitors who come to Ipoh buy pomelo fruits to bring back home as gifts to family and friends.  Conversely, Ipohlites who leave town to visit friends and relatives will bring along the pomeloes as gifts.  The pomelo has become synonymous with Ipoh, hence it is a must-try if it is your first time in Ipoh.

A pomelo farm in Tambun, Ipoh

Malaysia's climate is ideal for pomelo farming. The best pomeloes in Malaysia are reputed to be from Tambun which is a 10 min drive from Ipoh city.  Tambun is surrounded by rocky, rainforested limestone hills as old as 400 million years and the calcium rich soil acts as a natural fertilizer, hence the fruits produced are extra tasty and juicy. Tambun pomeloes are so famous for its quality fruits that many of us call the pomelo, Limau Tambun or "Tambun lime".  Tambun pomeloes are seedless. The biggest pomelo from Tambun weighed more than 6 kg!

Pomelos from Gerai Limau Bali Heng Kee in Tambun, Ipoh.

Pomelo orchards are concentrated around the Tambun and neighbouring Ampang districts of Ipoh. Most of the orchards are family owned and many of them have been in the pomelo business for more than 2 generations which dates back to more than 80 years ago. Locals like me who wish to buy fresh fruits direct from the farmers will come here for the best quality and most reasonable prices. When choosing pomelos, select the heavier ones to ensure that the flesh is juicy and not dried up.

For those of us who wish to use the pomeloes for prayers, we prefer a fruit that has the stalk and preferably also the leaves intact.

To eat the pomelo, we do not cut accross the fruit. First we need to peel off the skin by using a knife to slice vertically down the fruit at a few places. The cut should be about half an inch deep only. Next we use our hands to separate the thick outer rind from the pomelo. The thin inner skin which is white in colour is bitter and also need to be removed. Then we can proceed to eat the flesh just like a peeled orange.

Pomelo flesh is one of the ingredients used in the making of "Rainbow Yee Sang", an auspicous salad dish for Chinese New Year. Modern chefs are incorporating the pomelo in salads, soups and appetizers.

Some uses of the pomelo peel include:
1. Candied pomelo peel and marmalade
2. Sun dried peels are used in the making of herbal drinks as a treatment for cough.
3. The water from boiling the pomelo peel can be used in the prevention of dandruff, link here.
4.  Incorporated into hair and body shampoo.
5. The rind can be worn on the head as a hat in a child's game.

During the Mid Autumn Festival, some believe that eating pomeloes and wearing the leftover rind on the head signify a prayer for the youngsters in the family. "Chang-E, the Moon Goddess will see them and respond to their prayers when she looks down from the moon." The link is here.

Pomelos are high in Vitamin C, A, folic acid and potassium. For Tambun pomelos, there are 2 types; fruits with white flesh are sweet while those with pink flesh are a bit sour. It can be eaten raw and it taste better than the grapefruit.

Are you growing this plant?

Do you have a recipe or story to share about the pomelo?

Update: Contribution from my commenters:
1. Luna Miranda - The leaves are added to rice cakes to neutralize the sweetness
2. Lotus Leaf - It is an old Indian custom to plant a pomelo tree if a baby girl is born
3. Orchid de dangau - pomelo flesh can be eaten with rojak sauce

Contact of Tambun Pomelo Farm
Chin Pomelo Farm
(visited by Hong Kong celebrity chefs)
158258A, Jalan Ampang, Tambun, Ipoh, Perak Malaysia
Tel: 6013-5016491
Contact Person : Mrs Chin - she speaks only Mandarin and Cantonese
Link: Pomelo Farm Stay Program

Contact of Pomelo Fruit Vendors
Store no. 38 - Kedai Limau Tambun, Buah-Buahan & Minuman
Lot 160188, Jalan Ampang Baru 6
Ampang Baru New Village
31400 Ipoh, Perak
Tel: +6016-501 0145, +6016-599 2178
They also sell other seasonal tropical fruits like guava, banana, water apples, carambola, etc.

Gerai Limau Bali Heng Kee
Lot 160186, Jalan Ampang Baru 6
Ampang Baru New Village,
31400 Ipoh, Perak
(along the road to Tambun town and Chin Pomelo Farm)

This is my entry for Today's Flowers, the link is here.

Updated on 27 Sep 2012: My other related posts are as follows:

1. Mid-Autumn Festival 2011 - The Hare / Jade Rabbit (line here)
2. Mid-Autumn Festival 2010 - Water Caltrops, also The Old Man of the Moon (link here)
3. Mid-Autumn Festival 2010 - Lotus Seeds and Mooncakes (link here)
4. Mid-Autumn Festival 2009 - The Story of Moon Cakes and The Story of Chang 'E (link here)

A Panorama of Banana Stories

The banana plant is native to Southeast Asia. In Malaysia, you can find it anywhere. People plant it in their home gardens, along road dividers, road shoulders and they grow wild in the countryside and empty land in the city. When you visit Malaysia, look out for our banana plants. You can easily spot them. I remember a foreign friend once remarked that in her country, bananas are very expensive but she sees banana plants everywhere even along the roadsides and rubbish dumps here. So she asked me if we can just pluck riped bananas from the plants along the road and eat the fruits. My answer is yes, for the domesticated ones but wild bananas have too many seeds that render them almost inedible.

More pictures here - "Going Bananas Today"

Musa "Dwarf Cavendish" grown at the Ditch Garden

Genus: Musa

Common name: Banana

Family: Musaceae

Order: Zingiberale

Banana is a common name we use for the many species, cultivars and varieties of banana. We use the word "banana" for the fruit as well as the plant. We also use the word banana for many other meanings, of which I am too shy to write down in words.

To many of us locals, bananas and plantains are the same thing.

A banana blossom is called "jantung pisang" (banana heart) in Malay language.

Have you seen a banana blossom before?

This is the inflorescence of an ordinary banana plant that we grow for the fruits. It has maroon to dark red large bracts and little cream yellow flowers. The stamens are a darker yellow. The inflorescence hangs down like a pendant while those of the ornamental bananas are upright.

In Asia, the flowers can be cooked and eaten. For example, in Malay dishes, banana flowers are cooked in curry and coconut gravy. It was only a few days ago when I saw Anthony Bourdain of  "No Reservations", Travel Channel on Astro, our satelite TV sampling this dish with our local celebrity Chef Wan at a street stall in Kuala Lumpur.

Some of us grow up hearing folklores and scary stories passed on by family members and friends. One Malay story tells of a female vampire, the 'pontianak' that dwells in the banana plant during the day. The 'pontianak' is one of the most scary and violent ghost in our Malaysian folk tales. As a kid, I was scared of the 'pontianak' which is usually depicted as a female with very long hair and white dress. It can disguise itself as a beautiful lady. The one I saw on TV has only a head and she can fly, appear and disappear!

The second is a Chinese story about the banana spirit, a lady spirit whose beauty is out of this world and who targeted guys. To attract her, a guy can tie a red string on his big toe on one end and use the other end to thread a needle and pierce it into the 'heart' (centre) of a banana blossom. When nightfalls, this lady of extraordinary beauty will appear in his dreams. They can have a rendezvous filled with ecstacy and she will sap all his energy and may even claim his life.

With such stories, it is no surprise that many of us, especially the conservatives ones, do not have a banana plant in our home compounds.

On the positive side, Hindus regard the banana plant as an auspicious symbol of fertility, abundance and prosperity. Live banana plants are used to adorn both sides of the entrance doors during celebrations and ceremonies. For marriage ceremonies, whole banana plants complete with a big bunch of fruits and flowers are used to flank the entrance doorways.

Taoists, Buddhists and Hindus use banana fruits as a prayer offering and place them on the altar.

“A Panorama of Banana Stories”, a copyrighted post, was written for My Nice Garden blog by Autumn Belle @ http://www.mynicegarden.com/ on September 10th, 2010.

In Asia, almost every part of the banana plant has a useful purpose. The banana leaf is large enough to be used as an umbrella to shield against the sun and rain. Now, at least you know what to do if lost in our Malaysian jungle!

Fresh banana leaves are used in banana leaf rice Indian restaurants where food is served on banana leaves instead of plates. Customers can choose to eat with their bare hands or fork and spoon. Food served on banana leaves and eaten with bare hands are believed to taste better. A case of Finger Licking Good, perhaps. I remember my childhood moments whenever dad took us to Indian restaurants, he taught us how to use our bare hands when eating the delicious Indian curries with rice. He learnt this method from his Malay friends. Sometimes, mom and dad would buy the curry takeaways and we had a fun time doing this at home. 

Banana leaves are used as wraps in many Malaysian, Malay, Indian and Peranakan dishes. The banana leaves give the extra aroma that enhances the taste of the food. This dish is called 'otak-otak' (translated to brains) which is actually a hot and spicy fish paste grilled / barbecued to perfection. The banana leaf is on the bottom.

Banana leaves are also used as a packaging container, mold or wrap for many types of 'kuih' (a kind of sweet desserts).

The banana fruit can be eaten fresh, right after plucking from the tree, of course it must be ripe first. The fruits are used to make deep fried banana fritters (pisang goreng), banana cake, banana split ice-cream and shakes, banana chips....etc, etc.

Update:
Recipes - kuali.com which has 34 recipes using the banana, for further details, click HERE.

Any more ideas on the usage?

• Lotus leaf - Payas, a liquid sweet is served in cups made from banana fibre.
• Rosey Pollen - Banana Fondue, i.e. banana dipped in chocolate.
• Eden - Banana blossoms cooked with coconut milk and spices.
• M.Kate - Flowers are used to make kerabu (salad with sambal belacan)

This is my favourite during the Hari Raya season. It is called Lemang which is made of glutinuous rice and coconut milk cooked in bamboo sticks lined with banana leaves over a slow charcoal or wood fire. It is eaten with Rendang, a meat curry cooked with shredded coconut flesh, cocunut milk, ginger and spices.

This is a very popular Malaysian drink. It is called 'Air Sirap Selasih' or Rose Syrup with Basil Seeds. It is made of rose essence, pandan flavoured sugar syrup and dried basil seeds presoaked in water. Some drinks are served with cream soda. Recently, I suddenly have a craving for this drink. So I made my own. I poured some F&N Strawberry flavoured soft drink and added a teaspoon of basil seeds. With some ice cubes, it was heavenly.

Today is the first day of Hari Raya. I'd like to wish my muslim readers and friends:

SELAMAT HARI RAYA AIDIL FITRI 2010!

and if you are on holiday like me,

Happy Holidays!

if you are travelling outstation,

Have a Smooth and Save Journey !

This is my entry for Fertilizer Friday and the link is here.
I am joining Wendy of Greenish Thumb in her weekly Garden to Table Challenge - Week 4, click here.
For Today's Flowers, please visit the link here.

Male Papaya Flowers for Stir Fry - Wordless Wednesday

“Male Papaya Flowers for Stir Fry - Wordless Wednesday”, a copyrighted post, was written for My Nice Garden blog by Autumn Belle @ http://www.mynicegarden.com/ on June 30, 2010.

To participate or view other Wordless Wednesday posts, please click here.

From the Garbage to My Garden and the Kitchen

“From the Garbage to My Garden and the Kitchen”, a copyrighted post, was written for My Nice Garden blog by Autumn Belle @ http://www.mynicegarden.com/

I have been growing pineapple plants from the crowns of store bought pineapples since 2004. I grow them all in flower pots with a diameter of about 1 foot. I put a roller at the bottom of each pot, just in case I need to move it around. Each pineapple costs me RM 2.00 - RM 5.00 (about a US dollar) depending on the type of pineapple and the mood of the vendor. I normally use the pineapples for prayers and after that, I'll eat it or use it to cook curry or make pineapple fried rice. Now, instead of throwing the crown into the garbage bin, I use it to grow a pineapple plant that will bear fruit for my kitchen use.

Growing pineapples is a long term investment, judging from the fact that I have to wait at least 18 months before it starts to flower.

The above plant was grown from a single crown and it is more than one year old now. Sometime ago, it started to 'reproduce' and ended up with additional 6 offsprings. Now, it looks as though I have 7 pineapple plants in a single container. They are so close together I can't differentiate which is the mother plant and which are the suckers, slips or ratoons. How nice if all of them flower at the same time! Maybe I'm getting too greedy, hah?

This baby is just a few months old. It seemed to have firmly rooted on the soil. Only one pineapple plant here. I used to have some blue Torenia fournieri in my garden but it had died back and disappeared completely a few months ago. I am planting some pink ones now. Recently, the blue torenias reappeared in my garden and I can find the little ones everywhere, from the front to the back yard. This one has moved in to live with my baby pineapple plant. Meanwhile, I don't mind since it makes the pot look good anyway.

I have a link below which may be of interest to you regarding growing pineapples in temperate zones. The site is called Tropical Permaculture.

How to make Pineapple Fried Rice - My simple homemade DIY recipe:
Fry some finely chopped garlic in cooking oil and a few drops of sesame oil in a heated pan. Add in some chopped pineapple flesh. You may also add some prawns, mince meat or finely chopped french beans if you like. Stir fry until fragrant. Next, add some leftover rice and stir fry until the rice look like it is jumping up and down the pan. Make a hole in the middle, add an egg and let the egg half cook before you mix them all together. Add some salt and pepper. Using leftover rice that is more than a day old makes the fried rice taste better.

For expert recipes with exact measurements, please visit Kuali at my sidebar. Search using keywords, "Pineapple Fried Rice" .

I have some leftover turmeric rhizomes so, I place them in a pot of soil. It seemed to take ages but I was overjoyed to see 2 new shoots popping out. Isn't it like magic? This dried up thing just came alive!

I have some leftover lengkuas (galangal) too. We use it to make delicious dishes. It looked quite old and 'beaten' when I placed it in a bag of soil. This is a used polythene bag, recycled from that of another plant that I had repotted. The lengkuas 'hibernated' for a few weeks before new shoots appeared. I have since transplanted it on the ground. I hope it will grow enough foliage to make the small area look exotic.

This leftover ordinary ginger took the longest to germinate new shoots. First I wrapped it in some old newspapers for a week or so before I placed it some soil in a small flower pot. I waited another few weeks before shoots appeared. Then I transplanted it to the ground.

I use ginger in almost every dish that I cook. I took the most ginger during my 100 days confinement period after childbirth and delivery. Anyway that was a long long time ago.

Can you find the caterpillar? It is under my watermark. This guy is good at camouflage, ain't he? He has walloped most of my pink vinca plant. But never mind, it's okay.

Please help me identify this plant.

It looks like Indian Borage. I have been growing it for 6 years and it is driving me crazy not knowing it's name. Can you live with someone for so long without knowing his/her name?

Some clues:
Someone gave it to me saying that I can make tea with the fresh leaves as a remedy for high blood pressure and diabetes. She said the name was lemon basil. It is the staple food for Blastoise my pet tortoise.

Thanks to Anonymous from The Kebun, a Homestay, Organic Farm near Kuching, East Malaysia who provided this link, the above plant has been identified as Gynura procumbrens, a medicinal herb. It's malay name is Pokok Sambung Nyawa  or Life Extending Plant. I have never seen this plant bear any flowers.

Scientific name: Lyssa zampa

Common name: Laos brown butterfly

It is a species of moth from the Uraniidae family and commonly found in Malaysia and Indonesia. It's wing span is between 100-160mm and flies from June to August. Its larvae feeds on the endospermum species of plants. (Source: Wikipedia)

Do you know him?

This "flying trapeze" found hanging from my bamboo plant is about the size of my palm, which is 6 inches or 15cm in diameter. It can fly quite fast. It can be a moth or butterfly. I photographed this fella at about 9am in the morning of June 12th, 2010 which coincided with the first day of the 5th Lunar month, a new moon day. Oh, yeah, on the 5th day of the 5th lunar month is our Dumpling Festival (Duanwu Festival) cum Dragon Boat Festival. I just found out about the photograph date coincidence when I checked back my original pictures and it is ringing some superstitious bells in my head now.

While doing research on the internet, I found that in Thailand, people make a blue drink from the Butterfly Pea (Clitoria ternatea) flowers. They will serve it with a jar of sweet pandan flavoured syrup and a citrus fruit. So I did an experiment and made my own blue drink. Without the syrup, it is almost tasteless. However, when I added a few drops of calamansi (citrus lime) juice and stirred, the solution turned purple. Magic, magic, magic!

This is my entry for Fertilizer Friday. Tootsie, here I come! To visit other FF post, please visit Tootsie at Tootsie Time. Click here.

Note: Updates to this post are highlighted in blue, links provided in red.