Crazy Over Crosiers

Crosiers are unfurled fronds of a fern. It is always such a joy to find some everytime I take a walk in my garden. 

Unfurling of a crosier...

Like a Koru, it represents new life, growth, strength and inner peace. 

Unfurling of a tree fern.

Crosier of a mother fern.

Isn't it such a beauty?

Compensatory Mechanism

I was on the brink of exhaustion. Half of my cerebrum told me to relax for a while, garden, watch a movie or listen to Bach, Mozart, Vivaldi or Beethoven in fugue and baroque for that matter while the other half of the hemisphere logically pointed out that there were still some work that had to be done not to mention helping the kids out with their schoolwork. As a working mom, I can no longer afford to guide them in math so I opted to enroll them in Kumon Programme (some kind of tutorial)  instead. Driving them to Kumon is like hitting two birds with one stone; I can go to the grocery or shop until they finish the session, that is if my schedule allows me to. Talking about maintaining my psychological and physiological equilibrium!

Now I'm back in my garden. I miss the plants!! Some of them changed a lot. This was how the Asplenium looked like when it was newly  acquired a year ago.

Asplenium

Look at how the fronds changed in time...

After a year....

Could it be the that the fronds reverted back to its true form? Or was it the environmental condition that caused the change?

... and this.

The plants have been getting too much water this rainy season. I noticed how the fibrous roots of  this Asplenium nidus grew rapidly from the heavy downpour.

Asplenium nidus fibrous roots

A closer look at the roots

As a compensatory mechanism to control the amount of water, there is a tremendous growth along the roots so as to absorb the excess water brought about by long periods of rain. Imagine how this plant can survive considerably in dry and moist conditions.

Spores!

Peculiar Platys

Something wonderful happened...My Platys produced a pup!

Platycerium coronarium

From the normal 80 beats per minute of the cardiac muscle, I had it at 100 bpm as a result of my excitement.  This was the first time I saw a young fertile frond growing. I thought it would take some time for it to grow but surprisingly it did not disappointment me at all. Look how fast it grows.

1st day of the young foliage frond

3rd  Day 

What is so unique about this stunning fern is its capacity to collect and trap dry leaves from the host tree to its nest where they get their nutrients for their growth. Thus, they benefit from their host without damaging the tree.  As the basal fronds age, they curl inwards into the center of the nest to contribute to the organic matter inside and to conserve moisture needed by its roots. For some reason this makes them self-sufficient fern.

6th Day

9th Day

12th Day

Another thing I like about it is the unique and odd appearance of its fronds. The basal frond that grows upward which forms the nest from their tree host makes me think they look like outstretched hands ready to catch anything thrown at them. The long fertile fronds draping from the nest  taking the shape of the antler makes it more interesting, adding a dramatic effect on the host tree.

More than 1 week

My excitation did not end there when I had another Platys with a pup. I had them hanging at the right side of our home where they get only partial early morning sun because full glare of the sun is detrimental to them.

I feed them with dried banana peel at least once a month to supplement their nutriment.

The Sound of Nature

The rain had stopped, it was calm and quiet outside. As a lover of music, I can hear how nature was carrying out melodies in the garden...It was all like music to me. The slow rhythmic sounds heard in nature is a good example of relieving stress. Babies inside the womb are influenced by the heart beat of their mother. That is why people  respond to the soothing, rhythmic, repetitive sound around them. In my work, music is an alternative measure in reducing pain and in relaxation technique.  When I garden at home, I sing.

Ranidae

The sound of the house crickets was like the rhythm of maracas. Tree crickets gave off  faint resonance of tambourines. They blended well with the symphonic low bass sound of the bullfrogs croaking harmoniously. We have lots of them in the garden at this time of the year. I welcome them for they help me get rid of snails, rats, mosquitoes and other unwanted visitors in the garden.

Bufonidae

Soft tympani drum was beating at 4/4 as the water from a tree was dripping onto the cover of an empty can. The leaves were swaying with the wind as they danced to the tune of "The Songs of Nature." 

One last look in the garden and I was pretty sure my plants were safe as they listened to the sound of nature before sleep had finally set in.

        Can you hear the sound of the moon?

Some Plants...Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day

Some plants just love to be touched by the rays emanated by the sun. For them, the sun is like a gentle kiss from nature’s lips and warm arms that embrace their tiny and delicate petals. Without it, efflorescences lose their vibrant colors, the leaves turn pale, and the stems sag, their buds droop, refusing to open. Plants become glum sans the radiant glow of the sun. Glad I was able to grow some of the sun-loving plants in my humble garden.

White Angel

Yellow Bush

Ploemele Reflexa, Song of India

Schefllera Arbolicora variegated

Some plants do not thrive well in full sun but do well in partly shaded garden. They shy away from the harsh heat because it can burn their delicate foliage and fragile petals. Exposure to too much sun or to very intense light may compromise the vigor of the plant leaving them dry, dehydrated. Some of the plants often bought in Baguio can’t withstand the scorching heat but some were able to adapt the temperature, gradually.

Coleus

Spathiphyllum Wallisii

Some plants choose to grow under canopy of trees. Where the humidity is high and the weather is warm, a tropical climate is an ideal place for them. A sudden change in temperature might put them at risk and prognosis may not be good… The chance for recovery is slim and almost next to impossible.

Staghorn Fern

Wart Fern

Asplenium unfurled frond

All the plants in my garden possess one thing in common: they all grow in the hands of a cheerful and willing gardener. When I was a little girl I was told many times by old folks that talking to plants will help them (plants) grow ten times faster and healthier. I tried to figure out how could that be then I thought that perhaps it has something to do with the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide that takes place between plants and animals. "Talking" to plants show how plants and humans mutually benefit from each other. Plants give off oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide. On the other hand, humans breath in oxygen and breath out carbon dioxide as well. Do I make sense? Any way, I believe in the old Chinese proverb: “The best fertilizer in the garden may be the gardener's shadow.” One's presence in the garden is the best fertilizer other than the chemical and artificial ones growing plants can have.

I may be a little late but still I'm joining Carol at maydreamsgarden for GBBD this June 2012. Thank you, Miss Carol for hosting such a wonderful meme.

This Month of June

If there is one significant month to choose from, I consider it to be month of June. It's been a year since I decided to try on blogging, so I suppose this is my first anniversary in the web blog aside from the fact that hubby and I also celebrated our fourteenth wedding anniversary this month.

Happy anniversary!

Our anniversary started off with a thanksgiving mass at the first hour in the morning followed by a simple dinner in one of our favorite diner fifteen kilometers away from home. The place is cozy where I can have a view of the vast mountains and the lush trees around while enjoying the sumptuous meals they served. Perhaps it was the garden with different kinds of ferns was the reason why we ended up in this deli in celebrating this special moment. Besides, as a coffee drinker, it's the only dining shop I know in town that serves a rare kind of coffee. Find out why...

Kalua Pork with Salmon, Osso Bucco and Chef's Salad in Vinigrette

Cozy ambience

Phymotosorous with Asplenium ferns

Phymatosorous Scolopendria

The best part of the simple yet meaningful celebration was when we get to experience the best tasting coffee we've ever had, the Coffee Alamid. What's so special about the coffee? I guess aside from obtaining them from civet cat's fermented droppings, the coffee blended well with my gustatory cravings for a different kind of coffee. Not the black coffee that I used to have.This beverage tasted like chocolate and....hazelnut?... Sweet, smooth that even my taste receptor cells sent signals to my brain saying they can't be from civet cat's droppings!

Fixated

Every person has to go through some developmental stages as he takes his journey to adulthood. One must experience and undergo the process accordingly or else he may not be able to move on to the next stage of development and becomes fixated. Fixated may also mean focusing one's attention to something...obsessively.

What used to be a boring and long trip is now one of my method of relaxing from a day's work. Suddenly, I find driving fun whenever I see lush trees, ferns and shrubs along the roadside.

If I am fixated with tree ferns at this point in time, I don't mind being such because just by looking at them, they bring delight to my senses and they please my mind. Fixated but not that obsessed, I can only imagine and daydream about them. Scared of taking the risk of growing them in my garden, I think the place might not be suitable enough for them to survive.

Magnificent Cyathea

Dense growth of  ferns swarming over shrubs and trees 

 Shade ferns are replaced by weedy sun ferns 

 Appreciating tree ferns growing wild in the mountains, rainforests and even along roadside trees are good indications of preventing erosion and promotes stability of the soil and fern roots are not invasive. Decline of shade ferns is a result of exploitation of tropical rainforests for timber. It breaks my heart to know that some of them are close to becoming scarce due to deforestation and unauthorized logging.

Erosion of mountains

Forests give an ideal habitat for ferns. Some ferns do well in low light and in high humidity while others thrive under the sun. I saw these type of tree ferns growing in the mountains under dappled shades. The soil was moist, almost clay but porous.

Row of Cyatheas in the mountain

Look at the magnificent tree fern. Who would have thought that beneath the majestic beauty are thorny stalks. Up close, presence of spines were all over the hairy stipes. At first I found them quite scary. Nobody wants to get pricked by these tiny hard thorns...The spiny stipes seemed to protect the delicate, soft fronds from predators and even from intruders.

Spiny stipes

Even the stem of a young frond has thorns around it

Spines with golden thick hair in the stipes of mature fronds

Some ferns grow like weeds but can add interest and drama to a garden when blended with several ornamental plants.