Litsea graciae - Tebulus

Common name :

Tebulus ( Melanau ), Engkala ( Iban )

Synonym :

Litsea sebifera, Litsea aurea

Origin :

Probably regions ranging from the Philippines to Borneo island.

Description :

Medium to large tree up to 20m in height.  Trunk diameter up to 50cm.

Leaves ovate, oblong to lanceolate, alternate, 12-50cm length, 15cm width.

Flower 15mm diameter, white-yellow, racemes.

Fruit globose, fleshy drupe on enlarged cupule,  4cm diameter, green while mature, soft and pink while ripened.  

Propagation :

Seed.

Usage :

Fruits for consumption.

Oil extracted from seeds used in making soaps and candles.

Timber for construction.

Jasminum sambac vs Gardenia jasminoides

Plant Classification : Angiosperms

Valuation of Trees

Trees and other living plants are valuable, for they purify our air, act as sound barriers, manufacture oxygen, beautify our surrounding, provide shades, even historically, psychological, leisure etc.

But how much do that cost ?

Methods of valuation have been developed for landscape plants, including trees.  A valuation by trained appraisers, usually accepted by insurance companies, courts, and public agencies.

Tree Valuation Guide ( ISA 2009 ) is the most widely used method in North America. 

It is divided into 2 general categories :

1. The Replacement Method, for plants up to 8” in stem diameter 

           

Value ($) =

( Plant Cost + Installation Cost ) x ( Species Rating  x Condition x Location  ) + Removal Cost

2. The Basic Formula Method, for plants that are too large to replace.

            Value ($) =

Basic Value  x Species Factor x Condition Factor x Location Factor

The Thyer Tree Valuation Method ( Australia 1984 ) was developed in Sydney, Australia in 1984.  It was distributed for public use in 1985.

This method expresses the positive qualities of the trees, the contribution that the tree makes to the landscape, and the extent to which this is appreciated.

Value ($)  =    

Size ( height + canopy width + canopy diameter to dripline + circumference of trunk ) + Age  + Physical & Social Qualities + Planting Cost

This method was designed to value trees on public land in residential or commercial area.  It is not intended for use within bushland or jungle.

http://peterthyer.com/

The Revised Burnley Method ( Australia 1988 ), was developed at the Victorian College of Agriculture and Horticulture Limited, Burnley Campus.  It was first published in 1988 ( McGarry & Morre ) and revised in 1991 ( Moore ). 

This method uses the volume of the tree as a inverted cone.  The calculation is done by determining an average value for at least 3 specimens form different nurseries.

Value ($)  =    

Tree Volume x Base Value ( $/m³ ) x Useful Life Expectancy Modifier  x  Form & Vigour Modifier x Location Modifier

The modified Burnley method is self-indexing for inflation, and sensitive to changes in the value of trees due to changes in consumer preference.  It has been tested in the courts and has been accepted as a realistic and well based method in the Australian context. 

However, many arborists find the establishment of the initial base value time-consuming and tedious.  It also does not deal with subjective components, such as historical or environmental significance.

http://www.treeworld.info/revisedburnleymethodtreevaluation.html

The City of Sydney Tree Valuation Method ( Sydney, Australia 2003 ) was developed in 2003 for use in the city of Sydney to calculate tree value in public and private land.

Value ( $)  =   

Planting cost  x Size x [ { (Age + 6)/3 } + 4 ] x [ Trunk Diameter/ (42/2)+0.5 ] x

[ Condition of Tree x Life Expectancy / 30 ] x Visibility x Heritage Status x Ownership.

It was purposed to :

1. tree valuation to assist with management of trees on public land

2. tree value calculation for inclusion in contract documents for public land

3. tree value calculation for compensation when trees are damaged on public land

4. valuation to set tree protection bonds for trees on private land

5. valuation to set compensation to the community for trees unlawfully damaged on private land.

http://peterthyer.com/

The Guide for Plant Appraisals, 9^th Edition ( USA  2000 ) developed by Council of Tree and Landscape Appraisers ( CLTA ) has been widely used since 1951, and had been revised several times.  This guide is endorsed by American Association of Nurseryman, The American Society of Consulting Arborists, American Society of Landscape Architects, The Associated Landscape Contractors, Association of Consulting Foresters of America, International Society of Arboriculture, The Society of American Foresters and the National Arborists Association.

Value ($) =     

Basic Value [ Replacement Cost + {Basic Price x Trunk Area(at 4.5 ft) – Trunk Area(at 6 in) x Species } ] x  Condition  x  Location

http://www.sufa.com/appraisals.html

Green Product : String - Musa x paradisiaca

Banana fruits only once.  That’s the way it is.   Takkan pisang berbuah dua kali, that’s the local Malay proverbs means ‘having good fortune more than once’.

After fruiting, the banana plant is fell.  It would be a waste of fertilizer to have a non-fruiting stand.  The fallen trunk will soon decayed into organic matter.

For those lived through 1980s and older, before the use of raffia strings, groceries are tied in Cyperus strings , and occasionally banana strings.

I tried to re-fabricate the time forgotten banana string.  Who knows, it will make a comeback.

First, chop the trunk into a 1.5-2.0m length , then peel the banana trunk till the core.  The sheaths are carefully julienne into a 5mm width strings.  Then the strings are hang to dry.   Once they are dried, it’s done !

Phragmites karka

Phragmites karka is a very tall perennial common reed grows in thick pure stands on swampy lands.  The stems grow up to 5 meters in height and 2-3cm in diameter. 

The origin of P.karka is uncertain.  However it is widely distributed all over the Old World’s tropical regons.

Common name : Bayongbong, glagah asu, gumulong, kasongket, palungpung, parongpong, perumpung, prumpung, tatepal, tatupele ( Indonesia ), pit-pit ( New Guinea ), 卡开芦 ( China,  Taiwan ),  nal, nalkhagari, doka-ghas, kilak, potagala, chamana, perunanal, nalam, eela karra ( India ), kyu ( Cambodia ), say nui ( Vietnam )  etc

Synonyms : Arundo karka, A. roxburghii, Phragmites cinctus, P. roxburghii, Trichoon roxburghii.

This plant is a reliable indicator of freshwater.   In places, such as at the mouth of Laguas River, Guam, there is a sharp division between the reeds and the plants which grow in brackish water.

The root of common reed is regarded as cooling and diuretic by the Chinese.

It is also used for thatching and making mats, baskets, chairs, fences, fish traps etc.

The culms used for hookah pipes, flutes, and pens.

Panicles are used for brooms.

The flowering stalks yield a fiber suitable for cordage.

It is planted at wetlands, treatment plants etc to remove nutrients, organic matter, COD and other pollutants.





Grasses @ Broga Hill

Imperata cylindrica, commonly known as blady grass (Australia), speargrass (Nigeria), silver spike (S.Africa), cogon grass (USA), lalang (in Malay), 茅草 (in Mandarin), etc , is a species of grass ( Poaceae ), native to east and southeast Asia, India, Micronesia, Australia, and Africa.

It is first describe by Linnaeus in 1759 as Lagurus cylindricus.  French entomologist and botanist Palisot de Beauvois renamed it to current accepted name Imperata cylindrical.  

Its other synonyms include : Calamagrostis lagurus, Imperata allang, I. arundinacea, I. koenigii, I. pedicellata, I. sieberi, I. thunbergii, Saccharum cylindricum, S. europeaum, S. loenigii, S. laguroides, Sl sisca, S. thunbergii.

It grow from 0.6 -3 m tall.  

The leaves are about 2cm wide, and narrow to a sharp point at the tip.  Leaf margins are finely toothed and embedded with sharp silica crystals.  Upper surface is hairy near the base, underside is usually hairless.

Roots are up to 1.2m deep.
Propagation via seeds and rhizomes.
It can withstand draught and fire, regenerates quickly after fire.

Imperata cylindrica is found in areas where the soil has been disturbed, such as roadsides, building sites, agricultural land, ex-logging area, cleared jungle.  Once established it often form dense monocultues.

Despite considered weeds in most part of the world, it is cultivated in some area for commercial uses.

In Papua New Guinea, it is used for thatching the roofs of traditional homes.

It s planted as ground cover for soil stabilization to prevent erosion.

It is also used in paper-making, and weaving into mats and bags.

In traditional Chinese medicine, it is use for its medicinal properties for astringent, febrifuge, diuretic, tonic and styptic actions.

Some cultivars are planted as ornamental plants, including the red-leaved ‘Red Baron’

Young inflorescence and shoots may be eaten cooked.

Roots are edible containing starch and sugars.

Pennisetum polystachyon also known as feather Pennisetum, mission grass, rumput gajah ( in Malay ), ekor kucing ( in Malay ),  狼尾草 ( in Mandarin ) etc.

Pennisetum polystachyon also known as P. triticoides, P. setosum, Panicum polystachyon, Panicum longisetum.

Originated from Old World tropics, probably India and tropical Africa.

It is an annual, simple erect in large clumps, capable to grow up to 2 - 3 m in height.

Leave are linear with narrow blade up to 45cm long.

Inflorescence is cylindrical with dense spike, yellow-brown, 10 – 26 cm long.

Propagation via seeds.  Seeds are dispersed by flowing water, strong winds, or they may adhere to clothing or animal.

It canot stand heavy grazing.  However, it tolerates fire. 
It is capable to adapt to wide range of soil type.

In Thailand, India  and Fiji, it is used as green fodder.

It is planted at slopes to prevent erosion.

P. polystachyon easily invades both wasteland and cultivated land,  and of course moutainous land too. 

At many places, it is regarded as noxious weed.