Meet Tacca palmata, locally known as Payung-payungan—a fascinating plant native to Southeast Asia. Found throughout Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam, and across the Philippines, this unique herb grows in forests and thickets at lower elevations. What Makes It Special Payung-payungan is easy to recognize once you know what to look for. The…
The Green Crested Lizard is a striking arboreal reptile native to Southeast Asia. It can be found in Borneo, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, southern Thailand and Myanmar, the Philippines, and the Sunda Islands. In the Philippines, its presence has been recorded in several islands including Bohol, Cebu, Luzon, Mindanao, Negros, Panay,…
Tubang usa [Hellenia speciosa (J.Koenig) S.R. Dutta] is a tropical plant native to a wide range of countries across Asia and the Pacific, including China, Taiwan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, and even northern Australia. It is a proud member…
The Makiling Botanic Gardens (MBG) Plant of the Month (POM) for August 2021 is “dao,” scientifically known as Dracontomelon dao (Blanco) Merr. & Rolfe. It belongs to the family Anacardiaceae found in East Asia to Southern China, India, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Philippines, to Papua New Guinea and the…
Shooting stars is the Makiling Botanic Gardens (MBG) Plant of the Month (POM) for June 2020. The “shooting stars” or scientifically known as Hoya multiflora Blume belongs to family Apocynaceae. It is native and generally found in Indonesia, Borneo, Thailand and Philippines. The leaves of the shooting stars are large,…
Phalaenopsis aphrodite Reichb. F. also known as “mariposa” is the Makiling Botanic Gardens (MBG) Plant of the Month for May 2020. Mariposa belongs to family Orchidaceae native to Taiwan and the Philippines. Mariposa grows in one main stem and live high up on tree trunks and branches. Its leaves are…