Showing 1 - 10 of 21
The wood that could
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 22/01/2012
» During a trip to the Philippines in November, I tried to find an old schoolmate I hadn't contacted since high school. I was told his family had moved, and that he now owned a furniture shop. As I had promised a mutual friend that I would find him, I looked for him where I was told he had moved, along a country road lined by gmelina trees. I did not find him, but I did learn something.
On tuesday, Say it with flowers
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 12/02/2012
» When was the last time you said ''I love you'' to the woman or man in your life? Some of you readers may say ''we are too old for that'', but deep in everybody's heart is the desire to hear that their loved one also loves them. I know, for I never tire of hearing the words from the man I love. Old as we both are, his reassurances of his love for me are music to my ears.
Queen's words inspire gardener to rise above flood damage
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 29/07/2012
» Noppadol Na-ngern learned a lesson from the deluge that nearly wiped out his valuable collection of plants almost six years ago. ''I realised that there's no safe place for plants but up,'' he said. ''Now I hang them whenever possible, and trees come in handy for the purpose.''
Raising Cane: Explore the bounty of bamboo
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 27/01/2013
» I had only seen bamboos with round culms, or canes, so when the late Dioscoro Umali, former regional representative for Asia and the Pacific of the United Nations' Food and Agricultural Organisation, told me that he had a square bamboo in his collection, I thought he was pulling my leg. "Yes, there is a square bamboo," he said with a laugh when I expressed disbelief. "I got my square bamboo from Bhutan."
It's about blooming time!: Philippine orchid finally gets its due
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 17/03/2013
» The sampaguita (Jasminum sambak), is a flower close to the hearts of most Filipinos and now shares the designation of national flower of the Philippines with an orchid, the waling-waling (Euanthe sanderiana, also known as Vanda sanderiana). The bill was approved by the Philippine Senate last month in a move that was long overdue. Considered the "queen" of Philippine flowers, this indigenous orchid species used to be found in abundance in the dipterocarp forests of Davao, Cotabato and Zamboanga in Mindanao, southern Philippines, but is now on the brink of extinction in its natural habitat due to over-exploitation and destruction of forests.
What's new in my garden pussycat Whoa, Whoa
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 26/05/2013
» Cats are usually the neatest of animals. Before they defecate, they dig up some ground so that they can bury it afterwards. But a stray cat is posing a problem to Ms Gekimm, who wrote: "I need to ask you if a cat's droppings will harm my potted plants and how to keep the cat away. A stray cat has been doing its job on my rather big pot. I have applied vinegar trying to rid the scent so he/she will not come back, with no success. I used to put out Clorox in London, but I am afraid it will kill my plants. Can you advise me please?"
Blowing away the arguments against big trees in Bangkok
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 21/07/2013
» Last week's column on Pterocarpus indicus, or pradoo, in bloom on Rama IV Road made me pay closer attention to trees along Bangkok's streets. Five days a week I have to fetch my grandson from school in the Dusit area, and from my gate near Suan Phlu to the school, I pass by many trees along the way.
Pharmacy on the forest floor
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 10/11/2013
» After making a name for herself as one of Thailand's top marine biologists, Hansa Chansang took advantage of an early retirement scheme to pursue her other passion: growing trees. She cleared most of her family's rubber plantation in Cherngtalay, near the popular Laguna tourist area in Phuket's Thalang district, and planted it with many different species of forest trees. Visiting her plantation recently, I marvelled not only at how tall her trees have grown since I last saw them five years ago, but also at the diversity of wild plants growing on the floor of the man-made forest.
Hibiscus revel in hybrid theory
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 05/01/2014
» In last Sunday's Green Fingers you had a glimpse of some of the hibiscus hybrids that grace gardens today. They are just the tip of the iceberg; at a plant market in Quezon City, in the Philippines, I saw a poster showing pictures of more than 100 hybrids, including 23 developed by the University of the Philippines' Institute of Plant Breeding (IPB).
Keeping our orchids in bloom
B Magazine, Normita Thongtham, Published on 10/08/2014
» Recognised as Thailand's leading expert on orchids, professor Rapee Sagarik devoted most of his life to the study, culture and propagation of orchids. He shared his knowledge by introducing orchidology courses at Kasetsart University in 1952, writing books and countless magazine articles on orchid growing and hybridisation techniques, and founding the Orchid Society of Thailand in 1957 to promote not only the exchange of know-how but also orchid culture as a hobby as well as a source of income.