Tropical planting mistakes bonanza – case study

[Goustan BODIN]

Jason, I’ll be happy to oblige and answer your invitation to collaborate to your “Design-Overdrive” series with a few planting pictures. I’ve been collecting some over the years, and it seems that my hard drive is packed with them.

I’d like to introduce you here with the intricacies of tree planting and maintenance from the region where I live and work – South-east Asia (except Singapore and parts of Malaysia where they know what to do).

Let’s see what happens at a major week-end attraction, 70km of Bangkok, Amphawa’s floating market. Tens if not hundreds of thousands people come to ‘relax’ here for the WE to escape Bangkok’s concrete madness. Also an important historical site, with a 200 yrs old palace and park, plenty of temples.

Sorry to disappoint you if you expect a pleasant visit : we’ll stick to edges  of the parking lot…

overview, none of these trees shed their leaves. 
When you know hot hot it gets under the tropical sun, you really feel sorry for these people.

Let’s start with the best : Couroupita guianensis, Canonball tree, a favorite on temple grounds and old gardens, very slow grower, stunning flowers and fruits. This one (these ones ?) is clearly more than 50yrs old.

Due to its special status, it was fenced off and has some root space.

the sign reads : “tree name in Thai” + “Forbidden to store stuff behind the fence”

Now, the commoners :

 

Terminalia catappa, Indian almond tree, a good 10-15m high under good conditions, beautiful on the sea shore.

zoom on the branches ‘maintenance’

zoom on the trunk

other side of the trunk

Now, let’s focus on the ‘planting design’ part – newly planted trees along the temple :

Local belief : as long as there’s a green leaf, it’s still alive and well. All dying, can’t identify from pictures.

same at ground level

again

trunk detail

trunk detail again

By now, I hope you all feel a very warm and fuzzy feeling for your clients and administrations who care at least a minimum for the green stuffs that grow around us, have some skills and budgets to do so, or otherwise let it all up to you. 

Please feel free to discuss and enlighten me with your comments, you’re up ! 🙂

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