Climbing Plants Growth Monitoring Over 3 Months

Trial done in year 2013 on true ground, on what seemed like anthropogenic clay loam soil, and covered with compost. Climbing plants were planted in two rows. Measurements over 3 months are as below.

 Row 1

Row 2

 Antigonon leptopus

Argyreia nervosa

 Beaumontia grandiflora (1)

  Beaumontia grandiflora (2) flowers

 Clitoria ternatea

 Congea tomentosa

 Ipomoea tricolor

 Odontadenia macrantha

 Pentalinon luteum (variegated)

 Petraeovitex wolfei

 Podranea ricasoliana

Quisqualis indica

 Saritaea magnifica

 Solandra longiflora

 Stigmaphyllon ciliatum

Vallaris glabra

Excerpts from Singapore’s Climate Action Plan

Nothing to do with trees and plants, but just for my record.

Two screenshots below partially bordered in cyan colour excerpted from Singapore’s Climate Action Plan: A Climate-Resilient Singapore, For a Sustainable Future (2016)
[https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/content/documents/1549Climate_Action_Plan_Publication_Part_2.pdf]

Photos below with the exception of the two screenshots were taken by me on 13 March 2019.

It has been almost 9 years since this geobag wall was installed at East Coast Park.

 The geobag wall was observed to be undercut by wave action, and was stuffed with sand-filled polypropylene sacks, presumably a stopgap by the park management.

 One geobag heading out to the sea.

Geobag wall seemed to have terminated where there is vegetation.

A large Talipariti tiliaceum (Sea hibiscus)

 A geobag wall at another area along East Coast Park beach, adjoining a Riprap slope. Makes me wonder.

Presumably installed almost 9 years ago too.

As expected of such a hard structure, it seemed to be still solid.

Cinnamomum iners Basal Rot Disease

Cinnamomum iners (Wild Cinnamon tree) seemed to be susceptible to the basal rot disease, which cause trees to die quickly and may fail (topple) suddenly. Matured trees with above 1m in girth have been observed to be inflicted with the disease but not in younger trees.

- Yellow and/or browning leaves
- Signs of wilting
- Crown dieback
- Horizontally and vertically cracked bark on lower part of trunks and trunk flare
- Underneath cracked bark, wood is discoloured

Fungal causal agents that lead to wood rot includes:
Cytospora species, Fusarium solani, Ganoderma species, Clonostachys species, Clonostachys rosea, Gliocladium solani

Cinnamomum iners tree that was lush with healthy leaves before receiving the typical TC pruning treatment - topping off and removing almost all leaves. Shortly after, the tree seemed to have problems growing back its leaves. Most new leaves turned brown and those that did not seemed to be wilting.

 

 Cracked bark in horizontal and vertical pattern.

 

 Closer look.

   

    

Adjacent trees are growing new shoots and leaves, and no sign of cracks in the bark.

(About 3 months after the photos above were taken)

Hopea odorata sapling planted about 1.5m away from the spot where the old tree was. Hope (pun not intended) that this tree would be resistant against the basal rot fungus. Apparently it was forgottened after planting, as it was not watered and defoliation followed.

Chinese Garden - Accumulation of leaf needles at tree base

The below would be an update for this post on de-compacting a tree base:
2017: http://openplants.blogspot.sg/2017/05/accumulation-of-years-of-leaves-and.html
2018: http://openplants.blogspot.com/2018/02/accumulation-of-leaf-needles-at-tree.html

Photos below taken on 4 May 2019

 The tree (Gymnostoma nobile) that I de-compacted the tree base looks good, albeit slightly assymetrical but that tree next was... gone, presumably dead.

From another view.

 Tree base that was de-compacted on Nov 2014.

  Tree base of the presumably dead tree, which was not de-compacted. Signs of dead leaf needles still on it. Could the tree have been done in by the short drought period earlier this year and exacerbated by the compacted tree base?

Drought at SBG Eco Lake. Taken on 8 Mar 2019.