The Smyrna kingfisher

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First view of the kingfisher when It landed just above me.

There are so many birds active in the neighbourhood these days that the air is full with their songs and calls. One that I thought I was mistakenly hearing was the kingfisher.

The kingfisher, as I’ve mentioned in an earlier post, normally comes by only in the evenings. However, I’ve heard it calling out at all times of the day for the past week or so.

Finally, one afternoon, I made a visual confirmation…

I was busily trying to get some close-up photos of my bean plants when the kingfisher landed on the trellis less than two metres above me and started chirping! Trying to remain calm, I raised the camera and snapped a photo – not in the best of light and certainly not from the best angle. The bird swooped off, and I thought that was the last I’d see of it.

Front view of the Smyrna kingfisher.

I was wrong.

Later that same day, it came back, and I managed to get some more photos of it as it once again perched on the frame above my bean plants.

It seemed unafraid of me and my camera, but watched warily as our dogs wandered beneath it. I guess it knows the dogs are more likely and able to catch it than I am!

This particular kingfisher is a white-throated or white-breasted kingfisher – also known as the Smyrna kingfisher (Halcyon smyrnensis).

For some reason, the body shape reminds me of a dwarf – the upper body is sturdily built while the tail and legs seem too short and squat to match the top! But, such are the characteristics of tree kingfishers – compact birds with short tails, large heads and long, pointed bills.

What an interesting colour combination of electric blue, teddy bear brown and white!

I was quite struck by the colours of the kingfisher. The blue was an amazing shade of electric blue that my photos don’t do justice to. The white of the throat and chest is so clean and bright that it could be used for a laundry detergent ad! And the chestnut brown of the head and down the sides makes me think of cuddly brown teddy bears!

Wondering what attracted it to our garden, I looked up its food sources. I know that they eat beetles – that’s why we normally see the kingfisher, when it comes to feed on the beetles that come to our mango tree. However, I also found out that they eat grasshoppers (hope it catches the red one that’s been attacking some of my plants), termites, scorpions, centipedes, and even small mammals, snakes and nestling birds. Well, I know we have a few of those things here, so I guess we may just keep seeing this feathered fellow around!

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Drat that rain!

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Heavy overnight rain wreaked havoc with my young plants last night.

Bean plants that hadn’t latched onto any supports yet were beaten down to the ground.

Four-angled bean confused as to which way is up.

Young eggplant plants were similarly flattened.

Young brinjal plant caked up with soil particles that splattered up in the heavy rain.

Worst of all, my Red Lady papaya tree lost the most matured flower!

The flower - about 3 weeks in the making - found under the tree after the rain. :(

My immediate reaction on seeing them was to get the plants upright, which is why they don’t look so bad in the photos that I took in the afternoon. They really were flattened when I first saw them, and some, like the winged bean plant, still couldn’t hold themselves upright by the afternoon. We are so not pleased. :(

© 2011 curiousgardener.com All rights reserved.


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Red Lady papaya plants – 7 months old

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Red Lady papaya tree at 7 months old

I’ve been wanting to post an update on the Red Lady papaya plants, but there wasn’t good news to share. My fast-growing plant that has been featured a few times was infested with mealy bugs, and I eventually removed the tree to get rid of the pests.

It didn’t matter too much, because I have another 5 plants growing, just to make sure I have a mix of males and females to ensure the flowers can be pollinated. In Singapore, that’s what we call being kiasu – to increase your chances by playing it safe.

Another plant is rapidly maturing now – the first plant that germinated, that I call Number One. Unlike Number Two, the fast grower that had a short but sturdy trunk, this plant’s main stem is narrower and greener. It’s also budding. I’m guessing from the long shape of the flower that this is a hermaphrodite, which is wonderful, because it can self-pollinate. *clicks heels*

The forming flower bud on my Red Lady papaya tree

The only problem is, there are already a few mealy bugs on the leaves. I hope I will be able to control this infestation better than on the first plant, because this is a pretty healthy tree. All of the others are slow growers in comparison, and I may just keep one or two of the best plants.

Why?

Because when I chopped down the first, infested tree, I realized how invasive the roots of the papaya tree are. They spread out from the main stem like a starfish with numerous legs, and grew 2-3 metres away from the plant. If that plant was less than 2 metres high, what would the root system be like for an even taller tree? :o So maybe it’s best to have just the one or two trees rather than a mini-plantation, right? Kiasuism can be an over-kill…

More on the Red Lady papaya saga…

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Bean there, done that

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Elongated long bean seeds with rounded winged bean seeds.

Have I already mentioned how I absolutely hate to have to buy veggies that I know I can grow in our garden? I do, and now that the weather is more cooperative, I’ve given in to my hankering to start planting my edible plants again.

Most important to me was to get some bean plants growing, because those did quite well last year. This time, though, I want more – and I think I can remember to plant progressively to give us a continuous supply over time. So, long beans plants are growing now and I’m pleased.

Young winged bean plant spreading up and out.

I’m even more pleased because I’ve also got some four-angled bean plants growing. Known locally as kacang botol or the winged bean (Psophocarpus tetragonolobus), this was not an easy plant to grow from from seed. I bought a packet of seeds – the type you can get in the supermarket or nurseries – and planted the lot of less than 10 seeds. Disappointingly, only one germinated and grew. I got more seeds from another source, and thankfully, the germination rate was much better – 4 out of 6 of the directly planted seeds finally germinated. The most common bit of advice is to get seeds as fresh as you can, otherwise their viability plummets, so I’ll be sure to use up the seeds as fast as possible. :P

Energetically growing long bean plant.

This time, I’m using an unused metal frame as part of my trellis. It’s an old structure that’s been out in the garden forever – a central metal pole with a cross-frame atop it like a giant plus sign. It reminds me of helicopter rotor blades…

I’ve prepared growing beds in an L-shape below two corresponding bars. Short bamboo sticks provide the initial growing supports for the plants, and twine will connect the sticks to the bars above for the plants to grow up to the frame. I also plan on connecting each set of perpendicular bars with twine or wire to provide a triangular, horizontal surface for the vines to spread over. Of course, a niggling concern is whether the vines will cross over to each others’ territory and if that will affect them in any way. However, that’s something to observe in the weeks to come. For now, though, the bean plants are growing!

© 2011 curiousgardener.com All rights reserved.


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