Several days ago while I was watering plants around the garden, I noticed strange bumps on the two forest trees. The seeds of these trees came with the earth which the contractors brought to level the land years ago. A villager who used to look after the land had left them growing up naturally while he got rid of tons of weeds and parasite climbers. We have about ten forest trees giving nice shade and protection from strong wind.
But the big bump of brown colour on these trees left me puzzling whether these were some insect nests! Then, I saw some fungi growing between two big brown bumps on one tree. After trying to search for information on Thai websites, I was none the wiser. It seemed no one had this kind of incident with this type (pra-do) trees before. So, I wondered whether I should try to open it up to see inside the brown bump. But I was afraid of some insects or hibernating insects with big stings coming out to attack the invader. I would have to wait till the rainy season for the rain to wash away all the hardened brown earth.
However I also spotted another kind of growth, on top of the fungi. I used to do some research on chaga mushrooms, this jagged growth reminded me of chaga mushroom. But chaga mushroom only grows on birch trees in cold countries. However, I remembered reading an article about our local medicinal mushrooms which grew as a reaction to some injury on the bark of forest trees. These looked very much like chaga mushrooms as they were quite hard on the outside and appeared like cork inside. But I couldn’t locate this article on the internet. I couldn’t help wondering if this wooden like ‘mushrooms’ could be similar to chaga mushrooms. I would keep looking out for more information on this subject.
Then, as I surveyed other trees at the back of the garden, some bright yellow flowers caught my eyes. This old tree was supposed to be quite rare and I never found anyone with this tree! It took years to let me see their flowers. I had no idea that these flowers grew out of tree trunk. To my surprise, this tree is called tree jasmine even though these flowers have no fragrance at all. It’s supposed to be suitable for people born on Monday as it’s the personal tree of Indra’s daughter who was born on Monday. This tree is supposed to bring money, good luck and fame to the owner. But I wasn’t born on Monday, so I have to wait a bit longer!
Next to this tree jasmine is the Malay apple tree which was planted by two friendly gardeners years ago. We never had a chance to taste the fruits from this tree as the local squirrels usually got to them before us. This year we might be lucky as there appears to be so many fruits on this tree. The young leaves could be cooked in curry or blanched for dipping into spicy-sour sauce. So, we could go around the garden and pick all kinds of leaves to cook for food if the supply chain came to a halt. However, I am more interested in medicinal properties of trees and plants; I hope to compile a book of all medicinal plants and trees in my garden one day. In the future I should become a local herbalist!
This winter month has been a bit short and less cold than last year. All the forest trees have almost dropped their old leaves so we could see which branches need trimming later on. There are always lots of things to do in the garden. My gardener had done a good job of with those old banana trees. The new ones we planted three years ago have started to flower and give healthy bunch of bananas. The young leaves could be sold to vendors in local market for wrapping up traditional sweets which could be either steamed or grilled. Banana leaves are often used in food presentation too.
I found my gardener busy cutting banana leaves in the banana groves. A villager wanted one hundred bundles of banana leaves for wrapping sticky rice for distributing to guests at a funeral. So, my gardener would earn some pocket money but she had to work hard and quickly in very warm weather. The trick was to leave the banana leaves in the sun for twenty minutes so that they would be easily sliced in to long pieces for wrapping sticky rice in coconut milk for steaming.
Earning a living on the land takes a lot of physical effort and energy and the compensation is usually quite low than our expectations. Villagers don’t have much disposable income unless they had money from selling illegal goods such as speed tablets or drugs. During the past year, I noticed a few big houses being built along the riverbank by the main road which caught my attention. People who could afford the cost of the land by the riverbank and building a big mansion would have to be very wealthy with lots of savings or inheritance. This has become a popular way to launder ill gotten gains among people in grey businesses.
Lately, there’s a fantastic news about Chinese gang living in Thailand who had managed to buy all the expensive luxurious houses in some real estate projects in Bangkok. These Chinese businessmen almost owned the entire real estate project. Their huge investment made it possible to get Thai nationality and passports! But their illegal and secret gambling dens have been exposed so some had to flee the country. Over a hundred immigration police officers and high ranking police have been implicated in this famous case. Some are still at large in London as they bought hotels and apartments in preparation for spreading their operations overseas. Thai people are waiting for to see hue the police would deal with their own superiors!
Pomelo blossoms have very strong sweet fragrance. Finally they have decided to answer my prayer.
We should have nice juicy Pomelos in a few months time.
With my observation, I had my suspicion for a big mansion near the riverfront whether it’s involved in some kind of money laundering. It would be too dangerous to find out the truth as a bullet costs very little comparing to the spare parts of my bicycle. Those trees and plants still need my attention and frequent watering. So, it’s better to continue a simple life and mind my own business. We just let the karmic law works according to its cycles. Besides, I heard that the senior leader of the clan had passed away because of stroke while touring Europe. Karmic law tends to work speedily in our country. So, I have to remind myself to keep up the good effort and good karma.
Luckily, I also found some jackfruits and coconuts in the garden. Mother Nature has been looking after the garden for me.
Wishing you peace, good health and prosperity.
Stay strong and cheerful.