The Five-Dollar Tree

Do you find this tree familiar? If you do, can you remember why? You would have seen this picture every now and then. Think! Have seen Mummy or Daddy paying for things with a five-dollar Singapore note.? The picture of this tree appears on the reverse of the note. That is why this tree is sometimes known as the five-dollar tree. Now, guess where this tree is found. I took this picture when I accompanied the Primary Two pupils on their Learning Journey to the Botanical Gardens last year. This Tembusu tree has been identified as a heritage tree.

The Asparagus Plant

Have you eaten asparagus before? It can be fried with prawns or meat or even just plain chopped garlic. You can use it in salads too. Even though the ones we eat are imported from Thailand, Australia or China, the picture above was actually taken at our very own Mandai Zoological Gardens. When you next go on a visit to the zoo, take a look at the tropical plants section and you may just spot an asparagus shoot growing up. Look closely at the centre of the picture - that's the part of the asparagus plant that we eat.

My Favourite Alphabet

Another drawing done by Shao Jun is this alphabet 'A'. I think it is very brightly coloured and done in an unusual style. I love the heart in the centre. It symbolises love- love for family members-parents and siblings, relatives and friends, school and our country Singapore and I hope like me , nature and the environment. If all of us care for Mother Earth, the world would be a better place for all of us to live in. So remember to do your part-Reduce, Reuse and Recycle

My Family

This drawing is done by Ang Shao Jun, a pupil from 2.6. The picture shows her family members. They are her parents, her brother and herself.

The Dragon Fruit

Do you recognise this fruit? Not many people like to eat this fruit. It is known as the dragon fruit and originates from Vietnam. When I was first introduced to the fruit, I definitely did not like it. It was tasteless and the flesh looked weird with dots on it. Later, someone gave me one from Malaysia. Its flesh was not white or grey but a deep crimson red like a beetroot or cherries. And it was sweet . I found out that I have to pay more for the Malaysian variety. Usually I can buy 3 Vietnamese dragon fruit for about 2 dollars at the NTUC supermarket but a Malaysian one is sold by weight and can easily cost 2 dollars per fruit. The plant looks like a cactus. I saw this plant at the Garden Festival last year so I took a picture of it. Do be careful though if you are eating the Malaysian variety. Don't let the juice stain your clothes or I don't think you can wash it off.

The Lotus Flower

Remember, in an earlier post I took a picture of the water-lily flower in the eco-pond. This lotus flower is growing in the pond next to it. The leaves are large and round, but has a smooth surface. The centre of this flower looks like a shower head. Many Buddhist will buy this flower and use it for prayers at the temple. The lotus leaves can also be used to wrap rice or chicken to be baked or steamed. It has a nice fragant smell when cooked. The lotus seeds can also be eaten.

International Friendship Day

These 3 children are wearing colourful Korean costumes but they are in reality Singaporeans. This picture was taken during our celebration for International Friendship Day. These pupils are now in Primary 3

Jambu Ayer

These huge bunches of fruit are called jambu. The ones that we buy from the supermarket are usually red in colour. They can be pretty expensive costing about 2 dollars for 3 fruit. The ones shown here were actually growing from a tree planted in a pot.

A Bird Nest

I was pleasantly surprised to see this bird nest hanging outside my friend's bedroom window. Imagine a bird so close to your house! It belonged to a tiny yellow and black bird which was just slightly bigger than the size of my thumb. If you look closely, you'll see an opening in the middle of the nest where the mummy bird can go in.