Andrographis paniculata (穿心莲 , 苦草)

 

The Chinese name of this herb literally means "Bitter Grass" and it is so bitter that it goes right through your heart.  

It's a common plant in Singapore and many grow it as a potted plant.  The leaves are extremely bitter and if you chew on a leaf the bitterness stays in your mouth for a long long time ( 1 hour?).  The entire plant can be uprooted, washed then dried in the sun for a few days until it becomes almost brittle.  After which it can be ground to a powder (together with the roots) to be used when you need to cure your sore throat.  

Location : Near the Helicopter ( Aerospace Hub) 

Cissus hastata ( 四方藤）

This very interesting vine produces bright red tendrils which it uses to hold on to other plants in order to climb up in search of sun light.

It has medicinal properties and which includes treatment for abdominal ailments as well as cough.

Thai migrant workers would use its leaves as a wrap for grilled or bbq fish meat. The leaves have a lemony acidic taste so the entire wrapped parcel of hot fish meat tastes excellent when dipped in a special chilli-salt paste prepared by the workers.

Location: Block 58 level 2 open planted area.

Magnolia champaca

The highly fragrant yellow flowers of Magnolia champaca greets all who walks under them with the scent of a thousand jasmine flowers. 

The flowers remain fresh for a few hours after bring removed and stays fragrant throughout the day.  Thus making them a favourite candidate for garlands. 

Medicinal uses:

The bark can be used as a febrifuge (fever reducer) and in decoctions for postpartum recovery

Flowers and budd are used for healing of wounds and nflammation as well as for treating leprosy, gout, vertigo, and chronic gastritis.

Leaves can be brewed into tea for coughs, bronchitis, and sore throats.

The root extract can be used as a purgative, emmenagogue, and to heal cracks in the feet.

This tree has its canopy just above level 2 of block 56 ( the Convention Centre is in the background). Another cluster of these trees can be found at level 2 of block 58. 

Kopsia arborea (蕊木)

The beautiful white flowers of Kopsia arborea be seen when you walk from block 56 towards the Food Club canteen. They are arranged in a corolla fashion forming almost a big ball of white flowers.  The tree has dark green leaves and grows to more than 10 feet tall.  The fruits resemble Asian Olives and turns black when ripe. Both dried leaves and fruits are used in TCM to treat sore throat and tonsillitis.

Oldenlandia corymbosa ( 水线草）

This is a very common herb found throughout Singapore so not surprisingly it is very common around NP. It has similar medicinal properties as Oldenlandia diffusa ( 白花蛇舌草 ) which is the main ingredient used in 白花蛇草水.  O. diffusa plant  is more difficult to find in Singapore. I have seen it in Thomson Nature Park as well as Upper Pierce reservior growing in moist and shady locations.

The 2 plants look similar but can be distinguished by the number of flowers per leaf axis as well as the shape of the main stalk.  O.diffusa has a round stalk whereas O.corymbosa has a squarish stalk and carries more than one flower per leaf axis.

Barbados Cherry ( Acerola) Malpighia emarginata

The Barbados Cherry (Malpighia emarginata) is thriving in a very discrete corner in Ngee Ann Polytechnic, behind the School of Design and Environment.  There are a few of them gowing there and if i'm not wrong they have been there for more than 30 years. The plants there have grown into very tall shrubs.

The berries are astringent when unripe but becomes slightly sweet when red and fully ripen.  Its a favourtie snack for many birds ( as well as humans).  Some online sources claim that it has one of the highest vitamin C content among fruits; even higher than oranges.  

The flowers are small and purplish pink in color.

Asian openbill stork (Anastomus oscitans)

An occasional visitor to the fish pond at block 56, this Asian openbill stork can be seen feeding on small fish swimming around the shallow parts of the pond near to the cascading waterfall. 

Red Junglefowl (Gallus gallus)? on campus

The Red Junglefowl is becoming a common sight in Singapore especially after COVID.

However, i doubt if most of them are pure breed because in this video you can see that this rooster obviously has yellowish feet which is a sign that it may have been hybridized with the common domestic chicken ( Gallus domesticus).  This rooster does have a white ear patch but its tail feathers are held above the horizontal instead of dropping down, another indication that its not a pure junglefowl.

It does however have a very beautiful plumage and he can be seen around the fish pond area near block 56.

Ylang Ylang (Cananga odorata)

The Ylang Ylang flower has a strong unique fragrance, making it a polupar candidate in imparting its fragrance to hand-made soaps, waxes and other aroma-related products.  Used as a landscaping plant in Ngee Ann Polytechnic, they can be found in many localities within campus, including around block 56 as well as a few of them between the library and  block 5.

Elephantopus scaber (地胆草, 地胆头)

This is a little known medicinal plant that is documented to be effective in curing some ailments.  It usually becomes invasive and spreads over a wide area if not properly managed.  The roots ( which extends several inches vertically downwards) resembles Ginseng thus giving it the nickname (土人参).

There is a large colony of this plant growing on the slope next to blk 4 which is where the pictures were taken from.

The roots can be boiled into a tea or cooked together with chicken to make chicken soup, but the soup may taste a bit bitter.  It is not recommended to be consumed in large quantities due to the presence of certain potent medicinal chemicals.

Below is an extract from Wikipedia:

"Different parts of the plant are used in traditional medicine of India as an astringent agent, cardiac tonic, and diuretic, and is used for eczema, rheumatism, fever, and bladder stones. E. scaber modulates inflammatory responses by inhibiting the production of TNFα and IL-1β."

Below is an extract from Sina Web in mandarin:

有凉血清热，利水解毒的功效，可以治疗鼻衄、黄疸、淋病、脚气、水肿，用药禁忌是体虚者忌之，寒症勿用地胆头，孕妇慎用地胆头。

The plant usually hugs the ground closely and produce a long flower spike with small purple flowers at its apex.

Star of Bethlehem (Hippobroma longiflora)

A beautiful flower to behold but beware.  All parts of the plant are highly poisonous due to acrid, caustic milky sap containing lobelanidine and lobeline. Contact can cause severe skin irritation, and it can cause blindness if it touches the eyes.

Found all over Singapore, this is another invasive plant which can be found growing in moist, shady corners on campus.

Giant Passion Fruit

Passiflora quadrangularis is a member of the passiflora family which includes the commonly encountered passion fruit found in supermarkets and fruit stalls. 

This particular fruit is a giant among the family and produces huge fragrant flowers as well as gigantic fruits. The fruit has very thick flesh with a tasty inner pulp which can be made into fruit juice or just eaten as it is...just like any passion fruit. 

However, the fruit is more often known as a giant granadilla instead of passion fruit.

This particular plant is growing very well near block 8.

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Durians on campus

 

Ngee Ann Polytechnic's durian tree was fruiting last October and produced a few fruits which were visible from the side of the road leading down to Munch Canteen.

This tree usually produce a few fruits every year but too bad we did not have the chance to find out whether it is of good quality.  Another tree can be found at the other end of campus but its not as accessible as this one.

I believe NP is the only Polytechnic that has durian trees growing on campus.  

A couple of Rambutan trees are close by so we shall wait for them to be in season to record the fruiting situation.