medicine in some parts of the world to treat various diseases, among them diabetes.
Allamanda
Allamanda cathartica
Botanical Family: Apocynaceae
Thai name: Ban buree
Malay name: Alamanda kuning
Indonesian names: Alamanda kuning; Lame aruey (Sunda)
Originally from Central and South America and named after the Brazilian naturalist Allamand, the bright yellow-flowering Allamanda has become a garden staple in most parts of the tropics, usually as a woody climber but often, too, as a bushy shrub in a variety called A. schotti. One variety known as A. grandiflora has particularly large funnel-shaped flowers up to 10 cm. in diameter, while another, A. violacea, has pale mauve blooms. There is also a dwarf cultivar increasingly seen in low plantings. Given a sunny location, it flowers continuously and requires little attention; it is often used in seaside gardens. All varieties can be propagated easily by cuttings.
As with other members of the Apocynaceae family, such as the Frangipani, all parts of the plant, including its milky sap, are poisonous, but the leaves, made into an infusion, are used in traditional medicine in South America as a purgative and vapor produced by boiling the leaves is said to be a remedy for coughs.
Yellow Oleander
Thevetia peruviana (T. nereifolia)
Botanical Family: Apocynaceae
Thai names: Thevetia Peruviana, Rum-poey
Malay names: Tevetia Peru
Indonesian names: Ki hujan, Tevetia Peru
This tropical American native has narrow, light green leaves and a more or less continuous display of satiny yellow, funnel-shaped, slightly fragrant flowers; there are also varieties with apricot-colored or almost white flowers, though these are not as often seen. Flowers are followed by small, green, apple-like fruit which, like the leaves and the white latex the plant exudes, are extremely poisonous; it is said that a single fruit can be fatal and thus Thevetia should not be planted where it might tempt small children.
Thevetia belongs to the same botanical family as the Oleander and also has a similar growth pattern. It is bushier, however, and if not pruned fairly often can become a small tree up to four meters in height. It is thus a useful addition to small gardens and for screening purposes. It prefers a sandy soil and full sun is required for profuse flowering. Propagation is by cuttings or by seeds, though these are slow to germinate.
Crown Flower
Calotropis gigantea
Botanical Family: Asclepiadaceae
Thai name: Dok rak
Malay names: Widuri, Reminggu
Indonesian names: Biduri, Widuri
This large, rather sprawling shrub, which belongs to the milkweed family, grows wild along the shores of Southeast Asia and the Pacific and is also popular in dry gardens exposed to strong sea winds, where less hardy plants find it difficult to survive. It has oval, light-green leaves, milky stems, and almost continuous clusters of waxy flowers that are either lavender or white in color; each flower consists of five pointed petals in a star shape, from the center of which rises a small, elegant "crown" that holds the stamens.
In Thailand, the long-lasting flowers are often used in leis and other floral arrangements. In some parts of Bali the lavender flowers are used to make magic designs before a cremation ceremony, while the white ones are used in offerings. They were also reputedly popular with Hawaii's Queen Liliuokalani, who regarded them as emblems of royalty and wore them strung into leis. The flowers have also been imitated in carved ivory.
Balsam
Impatiens balsamina
Botanical Family: Balsaminaceae
Thai name: Thian
Malay names: Pacar air, Balsam, Keembung, Inai ayam
Indonesian names: Pacar air, Balsem, Keembung, Inai ayam
There are numerous varieties of Impatiens, a number of which are native to Southeast Asia. I. balsamina, commonly known as the Annual or Garden Balsam, produces white, pink, red or purple flowers on a fleshy stem and is grown commercially in some places for the production of fingernail dye. The flower petals are sometimes used as offerings in Bali. One variety, I. oncidiodes, has yellow flowers and is native to the highland areas of Malaysia.
More ornamental varieties, called Busy Lizzies, are usually grown as decorative pot plants on verandas and terraces or in moist, semi-shaded locations beside ponds and waterfalls. They can be found in a wide range of flower colors, from white to bright crimson, some with double blossoms and others with dark purple leaves. These hybrids require intensive manuring and seeds of the double-flowering types do not always breed true. At higher altitudes, Impatiens become quite sizeable shrubs several feet high and can be used in massed plantings.
Trumpet Tree
Tabebuia spp.
Botanical Family: Balsaminaceae
Thai name: Chom phu pantip
Malay names: Tabebuia
Indonesian names: Tabebuia
A native of South America, this flowering tree was introduced to
