Bogor is a city with many interesting facets. It is located about 60 km south of Jakarta in the Indonesian island of Java. Located between the hot coastal plains and the mountains and also receiving the most rain on the island, it is a popular retreat from the heat of Java. It is also a very historical city. In the 5th Century, it was an important part of Java's first Hindu kingdom of Tarumanegara. Then in the early 19th Century, for a short period, it served as the administrative centre for British controlled Indonesia. When the Dutch took control of the Indonesian archipelago, it then became the capitol of the territories during the dry season and went by the name of Buitenzorg which apparently means "beyond cares". Today, Bogor is a sprawling city of over 3 million people. If you have even a flleting interest in botany, then it also holds another gem.......the Bogor Botanical Gardens.
These gardens were the inspiration of Sir Stamford Raffles but officially completed and launched in 1817 by the Dutch. They are 87 hectares of botanic wonders from the Malesia and Wallacea regions and today also borders with the Presidential Summer Palace. It is estimated that there are about 15,000 plant and tree species in this garden.
It is too big and wondrous to be covered in just one post. This will be the first in a series of three and will focus on the town and large trees and plants.
Entrance to the Gardens
Bananas with the heart (flower)
World's Tallest flower- too
bad it isn't blooming
What it is supposed to look likeBird's Nest Ferns
Very big buttress roots
Extremely Rude Fruit
Posts
17 comments:
I guess you'll have to go back when the tallest flower is in bloom. It looks like it would be spectacular.
I have visited a couple botanical gardens over here in Canada. Beautiful, but nowhere near as exotic. But then, the flora in Bogor Botanical isn't exotic but native, isn't it? An interesting play with perspective.
Nice pictures, I shall anticipate the following ones. Thanks
you are so lucky to experience God's artwork to it fullest. I have always dreamed of seeing a tropical forest.
I loved the pictures. Please post as many as you can.
LGS, you live in the one part of the world I have always wanted to visit. It's number one on Freddie's list when he grows up as well. Everything about it is utterly magical. I'm looking forward to seeing more.
Josie
Lovely pictures. I especially love the Bird's Nest Ferns.
Please show us the flower when it blooms.
This is a weird coincidence. I visited the Japanese Gardens at the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens for the first time this past Wednesday. Everything was so beautiful and calming, except for the repeating thought in my head of "Why haven't I come here before?"
And that WAS one rude fruit!
Beyond Interesting!
How awesome. I'm trying to imagine if or when you ever come back to Canada (aka HOME) what amazing things you'd bring back from your experiences.
Cheers :)
Wow LGS...this is fabulous! The plants are so unique...I'd never get out of the gardens long enough to enjoy anything else over there. I am certainly looking forward to the rest of your posts.
blackcrag,
It is a pity about the tallest flower. I wish I was there when it bloomed. Doubt if I'll get to go there again.
goatman,
thanks for dropping in and leaving a comment. I'll post on Bogor two more times but I'll do it once a week to spread it out a bit with other posts. Do come by again.
ruth,
I am fortunate, I know. Tropical forest is particularly wonderful but there are wonders in any other forests too.
cheryl,
will try. see what I wrote for goatman. Thanks for the encouragement.
josie,
you see, grass is always greener on the other side. I'd love to spend time in your rainforest and you and Freddie want to come to mine. By all means, come. It is great but don't forget to enjoy your forest too.
Hearts,
I'll see if I can find a photo on the net on that tallest flower. Unfortunately, I'm not likely to get back to Bogor again.
geewits,
botanic gardens can be more fun than one might first imagine. You're the only one that commented about the rude fruit. What does that say about the others? What does that say about the two of us?!
nancycle,
it was very sweet of you to refer to Canada as my 'home". I felt very warm inside. I do love Canada so. Thanks.
janice,
I was in Bogor for 4 days and apart from a field trip to a nearby volcanic mountain, I spent my entire free time of about 10 hours in the Botanic Gardens and I still didn't cover anything. Honestly, I could spend about 5 full day there.
The extremely rude fruit is rightly captioned!
It's hard to get perspective on the tallest flower...I wish there were a pencil, or a basketball, or you next to it...
jocelyn,
The bud in the picture is about only 1.5 meter high. According to accompanying blurb,when flowering it can reach 3.5 meters in height. It only flowers once every 2-3 years.
Does the extremely rude fruit have an actual name?
cs,
Well, you know, the curator did tell me but I was too distracted trying to take the photo!
Your secret spots are such a welcome break from my life. It's like a mini-vacation to whole other world. Thanks for sharing!
claudia,
thanks for the affirmation on the secret spots. Sometimes its hard to tell if it is of interest to readers so yur direct feedback is appreciated. However, there must be tons to do in Denver and surroundings that you don't need this "escape". The Urban Farm at Stapleton is a great place to spend some down time, of course the Rocky's ain't far away and there's always Colorado Avalanche!
Thanks for sharing the pics...I can picture myself there now!!!
Beautiful!
Peace
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