Ever free ferns from Kruak wetlands

A mixture of 'Miding' and 'Paku Uban' ferns at Kruak Wetlands

Paku Uban (foreground)
Miding (background , at left of picture)

 You can enjoy plucking  free ferns any day of the week within minutes of walking.  This phenomenon is made possible by developing an area of about half an acre within the park focused on the 'cultivation' of edible ferns.  Two species of ferns that grow naturally here are the Miding ( Stenochlaena palustris) and the Paku Uban (Nephroplepsis acutifolia).  These ferns love bright sun, damp ground mixed with tall grasses as natural support.  At the moment I am developing part of the Kruak wetlands specifically for this purpose.  I have blogged a fair bit about these ferns and how to cook them.  Please follow this link to know how...>>>>http://kambatikpark.blogspot.my/2014/04/wonder-fern-at-park.html

Young leaves of Miding

'Miding' ferns freshly collected from Kruak wetlands

Miding served with rice

Kruak wetlands
Zone B

Hot on heels on ferny trail (Part 1)

Two main fern species abundantly found around the pond are 'Miding' and 'Paku Uban'
Location : Waterlily pond, Provinsi Manila @ Zone B

Paku Uban (Iban) - Nephrolepis biserrata

 Ferns are fascinating plants because even though they are non-flowering they still can reproduce by spores which lie under their leaves.  They are delicious and I have blogged a fair bit about many vegetable ferns of Sarawak.  There are about 500 species of ferns in Malaysia and Sarawak for that matter.  Ferns can survive many kinds of climatic environments.  In the park they are species that have adapted well to open sun and open spaces  whilst others prefer moist and shady areas.  This new Fern Trail project will gather as many different species of ferns as possible.  Below are some examples....  

Miding (Stenochlaena palustris)

Lycopodium cernuum - Nodding Clubmoss
Location : Zone G

Lycopodium cernuum - Nodding Clubmoss  Location : Zone G

Dicranopteris linearis - Resam (Malay)
Location : Zone I

Dicranopteris linearis - Resam (Malay) or commonly as Bracken fern.
Location : Zone I

Under the green umbrella

Oil palm trunk with a wide sampling of ferns, and seed plants taking advantage of the fertile fibrous growing medium found between the cut leaf bases and the trunk.

Fungi on rotten leaf bases

 The Oil palm trees (Elaies guineensis) or Sawit in Malay are the main identity of the Kambatik park.  They help sustain the park's operation.  When harvesting the fresh fruit bunches, the leaf bases that are cut leave a space between the cut branches and the trunk.  The leaf bases are constantly moist and they trap small insects, birds and other small animals' droppings, dead organic matter like fungi or mushrooms etc.. They provide ideal conditions for many plants to thrive on.  Chiefly among them are the epiphytic ferns, and plants that produce seeds and are eaten by birds and other animals and are later discharged in their droppings and got trapped in the fibrous and fertile growing medium between the leaf bases and the trunk.  It would not be surprising in future also to see orchids growing from these leaf bases.

Bird's nest fern (Asplenium nidus)

Climber

Ficus benjamina

Miding (Stenochlaena palustris) - at the centerr of the picture

Rabbit's foot fern ( Davallia denticulata)

Broad leaves of the Simpoh ( Dillenia suffructicosa)

Paku Uban (Iban) - Nephrolepsis acutifolia