Field Trip: Cameron Highlands

The Cameron Highlands is a mountainous district located at the state of Pahang, Peninsular Malaysia. It is a world famous tourist hot spot, and the cradle of open farming for much of Malaysia. Located at about one kilometer above sea level, Cameron Highlands yields an average temperature of about 12 – 22 degrees Celsius. In comparison, lowland Malaysia can be as warm as 28 – 32 degrees Celsius. It is not surprising that Cameron Highlands harbours plants of the montane habitat, as well as various ornamentals that are more suited for a subtropical weather. As a collector of the angel's trumpets (Brugmansia spp.), the Cameron Highlands is next to my heaven! 

Let's go !!!

The Angel's trumpet Brugmansia comprises of about seven species of woody shrubs or trees with large pendulous flowers. It is closely related to the Datura (Devil's trumpets), and they were once classified under a same genus. However, scientists have decided to separate Brugmansia into its own genus, which is named after the Dutch botanist Sebald Justinus Brugmans. For lay people, we can readily distinguish the two with this mnemonic "Angel's trumpet blows downwards from the heavens, Devil's trumpet blows upwards from hell''. Brugmansia's flowers droop, Datura's flowers erect. Don't be fooled by the Angels nonetheless! They are just as poisonous as the Devil due to the presence of tropane alkaloids. Angel's trumpets hailed from the tropical and subtropical forests of South America, but believe it or not, all of the seven species are currently extinct in the wild! We are not sure why is that the case, but they owe their continual survival to human cultivation, like what's happening now in the Cameron Highlands. Ours may be their second home, but it is indeed heaven. Different species of Brugmansia interbreed with each other, and in Malaysia, the predominant species or horticulture hybrids are Brugmansia suaveolens, Brugmansia aurea and Brugmansia arborea (less common). In Cameron Highlands, they are widely naturalised across human settlements, and you can find them along the roads, in villages and sometimes even invading into primary forests. The Brugmansia flower produces an intensely fragrant scent at night, and with such a huge community of plants, parts of the Cameron Highlands smell like what I can only describe as 'the smell of Cameron Highlands' at night. Unfortunately, I cannot share this olfatory orgasm here, but if you ever visit Cameron Highlands, please walk around a patch of Angel's trumpets during the night, and you will remember it forever.

Besides the Angel's trumpets, three other poisonous highlight of Cameron Highlands are the golden chalice vine (Solandra maxima), the pelican birthwort (Aristolochia grandiflora), and the balloon milkweed (Gomphocarpus physocarpus). In my experience, both species just like the Brugmansia seldom if not never flower when I brought them down to lowland Malaysia. I haven't give up hope yet...

 

Aristolochia grandiflora (Aristolochiaceae). Native to tropical South America. Remember I mentioned that Aristolochia flowers stink? You can spot a fly near the 'mouth' of this one if you have a sharp eye.

 

Solandra maxima (Solanaceae). Native to tropical South America.

Seedpod of the balloon milkweed (Gomphocarpus physocarpus, Asclepiadaceae).

Flowers of Gomphocarpus physocarpus (pink variety).

The Cameron Highlands is also home to many subtropical plants with great beauty, some of them are high coveted in the ornamental trade. Here's a list of my personal favourites. I've tried to cultivate some of them outside of my poison garden, and some did well, others less so. Here we go!

Jade vine (Strongylodon macrobotrys, Fabaceae). Native to the Philippines.

Banana passionfruit (Passiflora mollissima, Passifloraceae). Native to tropical South America.

Red passionflower (Passiflora coccinea, Passifloraceae). Native to tropical South America.

Cup and saucer vine (Cobaea scandens, Polemoniaceae). Native to Mexico.

Natal lily (Clivia minata, Amaryllidaceae). Native to South Africa.

Sunset 'Gloxinia (misnomer) [Seemannia sylvatica, Gesneriaceae]. Native to South America.

That's it for today, and we will definitely revisit the Cameron Highlands in due course. Oh yea in case you wonder, Cameron Highland is named after the British explorer and geologist William Cameron (1833 – 1866).