The Arboretum: Microcosm of a Tropical Forest

The Arboretum*

 Living with Nature Center

Microcosm of a Tropical Forest

Dr Abe V Rotor 

This towering native mango is more than four generations old.  It dominates several heritage trees which include talisay (Terminalia catappa), caimito (Chrysophyllum cainito), and macopa (Eugenia jambalana), and other upcoming heritage trees in the arboretum. On its limbs and branches hang lianas and epiphytes like rosary bead (Abrus precatorius), philodendron, ferns, bromeliads, mosses and lichens.  The tree in itself is an ecosystem, complete in biodiversity and dynamic balance season after season in a state of homeostasis.   

  

A grove of heritage trees makes a fort-like wall against strong wind, 

flood and erosion - and irritating noise. (Trees are excellent buffers 

of sound.)  It is the home of arboreal animals like gecko lizard, 

bats, tree frogs, sparrows, wild honeybees, moths and butterflies, 

other arthropods notwithstanding.  The trees also serve as seasonal

 host to migrating birds like tarat, panal and perperocka, and 

occasionally martinez, black crow and kingfisher, and hawk. 

Heritage palm trees - anahaw (Livistona rotundifolia) and betel nut (Areca catechu) - rise as emergents through the canopy of the arboretum.  They are the abode of bats, resting during the day 

 under their drooping broad leaves - a perfect base for their 

nocturnal habit.

 

University of Northern Philippines students tour the arboretum

 for their outdoor research and extension studies.

   

On-the-spot painting contest under the trees is a rare experience of children from different schools of the Municipality of San Vicente, Ilocos Sur, in celebration of Earth Day last April 22, 2023, sponsored by LGU 

and the Living with Nature Center.  

    

 My grandchildren - Mateo, Mackie and Markus - enjoy their summer 

vacation in the arboretum, a different kind of adventure to the 

young city-bred generation. 

 

A flimsy canopy of treetops allows sunlight to penetrate

 and nourish the small trees, shrubs and ground plants. 

This explains the dense vegetation of rainforests. The 

deciduous nature of most tropical trees, that is, seasonal 

shedding of leaves, enhances this phenomenon. 

 

Clearing in between trees is maintained regularly for outdoor

 workshops and study tours for house guests and study groups. 

Trees are robust and green throughout the year, and are most noticeable in the dry season, thus trees are the refuge of many organisms, from birds to reptiles - and even fish and amphibians - when the surrounding fields and ponds are virtually dry. 

Trees give off oxygen and capture carbon dioxide and other gases. 

They filter the direct rays and heat of the sun, dusts, spores, and radiation. Breeze, mist and dew keep temperature and humidity stable.
Music of nature - chirping of birds, shrill of cicada, fiddling of crickets, rustling of leaves, bass of toads and frogs - all these constitute a soothing and harmonious symphony.  Mozart's Effect must have originated in such ambiance, so with Beethoven's famous symphony,  Brahms's Lullaby and Grieg's Prelude to Morning. 

The Parthenon of Greece must have its origin from the imagination 

of our ancestors who saw the beauty and grace of standing trees reaching for the sky. Nature is indeed the greatest architect, and 

man is but her student.

The built-in knots, twists and crevices on trees are natural homes of lizards, bees, ants, birds, and the like. They also serve as rivulets and waterholes that catch and store rain and dew, serving as arboreal pond for dragonfly naiads, tadpoles, and even certain species of fish. Shown here are macopa (Eugenia jambalana) and palomaria trees (Callophyllum inophyllum), which are among the heritage trees in the arboretum.  

*An arboretum (plural: arboreta) is a botanical collection composed of trees and a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, many modern arboreta are in botanical gardens as living collections of woody plants and is intended at least in part for scientific study.

In Latin, an arboretum is a place planted with trees, not necessarily in this specific sense, and "arboretum" as an English word is first recorded used by John Claudius Loudon in 1833 in The Gardener's Magazine, but the concept was already long-established by then. Wikipedia