The Hidden Life of Trees

[Nungali]

On 10/02/2022 at 7:43 AM, Pak_Satrio said:

I did a reverse image search on it and it seems to be a baobab tree from Madagascar

 

source: 

 

 

Thanks , this prog i now run cant do that , I could before , very handy .

 

We have baobab growing here , which is why I asked .

 

Endemic to Australia, boab occurs in the Kimberley region^[2] of Western Australia, and east into the Northern Territory. It is the only baobab to occur in Australia, the others being native to Madagascar (six species) and mainland Africa and the Arabian Peninsula (one species).

 

Its a bit tricky going by their 'common  names ' ;

 

 

• baobab — this is the common name for the genus as a whole, but it is often used in Australia to refer to the Australian species;
• Australian baobab
• boabab was in common use from the late 1850s^[6] (Perhaps the origin of boab)
• baob^[7][8]
• bottle tree
• upside down tree
• dead rat tree
• gouty stem tree
• monkey bread tree^[6]
• cream of tartar tree
• gourd-gourd tree
• sour gourd
• gadawon — one of the names used by the local Indigenous Australians. Other names include larrgadi or larrgadiy, which is widespread in the Nyulnyulan languages of the Western Kimberley.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adansonia_gregorii

 

" For thousands of years the Aborigines used every part of this tree - the bark for twine, the porous trunk for moisture, and the fruit for food and medicine. The hard fruit pods are also useful as bowls and utensils. The thick, furry pod contains segments of fruit, a little like dried apple in texture. The fruit is very high in Vitamin C (many more times that of oranges) and has an almost citrussy flavour. It is also very rich in minerals.

 

Aboriginal usage included grinding the fruit to make a flour for cooking, and using the fruit to treat stomach pain.

The seeds are said to make a coffee-like brew when boiled, and the fruit has been turned into an interesting array of culinary delights such as boab chocolate, boab bread, boab muffins and cakes, and even dry-roasted chunks sprinkled on a salad.

Now some enterprising locals in the Kimberley town of Kununurra are developing boab products as a mainstream food. Melissa Boot uses the food in chocolate which she markets commercially."

 

And I saw  , years back , a new way of eating them , so thousands get planted now as ....

 

" the boab root is very easy to grow and has great potential to be accepted as a conventional vegetable, rather than be branded an exotic "bush food". So far they are selling about 30 bunches a week through local fruit shops and off the farm. The crisp juicy roots reportedly taste a little like a radish or water chestnut, while the tender leaves have a pleasant peppery flavour. Both may be eaten raw or cooked. "

 

So the seeds are sprouted and when the root has developed with a bit of young green on top it is harvested after 6 - 10 weeks .

 

http://anpsa.org.au/APOL2006/nov06-2.html

 

[Nungali]

17 hours ago, Lairg said:

Locally some of the larger trees spend most of their time looking at/for starlight.

 

Indeed !  here is something fascinating .

 

Oz was connected to Antarctica - Gondwanaland  . back then it was rainforest ! near 'tropical temps '  with trees that grew there , HUGE forests .

 

But it was still the south pole . and it still had months of no sun  - darkness .  Yet the trees where not deciduous !

 

Looking at starlight indeed !

 

A seed's a star
A seed's a star's a seed
A star's a seed
A star's a seed's a star

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEK7tMxXRpo

 

 

[Nungali]

On 10/02/2022 at 6:57 AM, Pak_Satrio said:

In Bali (and other parts of Indonesia) they believe the banyan tree is home to spirits: 

 

"Banyan Trees and the Cult of Ancestors

Cultural Observer June 8, 2019 by Jean Couteau

 

Indonesia is home to one of the most fantastic trees in the world, the banyan tree, locally known as waringin, a kind of ficus. Apart from its size and surface, the most extraordinary aspect of the banyan is its resilience. When its vines touch the ground, they grow into new roots and trunks, spreading out in a tormented encounter of trunks and leaves. The banyan has become a favourite symbol of Indonesian political lore. On account of its multitudinous roots growing into a single trunk, it symbolises the unity of the Indonesian nation. As a shady and cool shelter, it also symbolises the protection of the state.

 

 

In Bali, keen-eyed visitors will no doubt notice the cloth wrapped around its lower trunk as well, sometimes, as the altars scattered among its branches. What does it mean? Why do banyans warrant such attention?

 

Banyans can indeed grow naturally, but most of them are planted for religious purposes in the vicinity of the main village temples, in particular near the temple of the dead, thus in the lowest part of any village. These banyans are the custodians of powerful gods “installed” there after the planting of the tree, through a pangurip-urip (bringing to life) ceremony.

 

In some villages, I was told, the tree has a female “dweller”. But in other places it is said to host no other than the fanged monster Jero Gede Mecaling and his mate, Jero Nyoman. The checkered black and white cloth around the trunk account for the famous deity, while the white and yellow for his mate. Jero Gede Mecaling is the principal cause of grubug, or diseases that used to sweep through Bali at the end of the dry season . But Jero Nyoman, the monster’s mate, is no less dangerous. She is said to hold sway over the gamangs, human-like monsters that make their dwelling in remote trees and bushes. Since they look human, in spite of a harelip and deformed feet, these gamangs like to goad humans into their realm beyond the trees. Stories abound of seduced men and especially women who have children by these lovers from the trees. It is used to explain the weird behaviour of some children.

 

There are ways indeed to avoid both the trouble and the scare: that is to propitiate or placate the banyan dwellers. Here lies the function of the altars and small temple found near the trees. The higher shrine is addressed to the gods, while the lower one for the gamangs, although there might be additional shrines for visiting gods and for some unknown deity who asked for attention in a recent temple trance. Lest a mishap happens, the local people are indeed wary not to forget any of the tree residents, known and unknown, including of course the demonic bhuta at the ground level.

 

Illustration by Wayan Sadha

 

The rites above can be construed as corresponding to the animistic side of Balinese culture. There is also a more noble, and more “Hindu” interpretation. The banyan is construed symbolising the junction between the chthonian (earthly) world, the bhurloka world of Hindu lore, where reside the bhuta, and the upper world where reside the heavenly forces, the swahloka, passing through the world of humans, the bhwahloka. 

 

Therefore it binds and at once separates the tangible sekala world and the intangible niskala world. Going back to the pre-Hindu indigenous tradition, this junction role might well account for the role played by the banyan in the post-cremation ceremony called “ngangget don bingin” (the collection of the banyan leaves).

 

It takes place as part of the nyekah post-cremation ceremony, a few weeks after the corpse has been burned and its ashes dispersed into the sea. The purpose of the nyekah ceremony is to send the soul ‘back home’, to the ‘Old Country’ of the origin, above the mountains. For this ceremony, effigies are needed, which are made from banyan leaves. Using  a long pole, the leaves are made to fall on a spread-out white sheet. If a leaf fall on its ‘back’, it must be used for a woman’s effigy; if it falls on its ‘belly’, it is for a man’s effigy. The leaves are then sewed together into a sekah effigy, male or female according to the need. This effigy will then be symbolically ‘brought to life’, thus reawakening the soul of the dead, meaning that the cremation has not fully eradicated all signs of life. In the following nyekah ceremony, the effigy will be burned in a simile cremation, complete with a mini cremation tower, and its ashes dispersed into the sea.  At the end of the rites, the soul will have become a deified ancestor (dewahyang) residing above the mountain, and also ritually seated in the ancestral family shrine, where its descendants will address it through their daily prayers. 

 

Yet, the leaves of the banyan do have another function. They are also used to make an offering presented to the Goddess of knowledge Saraswati on the last day of 210 day Pawukon calendar. The resilience of the rites held around the banyan tree clearly show that Balinese are much more than simply Hindu. The envelope may be Hindu, but to this day the content remains indigenous, with dominance of the cult of ancestors and of the forces of nature."

 

From: https://www.nowbali.co.id/banyan-trees-and-the-cult-of-ancestors/

 

I missed this before - somehow .

 

There is a huge one, In India I think, has a 'village' living in it ; corridors , rooms , part is a toilet , which feeds the tree . Its very ancient .

 

There is one in  Brisbane's botanical gardens that I went to see , not that big, of course, but still it did look like  it was big enough to live in !  I peered from the little barrier  and yes, I could see a way in and an interior . Looked about, no one around, hopped the fence and went in . The entrance went around a corner , it was low so I was crouching and creeping in the semi dark, then it got a bit bigger and  .....

 

" OI !   What you doing  here !  YOU get OUT HERE ... THIS OUR PLACE ! "

 

A quick retreat - someone had 'beat me to it ' a  group of Murri  having a drink   

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murri_people

 

 

Edited February 10, 2022 by Nungali

[Nungali]

8 hours ago, zerostao said:

a boabab tree ?!

well that makes sense.

i thought it was a carrot

 

Too big for that ( see above )  , ya gotta  pull them out WAAAAY  before that ! 

 

 

Besides ..... how do YOU ... know so much about  CARROTS  ! ......       Hmmmmmmm   ??????

 

 

 

 

( from 0 :22)

 

 

 

 

 

[zerostao]

 

[Nungali]

No , that unrelated diversion isnt going to help .... the cat is out the bag now !

 

zerostao , it is clear  , is a

 

Carrotwitch 

 

https://www.cosmopolitan.com/lifestyle/a37681530/types-of-witches/

 

( and just rechecking my theory that if I make something up it already exists n the internet  ;

 

.....  yep  ;

 

 

https://www.amazon.com/Earth-magic-carrot-wand-Rob-ebook/dp/B00RONZUJW

[Lairg]

Locally some of the very tall trees seem to spend all their time looking at the stars.

 

The smaller trees are happy to look at humans.   

 

A friend with a dementia husband was quite unhappy so I pointed out the trees across from her yard that were looking at her - liking her - and suggested she invite them (their energy) inside her house.

 

I had an email a week later saying how pleased she was with the (emotional) results of inviting the trees.

[Nungali]

Ummmm .....  " attract those who want to strip naked for you, "   

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

 

THIGH guys ...  a rolling outside THIGH massage !