Pushing the optical zoom limits on the Samsung WB150F camera

I now find myself hemmed in by the generous(?) 15x optical zoom of the Samsung camera. I am not after high resolution. I am after usable images.This has been cropped.

Champagne Palm, Hyophorbe lagenicaulis

I just noticed them now, though I stared at one almost everyday in Philcoa (not fat though), meaning I was not looking at all. This fat looking (at the base) palm is called the champagne palm. The most curious part to me are the small growths of almost decorative stems (fruit inforesence) just before the waxy smooth tapering upper head trunk.

We are confused by the identification of this palm plant. Some call this the hyophorbe Indicus(our first ID), but Google shows more photos that this is actually hyophorbe lagenicaulis. There are related or similar looking species which may be confused with the champagne palm: spindle palm Hyophorbe verschaffeltii, and the bottle palm Hyophorbe indicus. Unfortunate that we are not really sure of the species name, as some sites call this plant BOTH champagne and bootle palm plant!! Some of these palms are considered endangered in the wild.

Plant	Hyophorbe lagenicaulis
Common name	Champagne palm
Location	Petron Station, NLEX, Bulacan (going to MM)
Photographer	Dr. Ernesto P. Adorio
Camera	Samsung WB150F compact camera
Reference	Wikipedia
Album	Facebook

We will review for the final ID of this palm plant.

the tall flower spike of an agave plant

I saw this tall flowering spike of an agave plant in the Univerity of the Philippines Campus in Diliman, besides the Alumni building.

Taken on a dark morning with a drizzle! Hope my cam, Samsung WB150F, is OK!

Australian Macadamia nuts, flowers

I may have tasted macadamia nuts in mixed nuts servings, but I was surprised to learn they are not from Brazil but from down under Australia. Our Australian based Facebook friend, Susan Dicker posted this clear photo of the nut tree flowers. I await the photos of the nuts themselves.

Photo owned by Susan Estrope Dicker and published in this blog with her kind permission.

Calathea Zebrina

This patterned calathea comes from south-eastern Brazil.

We had already posted a aphelandra zerbra plant

Commelinids

Plant	Zingiberales/Marantaceae/Calathea Zebrina
Location	Quezon City Memorial Circle
Camera	Samsung WB150F
Photographer	Dr. Ernesto P. Adorio

Succulent: euphorbia tirucalli, milk bush,

Nature surprises us with a plant whose tiny leaves are mostly on the tips of the branches, making it look look like corals. This plant is not a cactus but belongs to the euphorbia family! My first guess of the name is Euphorbia Tirrucali. We will correct this if someone can correctly ID this plant. The latex is poisonous but it can be wonderfully converted to gasoline?!

Plant	Euphorbia Tirucalli
Common name	Milk bush
Location	QC Memorial Circle Succulent Garden
Camera	Samsung WB150F
Photographer	Ernesto P. Adorio
Reference	Wikipedia

Calathea Ornata

I saw this plant at Philcoa. The lines looked painted, and the leaf was blushing with a reddish tint. Home gardeners are impatient with their ornata plant. It has difficulty in blooming in twenty years!

Plant	Calathea Ornata var roseo-lineata
Common name
Camera	Samsung WB150F
Photographer	Dr. Ernesto P. Adorio
Reference	davesgarden.com,