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The Sensory Trail, in my opinion, provides a rather interesting walk to a visitor of Pulau Ubin. Beginning from just behind the Visitors' Centre, the trail starts off with a Spice and Herb Garden, after which, it meanders through coastal forest and mangrove habitat, and finally ends at the main jetty. Expect about 1.5 hours for the slow walk. The name "Sensory Trail" is one of dual purpose. One would definitely be invigorated by the astringent and sometimes piquant scent of the spices, yet at the same time, the many plaques contain explanations and descriptions in Braille. It is wise to call for a guide (they have guided tours on every 4th Saturday of the month) unless you are either very familiar with the plants and their practical uses, or simply content with reading the very brief descriptions on the labels, often encompassing just a common and scientific name. (We were caught foully without a guide so yours truly had to step in with his epithelial knowledge of herbs and spices…bah…) I could imagine the grandeur upon first initiation, for the proportions of this spice garden are astounding, but since then, it has sunk into faded opulence. The Sensory trail kicks start with the visitor walking alongside a banana grove, with both the red stemmed and common Alocasia macrorhiza growing under the shade of the bananas' paddle shaped leaves. It is a pity that the Alocasia had not carpeted the ground, for then the effect would have been astounding due to the lushness, but how can one expect that in poor soils? Even the bananas were struggling in the caked up, sand-clay mixture. On the brighter side, many in the group were enthralled by the hanging inflorescences of bananas and were simply amazed by the number of fruits! Next, we were led into a huge field of Pandan (Pandanus amaryllifolius) in an area that can literally be described as "Pandan Valley". I have never seen that many Pandan plants in my entire life. The sight here was just breathtaking. Even with just a light breeze, the smell of the Pandan could be detected at the Visitor Centre, which was way up front!
There were also dense plantings of the grass, Citronella, which wards off mosquitoes. This plant, which looks superficially like the more common lemon grass, has thicker and broader leaf blades than its close relative. Its acclaimed essential oil can be obtained by bruising its leaves. There
were also dense plantings of Tradescantia discolor (used
to be known scientifically as Rheo discolor, also called
Moses in the Cradle) and Costus speciosus, the ubiquitous
Crepe ginger with its tissue-paper like blooms. Its relative, the
impressive Torch ginger (Etlingera elatior) was also represented
in the gardens. However, growth was poor and the plants were clearly
protesting and looked far from magnificent. However, the blue ginger
planted en masse was doing particularly well and we had even spotted
spent flower spikes. Other highlights include the Great Morinda (the Noni tree) with its unusual fruits and numerous mature Murraya Curry Trees. Within the Spice garden, there was also a trio of ancient examples of the common Rambutan tree. They were simply impressive with their gargantuan size and gnarled stature under years of growth. Pity they weren't fruiting then. In terms of vines, we saw trellis laden with winged (angle) beans and long beans. There was also the Passionfruit, Passiflora laurifolia (locally called the Buah Susu) and garlic vine. It was such a waste that we did not see the showy blooms from the last two vines. Also present was a substantial bed of two varieties of Aloe vera - the local and the USA variant. Close to that was a bed of the famed Catharanthus rosea (previously, Vinca rosea, commonly called the Perwinkle) with encompassed a selection of its colour varieties. The Elephant Yam, Amorphophallus spp., was definitely a show-stopper too with its unusual aerial foliage and its spotted stem. It really looked out of place in this garden of conventional-looking plants.
The garden ends with a Sugar Cane grove which leads on to Phase 2 of the trek, which goes round mangrove habitat to sea seaside flora and observe the numerous Rhizophora mangroves and coconut trees (Cocos nucifera)! It would be most interesting to note that some of the seaside plants excrete salt through their leaves and you can see, or maybe even taste, the crystals that gleam in the strong sun! USEFUL
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