This month of July I see that the Bungor or Queen's Flower ( Lagerstroemia speciosa) that lined Palm Road are exhibiting very showy and bunchy flowers of pink and purple. There are isolated planting of this tree across river ( Petrajaya) but the best location to see them is at Palm Road where they are planted on both sides of the road for at leat a half kilometer long. Besides Kuching city the other good location is found along the lengthy stretch of road from Santubong Bridge to the village of Buntal where they are planted on both sides of the highway.
Purple variety
Pink variety
The above picture is taken on the long stretch of road from Santubong Bridge to Buntal Village. The Bungor tree originated from the humid jungle of Burma, Sri Lanka and India. In Malaysia they are primarily seen as landscaping plants on major or broad roads. Their beautiful flowers that are held on panicles could last for weeks. Peculiar to this tree species is the shedding of the tree barks which leave a yellowish mottled surface on the trunks. Generally it is best to plant these trees in areas where the water table is high, damp or wet locations.
