What difference can 75 fruit trees make? A great deal!
Twenty-five different fruit tree species have been bought to be planted at Tasikoki. This was sponsored by PARA’KITO. They sponsored 75 special high producing fruit trees in total, which is a big help for the Tasikoki Wildlife Rescue and Education Centre.
PARA’ KITO mosquito repellent products are made from “ ..a unique blend of essential oils, patented slow-release technology and super-smart product design…PARA’KITO products (are) now selling in more than 40 markets all over the world.” In addition to paying for the trees, PARA’KITO also donated some mosquito repellent sprays . The Tasikoki Team have used it and consider it a great help repelling mosquitoes and even leeches! PARA’KITO is now considering donating more.
The trees will be planted in between and amongst the very old coconut trees that are gradually being removed and where the open places provide ideal growing conditions for the trees.
We are hoping that if there are more than enough fruits for the animals from the trees, some also would be served in the Ecolodge and Volunteer House, for volunteers and visitors and further surpluses could be made into other products like marmalade that could also help to support the wildlife.
Almost all the trees come from certified providers in Java so we will have proven quality fruit and early production. Most of the trees are grafted (for instance all the mango cultivars except the wild growing Kwini variety), meaning that some will already have some first fruits a year after being planted. Of course, the trees need good-sized planting holes with a good enriched biochar mix to stimulate vigorous growth!
Please note that the fruit trees are not just local tree species. These have been specifically selected with the purpose of early fruiting, year-round production, matching the local climate and to a degree the local soil.
The information below lists all the different types of trees that PARA’ KITO supported the purchase for Tasikoki.
Please let us know if you could donate funds, wish list items or other items for Tasikoki or the Sintang Orangutan Centre. We would be very grateful!
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1-5: Mango
We will grow five different varieties of mangoes. This helps the cross pollination that improves fruiting of the trees and it helps us to get a variety of fruits year-round since they have overlapping fruiting periods. Mango contains lots of antioxidants and vitamins, which is good especially for the primates, but also parrots at Tasikoki like to eat the fruit.
The following mango cultivars: manalagi, situbondo, arumanis, Bangkok and kweni, the latter being Mangifera odorata so different from the four Mangifera indica varieties.
6: Mangosteen:
Mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana) is not only a delicious fruit but the peels and twigs can be used to preserve palm juice that we are producing at Tasikoki. The trees can grow in shade so can be mixed with other fruit trees. The peel contains a purple color so it is easy to check what animals have tried to eat this fruit!
7: Rambutan
We will plant two varieties that do well in the north Sulawesi climate: Rambutan binjai and Rambutan rapiah, two cultivars of the Nephelium lappaceum. These trees produce abundant amounts of storable fruits and fruit in different periods, thus extending the harvesting season. They are also very good trees for bees with their abundant aromatic flowers and pollen production. This will help trees all over the compound.
8: Durian
Of course, the king of fruits has to be included. Durio zibethinus is a species from Indonesia and there are many cultivars. We are buying grafted plants of the durian petruk and durian montong varieties. These already produce in the first year. They are bat pollinated, so they need to be planted in open places. Durian is the favorite primate food, including for (SOME) humans! The shiny leaves with golden hairs on the underside are also a beautiful decorative element in the gardens.
9: Avocado
Persea Americana is, as the Latin name indicates, from the Americas but is grown everywhere and produces fruits that contain big amounts of very healthy oil and fat. Thus they are ideal for getting the right nutrition formulations for our animals. The mentega variety that we are buying has very big fruits that are produced year-round. The trees are self-pollinating and need to be grown in places with less wind. At Tasikoki we have hard winds in October so we need to plant the avocado trees behind the hill with the education center and in between the other trees to ensure a good fruit production.
10: Sawo or Sapodilla
This small tree with dense foliage produces fruits year-round. Manilkara zapota fruits contain antioxidants and are said to reduce diabetes through the anti-inflammatory compounds in it. The egg-shaped brown and hairy fruits also have a unique and pleasant taste. The tree originates from central America but is growing all over the tropics. Slow growing but able to reach heights of 30 meters. The fruits are very high in calories and all animals love them.
11: Bitter bean
This tree locally known as Petai (Parkia speciose), is a jungle tree from Kalimantan. The wood is very beautiful but as the name bitter bean already indicates is most known for its specially tasting beans. The roots of this tree have nodules that house Rhizobium bacteria, symbotic organisms that can convert nitrogen from the air into nitrogen compounds that can be utilized by plants. The leaves also make very good litter and improve the soil as well. This tree can be perfectly combined with other more shade tolerant trees like the mangosteen, cacao, coffee and others. The beans are a favorite of many primates, including the orangutans.
12: Star fruit
This watery fruit grows from the stem and woody branches of the Averrhoa carambola tree. The trees are small, often only bushy. The fresh taste of the fruit is a nice change for the animals to try. It can grow in light shade like under the bitter bean tree. The star fruit also known as Carambola, is believed to have a huge range of health effects. It contains very few calories though.
13: Jack fruit
Locally know as nangka, this tree from Kalimantan produces very large and juicy fruits that are produced all year round. Also leaves from this tree (Artocarpus heterophyllus), can be used as browse. The tree grows quite fast and demands very little care, except for covering the fruits after pollination so the insects cannot dig into the fruit and reduce the harvest. The wood of this tree is very tough and is used to make handles for machetes and other very heavy duty material. The latex is used to make boats water proof.
14: Star apple
Chrysophyllum cainito is a tree that originated from the Antilles. It is very fast growing and the leaves have a golden color. The fruit is reported to have many positive health benefits but more important is that it has a very long fruiting season and is a delicious fruit especially favored by primates. This tree can reach quite a big size and will be planted to provide shade to the deer and babirusa enclosure which will also ensure that no fallen fruit will go to waste!
15: Soursop
Soursop, Annona muricata, is a fruit that is being investigated for its anti-cancer compounds. It is a strange shaped fruit like a sack with protrusions on its skin. The trees do not grow very large and are able to grow in light shade underneath other trees. The taste is very delicious and is hard to compare to other fruits. The white pulp is a favorite of almost all animal we have at Tasikoki. It also makes for nice yoghurt like smoothies that can be frozen as enrichment material for the animals.
16: Watery rose apple
This small tree produces copious quantities of freshly tasting fruits. All animals seem to eat the fruits of this locally named “jambu air citra” tree. The Latin name is Syzygium aqueum and this tree is very common everywhere. There are some varieties however that produce multiple fruitings and bigger, better tasting fruits without seeds three times a year. It is this special grafted variety that we acquire from Java.
17: Delhi watery apple
This is another special variety of the same species as the watery rose apple from the species Syzygium aqueum locally named jambu air delhi, but this variety has much larger and very sweet fruits and is light green colored. It can also grow well in half shade and does seldom grow beyond a height of 5 meters. So, ideal to combine with other tree species.
18: Cempedak
This tree is related to the jackfruit tree, in Latin Artocarpus integer. The fruits grow from the stem and are elongated. The fruit is quite a puzzle to open because of the leathery outside peel that also contains a lot of latex. But once open it is all worth it, the pungent smell announcing deliciously sweet fruits. The seeds that have the pulp around it can also be eaten. Just like the jack fruit tree the leaves of this tree can also be used as browse but because of their hairiness are less used by animals.
19: Guava
This recent mutation from Taiwan named Psidium guajava, in Indonesian called jambu Kristal, already starts producing fruits from the age of 8 months onward. On top of that the fruits appear all year round, and, thanks to their leathery waxy skin do not have pest or disease problems. The fruits have very few seeds and taste a bit like apples and pears. The fruits contain very large amounts of vitamin C as well as other valuable vitamins, antioxidants and nutrients.
20: Longan
This fruit is local known as lengkeng and the Latin name is Dimocarpus longan. It is a tree from south Asia and grow into very big trees of more than 40 meters high and a meter in diameter, with a thick crown. It can produce abundant amounts of sweet tasting fruits. The skin and seeds are not eaten. Orangutans put these fruits inside their mouth and within a second they separately spit out the skin and seed while eating the juicy fruit parts. The fruits can be hard to keep. They need to be harvested with pruning shears or scissors in the morning so they will stay fresh. This is how you always see them being sold in shops. Primates and sun bears like this fruit.
21: Duku
This small tree that can grow well mixed with other trees has fruits from stems and branches. They fruit once a year in good quantities. This tree, Lansium domesticum, is in English often referred to as Langsat. What people in Indonesia and Malaysia call Duku is actually the same species as Langsat only rarely has seeds. The green seeds can be astringent when bitten, hence the appreciation for this special variety with lots of sweet slightly sour fruits with a leathery peel. This species grows naturally in the forests of Indonesia but the Duku variety is a special selected variety that we will plant in Tasikoki.
22: Melinjo
This is a small tree named Gnetum gnemon in Latin. Both the fruits and leaves of this tree, the only non-liana in its genus, are used as vegetable or in various other recipes. The seeds of this tree can be made into slightly bitter tasting snacks. For the animals, including birds this is an interesting addition to their diet.
23: Bread fruit
This small tree, Artocarpus altilis, with big leaves and an open crown, has led to special expeditions in the past to find its seedlings to bring those to the Carribean. It was the crew of the famous Mutiny on the Bounty incident that brought the first ones from South East Asia. The Bread fruit, as the name indicates, contains a lot of nutritious starch and can both be used as a vegetable or ripe as a sweet tasting fruit. It produces fruit al yearlong in large quantities and is a real survival food.
24: Srikaya
This small tree, Annona squamosa, is also called The sugar-apple, sweetsop, or custard apple. And it is indeed very sweet in taste. The tree originates from the carribean but grows well at Tasikoki, the climate resembling that of its original distribution range. The fruit contains good amounts of vitamin C and various vitamin B compounds as well as a range of important nutrients. As such it is a great supplement that is not difficult to swallow for the animals at Tasikoki. The fruits are produced year-round.
25: Djengkol
The Archidendron pauciflorum tree belongs to the family of the beans. The sulfurous smelling seeds have a special taste that not everyone likes. This is a very easily growing tree that is native to south east Asia. Besides producing large amounts of these bean fruits the roots of this tree live in association with Rhizobium bacteria in root nodules that can fix nitrogen from the air and convert it to a form of nitrogen that is needed and can be taken up by plants. Orangutans love the fruit of this tree.
I met Liesbeth for the first time in Sintang when we were both supporters and volunteers helping where necessary with the rescued orphan orangutans at the Sintang Orangutan Centre (SOC) in West Kalimantan, Indonesia and had planned to do a lot more with Willie, Father Jacques and the team.
Liesbeth continued to support SOC after she returned to the Netherlands. She helped to run a stall to raise funds for the orangutans when Willie was giving a talk at Apenheul Primate Centre. She also donated veterinary supplies to the rescued orangutans there. She offered any help she could give for a cause that was so important to her- the rescue and loving care of orphaned primates.
In fact, Willie mentioned Liesbeth’s help with the first orangutan release to Tembak in his blog on 24th April, 2014:
The left a picture of our most recent meeting with Weesaapjes and friends of Liesbeth in Uden, the hometown of Liesbeth.
It was with heavy hearts that we discovered, very late, that Liesbeth did not have long for this world.
We were able to visit her natural resting place last year. A most suitable resting place for such a natural, caring person.
Source: 
The VSA Tasikoki Team with all the amazing donations.
The Bitung School introduced us to the culture of Indonesia, welcoming us with their traditional dance and traditional food such as panada. We socialized with the local school students, discussing our school environments and the difference between our cultures. The students were very kind and we were able to communicate fluently in English.
Visiting a third world country might not be the most appealing option when selecting your 2018 CAS trip, and it is definitely not the most enjoyable. Yet, were the other trips able witness the baby turtles hatching, and be given the opportunity to lead them into the ocean? Definitely not. The red light of our torches signalled the baby sea turtles on where they should go. Although only 50% of all baby sea turtles successfully find the sea, and only 0.2% grow up to the next generation, our contribution in the sea turtle project helped eliminate most obstacles the baby turtles experience dashing to the sea. However, due to the lack of time, we were only able to lead 1 baby turtle into the ocean out of the 118 baby turtle eggs, and it was the most relieving feeling to see the baby turtle swim off to his destination.
If we are to continue with our human pollution over the following years, these sugar palm trees might be the only solution to possibly revert our damage and revive the environment.
Adrienne sharing the aims of Masarang HK with the FIS Tasikoki Team
Angele Detilleul sharing her experience as a Masarang HK environmental ambassador
Questions from Professeur Bruno Hoareau
Adrienne and volunteer Thomas Gomersall with the FIS Tasikoki Team
