The Formosa Lily (Lilium formosanum) Which is Often Mistaken as a Benguet Liliy (Lilium philippinense)

When I wrote about the Benguet lily (𝙇𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙪𝙢 𝙥𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙥𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙚) yesterday and mentioned that it's a "threatened" species, a reader sent a message saying that she saw some Benguet lilies very recently in Mount Yangbew.

I went there this afternoon to check. Yes, indeed, I saw two lilies in full bloom there. Unfortunately, they are not Benguet lilies. They are Taiwanese lilies or Formosa lilies (𝙇𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙪𝙢 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙖𝙣𝙪𝙢). You can tell by the significant streaks of the color purple on the outside of the flower. 

According to a study on the Benguet lily published in 2023, the Benguet lily has pure white flowers. Check out my previous post about the Benguet lily to compare photos. The researchers also mentioned that Benguet lilies "are found only in stony and gravelly soils and never in red oxide soils". Mount Yangbew has red oxide soils. 

The Benguet lily and Formosa lily look very similar to each other. So mistaking the more abundant Formosa lily as a Benguet lily is a very common mistake. 

The study I referenced above was by Jennifer Paltiyan Bugtong, Rey Lumpio, and Jones Napaldet. The title of their paper is "Morpho-Anatomy and Mathematical Modelling in Lilium philippinense Baker from Cordillera Central Range, Philippines".

A Cauliflory Tree Common in the Cordillera Region

Learned a new word today: 𝗰𝗮𝘂𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗹𝗼𝗿𝘆. This is a botanical term that refers to plants and trees that flower and fruit from their main stems or woody trunks. 

Even more interesting is that this phenomenon is a product of evolutionary adaptation. Basically, trees that exhibit this botanical phenomenon developed it to make it easier for birds, bats, and animals to reach their flowers for pollination and their fruits for seed dispersal.

So yes, developing flowers and fruits on their stems and trunks is the key to their survival as distinct species.

A great example of a cauliflory tree is this wild fig tree that's quite common in Cordillera's mountains. We spotted this one in Atok, Benguet. Cordilleran words for it: tebbel, tebfel, labay, ballay.

Philippine Arbor Day: We Need to Plant More Native Trees

Today, June 25, is Philippine Arbor Day. It's a day meant to highlight and celebrate the importance of trees. It's a day for raising awareness about the environment as well as encouraging individuals and communities to plant trees. 

This is why hundreds of tree-planting activities were conducted today all over the country by local government units and private organizations. According to the DENR, around 4,000,000 trees in total were planted in today's activities. 

Let's hope that these tree-planting activities focused on planting native trees, not invasive or introduced species of trees. During interactions with foresters, I've learned that many tree-planting activities in the country are counter-productive because these involve planting trees that upset a local region's biodiversity instead of enriching it. 

This point was driven home when I attended a talk by Ethan Hernandez (forester, content creator) last month in Baguio City. Hernandez pointed out the problem with these tree-planting activities that involve introduced species while highlighting the importance of planting native species of trees. 

The point is we should plant more native trees. Like this wild fig tree laden with fruits that we saw during a hike in between Pasdong and Naguey in Atok, Benguet. The Ibaloys call this tree "tebbel" or "tebfel". The Kankana-eys call it "labay" or "ballay". 

Here's a fun fact: the town of Itogon declared this tree as their "municipal tree".

Baguio City: Street Art or Vandalism

𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗿 𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗺? I saw these wall markings at the pedestrian bridge along Bonifacio Street. It reminded me of the never-ending debate on what constitutes urban art and when it should be considered as vandalism. 

Baguio City has been tackling vandalism issues for as long as I can remember. Last year, Councilor Van Dicang proposed an amendment to the Anti-Graffiti Code of Baguio City. The proposed amendment includes the creation of legal art zones in the city where street artists can freely express their craft. If I'm not mistaken, this proposed ordinance was approved by the city council on second reading on January of this year.

Also, even before this proposed ordinance by Councilor Dicang, a very similar ordinance was proposed by Councilor Leandro Yangot in 2024. Yangot called for the designation of artistic spaces in barangays of the city. This way, urban artists can use these designated spaces as their canvas instead of defacing public structures and private properties.

Photo: Baguio City Public Market in the Late 1980s

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝗴𝘂𝗶𝗼 𝗖𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝟭𝟵𝟴𝟬𝘀. I was browsing through a travel/adventure book published in 1990 by Reader's Digest when I came across this interesting photo. The caption for the photo says it was taken at the Baguio City public market where "𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘩 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘸𝘣𝘦𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴, 𝘨𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘭𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘴 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘮𝘴" were being sold.

A Century-Old Narra Tree Inside the Benguet State University (BSU) Campus?

𝗔 𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗿𝘆-𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗮 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗦𝗨 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗽𝘂𝘀? A recent Facebook post by the College of Forestry of the Benguet State University stated that this large narra tree (𝘗𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘱𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘶𝘴) standing outside the BSU-SLS building may be more than 100 years old.

According to the post, forest experts from the college made the 100-plus age estimate "based on the tree's size and growth characteristics".

It could be. BSU was established in 1916 as the La Trinidad Farm School. For the narra tree there to be more than 100 years old, it should've been planted there between 1916 and 1926. 

If you ever pass by the tree there, go for a closer look. It's a magnificent tree. Especially with its golden-yellow flowers.

Narra trees are considered a threatened species in the Philippines.

Entering Naguey, Atok, Benguet from Pasdong

Coming from the side of Pasdong, you enter the community of Naguey in Atok, Benguet. The community is overlooking the Amburayan River. Ricefields and farms dot the slopes of the nearby mountains.