Page 15 - Tạp chí bonsai cây cảnh BCI 2017Q1

Top; Tugas are commonly found in the
South Cotabato - Sarangani provinces.
Bottom; Tugas, Vitex trifolia, 51 cm, by Jun
Serapio.

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as an indigenous herbal medicine locally known as Lagundi is classified as Vitex negundo. Some
popular literature gives credence to the classification of Tugas as Vitex trifolia, however, the academic M ALAY SIA
community accepts the classification of Tugas as Vitex parviflora, which is consistent with the
classification by E. D. Merril in his landmark book, A Flora of
Manila. While Merril published his material in 1912, there are new
editions which are continuously used as academic reference. The
uncertainty of Tugas’ taxonomy was similarly asserted by Prof. Ben
Bareja, an Agronomist from Mindanao State University (MSU), in
an interview conducted by the authors. Herden Pedrajas, current
Internal Secretary of the Philippine Bonsai Society, Inc. (PBSI)
further gave a twist on this controversy in his book, Mindanao
Bonsai. Pedrajas recognized the close association of Tugas with
Vitex parviflora and Vitex negundo and echoed an opinion from
technicians of the Philippine Bureau of Forestry that Tugas maybe
classified as Vitex triflora or Vitex trifolia, finally adopting Vitex
trifolia, based on local interviews. Given this unsettled taxonomic
issues in the scientific circles on the Linnean classification of
Tugas, the writers will just rely on its locally accepted name as
Tugas and refrain from endorsing a scientific name.
Endemic Geography of Tugas
The Philippines is an archipelagic country, located just above the
equator and classified as belonging to both “The Pacific Ring of Fire”
and “World’s Typhoon Belt.” These conditions, which are rich in
karstic limestone and volcanic formations are visited by numerous
typhoons every year. Furthermore the hot-humid, year-round
conditions conspire to create some of the trees’ characteristics: hardy,
gnarled, twisted, with an aged look. One such fine examples of a tree
that excellently exhibits these characters and more, is the material
commonly found in the South Cotabato - Sarangani provinces. The
Tugas found in these southern parts of the Philippines exhibit some
unique character, which is not commonly found in Molave, and
which makes them outstanding bonsai material. To sum it up: thick
foliage that can be easily trained to few centimeters and internodes
that can be reduced considerably in length. On another note, some
important contributing factors to the uniqueness of Tugas materials
are historical/cultural factors such as the commercial and domestic
logging tradition of the area. Logged trees from the 1950s to 1980s
resprouted from stumps of old trees. Such specimen, locally called
“tuod”, display excellent nebari. Also, the cultural practice of slash-
and-burn agriculture or “kaingin,” created burnt stumps and
branches that gave rise to natural jin, shari and sabamiki.

January/February/March 2017 | BCI | 13