リー・シェンロンさんのインスタグラム写真 - (リー・シェンロンInstagram)「Picked up this interesting item during a #jalanjalan at the Southern Ridges. It looks a bit like Darth Vader minus his helmet! Can you #guesswhat it is? :) ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ - - - - - - - - - - - - Many of you recognised it! It is the shell of a rubber tree seed. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Rubber trees are not uncommon in Singapore. They are the remnants of the old rubber plantations planted by the early settlers. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The first rubber tree was successfully transplanted in the Singapore Botanic Gardens in 1877, from 22 seedlings transferred from Kew Gardens in the UK, which had in turn been brought from Brazil. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The first Director of the Botanic Gardens, Henry Nicholas Ridley (one of the pioneers featured on the SG Bicentennial commemorative $20 note), was instrumental in promoting the cultivation of rubber trees. He invented the “herring-bone” method of rubber tapping, which allowed large quantities of latex to be extracted in a series of shallow cuts without killing the tree. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The Botanic Garden’s role in rubber cultivation and research was a major factor that earned it the UNESCO World Heritage Site status. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Rubber, along with tapioca, nutmeg, pepper and gambier, was an important cash crop in early Singapore. By 1911, Singapore had become the hub for the world rubber industry and trade. At one time, 40% of our land area was covered with rubber plantations! Businessmen like Tan Kah Kee, Lee Kong Chian, and Lim Nee Soon made their fortunes from rubber. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ The rubber plantations are long gone, but rubber was part of the journey that brought us here today. – LHL ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ (Photo by me) ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀」8月30日 19時02分