SINGAPORE, March 31 — From touching pieces of the white flaky bark from the Gelam tree, to strolling on a tree-canopy-level boardwalk, to wandering into the freshwater wetland habitats, visitors will get to experience these and more at the Singapore Botanic Gardens’ new Learning Forest.

Officially launched by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong today, the 10ha secondary forest next to Tyersall Avenue houses more than 700 plant species and more than 200 species of fauna.

It is also linked to the main garden’s 6ha nature area — one of Singapore’s few remaining patches of primary rainforest — and contains some of the plant species found there.

Back in the 19th century, the forest site was used for cultivation and later, for large residential estates before it was set aside as part of the Singapore Botanic Gardens’ extension plans in 2009.

The Botanist’s Boardwalk section of the Learning Forest, which has signs with information on the early botanists of the Singapore Botanic Gardens. — TODAY pic

The National Parks Board (NParks) said that construction works for this secondary forest took slightly less than three years, and it involved restoring former habitats as well as regenerating certain species of flora.

Today, it features a lowland forest ecosystem at its southern end, and at its northern tip are a 1.8ha forest wetland, a collection of wild fruit trees, and a bamboo garden. The forest also forms part of the protective buffer zone against the urban development around the gardens, which is a Unesco World Heritage Site.

Visitors will be able to trek past giant trees that can grow up to 60m tall along an 8m-high, 260m-long elevated boardwalk. Lining the boardwalk are trees such as the Sea Apple tree, which used to be planted by the British as firebreaks near the highly flammable lalang wastelands.

Other plant species include the forest palms such as the Ibul, which has seeds toxic enough to kill an elephant. The Gelam tree, which gave heritage district Kampong Glam its name, has a unique white flaky bark and visitors can get to feel the bark’s spongy texture.

The Canopy Web at the SPH Walk of Giants section of the Learning Forest allows visitors to experience being up in a Tembusu tree. — TODAY pic

Further up north of the forest, NParks also restored the wetland ecosystem that was already there in the 1860s. It now includes more than 200 plant species. There, visitors will find a freshwater swamp habitat, Pulai Marsh, that eventually feeds into Swan Lake, a natural water source in the main garden. They may also see flora species such as Pulai Basong — fewer than 20 of its kind are left in Singapore. Fauna such as the Red-legged Crake and the Black Marsh Terrapin are some of the inhabitants in the marshland.

Located near the wetlands are the man-made Orchid Islands, where native orchids thrive. Some of the species include the yellow and red Deer Antlered Phalaenopsis, which was once extinct but has been reintroduced by NParks.

Over at the wild fruit tree arboretum, there are more than 50 species of trees. One is the bright yellow-orange Asam Gelugor, a critically endangered species that has fruit which can grow up to 10cm in diameter, and another is the Redan tree, where the fruit is a hairless relative of the rambutan.

Members of the media walk through the Keppel Discovery Wetlands section of the Learning Forest. — TODAY pic

Another learning area is the the bambusetum, which features more than 30 species of bamboo found in Asia. Of note is the Giant Bamboo, which can grow up to 10 storeys, and its stems are wide enough to be used as buckets when cut.

Speaking at the official opening of the forest, Lee said the gardens' was successful in its Unesco bid because for more than 150 years, Singapore took special care of the gardens.

Now, the Learning Forest builds on this legacy of conservation and improvement, he said.

While takes decades to plant a garden or forest, Lee added that in the fullness of time, the new forest will be able to enrich Singapore's natural heritage.

Admission to the Learning Forest is free, and it is open from 5am to midnight daily. The wetlands and the boardwalk will be closed from 7pm to 7am to keep a conducive environment for the wildlife. — TODAY