With its girth of 10.2m, the largest tree in Singapore is located near the entrance of Shangri La Rasa Sentosa Resort. This angsana tree is believed to be planted by the British more than 100 years ago.
Former policeman Mr Yusri joined the resort as a gardener just 2 weeks after its opening and has been a caretaker of this tree since 1993. He loves it for the shade it provides with its large crown. In the early days, he and his team used to get up to the intersection between the branches to prune the tree, but as it got taller — it is now 27 metres high — they started to rely on contractors.
He also pays close attention to the tree’s health, regularly checking its fallen leaves to check if they are spotted, which is a sign of the fatal “Angsana Wilt” fungal disease.