Only in Sabah: World's first garden of nickel plants
Sabah is proud to be home to the world's first Nickel Botanical Garden, located at the Monggis Ranau Substation, about 150km from here.
Sabah Parks Trustee Board member Sukaibin Sumail, who is a botanist, told Bernama that the one-hectare garden was part of Kinabalu Park, which is a Unesco World Heritage Site.
He said the garden was home to 12 species of nickel-accumulating plants that are considered rare in Sabah and the world.
These include Phyllanthus rufuschaneyi, Phyllanthus balgooyi, Actephila alanbakeri, Rinorea bengalensis, Walsura pinnata, Mischocarpus sundaicus, Phyllanthus kinabaluicus, Psychotria sarmentosa, Xylosma luzonensis, Glochidion sp, Glochidion sp 2 and Rinorea cf. javanica.
"There are two ways to test for the presence of metals in the leaves of this plant - by using detector paper containing the chemical Dimethylglyoxime (DMG) and by using a handheld X-ray fluorescence analyser," he said.
Source : https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2025/09/1274940/only-sabah-worlds-first-garden-nickel-plants
Image Credit : Sukaibin Sumail