Time to Smell the Orchids

Yesterday, I took my dear mother to the Singapore Garden Festival. And my, I have never seen so many aunties and uncles toting their cameras and happily taking photos of plants. (I also spotted my own dear auntie amongst the crowds). It was not just a garden festival but a sort of mega get-together of the plant- and gardening community.

I must admit that as a non-gardener (and owner of a new camera) my main interest was in taking photos, but even I got caught up in the arresting fantasy gardens, the appealing and inviting landscape gardens and the multitude of orchids of every shape, variety and hue, which were on display. My mother's favourite was the Chelsea Pensioner's Garden, which is a tropical version of a prize-winning garden exhibited at the Chelsea Flower Show. What makes this garden so exciting and interesting is the great variety of plants on offer - and how they have been able to introduce local plants and herbs, and even vegetables! I personally think that instead of a Chelsea Pensioner they could have made it a "Kampong Headman's Garden", to bring it closer to Asia. But, the crowd loved the two old soldiers in their bright red coats (my mother took her picture with one) and this was one of the most popular gardens in the whole festival. Another memorable garden aimed to present an "abstract expression" of Singapore. This was essentially a series of rectangles filled with neat rows of cacti with different coloured flowers on top. Whilst I am sure it must have been a challenge to find so many cacti flowering at the same time, it was the tongue-in-cheek nature of the display which amused me.

It was also pretty exciting to go around the orchid displays as this allowed me to get closer to the plants to practice macro shots. But with so many people with the same idea (those who did not bring their cameras with them were using their camera phones) there was not much time to linger over composing and focusing each shot. I must admit that I have never seen or even conceived that there could be such a variety of orchids - big, small, with large petals and with twistie-like petals, and of many different colours. I suppose this is the result of all the hybridisation which goes on. I also saw Annika Sorenson's orchid - she was apparently present on the opening day of the festival and was presented with her own special orchid. Well, we have certainly named orchids after stranger people

It was perhaps in the retail section that the avid gardeners find occasion to "express" themselves. There was everything that any gardener could want. My mother found her Neem tree products (apparently the Neem is an Indian wonder-tree which fertilises and repels pests all at the same time) and started signing up with various groups (like the Green Guides at the Singapore Environment Council booth).

So it looks like Singapore is going the right route in promoting ourselves as the City in a Garden (or whatever the NParks slogan is). Perhaps a little more inclusiveness in getting Singaporeans into the process would help? I remember that "neighbourhood" gardens in the US had come about when individuals started converting the eyesors at the corners of their streets into miniature gardens. Judging from the crowds at the festival, perhaps there are sufficient Singaporeans who would be happy to help beautify the areas around them (particularly, say, if the cost of materials etc was not borne by them but by their town council? Which then does not need to pay for landscaping and gardening services). Hmmm