The Johor Bahru International Orchid Show is an annual event held in Johor, West Malaysia. This year’s International Orchid Show is the 6th one since its inaugural show in 1999.  This show is reputed to be the largest of its kind in the region and lasts from 25th May to 3rd Jun 2007 at Danga Bay.

Having missed the show last year in 2006 due to other commitments, I told myself that I had to go this year to visit the region’s biggest orchid show.  So Chong Ren and I went to Johor together on a weekend morning hoping to spend a fulfilling day at the show.  Located near the Woodlands Causeway at the southern tip of Johor, the orchid show was easily accessible via taxi and we arrived there around 9am in the morning.

The show comprised of 2 sections, one being floral displays by international societies all over the world and the other being the retail section.  I felt that the international floral displays were really interesting and the variety of landscape designs and types of orchids used to create these displays were amazing.  Below is a pictorial tour of the various displays at the show:

The Australian display incorporating unique features of Australia’s wildlife signages

The Denmark display with lush greenery and unique orchids

  
The beautiful Pleurothalids in the German display

 The Italian display uses terrestrials such as Cypripedium to spice up their display, creating a country side feel

It was really amazing to see the mouth-watering temperate orchids not usually found in our tropical climate, though it was noticeable some of the displays were suffering from the oppressive heat.  Other than orchids, there were also other plants used to make the displays more vibrant, as shown in some of the displays:

 
Tropical pitcher plants (Nepenthes) were used to decorate the displays creating a ‘jungle’ feel

The retail section was the place where most people looked forward to, as there were many nurseries selling all kinds of orchids there.  However, I noticed that most, if not all of the stalls were from Malaysia itself, thus it might be even more interesting if overseas nurseries brought plants to sell, attracting more international tourists.  Nevertheless, Johor is the world’s second largest exported of orchids, so no worries about the variety of orchids sold there. The variety of orchids available range from commercial hybrids to orchid species such as the more common Bulbophyllum, Cattleya, Phalaenopsis and the lesser-seen Habenaria, Gongora and Slipper orchid species.

  
Dendrobium hybrids (left) and assortment of orchid species (right)

  
Brassavola cucullata (left) and Gongora sp. (right)

 
Bulbophyllum lobii (left) and Paphiopedilum lowii (right)

There were also many non-orchid plants available to cater for those who would want more variety in their purchases.  They include cacti, Hoya and other house plants.

  
Nepenthes sp. (left) and Hibiscus sp. (right)

  
Dioscorea elephantipes (left) and Hoya archboldiana (right)

Assortment of cacti

Comparing this show with the Singapore Garden Festival held in Suntec City last year, I must say that there are pros and cons of having a show indoors and outdoors.  Though the lighting in an outdoor display is poorer, an outdoor show has a more realistic feel to a horticultural show.  An indoor plant exhibition enhances the visitor’s experience with the comfortable air-conditioned hall but faces limitations in the transportation of large plants.  This orchid show has more international displays but the Singapore Garden Festival features more international retailers. 

Overall, this trip was a memorable one with so many interesting orchids to admire.  Looking forward to visiting more plant exhibitions in the future, I hope that this show, as well as those around Asia would continue to improve so as to boost the image of South-East Asia’s horticultural endeavours and encourage more people to pick up the hobby of gardening.

Note : Lim Xuan Hong is a young, active member of the forum and will be giving a talk at the end of this month through the CIB-GCS-NLB series of gardening talks. 

- by Lim Xuan Hong

I woke up really enthusiatic, looking forward to our excursion to the Bollywood Veggies Farm in the afternoon.

After finishing my rounds around my site, the preparation for the excursion began. I was assigned to prepare the snacks for the children. I went buzzing around getting the buns ready for them. Then it was time to go to the Metta School in Simei.

When I reached the school, I thought the first thing I needed to do was to coax the children onto the bus. But to my surprise, the children were all seated comfortably on the bus all ready for their excursion to the farm.

It was a long journey of about an hour from Simei to Bollywood Veggies in Lim Chu Kang. When the children were finally there, they were happily tucking into sumptuous snacks of fried chicken, fries and Milo while waiting for the arrival of the volunteers.

When the volunteers arrived, we began our tour around the farm. Our guide of the day was none other than Ms Ivy Singh, the owner. She was really entertaining and informative, bringing the children and volunteers lots of laughter aside from information on all the different kinds of vegetables on her farm. It was a total eye-opener for not just the children but also the volunteers.

Apart from a wide variety of bananas on the farm and really huge bitter gourds, we were treated to a new experience of a totally environmentally-friendly “Pee Wee” in the countryside, where our excretion is recycled for use as fertilizers for the vegetables. Even though it was a hot weekday afternoon, everyone was enjoying themselves at the farm.

After the guided tour, the children and volunteers were treated to icy cold drinks and air-conditioned comfort in the restaurant of the farm. It was time for some games for the children. They were taught to make cute litter paper swans and rabbits by our committee member, Ms Lily Lee. This was a great time for the volunteers to interact with the children, guiding them along the Origami lesson. It was really all fun and laughter.

When it was finally time for the children to board the bus back to their school, we had difficulty breaking that to the children as they were having such a wonderful time.

It was really a fun and enjoyable excursion, with everyone looking forward to the next one.

- by Ng Tze Peng

As a Singaporean, my memories of Singapore Botanic Gardens (SBG) are vague. I have only been there once during my childhood days, and this place still remains unexplored to me, as well as to many others, I believe.

However, a rare opportunity allowed me to join the league of foreigners to explore the place on a drizzling day. Our Botanic Gardens is a visitor-friendly park. With signs and maps, you’ll never get lost. What caught my attention was the National Orchid Garden.

Over 1000 species and 2000 hybrids are now found in the Garden’s collection. For some, there were even interesting facts. For example, certain orchid hybrids were named after visiting State Dignitaries and VIPs from within and outside Singapore (Think Princess Diana, Ricky Martin). In addition, there is a cool house located along the pathway. It encloses a montane tropical forest, bound to amaze you with their orchids and carnivorous plants. Fear not if you know nuts about plants. Be an aspiring photographer for a day, and let your creative juices flow in this picturesque environment.

So don’t give our very own Botanic Gardens a miss this time! Bring your family and friends for a unique experience.

Orchids at the National Orchid Garden

Walkway at the Botanic Gardens

- by Ching Zheng Wen

1. By inflorescence form

Left : Erect (upwards) - eg. H. stricta ‘Bucky’

Middle : Pendulous (hanging) - eg. H. chartacea ‘Sexy Pink’

Right : Contorted - eg. H. collinsiana x bourgaeana ‘Pedro Ortiz’

Left : Distichous (arranged on opposite sides in the same plane) - eg. H. rostrata

Right : Spiral - eg. H. chartacea ‘Sexy Pink’

2. By leaf form

Left : Musoid (banana-like leaves) - eg. H. bihal

Middle : Zingiberoid (ginger-like leaves) - eg. H. hirsuta

Right : Cannoid (canna-like leaves) - eg. H. metallica

COMMON HELICONIA

The following photos depict Heliconia commonly grown in public by the National Parks Board. Do any of them look familiar?

Heliconia psittacorum

A relatively small, yet floriferous Heliconia. There are many varieties available in the market, all of which are equally easy to cultivate. However, it has a tendency to become extremely invasive without proper management, and may become impossible to eradicate from the ground.

Heliconia psittacorum x spathocircinata

Commonly known by its cultivar name, ‘Golden Torch’, this H. psittacorum hybrid, has the potential to become rather invasive. However, the golden yellow bracts are attactive, especially when planted en masse.

Heliconia rostrata

This Heliconia is one of the most easily cultivated pendant species, forming long, hanging inflorescences that can carry up to cover 20 bracts. However, it has a tendency to develop rather spindly stems if not fertilized sufficiently, forming sparse and untidy clumps.

Heliconia x nickeriensis

Heliconia x nickeriensis is a actually hybrid between H. marginata and H. psittacorum. This Heliconia requires sufficient light to initiate flowering, without which it tends to form large, dense clumps of waxy dark green leaves without producing inflorescences.

EXOTIC HELICONIA

Now, for some far more exotic Heliconia… Just keep in mind that all of the following Heliconia can be grown easily here. Given the appropriate conditions, they will thrive and flourish with minimal care, rewarding the grower with magnificent and numerous blooms. Why not try your hand at planting some Heliconia today?

Top, from left to right: H. lingulata, H. bihai ‘Peachy Pink’, H. stricta cultivar

Bottom, from left to right: H. champneiana cultivar, H. bihai ‘Kuma Negro’, H. ‘Cinnamon Twist’

Top, from left to right: H. vellerigera, close-up of hairy bracts of H.vellerigera, H. mariae

Bottom, from left to right: H. stilesii, H. ‘Temptress’, H. x flabellata

- by Ong Chong Ren

P/S (Read more about my 3-part series on Heliconias - Part 1 & Part 2).