When I first caught the orchid bug a number years ago, I didn’t know too many things about these plants and the conditions they would need to grow well. I placed all my orchids at the corridor, and over time, even the toughest of the lot succumbed to the constant exposure to the harsh, drying winds. With my ego bruised and having burnt a big hole in my pocket, I told myself that I wasn’t going to grow any of them again. Or so I thought.

Some 2 years later, after I had ‘refurbished’ the entire growing area and filled it with more ‘wind resistant’ plants, I chanced upon this pretty Coelogyne spp in one of the nurseries. The flowers were a delicate greenish-white and the rusty orange markings on the lip were a lovely contrast. I was smittened and bought the plant without hesitation.

Side profile of Coelogyne spp, showing the reflexed petals and the markings on the side of the lip.

But folly it was not  - discouraging experiences of the past were now valuable lessons. While I again placed the plant at the corridor this time round, I knew I could make some adjustments to the way I grew it. Instead of having the plant mounted on fern bark like what fellow growers were doing, I started it off in a heavy-duty plastic pot filled with charcoal bits. To reduce the effect of the constant, drying winds, the pot was shielded by larger, more wind resistant foliage plants. By sitting it (tightly fitted, to make sure mozzies can’t breed!) in a slightly larger pot with a little water, the plant could now draw moisture from the temporary ‘service reservoir’ that would last at least a day or two without watering.

And this growing regime worked - not only did this Coelogyne spp grow, it flourished! It is now one of my top bloomers (the only other rivals are my Hoyas that bloom en-masse), flowering at 3 - 4 month intervals. The last time it bloomed, the plant put out 3 spikes (on new pseudobulbs) and 14 flowers! This is quite a feat for this little plant, considering that it’s small enough to fit snugly into a pot just about 12cm wide.

The story didn’t end here – a fellow orchid grower commented that this could very well be the prized Coelogyne tommii on seeing the flowers ! Whatever this maybe, it will always be a trophy to me, a pleasant reminder of how Ms ‘black fingers’ became ‘green’. So for all the gardeners out there who are thinking of giving up – think again! There may be hope yet – a little adjustment maybe all it takes!

Front view of the same flower 

Lily Chen

Today one of our gardening member, Mdm Kwoh Toh harvested tapioca and passion fruits at our RC community garden. Tapioca(cassava) or ubi kayu in malay is easily propagated by stems cutting. The young leaves are consumed as a green vegetables boiled and eaten with sambal belacan or cook in coconut milk with anchovies….hmmm delicious!

Trekking in the mountainous terrains of the Himalayas has got me hooked.  Having been to the Himalayas in India and Nepal, I have learnt truly the meaning of nature, the circle of life and witnessed first hand our impact on the environment.  As a conscientious trekker, I was determined to leave the mountain as I see it and live up to the familiar notion of “leave nothing but footprints, take nothing but photographs”.  In such a breathtaking place, it is difficult not to fall in love with nature and take pleasure in the calming sights, sounds and smells of the rainforest; God’s garden for man’s enjoyment.

Himalayas in the summer was brimming with the burst of colours from a wide array of wild flowers.  I got to be careful not to tread on them as they were strewed all over the landscape, along forest trails, beside mellow streams and gushing rivers.  However upon reaching snow, their presence was abruptly cut off.  This left me wondering what kind of flowering plants can survive in the harsh alpine environment, and what insects pollinate them if there are any. 

There is little wonder that Rhododendron arboreum is the national flower of Nepal.  They are beautiful and abundant and can be found from 1200m to 2000m in altitude.  They vary in colour from red to pink, spotted to white.  However the most striking was this picturesque image of deep red Rhododendrons with the snow-capped mountain as a backdrop.

Signature flower of the Himalayas that has an interesting globular inflorescent.

These small yellow flowers remind me of the creeping daisy we find here.

Himalayan blue poppy

 Eleanor Soh

In one of the Sunday morning during June holidays, I went for a morning walk with my father to a park near to our Hotel in Ho Chin Min City; Vietnam. We saw some unique planters in the park and my father decided to take some photographs.

Green Bridge Planter

Green Bridge Planter