Count Your Blessings!

With love and passion, everyone can have a nice garden...Elaine Yim

Count Your Blessings!
Count The Garden By The Flowers, Never By The Leaves That Fall.
Count Your Life With Smiles And Not The Tears That Roll.
..... Author unknown.

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Sunday, July 10, 2011

Putrajaya Floria 2011 - Part 2 The Show Has Begun (A Visitor's Guide)


The Floria 2011 Putrajaya Flower and Garden Festival has started! I am so excited to see this entrance. I can spend the whole day here. Like what my family members teased me, if I enter this expo, I won't leave until all my memory cards are full or my camera battery is empty. Hehe, I must admit that it is true. There are plenty of learning opportunities here - plants, flowers, herbs, landscaping and photography.

For those who are visiting Floria 2011, I hope this preliminary information will help you plan your visit there. For my friends who are outstation, overseas or not able to visit, I'd like to share with you my adventure/experiential learning opportunity.

“Putrajaya Floria 2011 - Part 2 The Show Has Begun" , a copyrighted post, was written for My Nice Garden blog by Autumn Belle @ http://www.mynicegarden.com/ on July 10th, 2011.



Remember to collect the Program from the front desk here. By the way, the venue is disabled friendly. Wheel chairs are available for rental.


Free shuttle buses are provided to ferry passengers from Putrajaya Sentral to the venue in Waterfront, Precinct 2.


Policemen on horseback patrolling the streets. The place is extremely crowded today, Sunday which is the 2nd day of the festival. Just look at the many cars at the parking lot nearby. There were less people on the first day, Saturday, 9th July.


This pamplet allows me to plan my visit. Knowing that this year's theme is "Roses Are Forever", I went there early in the morning. Roses do not last long. Since they are having the opening ceremony on the night of the 9th July 2011, I figure that it is best to go during the first few days of the festival.

If you go in the morning, the flowers are still fresh, having just opened. You may even get to photograph those still in buds and/or half opened. The weather is kinder in the morning too. Wear a cap, sunblock and good walking shoes, also bring a bottle of water. An umbrella will be great if you wish to do outdoor photography and it helps to minimise shadows. I find the natural lighting is kindest in the morning. If you wish to view the Fireworks display and lighted Floral Floats, then go in the evening.

At Floria 2011, the place I love most is the Taman Mawar (Rose Garden) which I have labelled above. This is the section of the Growers Landscaped Gardens. It is on the right side from the entrance (left in the picture above). The most gorgeous flowers in varioius colours, shapes and sizes can be found here. The main one is the Rose Garden with many varieties of lovely roses. Annuals on display include petunias, coreopsis, gerbera daisies, chrysanthemums, gazanias, fuchsias and dahlias while in the temperate garden, there are asiatic lilies, hydrangeas, cyclamen and more roses. Many of these plants we do not get to see and grow everyday due to our hot climate, so this is a great opportunity to feast on the eye candies.

There Growers Garden section is divided into:
  1. Rose Garden - Honey Bee World Trade
  2. Annual Garden - Brigthmark Sdn Bhd
  3. Temperate and Highland Garden - Flora & Koleksi Meksu Sdn Bhd
  4. Orchid garden - Orchid Society of Malaysia
  5. Bonsai Garden - Sanfong Bonsai & Art Garden
  6. Herb Garden - Forever Landscape
  7. Hibiscus Garden - Riyam Landscape Enterprise
  8. Heliconia Garden - Heliconia International Society

Asiatic lilies and Polianthes tuberosa (bunga sundal malam) at the Temperate Garden
The Floral Avenue with giant ladybugs which I hightlighted in my previous post was swarmed with shutter bugs every day. Other bugs include flying insects and mainly dragonflies but I did not see any butterflies. They have vincas, impatients, chrysanthemums, petunias and some roses. Floral Avenue is located right in front of the main entrance but this is not the main attraction.

I think the most beautiful flowers are at the Growers Gardens, the section on the right of the main entrance. Surely you will fall in love with the Temperate and Highlands Garden where there are rows upon rows of gorgeous daylilies and Polianthus tuberosa blooms (bunga sundal malam). Their perfumes are invigorating. Wow, I have never seen so many live daylilies in all the Florias (since 2009) that I had previously attended.


Can you see the Ekor Kucing (Cat's Tail) plant in the foreground ?

This section is a landscaped traditional Malay styled 'kampung' (village) garden. Perhaps many of us will have fond memories of yesteryears after seeing the familiar herbs, spice plants, fruits and flowers among the charming rustic settings. Remember the attap huts with tree trunks pillars? How about big water urns for holding tap water for our cool floral baths and clothes washing? And the titi kayu staircases up the tempat bersantai? Also the sabut kelapa walkways and stone pathways, the clogs we wear, the guli and lima batu kiddy game we used to play with free-range chicken, ducks and geese running around freely in the neighbourhood?



Here, they have recreated the dream gardens of yesteryears complete with swings, fountains and ponds, attap huts, wooden decks, even live birds like pigeons and parrots. Now if you wish to have your own 'Nusantara', Laman Indah or Malaysian Gardens in the city, there are plenty of ideas here to fire your imagination.


"Roses" made from a stalk of Pandan (Pandanus amaryllifolius) leaves.
As my mom used to say, a pandan plant in the garden is the sign of a good cook in the family!

Penang Minicaipal Garden - Bamboo and steel pergola with hanging bird cages and baskets of petunias

Roses were used everywhere, in every garden. There are many landscaping designs and concepts on display. If you like English roses in English gardens, American and Asian roses in rural settings, lavender fields, chrysanthemums, vincas and hanging petunias, or are planning to decorate your living space for the coming Hari Raya season, Floria 2011 is a great place to get new ideas. Observe the type of plants they use in the mixed borders, the furniture, the softscapes and hardscapes.


These red trucks are not from the Bomba (Fire dept) or FRU (Federal Reserve Units).  They serve pizzas, KFC and Ayamas roast chicken rice on mobile meals on wheels!

I didn't go to view the Fireworks Display and Floral Light Parades because I wish to avoid the large crowd and congestion during the opening cememony which was telecast live from RTM 1. Meanwhile, wishing you lots of fun visiting Floria 2011!

If time permits, I'll be posting everyday. More pictures on My Nice Garden Facebook. You may enter via my sidebar or click here.

More gorgeous flowers on the way ..... to be continued.

3 comments:

  1. Selamat Datang. We both did not blog for a while, One is also doing some reunions. If only i am near we will be going there together everyday, because one day is only for a garden type. You should have another battery reserve, haha! I love that Pandanus knots, very creative. We do some art objects also with our coconut leaves. How far drive is your house from Putrajaya?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Andrea, yes, it'll be nice to go together! Regarding the spare battery it will cost about RM 100.00 which I think it is expensive. The battery can last about 500 pics. The distance between 40-50km from my house to Putrajaya, or about 40 min drive. If I was staying in Penang, I would also had gone to the floral festival at Penang Botanical Gardens!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh my, I just love all of the bright colors in this Garden Showing. The sea of lilies and flowers from the pagoda is just an amazing sight.What a wonderful show to visit.

    ReplyDelete

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