..::GCS @ Singapore Garden Festival 2006::..

In some ways, the recently concluded Singapore Garden Festival (SGF) has got to be the longest ten days of my life. On the other hand, it was a fleeting, but most treasured ten days for me in more ways than one. It was an exhilarating experience combining colourful sights and smells together with a wealth of new insight and knowledge. New acquaintances were made, and existing friendships were reinforced. On a personal level, the festival has changed my perception of myself being an atypical plant-growing teenager, and instilled a sense of belonging to the vibrant gardening community of Singapore.

Work started before the festival had even begun. Official administrative matters had to be settled, and display plants had to be grown and groomed. Calendar cards were designed and printed, while the metal rack and fluorescent lights had to be purchased to construct the light garden we planned to build. Set-up day arrived, and we entered the convention hall for the first time to see our assigned corner booth. It was pretty bare and spartan at first, but the GCS banner immediately brightened things up once it was in place. In fact, our booth was one of the first few to be completed, and we gazed across the aisle to an empty booth lined with shelves, wondering what they would hold. Little did we know that what we imagined to be a yet another booth selling books would be occupied by the largest bromeliad nursery in the whole of the United States of America?

It wasn't long before the first day of the festival dawned. Imagine my surprise and sheer pleasure to see the shelves of our neighbouring booth filled with rows upon rows of bromeliads and airplants of myriad form and colour. As we put the final touches on our own booth before the crowds came in, it was all I could do to restrain myself from openly staring at the Tropiflora bromeliads.

We got acquainted with our new neighbours in a jiffy. Mr. Dennis Cathcart is a world-renowned and respected bromeliad collector and grower hailing from Sarasota, Florida in the United States. Together with his wife, Mrs. Linda Cathcart, he has been running Tropiflora for over 30 years. Accompanying them was Mr. Brian Weber, one of Tropiflora's bromeliad growers. Although we were sad that Mrs. Cathcart had to leave early to spend Christmas with her family in Florida, we spent many hours during the ten-day duration of the exhibition talking to Mr. Cathcart and Mr. Weber, getting to know more about their work and their bromeliad collection back in their farm. Mr. Cathcart even presented slide shows of his various collecting forays in exotic locales such as Ecuador and Guatemala, which gave us better insight into the natural habitats of bromeliads and air plants. There was much to be learnt.

Fulfilling our duty as friendly neighbours, a number of us helped out at the Tropiflora booth when we were not required to tend our own, assisting in Mandarin translations and teaching customers how to care for their purchases properly. It was a new experience for me, talking to so many different people about growing bromeliads and air plants, day after day. Sure enough, the novelty of it wore off after a while, but light conversation with Mr. Cathcart and Mr. Weber kept work interesting and refreshing.

Apart from Tropiflora, there were also many other booths selling various orchids. Saucer-sized Cattleya flowers and mottled Phalaenopsis blooms lined the counters of many booths. The musky odour of Cycnoches warcewiczii was also constantly in the air, catching the attention of passers-by. Xuan Hong, Shao Xiong and I also helped out at Purificacion Orchids, a booth selling orchids from the Philippines run by a friendly lady named Anna and her mother, Mrs. Corazon Purificacion. Various species of native Bulbophyllum and Dendrobium orchids were available, including the prized Euanthe sanderiana or "Waling-Waling", as it is known in Tagalog.

Borneo Exotics (BE) was selling their plants at the National Parks Board's (NParks) booth, which is just a lane away from us. BE has a caresheet printed and the GCS website is the first on the list of the links! Thanks Rob for his kindness! That was another place packed with people and the crowd there can leave one wondering how Nepenthes can become such a major draw. Everyone was there trying to pick a plant and wanted to learn how to grow them at the same time. There was this buyer who decided to "consult" the NParks salesperson about how to grow Nepenthes. Unfortunately for the him, Rob was not around and the NParks salesperson knows nothing about the plants being sold. That is an indication of how important the mission of GCS is, that is, to provide the platform for newbies to learn the know-how from more experienced growers!

The landscape exhibits on the 6th storey were a sight to behold. Highlights were a cottage-style garden landscaped completely with tropical plants by the Chelsea team, a huge black dome containing an apocalyptic scene of trees in their throes of death reminding us to protect our environment, as well as a giant chandelier constructed out of hundreds of bromeliads strung up amidst brilliant blue lights, hanging majestically down from the ceiling. All in all, it was a highly commendable effort on the parts of the various landscaping teams.

One day blurred into another, and before long, the last day of the festival arrived far too soon. There was a scrumptious Christmas feast in the afternoon for SGF volunteers in the VIP Lounge, although I arrived a tad too late and missed the durian log cake, which I was told was simply excellent. Finally, evening approached and the festival drew to a close. The festival was concluded with the cutting of yet another log cake, followed by an impromptu singing of 'We Wish You a Merry Christmas' with Mr. Cathcart and Mr. Weber. I was filled with conflicting emotions as I helped to take down the posters and restore the booth to its original pristine state. A sense of fulfillment tinged with poignant regret would be an apt description - fulfillment after ten days of hard work, but a sense of loss at having to leave our new friends.

The Singapore Garden Festival 2006 shows us the merest glimpse of what lies in store for Singapore's gardening scene in the years to come. Within the next year, the new HortPark at Telok Blangah will be completed, giving us urban gardeners the means to better develop and nurture our passions. The Gardens by the Bay, which is scheduled to be completed within the next few years, will transform Singapore into a city that truly fits its namesake as a Garden City, and a City in a Garden. Most importantly however, as members of Green Culture Singapore, it should be our duty to spread the gardening fever to our fellow Singaporeans, and in so doing live up to our motto that 'Gardening is for everyone'.

This was our first time for GCS to be involved in an international garden festival. The inaugural Singapore Garden Festival was a memorable experience for all of us in GCS and we are honoured to have received the invitation from NParks to participate in this show.

I would like to extend a warm welcome to all new members who have just joined the GCS family. Please take some time to familarise yourself with the website and forum and do not hesitate to post a question on the forum or contact the moderators and administrator, if you need help.

I am sure that many of you will feel proud to be a GCS member. This is because we have members in our midst, who have, on their own accord, gone forward to help the vendors from overseas with the sales of plants. All of them have also gone to the extent to provide thoughtful growing instructions to local customers. This must have eased the difficulty caused by the language barrier that many of the overseas vendors will face. I am grateful for the trust and faith the vendors have given to our members. I thank you all.

My heartfelt gratitude goes to those members who have personally come to the GCS booth to say hello. Thank you for the support and for taking time off to come all the way to Suntec City to visit us. I felt extremely burnt out from the whole experience, which explains the sulky face that I have worn throughout the SGF. Although I should have stayed home to rest, I insisted to make it a point to be at the booth to give support all our volunteers, as well as, to meet members who would be coming to see us at the booth. I definitely worry that I have given a wrong impression to all members who had come by. I would like to seek the kind understanding and forgiveness from all of you!

Last but not least, I am grateful to the Singapore Garden Festival Working Group of members who have come forward to give your time, energy and cash to make this event possible. Without all of you, GCS won't be able to put up such a good show during the SGF.