The Philippine Horticultural Society, Inc. holds annual garden show at the Quezon Memorial Circle, Quezon City. It normally is scheduled at the beginning of the year when weather in Metro Manila is still more comfortable compared to later months when the dry season is at its peak. This show marks the start of our hot and dry season. It was shortened this year to only 8 days because the plants in the exhibit area normally cannot recover anymore after the 2-wk display. The theme now is gardening with a heart, literally and figuratively, and also because of the approaching Valentine's Day. Lectures are also scheduled daily for the whole duration of the show.
Two sites are always allotted for the show, one for the landscape design and exhibit, where prizes are given. The other site is occupied by the commercial booths, where fruit trees to cactuses are available for sale. My office is just a short distance ride from the area, so i can always pop-in when i feel like it.
The big heart design is easily accomplished with the more common flowering plants: marigolds, torenia, impatiens, etc.
The big acacia tree, Samanea saman, provided a beautiful backdrop for back to back exhibit. This side is composed of the aroids and ferns, while at the back of this shot, facing the entrance are mostly decorated with hoyas. The left side is planted with agaves, orchids and philodendrons and other filling plants. Even the high branches are laden with cascading plants, making it like a natural setting.
The above basket holds a lot of epiphytes but mostly hoya, hanging on a very high tree branch.
Another landscape design is full of very colorful array of ornamentals, with a heart full of tillandsias.
Desert designs are always present in these shows, the above is just one of the three designs this year. The rocks look so natural, while the cactus are already big and a collectors' item. Those cactus at the far left could have already been with the owner for several decades.
Urban gardening styles are also very well featured in this year's show. Above is just one of them, with recycled soft drink bottles. Those plants at the center on a vertical stand are all growing on those bottles. With the decreasing spaces for gardening in the cities, these designs and vertical strategies get so much attention and adoptors. Even common vegetables grow very well in these vertical recycled bottle designs.
Above is not an exhibit, but a perennially growing bougainvillea climbing a narra tree. It lends a good complimentary color to the greens around. This is also at the center of the exhibit area.
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Looking to be a great show. Never had the chance to attend a Horticultural show. Because they are held in the cities and we live in a far off village. Thanks for coverage and sharing.
ReplyDeleteThese are lovely shots! I'd love to see garden shows like this. The show looks really cool, the fact that it is in The Philippines-my home country and such a shame that I haven't been:( Thank you for sharing and thank you for dropping over to my blog.
ReplyDeleteAll the best.
Scudds
That looks amazing Andrea! Wish we could go one day....
ReplyDeleteis the show still running? can i still go?:p
ReplyDeletewhat are the red flowers in the 4th photo, near the giant heart?
love the vibrant colors.
Luna, I've been repeatedly posting the event in my wall month before it started. I guess you didn't see it! It runs till next weekend.
DeleteColorful!
ReplyDeleteSo much beautiful color!
ReplyDeleteGreat displays!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.
ReplyDeleteSimply beautiful....nice pics too.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful Horticulture Show, Andrea.... This time of year when it's winter here and things are brown and drab, I especially enjoy seeing flowers from other areas... Just gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteHugs,
Betsy
A really interesting post. You are very lucky to be so close that you can pop there during your lunch hour and enjoy those beautiful flowers.
ReplyDeleteI like the way the acacia is decorated.
ReplyDeleteI love these displays...so creative and bold in design.
ReplyDeleteThe garden show featured some beautiful layouts and offered some great ideas. While I enjoyed seeing the desert display, I was very interested in the vertical gardening with recycled bottles. That is a very good idea.
ReplyDeleteLayouts of these gardens are fantastic! Lovely show and you are so lucky to be able to see these lovely gardens.
ReplyDeleteJoyce M
What a great show! The flowers and displays are beautiful. I love all the heart designs. And the big tree is gorgeous. Lovely photos.
ReplyDeleteFascinating and beautiful place and wonderful photography ~
ReplyDeleteCarol of (A Creative Harbor) on Blogger ^_^ visiting from Outdoor Weds.
hm, those guys are experts in how to make a beautiful thing even more beautiful. :)
ReplyDeleteLooks like a beautiful show!
ReplyDeleteI'm amazed at all the creativity that goes into putting each display together. What a feast for the eyes Andrea and you are so fortunate to have this on your doorstep!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.leavesnbloom.com/2013/02/winter-flowering-witch-hazel.html
Oh how I would love to be able to walk around there and enjoy all the beauty. It looks like it took so much time to make all the displays. You can almost smell the flowers. Thank you for bringing some flowers to this week's Nature Notes Andrea..Michelle
ReplyDeleteoh wow, they usually charge too much for shows like this here so i never get to go. kuripot kasi.
ReplyDeleteAlthough I love the different colors of flowers, I really appreciate the desert garden.
ReplyDeleteAlso a very well chosen theme!
Would be so nice to be able to visit this place... thank you for the pretty pictures...
ReplyDeleteGreat gardens - but I dont think that they would owrk in Melbourne!
ReplyDeleteWe sprayed our boots and legs with insect repellant - and that kept the leaches away for a while!
Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne
WHAT a fabulous array of heart-shaped colour, Andrea! Just incredible ... a feast for the eyes as well those insects! And incidentally, the 3rd and 4th photos here will show you what we mean by a coconut fatball. It is half a coconut, with the flesh scooped out and replaced with fat and seeds that are crucial for small birds in the winter, especially when there is snow on the ground and they cannot find food easily. I guess bits of the coconut are sometimes mixed in with the fat and seeds ... These fatballs are then hung from branches so that the birds can eat them in safety, without finding their food stolen by ground-bound predators.
ReplyDeleteThose metal orbs are so cool!
ReplyDeleteThat is an interesting idea of planting in a bamboo canes.
ReplyDeleteOnly setback is that they tend to rot over time.
Truly a refreshing garden tour - thanks for sharing this.
This is great!. I love the vertical design with the soft drink bottles for the plants to grow on. I would love to make a vertical plant display inside my house. I could make one outside too but it would have to be shorter than 3 feet, the depth of the snow, otherwise the plants roots would die of exposure. Making a temporary display seems like too much work.
ReplyDeleteSuch a delight to see at this time of year whilst Winter is not as yet over in my part of the world. I can only dream of bougainvillea climbing a narra tree.
ReplyDeleteWow, lovely plants and nice designs.
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful! Loved your pictures.
ReplyDeleteThis is beautiful. My husband was born in Manila. I hope to visit one day. Quite a lot of different plants then in the U.S.!
ReplyDelete