To herald the Spring Festival, many Singaporeans flock to local nurseries to buy various festive flowers and plants to decorate their homes. However, many of these plants originate from the temperate climate and do not fare well here. In my contribution to the Straits Times in my official capacity as an NParks staff from the Hort Excellence division, I listed a handful of traditional and new alternative plants that can be used for the same purpose.
The desert rose (Adenium obesum) , tropical pitcher plant (Nepenthes species and cultivars), scarlet star (Guzmania lingulata cultivar) and miniature dendrobium orchid (Dendrobium hybrid) are plants that has been marketed for several years as festive plants for the Lunar New Year. The only new and ‘unconventional’ plant in the list is the nerve or snakeskin plant that is botanically classified in the genus Fittonia. Numerous new cultivars with appealing leaf colours, shapes and sizes are now available and some of those with intensely red leaves are highly suitable for the Lunar New Year due to their auspicious colour. There are a handful of cultivars with yellowish green leaves and red veins.
Read the above scanned newspaper article for more info!
