‘Lak Mal Show 2007’ felicitates flowers

AWARDS CEREMONY: The exotics and Orchid co-operation society, better known as ‘Lakmalsala’, held ‘Lak Mal Show 2007’, a grand flower show at the Vihara Maha Devi Park recently.

Around 80 plant stalls and stalls containing fertilizers, fish, birds and other accessories were present.

At the end of the show, while celebrating its silver jubilee, an awards ceremony was held to choose the best plants among the large number of varieties present.

The highlight of the event was when the titles of the best exhibits from the main four categories were presented. The awards, categories, and winning species were as follows:

*Orchid Section

Flori Flora Challenge trophy donated by L.S. Wanitunga for the best Orchid in bloom at the show - Orchid Cattleya

*Foliage Section

J.M. Piyasena Challenge Trophy for the best foliage plant in the show-Bromelia

*Anthurium Section

Rohini Silva Challenge Trophy for the best Anthurium plant in bloom-white Anthurium

*Flowering Plant Section

Best flowering plant in the show (Roses, Hibiscus, Begonia, Bougainvillaea etc.)-Gerbera Individuals

Picture by Sujani Kumudinee

Flower of the week: Gardener’s favorites: Geraniums

Geraniums (Pelargonium species) are among the most popular flowering plants. They should be planted outdoors where they will receive at least 6 to 8 hours of sunlight daily.

They should be planted at the same soil level that they were growing at in their pot. The soil should be light, loose and well draining; to which you have added compost, leaf mold or peat moss.

Water geraniums at least once per week if you have had no rain. Geraniums dislike having wet leaves and flowers so it is best to use a soaker hose but if that isn’t possible, water early in the day to allow leaves and flowers to dry before nightfall.

Geraniums like to be well fed, so you should fertilise them. Remove the flowers promptly as they fade, or the bloom production will decline.

Most bedding plant geraniums are seed grown, and this is an excellent way to acquire different varieties. For the home gardener who wishes to keep a certain variety alive, geraniums will root easily from stem cuttings.

Take cuttings from healthy plants which have been kept rather dry for a couple of weeks. Use a clean, sharp knife and make a cutting 3 to 4 inches in length from the growing tips.

Trim off the lower leaves from the cutting, and stick it into a coarse, sandy medium in small pots or in flats, and water well.

Place them in indirect light. Do not allow the cuttings to dry out. After roots are formed, move the new plants into full sun and water only enough to keep them from shriveling. Fertilize with a weak solution of liquid fertiliser every two weeks.

An inside look into creating a perfect herb garden

Unlike many other types of gardening, herbs are very inexpensive and easy to maintain. The beginner can be an instant success, and as time goes by, develop into a master gardener, growing more difficult and esoteric plants.

There is room for all skill levels, and many different garden situations. In terms of modern usage, herbs can be broken down into three different groupings.

1. Culinary herbs

2. Medicinal herbs

3. Ornamental herbs

*Culinary herbs

First in most people’s minds are the culinary herbs. These are the herbs we are all most familiar with basil, rosemary, parsley and oregano, etc.

In growing these plants, we not only provide ourselves with the joy of gardening, but the satisfaction of eating the fruits of our labour.

The flavourings that herb gardens provide to our daily bread can truly enhance our lives. Ask anyone who has used fresh herbs in their cooking and they’ll tell you that dried herbs cannot compare.

Some are perennial, some are annual and with few exceptions, all are easily grown. Everyone can grow these plants, from the window boxes and container gardens of apartment dwellers, to the borders and raised beds of country folk. It is one of those simple pleasures that is an inexpensive luxury.

*Medicinal herbs

The next group of herb plants are medicinals. While this type of herb had lost most of its value to the 20th century world, one has only to walk down the aisle of your local drugstore to see its resurgence.

Echinacea, valerian, hypericum, gingko, and garlic are all back on the shelves as medicine. Lavender, roses, mint, and basil are being used for aromatherapies to ease the stresses of modern life.

We are once again finding healing from nature. Less than ten percent of new drugs coming onto the market are entirely man made and nearly eighty percent are derived from plant material.

For the home gardener however, it is difficult to extract the medicinal parts of the plant. However do try and grow a few ginger, coriander and turmeric plants in your garden. You will be very thankful for this in an emergency.

*Ornament herbs

Ornamental herbs are almost a contradiction in terms. Herbs have traditionally been plants that have had values other than the aesthetic. As time has passed, we have found many medicinals to be unhealthy.

The plants however, remain in the lexicon of herb gardeners and in their gardens. Many of the plants thought of as mainstays of the herb garden are holdovers from superstition and magic. Perhaps that is part of the mystique of herb gardening...

*Herb garden design

The herb garden is historically a more formal design. When we think of herb gardens, we generally tend to think of the clipped hedges of the parterre, or the precise brick walkways of the colonial herb garden.

In today’s world, the formal lines and designs can be hard to fit into our modern panorama, and we should look to make our herb garden fit our landscape and not the other way around.

*Herb container gardening

My herb garden at home is a container garden. The doorway from our kitchen opens onto a paved area, so this is the perfect answer for my situation. All things being equal, I think this is probably the best style for me.

Even if I lived in my own home, I like the informal jumble of pots by the kitchen door.

The different glazes and textures of the pots lend colour to what could have been a very green garden, and containers allow me to adjust soil mixtures to suit specific plants.

Window-boxes are another form of container with all the benefits previously mentioned, plus the added attraction of being just outside a kitchen window. To sum up, containers are easy and fun. It is highly recommendable for those just starting out.

*Raised bed herb gardens

Closely related to container gardens, raised beds are a great way to herb gardens. We can amend our soil to suit our plants; this is important, as many of our favourite herb plants require more drainage than our soils allow.

The higher the raised bed, the better the drainage. Higher beds are also wonderful for older or handicapped gardeners, allowing easy access without bending or stooping.

The raised beds also perform one other function that mirrors the container gardens; they contain the plants. Plants like mint can become a terror if let loose in the landscape, and weeds can choke the life out of the herbs. Raised beds and containers keep the wild ones in, and keep the bad guys out.

The herb garden need not be the monocultural garden of old. The informal border fits virtually any type of home, and allows for easy combination with already existing plants.

Just remember that single herb planted together with other single plants of other species will just begin to look cluttered.

Planting in threes and fives allows the eye to register the plant, and yet move restfully over it to the next group. This is a technique known to every designer, and it’s the number one reason why his or her gardens look better than others.