SINGAPORE GARDEN FESTIVAL 12 - PART 4

Just outside level 6 were these sculptural topiaries to form an arch towards the center. I simply love the giraffes that were seemingly looking in my direction.

Down at level 4, the displays were mostly orchids and those in the competition. At the Market Place, there were displays on the rooftop garden technology and some possible rooftop shrubs and ground covers.

CENTRAL MALL & BUGIS +

The pedestrian overhead bridge in front of Central Mall was planted with the Bauhinia kockiana. Further in the background stood a Yellow Rain Tree. 


In the Central Mall podium were two red lampshades, which received a revival in Hong Kong recently for its subtle but significant illumination of meat in wet markets where the red glow provided a better appreciation of the meat by the buyers. The giant lampshade were constructed and sliced into two separate structures to provide seating spaces for the shoppers to rest their legs. Interestingly, when viewed from outside, there appeared to be a dozen of legs below the lampshade but these are all fake and are merely supporting structures to hold the lampshade upright.


Over at Illuma, which is renamed as Bugis + recently, I was captivated by the rooftop gardens that covered part of the facade of the iconic building. Renovations are ongoing and the new and biggest Uniqlo store in Singapore will open its doors here to visitors soon.

NEX - ROOFTOP LANDSCAPE

This is the rooftop greenery landscape and the rooftop seemed to be thronging with people. They were not there for the greenery but to access the other facilities which I would post separately.

Some plants are beautiful and it showed that these are the plants that would do well under such conditions. Some other inappropriate plants are already showing signs of decline and deterioration.

One stark thing that I noticed that is different from other rooftop gardens, is the lack of trees. I suppose the developer and management do not want to be burdened with tree management on the rooftop, which is definitely more complex and require more specialized arboriculture contractors, or the rooftop may not have been constructed to take the load of the bigger trees.

ROOFTOP GARDEN

This is one growing rooftop garden. Initially, there was only the one on the right with the Cyanotis cristata (synonym: Commelia cristata, C. racemosa, C. cavaleriei, Tradescantia cristata, T. imbricata; Family: Commeliaceae) arranged in modular trays to form an interesting design that can only be viewed from above.

Links on this wondrous plant, with leaves that are usually green with enough water but which turns violet when the soil medium and the environment turn hot and dry, are attached here:

1. http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=2&taxon_id=240001180
2. http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=5&taxon_id=240001180
   

I am not sure when the garden on the left on the upper level sprouted up but I could see edibles like Papaya and Cabbages, much like those grown in community gardens where edibles are the all-time favourites of the day. This is not a garden for me as I am more into ornamentals.

VANTAGE

These photos were taken from the little known rooftop garden at the Hort Centre. This is the highest vantage point at HortPark.

The entrance was located at an obscure corner of the building and to get up, one has to climb up 3 flights of stairs. That also explained why I have not been up there for a while.

But on that day, I needed to get away for a few short minutes and at the same time, I wanted to check out the growth and performance of Cyanotis cristata and other plants etc.

So anyway, as expected, the Cyanotis was doing very well at this very sunny location. Some other beds had lots of weeds which crept onto the white panel towards the walkway. From this view, one can see the dense forest cover at Kent Ridge Park, parts of the Silver Garden and Floral Walk, as well as the construction of the curved buildings at the new Reflections at Keppel Bay.