1st Perak International Orchid Fiesta Batu Gajah

1st Perak International Orchid Fiesta Batu Gajah

Organisers: Tourism Perak, Persatuan Peminat Anggerek, Persatuan Orchid Perak (Perak Orchid Society)

Venue: Arena Square (Taman TaseK) Batu Gajah

Date : 25 November to 2 December 2011



The show was well supported by members from Perak Orchid Society and also from the other orchid societies around the region.
A total of 336 plants were entered for the show . All 40 classes were represented by very high quality and showy exhibits. In some classes, there were even more than 20 entries in each class.
Best Plant of the Show went to Mr. Liew Chee Seng with his evergreen Dendrobium Frosty Dawn, a showy plant with more than 50 flowers. This plant has won many top prizes in other orchid shows in the past.

Mr. Liew Chee Seng, indeed POS best grower, also won the Runner Up Plant with his entry of Arundina graminifolia, another showy plant with more than 100 flowers. This plant commonly known as the bamboo orchid, can be found extensively along the highways and especially along the roads leading up to Cameron Highlands. However, this variety is a hybrid of the dwarf variety.

Best Species went to Mr. Sit Tai Choy with his entry of Rhy. retusa, another very showy plant with 8 spikes. As retusa normally blooms at the end of the year, there were half a dozen retusa at the show and the judges picked this particular plant because of the number of spikes.


The show was opened by Yang Bahagia Dato' Haji Jamry bin Haji Sury, District Officer of Batu Gajah on 26th Novemberr 2011 at 6p.m. After the short opening ceremony, our President, Dato' Dr. Majumder together with some of our committee members, showed Dato all the plants that were on exhibition. A phalaenopis was then presented to Dato' Jamry in appreciation of his support for our Society.

As this was supposed to be an International Show, we invited many judges from around the Asian region to participate in our show but due to unforseen circumstances, quite a number of judges could not make it to our show. The Indonesian could not get their exit permits in time and the Thais had to return to their farms immediately after WOC to check on the flood situation in their country.

Judges are as follows:

1 I-Sheng Chen (Taiwan)

2 Long-Huei Chen (Taiwan)

3 Thomas Chow (Singapore)

4 Dato' Dr Fonseka (OSM)

5 Chan Weng Woh (OSM)

6 Neoh Cheow Chen (TOS)

7 Tan Eng Khoon (TOS)

8 Johnny Cheah (FOMOS)

9 Tan Kim Lean (FOMOS)

10 Lawrence Tang (KOS)

11 Lim Ee Lim (KOS)

12 Liew Chee Seng (POS)

13 Low Kok Keong(POS)

14 Roslan Ismail (POS)

Show Manager: Mr Leong Tuck Lock

Chief Judge: Mr Hew Fook Yoong

Recorders: Jessie Lee

Robert Ang

A few photographs taken from the show are reproduced below. For more photographs, please go to our Perak Orchid Society Blog.

The next International show will be held at Sungei Siput on th 18th December 2011. Further details will be included in our Perak Orchid Society Blog so please keep a lookout for it.

POS World Orchid Conference 2011 (Singapore) Trip

PERAK ORCHID SOCIETY

Trip to Singapore to attend the 20th World Orchid Conference

A total of 21 members from POS,TOS and FOMOS under the tour guidance of Robert Ang attended the 20th World Orchid Conference 2011.

POS chartered a bus AGN9577 through U Vacation Travel and Tours and we started our journey on the evening of 13 November 2011 at 11p.m.

Many came from as far as Kuala Lumpur, Cameron Highlands, Penang, and Taiping to meet in Ipoh and make the trip to Singapore together. The members that formed this group are:

Mr. Teh Thian Lai (TOS), Mr. Hooi Kum Woh (TOS), Mr. Francis Chiam (POS), Mr. Tan Yeow Kim (FOMOS), Mr. & Mrs. Hon Chim Yim and friends (POS), Mr. Raymond Chan (POS), Mr. Lim Cheen Nyon (POS), Mr. Hew Fook Yoong (POS), Mr. & Mrs. Sin Chan Wah (POS), Mr. Ng Lee Sin (POS), Mr. & Mrs. Tan Eng Tiek & family (POS), Mrs. Robert Ang (POS), Mdm Chan Choy Foong and Mdm Goh Lui Ing .

The bus left our pickup point at Hotel Excelsior punctually at 11.00 p.m and all of us were in exuberant mood.
A few stop were made along the way and as we were approaching Johor Baru, we discovered an invisible man in our midst. Check out this photo on the left and see if you can recognise who our invisible man is.

In Johor Baru after the toll, we stopped at the last watering hole to wash up and take our baths and had hearty breakfasts of nasi lemak, mee goreng and fried chicken.

All of us were already fresh, despite the long night in the bus and were prepared for the programs in the itinerary for the day. As we can only check in at 12 noon were decided to go to the WOC the next day and spend the day visiting farms.

The first farm we visited was Neo Cheng Soon farm owned by Mr. Neo Tuan Hong in Lim Chu Kang Lane. The farm land area is about 1 hectar with mostly dendrobium spatulata type. Hong as he is affectionately known, produces about the best cane type dendrobium in Singapore and he won one of the top prizes with his Den. lasianthera in the World Orchid Conference. A few of our members bought a few show quality plants from him.

Next we visited Song Orchids owned by Mr. Phua Gik Song in Choa Chu Kang Road. Ah Song as he is known by, grows hobby plants and our group bought some plants from him.
After about 1 hour in his place, we proceeded to our hotel in Fragrance Ruby, Geylang to check in and freshen up before going for lunch around the corner.

After lunch, we visited the orchid garden located in the Singapore Botanical Garden. Rows and rows of orchids, mostly cut flower varieties were planted neatly and it is obvious that everything was done for the multitude of foreign visitors coming to the garden after visiting WOC .

Most interesting were the cool house and the orchids registered to dignatories visiting Singapore. Halfway through the garden it started to rain cats and dogs and some reached the bus slightly damp whilst others sat it out at the garden waiting for the rain to stop.

Our next venue was Sentosa Island but as it was raining and were running late, we cancelled this trip and instead headed for Vivo City one of the larger shopping malls in Singapore. We walked around for a while and had dinner at the Food Republic, a food court serving a host of local delicacies. This shopping center is located at the mainland side of Sentosa and there was a roof top garden complete with coconut trees and a shallow pool that looks like a lake. From this place, a breath taking view of Sentosa Island can be seen. A sky train runs from Vivo City around Sentosa. Mr. and Mrs. Tan and their two children had a fantastic time riding on the train around Sentosa Island.

The next morning 15th. November 2011, after a good breakfast of roti canai, which according to Raymong Chan, is the best he has eaten so far, we proceeded to the Marina Bay Sands Convention & Expo Center - the site of the World Orchid Convention 2011 in Singapore.

Our tickets, bought at a discount, was delivered to us outside the exhibition hall by Miss Geok Bee.

We spent almost the whole day in the hall admiring the orchids from all over the world, taking photographs and best of all, buying plants from the vendors from all over the world. A few of our members went overboard and bought so many orchids that they had to ask one of our member vendors from Malaysia to take it back for them.

This year, as like previous years, all exhibits entered for judging were grouped into a landscaped island together with hundreds of plants. The effect is fantastic but for most of us not used to this kind of format, the individual plants that won remained hidden amongst the other plants. It is a wonder how the judges could sort out the winners without mising a few.

Top prizes are as follows:

National Parks Board, Singapore with Vanda lamellata




Orchis Floriculture Inc, Taiwan

with Cycnodes Taiwan Gold 'Orchis'

Neo Cheng Soon Farm, Singapore

with Dendrobium lasienthera









Eric Yang Orchid Foundation

with Paphiopedilum Du Motier 'Victoria Village'

For the Landscape Section

The Orchiid Society of Papua New Guinea PGN and




Chaiwathana Orchid Garden Co Ltd

Here at the exhibition, alike the Botanical Garden, there is also a section depicting orchids registered in honour of dignitaries visiting Singapore. It is customary for any dignitary visiting Singapore to have an orchid registered in thier name by the National Parks Board.

Apart from landscapes, there were also floral arrangments with special lightings rendering the whole exhibition floor into a sight not to be forgotten.

Our congratulations to all who have put their heart and soul into this project, making it to be about the best in all the conventions so far.

We left Singapore with a heavy heart the next day wondering why the days passed so quickly.
On our way back we visited Genting Orchids before heading home.

It was a good trip and everyone enjoyed themselves and we hope that we can make another trip in June next year for the official opening of the Garden By The Bay in Singapore.

A few of the photographs taken is reproduced below. For the rest of the photographs, please go to our Perak Orchid Society's facebook page.