Kuching’s Orchid garden

Gardens have always been a focal point in many of the great cities of the world, serving as a green oasis to the urban dwellers and also highlighting the unique flora of the country. Rose gardens for the United Kingdom, Tulips in Holland and even cherry blossoms in Japan to name a few. As such it was a pleasant surprise to discover that Kuching city in Sarawak had its own public garden specialising in Orchids.

Located on the opposite side of the river from the main bazaar in Kuching city , it is on the side of the river where the Astana and the new state assembly building is located. You can either take a taxi to get to the garden, but this involves rather a long 45-minute drive across town, or you could opt to take a quaint little motorised sampan across the river for 50sen. The trip across the river is under 5 minutes . Get off at the Astana jetty and you will see clear signs pointing out the way to the orchid garden that is about 150m away.

The garden is a project under the Kuching City council and is spread out over 35.4 acres .
Construction of the garden commenced in November 2007 and was completed in May 2009 with the purpose of making it a tourist attraction and providing a visual delight as well as educating the visitors on the various orchids and plants grown here comprising of 82 genera. The collection includes varieties of terrestrial and epiphytic orchids and including native species unique to Borneo . The hybrid collection is larger and provides much of the colour in the garden. Native species often tend to be inconspicuous and seasonal while the hybrids are flamboyant and colourful and bloom all year round so these are included to add colour to the landscaping . The garden is divided into two major areas, made up of the nursery and the display area, which house a total collection of 75,000 plants comprising of 82 genera. Among the famous Borneo Orchids found in the garden is the lady’s slipper orchid (Pap. Saderianum), Coelogyne Pandurata- a unique green and black-flowered orchid and the "Normah Orchid" Phalaenopsis Bellina which was declared the state flower of Sarawak on 28 August 1983.

The garden is worth a visit whether you’re an orchid enthusiast or just love flowers. There is also a bromeliad section in the garden. Try to plan your visit to the garden as soon as it opens in the morning at 9.30am or towards the end of the day after 4 pm as you can get very hot and sweaty if you try to do it between 11am and 4pm like I did.

Opening hours are from 0930am to 6.00pm daily 7 Public holidays (Closed on Mondays).
Entrance is free.

Text and photos by David de la Harpe (drdlh@hotmail.com)