Today is the first day that the show is open to the public, so there weren't too many people around. I am always slightly amused by the vintage background music being played within the grounds, ranging from instrumental waltz pieces to Matt Monro. (If you don't know Matt Monro, then you are probably not of the Baby Boom Generation.)
What I appreciate most from the organizers of the Los Baños Garden shows is the large signs they put up to indicate the booth and plant winners, and not just placing ribbons and trophies helter-skelter in the booths, which is what I sometimes encounter in the garden shows of other horticulture organizations in Metro Manila. In addition to being able to enjoy the walking around the displays with a guide to the visitor on what to pay particular attention to, the signs also help me single out at once what plants to photograph for my pinoyhorticulture.com website.
The booth displays are not the only attraction to far-away visitors like me to the Los Baños Garden Show. The commercial section of the Show draws me back to Los Baños yearly because it is a good place to look for really dirt-cheap plants to add to one's collection. Since a lot of nurseries and growers are based in Laguna and Quezon, the plants are cheaper because of lower transport costs when compared to plants bought in Metro Manila. However, one must realize that the plants sold here are usually older varieties and thus are available in larger quantities, unlike the newly-introduced rarer plants one can find in Metro Manila outlets.
I bought a grafted two-foot Mussaenda 'Doña Eva' bearing many scarlet-red flowers. I would have preferred to get a five-foot plant but it was too big for me to transport back home. There were other desirable must-buys but being alone with a long trip back, I had to settle with carrying just one plant with me back to Metro Manila.
Come to think of it, I spent more time travelling to and from Los Baños than the time I spent in the Show, but it was worth the trip.
No comments:
Post a Comment