Migrated Temperate Zone Plants

To Live in the East

Written by Mrs. Money

To migrate those temperate plants to thrive in our equatorial garden is the same like making an Ang Mo wife, a St. Bernard or a Persian Cat to live "happily" in our hot and humid all year round climate. To keep well and take care of these "foreign treasures" take a lot of thought, heart and mind!!!

My dad used to grow purple passion fruit with seeds "smuggled" from Auckland, though with lush leaves but after a year he decided to give up when he got tired of only seeing green leaves everyday.

To plant roses and purple skin passion fruits in our equatorial is indeed a challenge to me, in spite of many people assured me that these plants won't grow long, bloom well and bear much fruits I still go for a challenge. Only God knows that I miss those kinds of western plants, I am happy to see their leaves even if they don't thrive so well under out hot equatorial intense sunshine.

When I bought those rose seedlings from Rose Garden of 10th-mile Kuching , that old wise "Aunty Rose" kindly told me, "Raise the bed when you plant the roses."

Last year my two rose patches bloomed so well with yellow, white, pink and red roses, (I regretted that I didn't have a camera to record those blossoms) six months ago I then left to oil town just for 40 over hours, upon returning first thing I went to inspect my plants in the garden and found out my 4 rose plants died of dyhydration, I looked at my mom's guiltyless face and I mumbling to myself, "It's fine, as long as my two kids under her care is still pink and lively!"

Recently, a staff from this Kuching Popular Agri Chemical Sdn Bhd kindly gave me a package of free sample cow manure, I have been looking for it ever since I planted roses. (I heard since long ago that roses love cow manure)

A year old rose plant reaching as tall as the fence

Six month old young rose plant just started to bloom

First passion fruit blossom, I did its pollination with my fingers!

Successful Pollination

(Emerged an oval baby fruit with its flower still attached)