Gardening is a fun activity that will stimulate your artistic juices, it will transform ideas to fruition. Once you start it will be very hard to stop especially when pieces of ideas are put in its proper place. You will find selecting the appropriate flora to be amusing, get challenged by your limited budget and figuring out how your garden theme will fit into a restricted space.
It’s like grocery shopping you don’t have to buy on what you want but what you need. Don’t buy hungry, have a garden plan beforehand. Also, it is important to consider maintenance, you must have time to take care of all plants. We have prepared a selection of Philippine plants that will make your garden the envy of plant enthusiasts, maintenance is easy, and it won’t break your bank.
Aglaia odorata
Credit to excelsagardens.com
Chinese perfume plant or sinamomong sunsong in Tagalog is cultivated as a decorative plant and for its aromatic flowers. It’s easy to grow, up to 6 m. in height, and likes lots of sunlight and moist soil. The tiny yellow flower balls bloom several times during the year and are fragrant in the evening. In Asia, the flowers are dried and used to perfume clothes and to scent tea. The roots and leaves are used to treat fever and menopausal concerns.
Artabotrys hexapetalus
Credit to plantslive.in
Locally known as Ylang-Ylang is a climber with a spikey trunk. Bears fragrant light green flowers that turn yellow as they mature. Loves sunlight and witness the flowers in full growth in the summer and rainy months.
Bougainvillea
Credit to gardenia.net
The flowers are more than the leaves when it blooms during the summer months, Its trunk is big as fists and has thorns, flowers grow in a variety of colors. Requires little maintenance and is commonly seen along streets in the metro.
Brugmansia
Credit to anniesannuals.com
Also called Double Angel’s Trumpet, it nurtures double- white ruffled flowers with a sweet smell. A sun-plant and is attractive to birds, bees, and butterflies.
Caladium humboldtii
Credit to thegardengeeks.com
It can grow anywhere and should be watered regularly. It grows to a height of 20 cm., leaves are heart-shaped colored green with dominant white areas. A very nice ground cover to complement your garden.
Cestrum nocturnum
Credit to funflowerfacts.com
Queen of the Night and Known locally as Dama de Noche, a shrub that grows quickly. Avoid planting near drains the slender flowers will block the passage of water. It assiduously grows flowers during the year with peak flowering months from January to June. People just love to smell the musky fragrance that is released at nighttime which is how the plant derives its name.
Dendrobium sp.
Credit to ecuagenera.com
These are the most common orchids in the plant trade with a lot of varieties to choose from. It is easy to grow, place them in pots with their roots crowded and give them as much sunlight as possible. Each variety of Dendrobium sp. has different growing conditions, surely there will be one that will fit your milieu.
Dracaena australis
Credit to vancouverislandgrows.wordpress.com
Also called Yucca, grows to a height of 8 m. with many branches growing from the trunk. The leaves are sword-shaped and bear aromatic small white flowers. In New Zealand it is called a Cabbage Tree, inner leaves and stems are eaten either cooked or raw.
Ervatamia divaricata
Credit to photomazza.com
Crape jasmine or Pandacaqui in the Philippines. A stunning shrub that can reach up to 2 m. tall, branches grow parallel to the ground giving it a unique and attractive look. The flowers are waxy, sweet-smelling, and white with 5 petals which are abundant throughout the year. It easily propagates through sunlight and regular watering.
Excoecaria cochinchinensis
Credit to commons.wikimedia.org
Chinese croton or Picarra in the Philipines, a low-growing shrub with leaves that are pale green and off-white on top and bright red lacquer beneath. It is poisonous, favors sunny spots and prefers rich soil with continuous watering.
Hedychium coronarium
Credit to keys.lucidcentral.org
Ginger lily or Kamia in the Philippines, it has green stalks that reach 1.5 m in height. The rich green vegetation is breathtaking that will make a perfect background for smaller foliage. The flowers are a treat during the day or night time, the dainty white color is calming and the perfumed scent is therapeutic. No wonder the flowers are a magnet to butterflies and bees.
Hibiscus rosasinensis
Credit to dengarden.com
Or Gumamela in the Philippines comes in a variety of color and this tropical beauty is a sight to behold for their large showy flowers. And it can definitely enhance the beauty of any landscape and butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds are attracted to it. The flowers are used to make a tea that is served in popular coffee spots like Starbucks. Taken hot or cold the beverage has medicinal benefits that include respite from high blood pressure and cholesterol, cure liver disease, and lessens the risk of cancer. Filipino children mix the flowers leaves with soap solution to produce bubbles.
At the end of the day, your body aches from all the physicality in your garden activities. But when you see the beauty in front of you, you’d wish it’s early morning so you could start with your gardening.
Sources and citations:
http://www.philippinegarden.net
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