Vanda Miss Joaquim

Singapore’s national flower was discovered by an Armenian lady, Agnes Joaquim in her own garden in 1893. One morning, while she was strolling in her own garden, she stumbled upon a new orchid flowering in the midst of a clump of bamboos. What was strange to her was that these orchids seem to be blooming out of season.

She then took it to the Director of the Singapore Botanic Gardens who later confirmed that it indeed was a new orchid. Thus it was named after Miss Joaquim who discovered this new hybrid.

On 15 April 1981, Vanda Miss Joaquim was bestowed the title of Singapore’s national flower, following an announcement by then Minister for Culture, Mr S. Dhanabalan. The designation of a national flower was part of Singapore’s effort to foster national pride and identity.

Vanda Miss Joaquim was chosen over 40 other contenders because of its qualities of resilience and all-year blooming. These characteristics resonate the very philosophy of Singapore’s continual strive for excellence and progress in all aspects of development.

Vanda Miss Joaquim is probably the oldest and sole natural hybrid and it is a tough and hardy plant. It is easy to take care and takes well to the humidity and heat in Singapore. Moreover, it flowers throughout the year and can grow to as tall as a man with 12 buds and four flowers open at a time.

Each flower is about 5 cm across and 6 cm tall. The back petals are twisted to face the front with two of the petals and the top one a rosy-red. Overall, it is a violet rose colour with orange and dark purple shots at the centre.

Because of its hardiness and pretty appearance, Vanda Miss Joaquim can be used for a lot of purposes. From corsages to leis to flower arrangement, its beautiful blooms simply leave one enthralled.