Begonia maculata (Begonia) x Selaginella plana (Selaginella) x Adiantum raddianum (Maidenhair Fern) x Caladium bicolor (Caladium)
Begonia maculata, common name polka dot begonia, is a species in the genus Begonia and belongs to the family Begoniaceae. Native to the tropical forests of Brazil, it is a splashy showstopper with its olive green leaves and contrasting spots. The evergreen subshrubs reach heights of 45 to 60 centimetres. The plants usually grow to a width of 60 centimetres to 1 metre. Begonia maculata produces clusters of light purplish pink flowers from April to July. The plants are hermaphrodite.
Selaginella plana, commonly known as Asian spike moss, is the sole genus of vascular plants in the family Selaginellaceae. They grow in the tropical regions of Asia, including India, Indochina, Indonesia and Malaysia. Native populations are found in Tanzania. This family is distinguished by having scale-leaves bearing a ligule and by having two types of spores. The fronds are green and scaly, and its stems long and wiry, creating a fuzzy appearance. The epithet plana means ‘flat’, referring to the surface of the fronds. It is a bushy herbaceous ornamental that grows up to 6 metres and is suitable as ground cover. It spreads by creeping underground rhizomes.
Adiantum raddianum, common name delta maidenhair fern or maidenhair fern, is a very popular indoor fern. Its common name comes from the shiny black stalks that resemble human hair. In the family Polypodiales, it is a delicate fern native to tropical and subtropical South America. The fern is short-creeping with irregularly-branched rhizomes and grows terrestrially on rocks, erecting arching triangular-shaped fronds up to 50 centimetres high, with many light green pinnate leaves. The triangular fronds are semi-erect at the base and arch over gracefully as they mature. It has been quite widely introduced elsewhere as an ornamental and now occurs in Asia, Africa and the Pacific. Adiantum raddianum is named for the Italian botanist Giuseppe Raddi (1770-1829).
Caladium bicolor, common name heart of Jesus, is a species in the genus Caladium, within the family Araceae, from the warm climes of Latin America and the Caribbean. A tender perennial summer flowering bulb, it is grown as an ornamental houseplant for its large heart or lance-shaped leaves in a rainbow of colours, such as striking green, white, pink and bicolor. Some are nearly white, with a green border and veins. It can be found in most of the world’s tropics. All parts of the plant are poisonous.
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Specifications:
Paper
100% Cotton based, 320g, Acid-free, No optical brighteners.
Printed Area
A3, 297mm x 420mm – Approximately 246mm x 311mm
About the Collection
The Garden of Miss Joaquim Collection: Illustrated Botanical Prints
Agnes Joaquim was a Singapore-born Armenian who created what would become Singapore’s National Flower, the Vanda Miss Joaquim (scientific name: Papilionanthe Miss Joaquim), in 1893. The artificial hybrid was recognised by the first director of the Singapore Botanic Gardens, botanist Henry Ridley.
Agnes, the first woman in the world to create a hybrid orchid, was a well-known and successful horticulturist, garnering 70 horticultural awards from 1881 to 1899. The Garden of Miss Joaquim Collection of botanical prints commemorates her horticultural legacy and complements her story told in the book Agnes and Her Amazing Orchid.
In presenting Agnes’s award-winning plants in the illustrated collection, we looked at the newspaper records of the times, but they were of no use because they used common name descriptions of the plants, such as ‘rose’ and ‘durian’. So we turned to the Singapore Botanic Gardens and collaborated with a botanist to identify the likely species. To complete Agnes’s story, the collection includes two additional images: of Vanda Miss Joaquim’s parents, Papilionanthe teres (pod parent) and Papilionanthe hookeriana (pollen parent) — formerly in the genus Vanda — both of which may have been present in her award-winning floral bouquets or cut flowers. Waiwai Hove, a talented and respected botanical illustrator, was chosen to produce the prints.
*Disclaimer: Representative only based on subject. Not species definitive.
About the Illustrator
Born in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Waiwai Hove developed a love for nature from a young age. Growing up surrounded by rich tropical flora and nurtured by her mother, a keen gardener, Waiwai has always held a special place for plants in her childhood memories. She holds a diploma in botanical illustration from the Society of Botanical Artists (UK), graduating in 2013 with a distinction and the highest marks in the history of the course.
She has since worked for the Singapore Botanic Gardens, where highlights include illustrations for ‘30 Heritage Trees’ and more recently ‘15 Gingers’. Four of Waiwai’s ginger paintings were subsequently used for a series of stamps issued by Singapore Post in 2018. Since 2019, Waiwai has begun working on the cover illustrations of 14 volumes of The Flora of Singapore, to be published over the next few years. Her works are in numerous private collections and can also be found in publications by the National Parks Board and in the Shirley Sherwood Collection in Kew Gardens, UK.