Citrus japonica (Kumquat)
Citrus japonica, common name kumquat within the family Rutaceae, is a small, evergreen tree native to southern and eastern Asia. The first record of this plant is in Chinese literature from the 12th century. Genus name is from classical Latin. The specific epithet japonica means ‘of Japan’ and refers to the native range of this species. The common name kumquat comes from the Cantonese words ‘kam’ meaning gold and ‘quat’ meaning orange. Citrus japonica are slow-growing evergreen shrubs or short trees that stand 2.5–4.5 meters tall, with dense branches, sometimes bearing small thorns. Depending on size, the kumquat tree can produce hundreds or even thousands of edible golden-yellow fruits each year. The peel has a sweet flavour, but the fruit has a distinctly sour centre. The fruit is mainly used to make marmalades, jellies and other spreads. The plant symbolises good luck in China and other Asian countries, where it is often kept as a houseplant and given as gifts during Chinese New Year.
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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.