Major Nyunt Pae (on the lower rungs of the ladder) hands orchids up to a member of the Myanmar Floriculturist Association. Pic: Myanmar Floriculturist Association

MEMBERS of the Myanmar Floriculturist Association planted 1200 orchids earlier this month in the upper reaches of trees in People’s Park to promote the preservation of orchid species native to Myanmar.

The planting activities on August 11 were led by Major Nyunt Pae, the president of the association and head of the Yangon City Development Committee’s Parks and Playgrounds Department.

U Saw Lwin, a member of the association’s executive committee, said the flowers were placed according to a technique discovered last year by research committee member Daw Pan Khet Khet that allows fresh orchids to be planted in thick-barked trees and left to grow on their own.

“Association members have been gathering native orchids this year to make use of the new technique. We have been cautious to make sure our efforts do not lead to over-collection of wild orchids by locals,” said U Saw Lwin.

He said that last month residents from two villages in Hlegu township in Yangon Division offered a huge collection of home-grown Dendrobium gibsonii orchids to the association.

“These orchids are called zalatt saw in Myanmar and are not widely found in the country’s jungles. They bear vivid yellow blooms with two bright brown marks on the floral leaves. They take around three years from cultivation to bear the first blooms,” U Saw Lwin said.

He said the association will conduct similar planting activities in the coming years in People’s Park and other gardens in Yangon.

“The plants can serve as samples or as a showcase of Myanmar’s native orchids, and they will also promote the beauty of the parks and attract more visitors,” he said.

“Next year we plan to extend the project to the Forest Zone in Kandawgyi Garden. To add to the beauty we will plant ferns in addition to orchids,” U Saw Lwin said.

According to the Forestry Department, 841 of the 17,500 orchid species in the world have been recorded in Myanmar.