THE Sunken Garden, a garden within the Penang Botanic Gardens, has been repurposed into a garden called the Fragrant Garden, featuring aromatic flora.
Penang Botanic Gardens curator Datuk Dr Saw Leng Guan said the previous Sunken Garden was not used much by the visitors.
He said Friends of the Penang Botanic Gardens Society (FOPBGS) vice-president Datuk Tengku Idaura Tengku Ibrahim was very keen to repurpose the Sunken Garden.
“The discussion, planning and design started about two years ago.
“We have a green environment and nice flowers in Penang Botanic Gardens.
“We want to invoke another ‘sense’ among visitors when they visit the Penang Botanic Gardens. We want them to experience the sweet smell of plants.
“The idea is to plant as many species of fragrant plants as possible. We have champaca, Ylang-ylang, ginger, spider lily, magnolia and even coffee.
“The purpose is also to attract pollinators, such as bees and butterflies. We are still improving the Fragrant Garden and we hope to get more fragrant plants,” Dr Saw said in his speech during a tree planting event at the Fragrant Garden today.
Dr Saw said the sweet scent from plants had been widely used in rituals, religious ceremonies, traditional medicine, aromatherapy, food, and perfumes.
“Fragrant plants have been cultivated by the people for years,” he added.
The tree planting event was a collaboration between the Penang Botanic Gardens, ROSE Charities International, and WhyteHouse Education Group.
A tree Jasmine or Indian cork tree (Millingtonia hortensis) was planted during the event.
Dr Saw said that the tree was not a native tree of Malaysia. It is a native of India, Myanmar, and a few other places in the northern side of Asia, he said.
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, who was present, thanked the Penang Botanic Gardens, ROSE Charities International, and WhyteHouse Education Group for their corporate social responsibility (CSR) effort.
“The Penang Botanic Gardens has managed to achieve several milestones over the years. The most recent of which are the Penang State Park (Botanic) Corporation Enactment 2017 and the Special Area Plan (SAP) for the Penang Botanic Gardens.
“These milestones can bring the Penang Botanic Gardens to greater heights. It is worth noting that the Penang Botanic Gardens has 11 gardens and five plant houses.
“The Sunken garden has now been repurposed into a Fragrant Garden. I am sure that the fragrances will attract insects, birds, and other wildlife to enrich the biodiversity here.
“This, in turn, can attract more visitors to Penang Botanic Gardens to appreciate and experience the wonders.
Chow said that the initiative was in line with the state’s green effort to plant 500,000 new trees by 2030.
“The Penang government has planted 310,290 trees from 2008 to 2018. We have planted an additional 70,234 new trees from 2018 until now.
“These trees were planted throughout the state by both local councils since 2008.
“I hope that Penangites will undertake more green initiatives and make our state greener,” he said.
ROSE Charities Malaysia president Datuk Lawrence Cheah said the tree planting event was significant and in line with the state’s vision of ‘A Family-Focused Green and Smart State that Inspires the Nation’.
Also present was Penang Botanic Gardens Department director Nur Syazwani Ismail and WhyteHouse Education Group founder and executive director Jery Yeoh.
Chow and the VIPs also unveiled the Penang Botanic Gardens Iconic Project at the entrance of the Penang Botanic Gardens after the tree planting event.
The project was initiated on Jan 13 last year by then Penang Governor Tun Abdul Rahman Abbas.
Story by Christopher Tan
Pix by Muhamad Amir Irsyad Omar
Video by Chan Kok Kuan