Get to know the woman behind Singapore's national flower in new children's book
If you ever wondered about the woman whom Singapore’s national flower Vanda Miss Joaquim is named after, this book is for you.
Published by local publishing house Epigram Books, Agnes and her Amazing Orchid: How Vanda Miss Joaquim Became Singapore’s National Flower will be officially launched on Saturday (7 April) at the Singapore Botanic Gardens’ Botany Centre.
The launch of the children’s book – co-written by Linda Locke and James Wolf, and illustrated by Muhd Noh – coincides with the 125th anniversary of the Vanda Miss Joaquim.
Locke is the great-grandniece of Agnes Joaquim, who first cross-bred the hybrid flower. The 64-year-old was previously the regional creative director of Leo Burnett Advertising.
She worked on the book for over a year, hoping to tell people the story of how one woman’s ingenuity and determination created what became Singapore’s national flower in 1981, and set off a global commercial orchid industry.
Speaking with Yahoo Lifestyle Singapore, the writer shared some interesting anecdotes about Joaquim, who was “very beautiful” but chose to remain unmarried.
“Although Agnes was serious about horticulture, she had a lighter side,” Locke said. “She loved fancy dress balls and parties and is known to have attended one dressed as a Roman peasant.”
Joaquim also created beautiful embroideries including a “stunning altar cloth” for the Armenian Church, and won awards for floral arrangements.
Another interesting anecdote Lock shared was that a Vanda Miss Joaquim plant was taken to the UK by a member of Agnes’s family and sold to a member of the wealthy Rothschild family.
The plant was sold for the sum of 500 guineas, which would have an estimated value of $82,000 today, says Locke.
Locke was inspired to write her book because of an inaccuracy on a display board in the Orchid Gardens at the Singapore Botanic Gardens.
“I saw a display board on a chance visit to the Singapore Botanic Orchid Garden that suggested that the Vanda Miss Joaquim orchid had only ‘originated’ in the garden of my great grand-aunt, Agnes Joaquim. No recognition of her as the creator of the orchid was given,” she said.
This led to Locke spending a large part of 2016 researching her great grand-aunt’s invention to see if there was any reason to doubt her family story and the work of authors like Nadia Wright and Harold Johnson.
“After months of practically living in the National Library, Singapore Press Holding Library and online digital libraries I came to the conclusion that it was indisputable – my great grand-aunt had indeed cross-bred two orchids to create the Vanda Miss Joaquim. The first woman in the world to create a hybrid orchid,” Locke said.
She then convinced the National Heritage Board (NHB) to re-examine all the source research she provided. NHB, together with NParks, officially recognised Agnes Joaquim as the breeder of the orchid in September 2016.
Still frustrated and yearning to raise awareness of Joaquim’s legacy, Locke came up with the idea for a picture book about the orchid – thus ensuring that her ancestor’s story would continue to be correctly told for future generations.
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