Functional role of plants in landscape  

Parallel with modern infrastructural development such as buildings, roads, telecommunication, airport etc., Malaysian government has placed a serious emphasis on landscaping. Through landscaping, more plants will be planted especially to replace those that have lost during land clearing and site preparation for such development. Government agencies, corporate sectors and individuals have spent millions of Ringgit to buy, establish and maintain landscape plants. Nowadays, the landscape projects which primarily involve the planting of trees, shrubs and ground covers are planned and executed coherently with the construction of buildings and other physical infrastructures. The examples are plenty. But the prominent ones are Kuala Lumpur City Centre, Kuala Lumpur International Airport, National Sport Centre at Bukit Jalil and the most recent ones are the construction of two smart cities, Putrajaya and Cyberjaya. To indicate the importance of plants, the KLCC and KLIA were developed with unique landscape themes: City in the Garden and Airport in the Forest and Forest in the Airport.

Japanese garden- Nature in miniature

Your trip to Japan would not be complete if you do not stop at any Japanese garden, especially if you are a nature lover. Japanese Gardens can be regarded as a mirror reflection of a natural landscape laid in minature: a mountain is represented by a large rock, and a river by a stream. Japanese versus Western Gardens. The Japanese and Western gardens have some similarities; both place emphasis on the preservation of natural beauty. The difference is, however, in the manner and mode of creating the nature. While the western-styled garden generally prefers additional artificial elements to supplement on what is lacking to enchance the existing landscape, the Japanese garden uses natural materials. This is particularly true since the Japanese garden were formerly regarded as a place for the worshipping of natural elements and ancestors. Thereby the Japanese garden is highly influenced by its surrounding, culture and belief. The typical Japanese garden is created not merely for the senses of sight, smell and touch. An interest in the Japanese garden could lead to not only the understanding on the landscape principles and design, but also on nature, religion and the psychology of the Japanese society.

My Point of View  

In my point of view, a garden is the most amazing and relaxing place I have ever known: the blooming of flowers and the cold feeling of the green grass under my bare feet are almost as amazing as a dream of discovering Eden. Everyday, there is always a new surprise waiting for me after my hard day at school: it is either a new visitor in the bushes or a new bud waiting for its time to open and expose its beauty to the world. A garden is a place that rewards you in many ways if it is well taken care of. What rewards you ask? It is neither money nor fame, but the pleasure of seeing the plants that you and your mothers have grown, handled and cared for, live and grow happily. Another reward from which I get most satisfaction is seeing some garden visitors such as a beautiful and graceful butterfly and a hopping grasshopper. They will automatically attract the cheerful chirping birds, from the more brightly feathered ones to the plainer brown house-sparrows.

Nasi Kerabu  

A potted herb garden in your kitchen is the prettiest sight. All over the world, herbs are considered invaluable in cooking to enhance and enliven other foods, elevating even the simple meal to the level of haute cuisine. The curative and cosmetic properties of herbs are also renowned: for thousands of years they have been used in many medicine and beauty products. Although fresh and dried herbs are easily available, they rarely have the aroma and flavour as those harvested from your own garden. The majority of herbs grown today are still of the wild species and can be grown as garden plants or indoors. Herbs should be grown in conditions that are similar to their natural habitat to ensure that they are healthy and vigorous.

In this garden spread, we will discuss the various herbs needed in our recipe for one of the many herbal rice, of Malaysia, "nasi kerabu".