Every year, plant enthusiasts and green thumbs gather at Orman Botanical Garden in Cairo, Egypt to witness the biggest festival devoted to plants and flowers. Changing things up, this year, the same exhibition made a shift in location, heading off to the Agriculture Museum where the plants and flowers will be on display until June 27. During our trip we noticed more than a1000 kinds of plants and flowers.
The Ominous Flesh Eater
Raising the fear factor a couple of notches is a plant that hasn’t always had the best rep as it’s known for its snappy bite. Thing is, the flower festival is saving the plant’s rep by selling the kind of flesh eater that will prove handy in any household especially with the soon approaching warm summer weather. Known to trap bugs and flies, this type of mini flesh eater will help get rid of the usual summer critter. Each pot costs 40 EGP.
The Extravagant Bonasi
Some people like to live in opulence and luxury, going for lavish gardens with excellent landscaping and floral arrangements. Along with the affordable cacti plants and gardenia flowers, you can also find the more expensive, rare varieties of plants that add a touch of luxury to any garden. Meet the Bonsai tree, known to many as the mini tree that is grown in a way which gives the impression of being a full-sized, mature tree. Knowing their expensive reputation, their prices range from 7000 to 20,000 EGP. The older the tree, the more expensive it is, with some as old as 20 years.
The Echeveria Cactus
A lot of people find cacti to be long and prickly, not the prettiest kind of plant out there but when it comes to the floral variety, the impression can be quite different. Meet the echeveria cactus known as the beautiful and delicate floral cactus with thick, fleshy leaves and attractive foliage. While at the flower festival, we noticed a diverse collection of echeveria cacti, from the large to the small and from the green to the purple. Most of them cost about 40 EGP and are considered easy to care for.
The Twisted Bamboo
Beyond it getting eaten by the adorable, furry animal known infamously as the giant panda, the bamboo plant is probably the most versatile plant in existence. Not only is it used to build houses, sew clothes but it is also used to make jewelry. At Cairo’s flower festival, we got to see the bamboo take on a whole new look. Standing tall where potted bamboo sticks twisted around each other with the top half of the pot made of the leaves that sprout from the bamboo. They also sell standalone bamboo sticks with prices ranging from 70 to 100 EGP. If you are craving a unique addition to your home, the twisted bamboo is the way to go.
The Pink Coleus
Throughout our visit, there was one type of plant that truly caught our eye because of the unconventional color of its leaves. Loud and striking, each of its leaves are hot pink in color with a bright green outline. Seeing them for the first time, we thought they could easily belong on a foreign planet. They are known as Coleus and are sought after for their attractive and colorful leaves. A lot of them have mottled leaves with sahdes of green, yellow, red, orange, pink and purple. The plant is quite low maintenance and is the perfect purchase for gardening beginners. They are also decently priced with one pot costing around 40 EGP.
With there still being more than 3 weeks left for the festival, there is still time for a visit. One recommendation is to ask the sellers how to take care of your purchase. You can get your ticket at the entrance for 10 EGP and visit the festival anytime between 9 am to 9 pm.