If my grandfather Tiong Kung Ping were to be born into the 21st century he would definitely be applying for a course on horticulture and perhaps graduate with a PhD, if he could obtained a scholarship.
He had green thumbs and could grow flowers. His garden in his house on top of he hill at Kwong Ang Crescent in Sg. Merah was full of good fruits like guava, wong dang, durian, star fruit and mangosteens. He had a banana plantation at the bottom of the hill, covering more or less 2 acres. This was his investment for his old age.
I remember Aunt Ah Hiong would send on an average of 2 bunches of bananas to sell in Sg. Merah per day.
Besides he also had bamboo shoots of the best quality - the Mu Dong or Betong Bamboo. These clump of bamboos reminded him of his ancestral home in Wun Chieh, Minqing 14 Du.
He loved growing flowers. And was an expert in those days in making wreaths for funerals. On Sundays he would bring Bai Yu Lan and Chern Mi Lan to the Sing Ang tong to share with the worshippers.
Because he was fond of flowers and grwoing flowers, he could get along well with Grand Aunt JB Chong. And we often found it interesting how the two could converse with each other, using minimal Foochow. Grand Aunt spoke very little Foochow and Grandfather spoke no English or Hokkien, the languages of Grand Aunt from Singapore.
Chern Mi Lan is a yellow floral plant which gives a lot of fragrance to any garden and Grandpa had four of those plants around his Sg. Merah house. He did not need to buy any room fragrance.
Scientific name: Aglaia Odorata (米仔兰, mǐ zaǐ lán)
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