National 'flower'

They are common in the South of France, but did you know that out of the 1400 species or so of acacias in the world nearly 1000 are to be found in Australia? The Golden wattle has been declared the official emblem of Australia some years back. They blossom in winter (it is nearly the end of the season down here now) and they can be found on the Australian Coat of Arms, and the Order of Australia is in the shape of a single wattleblossom. Also Australian Olympic athletes wear wattle inspired green and gold uniforms. If Australia was to become a Republic I suppose it would be high in the list of what would have to be featured on the flag (a kangaroo, an emu, some wattle on a green and yellow coloured flag?).

Orchids

Unlike most countries whose national flowers are found beyond their national boundaries, Singapore has the distinction of being the only nation to have a hybrid as its national flower and whose distribution was confined to Singapore's boundaries. A bit of history: on April 15, 1981, the Minister of Culture, S. Dhanabalan, announced that as part of an overall effort to foster national pride and identity Vanda Miss Joaquim was chosen from amongst 40 other flowers (including some 30 orchids) as Singapore's national flower. The ability of Vanda Miss Joaquim's to bloom throughout the year was considered to reflect Singapore's continuous quest for progress and excellence in all aspects of life, and its natural resilience which is reflected the determination of the Singaporean people to stand fast through difficult times. Apart from this special flower, orchids are surely to be found everywhere in this city with over 3000 species in the botanical garden alone!