My Temecula Cekur patch....

September 2015

Let you into a secret, shh.....I have a sweet little dream; that how I think of it - A DREAM. Queue music.... sighs.The heart of Malaysian and Asian cooking is the herbs. My sweet little dream is to have a Malaysian herb garden just steps outside my kitchen. Over the years I have collected and cultivated many of these herbs in my San Diego garden. My heart had been broken too many times to count. Sigh again... The sight of a dead herb that I had searched long and hard for is always devastating. But it is a dream I refused to give up on.

This year has been particularly trying. I had been transferring these herbs to Temecula, a climate far different from San Diego. It is hotter and drier than San Diego and at the same time, it is subject to frost which these tropical herbs cannot withstand. I hedged my bets; keeping one or more plant in San Diego in case the herb failed to thrive in Temecula.

So far it has been gratifying to have my little Asian herb patch in Temecula and watching the herbs flourish. They love the hot heat! The trick going forward will be to keep them alive through the fall and winter, and then have them emerge in spring.

I have a soft spot for Cekur Kaemferia galanga. It is an essential herb for traditional Nyonya cuisine. Whenever I do manage find some Cekur roots they live for a period and die away over the winter. So far, I am optimistic they will do better in Temecula. The Cekur likes its location in the planter, under the queen palm tree. It appears it thrives in filtered sunlight condition. 

September 5, 2015

Exotic Blooms

August 17, 2013

Cekur (Kaempferia galanga) is a herb I have tried to grow numerous times with very limited success over the years. Even if it sprouted and I tended to it with the tenderest of care, it inevitably dies. It does not matter if I keep it in the house or outside..

This year I planted the cekur in Temecula instead of San Diego. Temecula's climate is more extreme; hotter in the summer than San Diego with a chance of frost in winter. So far, it has been a fine balance of watering, shade and heat. Too wet and the tuber rots. Too dry, they become dry and shrivelled. Then there are the snails that absolutely love to devour them. 

Temecula went through a weekend of over 100F this past weekend. I made sure that the cekur had the moisture to combat the heat. I was handsomely rewarded by a delicate and beautiful bloom that rivals and resembles an orchid!!