FLOWER EXHIBITION

Not far from the bowling alleys is a sort of tropical greenhouse, where you can discover some species of flowers that were created specifically in honour of the North Korean leaders. The best known is the Kimilsungia, mauve flower Orchid so named by Indonesian President Sukarno in reference to North Korean President Kim Il-Sung. Another plant is also in the spotlight: Kimjongilia, a cultivar of Tuberous red-flowered Begonia which was created by the Japanese horticulturary Kamo Mototeru in February 1988 on the occasion of the 46th anniversary of the leader Kim Jong-Il. According to the official North Korean Agency KCNA, Kimjongilia is cultivated in more than sixty countries, including Vietnam, Syria, Singapore, Cuba, Austria, Sweden and the United States. Kimjongilia received a special prize and a gold medal at the 12th floral exhibition in Bratislava in 1999 and the Grand Prize and the Certificate at the International Horticultural Exhibition in Kunning the same year in China. The flower also won the 1st prize at an exhibition dedicated to Begonia in San Diego, California (USA). In 2004, the international society of Horticultural Sciences (SISH) that has formally registered ‘Kimjongilia’ as a new variety of Begonia, under the name of the  “Kimjongilhwa”.

Every year in February, Pyongyang and its embassies abroad organize the Floralies to show the beauty of the plant. If you are amateurs, it is possible to buy seeds in the shop of the Centre.