Bangkok Hosts Royal 'Colours of Flora' Fair to Mark Queen Mother's Legacy
Queen Sirikit Park hosts a grand exhibition showcasing royal initiatives, rare flora, and ASEAN’s largest dinosaur species from 8 to 13 August
- The "Colours of Flora" fair is being held at Queen Sirikit Park in Bangkok to celebrate the royal initiatives and legacy of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother.
- The event highlights over 70 royal projects, with a central focus on the "Model Farm" initiative which the Queen Mother established to provide rural employment.
- The fair features extensive floral displays, including over 60,000 Siam Tulips, and a national plant competition where winners receive royal trophies.
- Conservation efforts inspired by the Queen Mother are showcased, including the revival of the Siamese Giant Carp and the distribution of saplings from trees she personally planted.
Queen Sirikit Park hosts a grand exhibition showcasing royal initiatives, rare flora, and ASEAN’s largest dinosaur species from 8 to 13 August.
The annual "Colours of Flora: Honouring Her Majesty the Queen Mother" event has opened at Queen Sirikit Park in Chatuchak, Bangkok, bringing together over 30 public and private organisations to celebrate the royal initiatives and enduring legacy of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother.
Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn is scheduled to privately preside over the official opening ceremony on Tuesday, 11 August 2026, at 17:00.
Organised by the Queen Sirikit Park Foundation in collaboration with 33 government and state agencies, the 2026 edition highlights over 70 royal initiative projects operating across Thailand.
The Philosophy of the Model Farm
A central focus of this year's exhibition is the "Happiness at the Model Farm" showcase. Speaking at a press conference covered by Krungthep Turakij reporter Warun Supakorn, Thanpuying Jarungjit Teekara, director and secretary-general of the H.M. Queen Sirikit Park Foundation, recalled the origins of the project during the 1997 Asian financial crisis.
"When factory workers lost their jobs and returned to their home villages, Her Majesty Queen Sirikit conceived the idea of Model Farms to maximise local employment," Thanpuying Jarungjit explained.
She noted that even when agricultural experts advised that automated systems could manage thousands of poultry with a single worker, Her Majesty insisted on manual labour to ensure rural families earned a reliable livelihood.
The initiative embodies Her Majesty's famous statement: "My loss is the nation's gain. Helping them have jobs, earn an income, and support their families brings happiness to their households... That is the nation's gain."
Today, more than 70 model farms operate across Thailand, ranging from lowland agricultural projects to highland agricultural stations in northern regions such as Doi Dam in Chiang Mai.
Highlights on display at the event include:
Demonstration Sea Farm: Featuring Chaetomorpha and Cladophora algae species utilised for wastewater treatment, carbon absorption, and processing into biomaterials for textiles and eco-friendly tableware.
Highland Caviar: Stalls showcasing caviar produced from sturgeon farmed in the cold waters of Doi Dam station.
Practical Workshops: Hands-on demonstrations in mushroom cultivation and home vegetable gardening for urban visitors.
Urban Forestry and Botanical Displays
As the custodian of Queen Sirikit Park, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has planted more than 200,000 additional trees across the grounds to transform the site into an urban forest ecosystem.
Woranuch Suaykakaow, director of the BMA Environment Department, confirmed that the main horticultural display features over 60,000 Pathumma (Siam Tulip) plants spanning eight distinct varieties, alongside marigolds, zinnias, and cockscombs arranged for public view.
The event also features an educational display on five Bangkok public parks named by Her Majesty: Benjakitti Park, Benjasiri Park, Rommaninat Park, Queen Sirikit 60th Anniversary Park, and Queen Sirikit Park.
Conservation, Giant Carp, and New Discoveries
The Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives are presenting several ecological initiatives:
The Siamese Giant Carp (Pla Kraho): The Department of Fisheries is exhibiting a 10-kilogram specimen of the world's largest scaled freshwater fish—a native Thai species that was saved from local extinction following Her Majesty's query, "Where have all the Thai fish gone?" Artificial breeding programmes established in 1985 have since restored populations across natural waterways.
ASEAN’s Largest Dinosaur: The Department of Mineral Resources is unveiling Naka Titan chaiyaphumensis, a newly discovered herbivorous dinosaur species measuring over 30 metres in length, identified as the largest in Southeast Asia.
Free Royal Saplings: The Royal Forest Department is distributing 1,000 tree saplings per day propagated from trees personally planted by Her Majesty, including Siamese Rosewood, Yang Na, and Lignum Vitae.
National Flora Competition
For horticulture enthusiasts, Dr Weerachai Nanakorn, chairman of the Plant Competition Committee, announced national competitions across eight categories, including Anthurium, Bonsai, Caladium, and Croton.
Winners will receive Royal Trophies from His Majesty the King, while the overall "Champion of Champions" will be awarded the Royal Trophy from Her Majesty Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother. This year marks the inaugural competition for Sanae Chandras Bussarakham, a newly popular ornamental plant variety.
The "Colours of Flora: Honouring Her Majesty the Queen Mother 2026" fair runs from 8 to 13 August 2026 at Queen Sirikit Park, Chatuchak District, Bangkok.
