Bunga Petola
Petola bulat, petola buntal, petola manis or belustru (scientific name: Luffa aegyptica) is a fruit in the category of green vegetables. In English it is known as Luffa or Loofah/Lufah and is a tropical and sub tropical annual creeping plant consisting of the genus Luffa under the Cucurbitaceae family.
This plant by nature loves the sun with oval shaped leaves between 6 to 25cm and 8 to 27cm in length while its stem can be between 5 to 10cm.
The unique feature of this plant is that it consists of two distinct male and female genders growing separately. The male flower grows in bouqet while its female counterpart grows individually. Its fruit is shaped like a smooth cylinder with every single part having its own purpose and function.
The young fruit is harvested as vegetable and when it’s too ripened, the hardened xilem can be used as sponges. Its seeds can be pressed to extract odorless oil while the leftover is either used as food for animals like rabbits and catfish or fertilizer.
When we observe the Luffa’s flower, we will notice its regality and pride as it beautifully blooms at the end of the fruit. Bursting energetically in its full yellow glory we can’t help to associate the flower with the Malay royalty as it appears to be the crown of the plant, the icing on the cake. Yellow with its vibrancy is the official color of the Malay Royals.
In official palace functions, the Sultans and the queens will be seen in yellow and the commoners are not allowed to dress in yellow during these events.
Hence the term ‘mahkota’ is used here as a metaphor of the crown to describe the motif.
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