Saturday, November 4, 2017

Aspiring gardeners can lease own plot to grow vegetables

Source Website: http://www.tnp.sg/news/singapore/aspiring-gardeners-can-lease-own-plot-grow-vegetables
By Raffaeiia Nathan Charies, The Straits Times (The New Paper), 04 November 2017 at 06:00 am


Mr. Ivan Loh, 71, with his winter melon, which at 25kg, won for being the Heaviest Winter Melon at the Community Garden Edibles Competition.
PHOTO: Mr. Ivan Loh, 71, with his winter melon, which at 25kg, won for being the Heaviest Winter Melon at the Community Garden Edibles Competition.
TNP PHOTO: NG SOR LUANvvvv
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http://www.tnp.sg/news/singapore/aspiring-gardeners-can-lease-own-plot-grow-vegetables


Aspiring gardeners can now lease their own plot from NParks and grow their favourite plants, like edibles.

Amid the backdrop of an increasingly eco-conscious Singapore, the National Parks Board (NParks) will for the first time be leasing out garden space in their parks for anyone to grow their own plants.

These 2.5 sq m plots each cost $57 a year, for up to three years.

Users can grow any plant of their choice.

NParks aims to build 1,000 of these "allotment gardens" in 10 parks by 2019.

This move is part of a broader Edible Horticulture Plan launched yesterday that trains and supports gardeners in Singapore.


Growing your own fruit and vegetables in a garden you share can be rewarding – and can save you money.
PHOTO: Growing your own fruit and vegetables in a garden you share can be rewarding – and can save you money. More than 86,000 people are on allotment waiting lists (free schemes) in the UK, according to recent figures from the National Society of Allotment & Leisure Gardeners.
Picture posted by Linda Harrison on Friday, 02 September 2011 at 23.03 BST
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https://www.theguardian.com/money/2011/sep/02/garden-sharing-growing-vegetables


In recent years, more community gardens have sprouted islandwide, reflecting a keen interest in gardening beyond the professional sphere.

Gardening enthusiasts said they have observed more aspiring green thumbs as well.

Minister for Social and Family Development Desmond Lee noted that gardens have sprung up not only in residential estates, but also in schools, and even indoors.

And people love the idea of growing their own food, as about 80 per cent of community gardeners under NParks' Community In Bloom (CIB) programme raise edibles in their shared plots, said Mr Lee, who is also Second Minister for National Development.

He was speaking yesterday at the launch of the second Community Garden Festival, which runs until tomorrow at HortPark, off Alexandra Road.

In a pilot allotment scheme last year, 80 allotment plots made available in HortPark were quickly snapped up.

NEW GARDENS
By year-end, new allotment gardens will be available for rent at Punggol, Clementi Woods and Bishan-Ang Mo Kio parks.

Applications can be made during the festival at the Allotment Garden Booth in HortPark.

NParks provides the basics: a raised garden plot at waist level, soil and water. Gardeners simply bring seeds and tools.

Mrs Emily Fong, a retiree in her 60s, enjoys having her own 2.5 sq m space in HortPark, right next to her niece's.

She said: "There is a sense of ownership. It is a bit hard in the shared community gardens to determine what you own."

NParks said there are now over 1,300 community garden groups.

As part of the Edible Horticulture Plan, it aims to enhance training schemes.

The new three-tiered scheme has a basic training level, an advanced level for ornamental plants, edibles and pollinator-attracting plants, and a final CIB ambassador level to groom a new generation of expert gardeners who can train others.

These new initiatives bank on the widespread interest in gardening, and create a community effort to achieve the City in a Garden vision, NParks said.

By Raffaeiia Nathan Charies, The Straits Times (The New Paper), 04 November 2017 at 06:00 am


Fleet Farming is a program of IDEAS For Us. IDEAS For Us (IDEAS) is an Orlando-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and accredited NGO of the United Nations.
PHOTO: Fleet Farming is a program of IDEAS For Us. IDEAS For Us (IDEAS) is an Orlando-based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and accredited NGO of the United Nations. IDEAS creates global environmental solutions through local action. Our mission is to develop, fund and scale solutions to the world’s most pressing environmental and social challenges. Our vision is to contribute to a future where humanity thrives in harmony with nature and in peace with one another. Our urban farmers are comprised of local residents, just like you. Whether you are one of our community urban farmers, a local business owner, farmer’s market goer, or financial supporter, you become a vital member in growing food, not lawns for a more sustainable world.
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Reference
[1] Raffaeiia Nathan Charies, The Straits Times (The New Paper), Aspiring gardeners can lease own plot to grow vegetables, posted on 04 November 2017 at 06:00 am, http://www.tnp.sg/news/singapore/aspiring-gardeners-can-lease-own-plot-grow-vegetables
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