Urban farms getting popular in Singapore

Having urban farms where one can grow vegetables and ornamental plants has been a new trend in the lion city after the government encouraged developers and residents to maximize green areas in both residential and commercial buildings.

An urban farming consultancy has, in fact, been set up in early 2012 to help design vegetable gardens for homes, schools, and any available areas such as forgotten rooftops and abandoned spaces near residential areas.

Co-founded by Bjorn Low and Robert Pearce, the firm had already set up a rooftop garden and a pop-up store called "nong", which means "farmer" in Chinese, on top of People's Park Complex, a signature building located in Singapore's Chinatown.

The Singapore Management University (SMU) on Tuesday launched an environmental initiative called "GROW" by starting with a new garden plot outside the School of Accountancy and Law building along Queen Street, to promote green and sustainable living in the center of the city.

The garden, which contains some 50 varieties of plants, will be maintained by students and staff volunteers. Interested city residents can also choose to adopt 30 planter boxes at 80 Singapore dollars each.

The produce from the farm will be used in projects such as the annual SMU Challenge, in which students donate food and household items to those in need, particularly the elderly and low-income families.

"Tending a garden physically and giving your full attention in it brings one back to the basics, which are important to life. We need to produce food for our body and soul and we should contribute in the greening of the city as part of our civic duty," said SMU President Prof. Arnoud de Meyer.

City residents have been generally receptive to the greening program of the government.

"This is another giant jackfruit we harvested today, which is the reward of Papa's effort. There's no word to describe the taste of a home-grown jackfruit!" The tweet, which was recently posted on social media by a local resident, drew wide attention in Singapore since many were unaware that jackfruits can be grown just aside their own building.

The goal of Singapore authorities is to extend its "green revolution" skywards given the city's high-rise urban development.

In June 2014, Singapore's Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) announced a new urban greenery initiative called LUSH or Landscaping for Urban Spaces and High-Rises program that calls for more development of green areas not only in residential areas but also in offices, shopping malls, hotels, and other open areas.

Since the introduction of LUSH in 2009, over 40 hectares of green spaces within the city-state's urban environment have been added, which is equivalent to 130 primary school fields.

Under the LUSH 2.0 program, URA said the geographical coverage will be extended substantially to cover most of Singapore.

If the goal of the LUSH program is fully achieved, Singapore will really live up to its reputation as Asia's "Garden City."

《Urban farms getting popular in Singapore》永久阅读地址: http://91kudian.com/yingyu/18473/