Browsing Tag

Singapore

City

An Edible Flowers Workshop: 22 Nov, 11am-12nn

I’ve recently put together this workshop on edible flowers, featuring flowers which I love for its looks, as well as its culinary and medicinal uses. Join me if you are keen! Details below.

The Tender Gardener presents An Edible Flowers Workshop – a guide to growing plants like Nasturtium, Roselle, Mammoth Sunflowers, Shungiku (Garland Chrysanthemum) and Calendula, for use in salads, tea and even as natural remedies.Other than learning how to grow these flowers, we will cover its nutritional benefits, and also touch upon how they can be used for cooking and suggest some medicinal purposes.As part of this 1-hour workshop, you will receive some seeds to get you started, a bag of Nong seed raising mix and an attractive self-watering pot.

Reservation is required at S$55 a head. There are limited seats available, so make sure to book your spot today!

A big thank you to our venue sponsor – Nong by Edible Gardens.

November 3, 2014 by Olivia

City, Garden Stories

Garden Stories: Thomas Lim of Edible Gardens

This month, I joined beevangelist, Thomas Lim and his Edible Gardens colleague, Suekay, on one of their bee rescue trips. It was Thomas’ second visit to this property in Punggol, where he had previously removed a hive successfully.

On this occasion, the whole process took more than two hours, which is not uncommon, so lots of patience is required on their part. Their task is not as easy as it seems, as the bee suits, although much thinner than the conventional version, is quite warm when worn, especially for that duration. Also, angry bees will swarm around them, and they are sometimes stung in the process, like they were that day.

Thomas and Suekay had to walk away a couple of times in order to calm them down, the rationale for that is bees don’t fly too far away from their hive, and at some point, the bees will have to go back. Bees also picked up on their scents, and would leave the owners and I alone even though we were standing quite near the both of them.

November 1, 2014 by Olivia

City

Our new backyard hens

I recently took into my possession a pair of bantam hens, from Edible Gardens, adding to my flock of four. My brother and I were warned about their voracious appetites, but we were still surprised as we had not seen anything quite like it, they are indeed very industrious when it comes to eating, always finishing whatever is in their food dish.

Although they are larger than the other two hens, they sit at the bottom of the pecking order. The one with the strange hair-do is the “bottom” bird, which you can probably tell. Fortunately, we already have separate housing for them, making it a stress-free situation for the new birds. They sleep with our other rooster, who doesn’t get along with his father. At any one time, one rooster is caged in a 2m x 2m coop, as can be seen in the photo above.

The girls can be a bit naughty, sometimes I find them perching on furniture in the undercover area of our backyard, or digging up a garden bed, but overall they are so lovely and friendly, and a joy to watch in the garden.

October 26, 2014 by Olivia

City, Farm Stories

Farm Stories: Derrick Ng of Generation Green and Wang Yuan Fish Soup

Last week, I went with my beloved friend Bhavani Prakash to visit Derrick Ng at his spray-free farm space in Neo Tiew. He’s an inspiring, enterprising young man with a vegetable farming business and a fish soup stall, and has an impressive corridor farm at home. He’s determined to improve Singapore’s food security, and has a strong desire to bring healthier, pesticide-free food to Singaporeans. He is one of a collective group of people who have adopted farm plots on this property.

Derrick explained to us that he uses a closed loop system to ensure no waste is created in the process of growing vegetables and fish. The vegetables that don’t make to it the market or his fish soup stall, Wang Yuan Fish Soup, end up as compost. The fish he farms is for the purpose of making fish emulsion, an effective fertiliser for plants.

After showing us around his three greenhouses, he was kind enough to give us some freshly harvested Purple Chye Sim to take home. I cooked it that evening in a soup, and it was very delicious. During our time with Derrick, he dispensed lots of growing tips related to vegetables and fruit trees. He also shared that he favours permaculture as a farming practice, and he uses resources that are readily available to him, and makes the best of what he has.

I can’t emphasise enough, the importance of knowing your farmer, where possible, because there’s an assurance that the food you’re consuming is safe. Also, it’s been said that eating locally and seasonally is healthier for us because we follow the rhythms of nature.

Here are photos of Derrick’s farming plots, and an interview where he shares details of his journey so far.

October 13, 2014 by Olivia

Older Posts

Newer Posts