... and a love for life motivates us all.

I really need to apologize for neglecting this blog. To make up for months of silence on this blog, I've been actively seeking a new direction for the space. In addition to exploring various gardening issues, I've lined up themed interviews with experienced gardeners who will be sharing their experience on how gardening in a small space is like. My "gurus" for this quarter are  Ethan and Irene, 2nd runner-ups for the "Cool Ideas for better HDB living - Growing Vegetables at Home" competition. If you haven't heard of their nifty idea yet, because like me, you didn't have a chance to attend the Cool ideas for better HDB living exhibit, do check it out here. Essentially, their idea addressed a major concern for all of us living in small apartments - that of limited space.

Last Friday, when I was fortunate enough to meet up with them, we had a lengthy talk about various issues of gardening in Singapore. Having lived in Japan before and enjoyed gardening with land and four seasons, I was curious about what they felt were the major differences between gardening with land and within containers. Almost unanimously they voiced out a major difference was the lack of space. We're talking about open land, almost unlimited space for the plants to expand versus confined space within the containers and really, limited storage space for the plant pots. Also, with the seasons in Japan, they experienced a different kind of relationship with the plants -- there, sowing and harvests happened at fixed times of the year whereas in a tropical country like Singapore, we can pretty much sow and harvest anytime. 

"In Japan, we had help from the natural environment whereas here [in Singapore], there is no environment for the plants; We have to duplicate the conditions for them."

Like all amateur gardeners, they started out focusing on ornamental plants back in the 80's, after moving back to Singapore. Like Irene shared, they pretty much grew stuff "the usual way" - plant and soil in pot. If plant dies, just buy another pot. When they were busy, the plants were the first to be sacrificed. So you can expect that over the years, they've had experience with a wide variety of plants and found that aloe vera and bamboo plants are the hardiest. Now, they're moving towards sustainability and so are focusing on edibles like herbs and other greens for their salads. 

I could sense their deep love for the plants and Irene passionately agreed with me when I commented on how hard it is kill or throw plants that we've grown from seeds. This is one of the main motivations for Ethan's small bottle solution; there were just too many plants and much too little space to hold all the plants. For an elderly couple in their 60's, they were certainly active and still dynamic. But Ethan revealed that another source of motivation for this idea came from the fact that he could no longer help Irene move big and heavy pots of plants. There was a real need to think of how they could hold on to the plants in containers that were mobile and still had conducive conditions for the plants.

By the end of the interview, I walked off with a petite bottle in which held a healthy, big-leafed lemon balm. I can't help but agree with them that big solutions can indeed come in small bottles. And maybe all we need is a love of life and all creation to motivate us towards our own big solutions. 

A big-leaved lemon balm held in a petite container

Crazy hot weather

Just a quick reminder for all gardeners out there - our weather's just been insanely hot!!! Before I knew it, I've lost quite a few branches (not the whole plant, thankfully) to the extreme heat. Remember to water!!!

Will be updating all of you on the progress of my tomato plants as well as more tips on how to care for them. Hope you're having a nice cool day in the shade of your plants~~

The Garden is now at Etsy!

I finally managed to get the seedlings organized and they are now available for sale on Etsy! Some of the smaller seedlings are placed in pairs within the pot and the slightly more mature ones are in pots by themselves. I've started two listings for the smaller seedlings.

Hopefully, once I get this started, the other projects such as plant starter kits, wall-deco plants, and terrariums will come easier. Do watch this space for updates~~ Happy gardening on this sunny day.

One of the seedling pots available on Etsy

What counts as organic?

We're all increasingly aware of the endless number of chemicals that can go into our bodies now and with so many food scares, it's no wonder that more people are scrambling to get organic food. But, what exactly counts as organic? Are they just food that has no toxic chemicals? Or is it food specially grown and nurtured in a certain way?

Wikipedia defines organic food as "foods that are produced using methods that do not involve modern synthetic inputs such as synthetic pesticides and chemical fertilizers, do not contain genetically modified organisms, and are not processed using irradiation, industrial solvents, or chemical food additives.^"

But it really isn't that simple. For those of us who are trying to build a self-sufficient garden, what are some of the things we need to take note?

So in my search for the definition to what counts as organic produce, I tried to focus on details that matter to gardening organic food at home. I came across a couple of really interesting articles. One of them is an article by Andy Hamilton on Organic Container Gardening. Hamilton gives us some advice on the things we can use when trying to grow food in limited space. Using hanging baskets and going vertical helps. He also suggests growing plants that will last and can be harvested over a long time so we don't waste space. Jackie French's Self-sufficiency on a balcony gives us detailed steps on how to build our little self-sufficient garden right on the balcony. Some steps include choosing the right pots, planting the right plants that will eventually yield us enough produce for our salads and daily green intake.

Perhaps I should consider whether to keep this pandan plant since I hardly ever use it for cooking...?

None of the posts went very much into talking about care of the plants - what should we use to keep those pests away? What do we do when our plants grow ill? What kind of fertilizers should we use? In fact, what soil do we plant our food in? And it all relates back to the idea of what defines organic food.

In some of my previous posts, I introduced homemade pesticides and even home composting. For us to move closer to having an organic home-grown food on a scale way way small, I think it's realistic for us to consider making everything, right down to homemade soil/fertilizer. Of course to start, we could simply pay more attention to the products we buy for our garden - is this organic soil? Can we get any natural pesticide? What kinds of fertilizers are chemical-free?

I hope this post has helped us resolve a little more to build our self-sustaining garden, even if we have very limited space. Even if we only care a little for our health and what goes into our bodies, let the harvest be our motivation; the taste of food from our own garden will definitely be worth the effort!

The plants give me something to talk about

I've really had loads to talk about these past few days! Just a couple hours of work invested in my single day off and I've had tons of "rewards" since.

Over the past weekend, I had the honour to be the "cake-creator" for my friend's pet dog. One of her requests was for me to include butternut squash in the cake. I had saved the seeds from the Japanese pumpkin we ate the previous week and of course I was really happy to have more seeds. This past Monday, I just dumped the whole lot of seeds into my now designated germinating-pot, expecting very little to sprout and definitely a whole long while before any action takes place.

The shameful way I treat the pumpkin & squash seeds - dumped in a pot

Imagine my delight when today, I walked out to the balcony and found this:

Pumpkin seedlings!!

This has got to be record breaking. In less than two days, these seedlings sprouted. I guess the heat is worth enduring if all my plants are so happy!

On another note, the tomato seedlings are growing really well. Some are bigger than others but you can see that the stems are buffing up and they look really healthy. 

Rapidly growing tomato seedlings

The downside about having a little garden on the balcony is, even if the plants are happy now, when they start growing out, I will have no space for them So, do watch this space because I will be posting information on how to get some seedlings from me. You do get to choose the type of seedlings and I will basically be charging for soil & container. Alternatively, you can choose to follow me on my Facebook space, HDB Greens for more information on how to grab these seedlings.

Let's move a step closer towards self-sufficient living in the comfort of our HDB flats!

Growing cherry tomatoes

Now that my tomato seedlings are getting bigger, I need to start thinking about the care and maintenance of these plants.

If you were to google-search for tips on planting cherry tomatoes in small spaces or containers, you will find generally positive posts. My short experience so far proves that we can start from seed and these plants really do love a lot of sunlight. So if you have a small space that gets a lot of sunlight, perhaps you can consider planting cherry tomatoes.

Here are some other tips on care of your cherry tomatoes after your seeds successfully sprout:

1. If you manage to get a lot of seedlings and are thinking of re-potting/spacing them out, do make sure to fluff your soil. They like fertile and loose soil.

2. Prepare some sort of support for these plants. Even if your plant is the bush type and can stand up by themselves, we probably want to provide extra support for the plants when they start bearing fruit. This is especially important for us since we live in high-rise buildings. We don't want the little fruits to start falling on the heads of passers-by!

3. These plants need to be watered once every two days. But do make sure you watch your pot; you might want to water them more frequently if the soil looks and feels very dry. Backyard gardening suggests giving the plants a little fertilizer with each watering. This is probably a good idea since tomatoes usually enjoy their fertilizers.

4. You might choose to prune them. Life on the Balcony's quick tip on planting tomatoes suggest that we remove suckers. And the comments following the tip suggest that although tomatoes will still grow on suckers, it is probably better for your plant as a whole if they are removed.

And these are all the tips! For now anyway. Hopefully you too will be motivated to start a pot of cherry tomatoes (if the tips above don't sound tooooo scary...). I will be getting myself some stakes for my seedlings today! I am expecting a really good harvest since our weather's going to get hotter~~ Happy gardening as usual!

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References for this post came from:
1. Backyard gardening
2. Life on the Balcony
3. e-how Home
4. Real Simple

New growth

Here's an update on some of the edibles growing in my balcony:

One of the shallots I harvested but left in to grow out

The other small pot of green onions once harvested

You can still see the cut where I made the first harvest

Yet more happy tomato seedlings!

Trimmed rose plant & anticipating new buds!

Re-potted watermelon seedings

Did I follow up with...

...the outcome of my compost project?

The compost got along very nicely and I am guilty of using it up before any photos were taken! It is sitting nicely in my pot and helping my red shallots sprout delicious and spicy green onions.

Here's how you can grow your own green onions too:

1. Get some shallots if you don't have any.
2. Pick out those that are already budding or have a little green tips.
3. Plant them in a pot of soil. I usually have them in a small pot because I only plant a couple.
4. Place them in a sunny location (which shouldn't be too difficult in Singapore nowadays) and wait for them to grow out. I'm assuming we all remember to water the shallots on a daily basis so I've skipped a step.

My husband and I harvested our first batch of green onions by digging up the entire bulb. But then I read online somewhere (I'm sorry I don't remember where!) that if you cut it at the point slightly above the bulb, along the light green/white part of your green onions, you will get a fresh set of growth. Do note however, that this regrowth only works once. Once you get your second set, it's time to remove the bulb and plant in a new one.

Nowadays, I try to keep some small red shallots around at home. They are great for stir-frying and adding sweetness to food. More importantly, I keep them around to grow those lovely green onions. We just love them and my husband's adamant about boycotting store-bought green onions now. You might want to try experimenting with other kinds of onions like big red onions or yellow onions using the same steps.

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You may have found this post dry because of the glaring lack of photos. So I will try to be less enthusiastic about harvesting my green onions next time and remember to take some photos of them to share in another post. But till then, you'll have to rely on my words and try growing some green onions yourselves. I guarantee you'll be amazed at how easy it is. Enjoy!

Saving the Bamboo Plant

Recently, I mentioned that my bamboo plant was drying out and I suspected that it was due to the move plus the erratic weather here in Singapore. I shifted its position so it now sits in sheltered sunlight for the bulk of the day and gets direct morning sunlight. I also had to drastically trim off all the leaves that looked yellow or dried out. After two weeks, the new leaves are out and looking much better! Although the plant on the whole still looks pretty sad and bare...

Newly grown out leaves on the pretty much bare branches

A little tip on saving our bamboos. They do need a fair amount of water and if your bamboo plant is looking unhappy, consider shifting its location. If you are facing the same problem as I did (yellowing, dry leaves), you might also want to consider "saving" it by trimming off most of its unhealthy leaves along with the stems. Do make sure to check the condition of your bamboo stem before cutting it bare - if the stem is green, it is likely to be healthy and will grow back even if you trim off most of its leaves. However, if the stem is looking dry and has largely turned brown, you might want to hold off on trimming and consult your nearest nursery for advice; they might be able to figure out what's going on with your plant.

And that's all the sharing for today. Happy gardening on this cheery day!

A wall of bleeding hearts

Weeks ago, I reorganised the balcony and said that I was building a wall of bleeding hearts to keep out some of the traffic and get some privacy from (imaginary) prying neighbours. I am happy to share its growth thus far:

This plant definitely enjoys full-on sunlight. You can just see it straining to get more. I'm just really glad it's growing out and can't wait to see the wall complete!

Sprouts

I bought "Known-You" seeds from Eco-city for tomatoes and red coleus plant months ago but was stuck with a pile of work. The other day, when I finally managed to get a break from work (and from being ill), I thought about them. The main worry I had was, would they still germinate and sprout? After all, it's been months and I have to admit, I didn't quite take care of where to store these seeds. Nonetheless, I decided to try my luck with the tomatoes, since I just managed to get some nice planter pots from Daiso. Plus, I felt confident that my shelf would be an ideal place for the tomato plants.

It's only been 5 days since I planted those seeds and they have sprouted!! In addition, I now have seedlings from the lime and yellow watermelon we had at home recently. My husband scoffed at me when I dumped the lemon seed into the pot last night. Yes, I know lemons grow on trees. But hey, I can have it as a bonsai. I hope. Besides, I am of the opinion that it pays off to try dumping seeds into your existing pots because you never know what kind of surprise you might get.

Front right pot of baby lime plant. Cased in greenhouse from Ikea

Growing mess of yellow-watermelon seedlings

Tomato seedlings basking in the sun

So here's hoping all of you have fun trying out those seeds you've always thought of planting and may your little seedlings grow!

Raindrops on the background

I just couldn't resist switching the template of this blog to reflect the kind of weather I would like for this part of the world!

Ok, maybe I wouldn't want it to be rainy everyday. But I do wish that when it rains, it would rain moderately and when it's sunny, it wouldn't be too scorching. Primary reason being, my bamboo is facing a crisis! I guess it really enjoyed the previous location and now that I've shifted it, it's getting a little bit more of the afternoon sun. The leaves have been looking so sad, I decided to crop most of the branches off. As a result, it is looking rather bare... I am not going to post a picture of it looking sad and bare but I would like to report that the vines have been growing slowly, but definitely in the right direction as planned.

Another thing I've been trying to get my hands on are good lavender seeds. Amazon has some wonderful sources but unfortunately, they only ship within the country! I wish I knew a source here we could rely on to get wonderful perennials and plants like lavender, shiso.... The search will continue and when I do track it down, I will be sure to share!

Cheers and hope everyone's been enjoying their holidays & weekends with their plants~~

Re-Organising the Balcony

I mentioned in my last post that I finally received Fern Richardson's Small-Space Container Gardens. In the book, she described how we can first design our container gardens by laying out a plan for where each plant goes. I followed her advice and tried applying some form of order for my rectangular-shaped balcony. The results were pretty amazing.

Previously, I had two sets of shelves on both and left and right ends of my balcony and a solo shelf in the middle facing the sliding doors. I then filled the empty space with a big bamboo plant to the left of that shelf in the middle and a big cactus and an aloe vera to the right of the same shelf. For some reason, I was obsessed with having a patio table out on the balcony and it had to be set right in the middle. The end result was a decent looking balcony with bits of plants all over. I believe I've shared some pictures of what the old layout was like in previous posts so I shall not repeat them here.

I re-arranged my shelves and now have three shelves in the middle of the balcony facing the sliding doors, and my bamboo over to the left end of the balcony. It looks like this:

Big Bamboo plant now occupies left end of balcony & neighbours my Indian Rubber plant

 After the move, I realised that not only do I now have access to drainage, I have more space to move about and enough to keep my ladder and other bulky items in the corner, out of sight. Also, by having three shelves in the middle of the balcony, I've immediately gained some privacy.

The row of 3 shelves that now occupy center place

This time, I was determined to use plants as a shield from the traffic and from the prying eyes (I assume they are prying) of our next-block neighbours. I wanted to build a wall of plants and so got myself a pot of white bleeding hearts vine and ivy to go in a long planter. The planter goes smack in the middle of the three shelves and is placed a little higher up where the plants can get most sun.

What the "wall" looks like - can't wait for the vines to grow!

I also got several small pots of fern (they were on sale at the nursery near me) as well as flowers that need partial shade to go on the lower racks of the shelves. My existing plants and herbs now occupy all the other spots and have gained centerpiece status.

My husband watched me do the move on Sunday and asked me, "Why didn't we think of this sooner?" Yeah, I am also amazed at how little tips from another person or a book can help transform the space so much. I still have my patio table; it's no longer placed in the middle but to the left of the balcony, in a little corner where I can sit surrounded by plants and sunshine, but still have a little privacy if I choose. I now have a space which looks so much neater and so much bigger. It made me realise that I was cluttering up my balcony before!

Perhaps you are not quite satisfied with how your garden looks right now. Maybe you can consider a little "reformation" too. Cheers and hope you have a good gardening day~

The 2nd quarter of 2012 already??

I cannot believe how quickly time just flew by.  Since the last post on New Year's, I've been remiss online. However, the gardening hasn't paused.

I've been waiting for Fern Richardson's book on Small Space Container Gardens and finally got a copy of it last week. So over the past weekend, I followed some of her tips and redesigned my balcony. The effects were so wonderful, even my husband commented: "Why didn't we think of this sooner?" I haven't quite filled it out with the plants I have in mind yet but I do believe it's been a good start!

Will be sharing pictures of the new layout soon. Hope you'll return to this space for my updates and meanwhile, happy planting!