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As Singapore aims to improve food resilience during the pandemic, the National Parks Board (NParks) will be giving out seed packs to households that register for them, as part of their new 'Gardening with Edibles' initiative.
The initiative is for anyone who has a Singapore residential mailing address and each household is entitled to one seed pack, containing two types of edible plants.
This is what the seed pack looks like:
This seed pack includes Cucumber and Xiao Bai Cai seeds as well as informative pamphlets about the vegetables and how to grow them. Photo by Sumita Thiagarajan.
What is inside a seed pack & how can one register for one?
Inside each seed pack that will be distributed by NParks, there will be two packets of seeds and accompanying instruction in four languages.
The two packets of seeds will contain one type of leafy greens and one type of fruited vegetable.
The seeds provided are fast-growing species that takes only four to eight weeks to grow. They are also commonly used in local cuisines.
The QR codes on the instruction pamphlets will bring you to NParks' resources, such as YouTube videos, on how to grow and care for your edible plants.
The agency has also set up a special YouTube playlist, with a total of 11 videos, which covers all the basics of how to prepare the soil for planting your seeds and even how to make your own fertiliser.
To register for a seed pack for your household, you can do it online via this form or via a phone call at 64991099.
Registration for the seed pack starts today (June 18) at 12:00pm and will close on June 30 at 11:59pm.
Anyone who has a Singapore residential mailing address can register for a seed pack for their household.
The seed pack will be mailed out to the household upon registration. Those who register online will receive the seed pack by August 1, 2020 while those who register via the hotline may receive the seed pack later.
Initiative will support SFA's 30 by 30 vision
The 'Gardening with Edibles' programme launched by NParks, and supported by Tote Board and DBS, aims to help residents in Singapore to start gardening at home to complement the Singapore Food Agency's 30 by 30 vision to produce 30 per cent of our nutritional needs in Singapore by 2030.
The initiative aims to encourage people to grow edibles in their homes, gardens and along corridors.
Desmond Lee, Minister for Social and Family Development and Second Minister in the Ministry of National Development, announced that when the Covid-19 situation improves, more community gardens and allotment gardens will be available across Singapore to encourage Singaporeans to grow wide varieties of edible plants.
Top images by NParks and Sumita Thiagarajan