Browse by Topic
Birds Bishan Park City & Heritage Parks Coastal Parks Community In Bloom Community Parks Concerts & Performances Dairy Farm Nature Park Dining DIY East Coast Park Eco-Activities Events Family Forests Fort Canning Park Gardening Tips Hornbills HortPark IYB2010 IYF2011 Labrador Nature Reserve Local Fauna Local Flora MacRitchie Reservoir Park Marine Biodiversity Nature Parks & Reserves Nature Walks Park Connectors Pasir Ris Park Personality Profile Photography Plant-A-Tree Plant Feature Pulau Semakau Pulau Ubin Recipes Riverine Parks Singapore Botanic Gardens Southern Ridges Sports Sungei Buloh Toa Payoh Town Park Trees Volunteers
Passiflora edulis
Common Name: Granadilla, Purple Granadilla, Passion Fruit, Passion Flower A climber grown both for its beautiful flowers and the delicious fruits.. It is called Passion flower because of the flowers complex structure and pattern that resemble the symbols associated with the passion of Christ. It was said that the flower contained the lashes received by Christ, the crown of thorns, the column, the five wounds and the three nails. Its fruits can be eaten raw, or made into juice.
Planting the Seeds of Friendship
Almost every morning, 54-year-old Kamisah Bte Atan travels from home in Bukit Panjang to Jurong East to roll up her sleevesand tend to the plants in her community garden.
Kamisah, a mother of two teenagers, is passionate about gardening. She said, “I used to live in this area before I moved to Bukit Panjang. This is where my heart is.”
Kamisah, along with her neighbours, are part of the Jurong Central Zone G Residents’ Committee (RC) gardening club. Their community garden is home to a myriad of colourful flowers, herbs, vegetables and fruit trees cultivated by the gardeners. Some of these gardeners are octogenarians.
Kamisah is reminiscent of the good old days living in the kampong. She finds solace and joy in growing plants with her friends.
Richard Ashworth, a 56-year-old retiree from Ivory Heights Condominium, galvanised his neighbours to plan and plant their community garden. He commented, “There is so much unused land in our estate. We have always wanted to create our own garden. When the opportunity came, everyone chipped in and co-operated to get this project started”. The garden has grown into a favourite spot in the estate where neighbours would hang out and take turns to water the plants and fertilize the soil.
Gardeners like Kamisah and Richard swear by the therapeutic effects and health benefits of growing plants in their community gardens. They get satisfaction from tilling the land, watching the seeds germinate and bloom. Others find it a great way to make new friends and strengthen existing ties.
To help gardeners plan and prepare for the long-term sustenance of their community gardens, NParks initiated ‘Community In Bloom’ (CIB) in 2005, as a national community gardening programme. Under the CIB framework, NParks, Residents’/Neighbourhood Committees, Town Councils and other supporting bodies collaborate to facilitate community gardening efforts.
If you are keen to find out more info about ‘Community In Bloom’ or to volunteer, please visit www.nparks.gov.sg/cib, email communityinbloom@nparks.gov.sg or call 64717808.
By Mohamad Azmi bin Shahbudin
Back to Gardening main page ShareThis