Urban farming in apartments: Growing your own Vegetables at Home

What’s urban farming? In a nutshell, this refers to cultivating, processing, and distributing food in a city. That’s right – Singapore might be a city state without any countryside, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t try our hand at agriculture or farming. (Cover image credits @chua.jean)

Getting started on urban farming is simple enough. At the most basic level, you can purchase soil and seedlings, and pack these into recycled plastic containers. Alternatively, you may also buy small vertical vegetable boxes (these are complete with soil and seedlings, which means you won’t be required to do any assembly). At the other end of the spectrum, $60 – $240 will get you a vertical growing system from UGrow-Gardens – this allows you to grow vegetables such as kailan, bakchoy and chye sim, all harvestable after one month.

Take a leaf (pun fully intended) out of Ms Jean Chua’s book, whose calamondin orange is featured above. The urban farming enthusiast shared, “I started gardening in 2014. Back then, I didn’t have any idea on how to take care of my plants. They kept dying n I kept buying more replacement plants! Eventually I joined international gardening groups on Facebook and gradually picked up the ropes of urban farming. Today it is a joy for me to see my plants thriving. I have successfully grown crops such as coriander, tomatoes, chilli and calamondin oranges. Despite the space constraints of urban farm, seeing the fruits of my labour keeps me going.”

Indeed, herbs such as mint, basil, thyme, and oregano are easy to get started with. Want to try your hand at urban farming as well? Keep the following tips in mind!

#1: Mint

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The more light and water your mint plant gets, the faster it will grow. Water twice a day, fertilize on a weekly basis, and if you see any long, straggly stems forming, cut them off and replant them for more efficient growth.

#2: Basil

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Similar to mint, basil plants thrive in sunny conditions and when watered frequently. Make sure you prune your basil plant regularly – the key is to cut off any tiny leaves that you find growing from the stem, to encourage sustained growth.

#3: Rosemary

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As compared with mint and basil, rosemary is significantly less high-maintenance. You can get away with watering your rosemary plant every two to three days – be sure to plant it in a fast-draining soil, and place it somewhere that is partially shaded.

#4: Thyme

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Thyme is another one of those plants which can’t get too much sun – in fact, for best results, limit your thyme plant to one hour’s worth of sunlight per day. When trying to propagate thyme from a cutting, don’t be discouraged if the cutting wilts and looks as though it’s dying. This is fairly normal; you can expect to wait between 3-4 weeks before the new cutting’s stems are fully upright!

#5: Oregano

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Oregano plants should be grown under the full sun, and in a quick-draining soil. (When grown in a waterlogged pot, oregano plants may develop root rot, and eventually wilt). Once your oregano plant is healthy and prospering, it’s time for some harvesting. Do this in the morning (before the plant’s flowers bloom) for maximum flavour!

Urban farming at home is a great way to steer clear of those pesky pesticides that are common in store-bought veggies. If you’re busy with work and can’t afford to spend too much time tending to your urban garden, just go for plants which require minimal watering (such as rosemary). Happy gardening!

If you found this article useful, 99.co recommends 5 easy-to-care for indoor plants to freshen your home (tried & tested!) and HDB town Tengah to be car-free, set in greenery.

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