by Leong Ming Chee
With retirement, we have more time on our hands. Some of us
look after the grandchildren, others exercise like going to the gym,
cycling…hiking…., learning a new language and taking up hobbies like
gardening. Many have great satisfaction
to see plants thriving well in our gardens, fruits on the trees, cutting
vegetables /herbs from the garden for our cooking.
We organized a gardening session at the Perdana Botanical
Gardens (formerly known as Lake Gardens) on Monday 15th May 2017
where En Zakaria Mat, Head of Lake Gardens/Herbarium gave a brief history of
Perdana Botanical Gardens and its transformation over the years, how to plant
flowers, vegetables, green plants, etc; what kind of soil to use and how to
make our own compost.
This activity benefitted 25 Retirees who turned up early at
the new Herbarium Building for the briefing session. We later toured toured the
grounds, composting station and the edible garden.
At the composting station, we were shown how different soil
used can affect the growth of the plants, use of cuttings to replant and most
importantly right soil, sufficient moisture and sunlight during its different
stages of growth.
We can easily set up an edible garden at home by using 4’ x
4’ wood planks and soil to plant different species of herbs and vegetables in a
small plot of land. The Edible garden there is a good demonstration of this.
After 2 hours out in the field we later adjourned back at
the Herbarium to have a Quiz and those who answered correctly were rewarded
with a pot of plant to take home. Lunch consisting of Mee Siam and Nestle
Canned Drinks were served to all.
What a great morning to experience this with a truly
passionate and professional “gardener” like En Zakaria Mat. At the end, the participants asked for a
follow-up session on this. But wait….. lets see how we progress at home after
this.
