I
n a city like Hong Kong, with
little space available, most of
the food we eat is imported,
and it can often travel great
distances, taking a long time to get
from the farm to your table. So much
of our food is wrapped and packaged
and packed until it barely resembles
the “fresh” product it once was. It’s
easy to remain disconnected from the
source of your food, but when your
kids think that beans grow in plastic
trays on the shelves at Wellcome, it’s
time to reconnect. A kitchen garden
is a perfect way of teaching them that
there’s much more to what we eat than
meets the eye.
Hong Kong has its fair share of
outdoor spaces and public gardens,
but the idea of creating a garden at
home in this bustling vertical city
may seem like quite the challenge.
The good news is that it’s really very
easy. Over the last couple of years
rooftop farms have been popping up
A sunny windowsill is all you need to start
farming your own tiny patch of organic paradise,
writes
Brooke Chenoweth
.
all over the place, showing that it’s
not only possible, but a very good idea
as well. HK Farm in Ngau Tau Kok,
Kowloon, is one such venture, started
by the design firm “2 Years Ahead”.
Based on the premise of introducing
Hongkongers to the concept of urban
agriculture, this farm grows up to 30
different types of seasonal produce,
such as bitter melon, okra, tomatoes
and a huge variety of herbs, on the
4,000-
square-foot roof of the team’s
office building. It’s local and organic,
and has the added benefit of being
enormously eco-friendly. The farm
produces its own compost with food
waste from nearby cafes, reduces
carbon emissions by not requiring
long-distance transportation of food,
and helps cool the floors below,
reducing the need for air conditioning.
Project Grow in To Kwa Wan,
also in Kowloon, is a similar venue,
aiming to educate people about the
possibilities of growing their own food
April 2013
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