Value Added Enhancements
Butterfly Garden at Alexandra Canal Linear Park
Partnership
Sharp Roxy
S$12,000 to set up a butterfly garden at Alexandra Canal Linear Park.
About the Project
The Butterfly Garden, about half the size of a basketball field, houses a wide array of plant species to attract butterflies, and offers a visual treat for nature lovers and enthusiasts. These plants included Lantana camara (host plant), and several nectar plants such as Asystasia gangetica, Arachnothryx leucophylla, and Ixora Javanica 'Red'. This is also one of many initiatives to infuse more biodiversity into the city's urban environment.
The Garden's star-shaped design was inspired by the winning entry submitted by Serangoon Secondary School in a design contest.
Jacob Ballas Children's Garden
Partnership
Jacob Ballas Trust Fund
Over S$3 million to make possible Asia's first children's garden.
About the Project
Named the Jacob Ballas Children's Garden in appreciation of the sponsorship from Jacob Ballas Trust Fund, it is designed to provide young visitors a unique discovery and learning experience in a garden setting.
Through play and exploration, the Children's Garden cultivates an appreciation for plants, nature and the environment.
Developed along the theme "All Life on Earth Depends on Plants", it was planned as a unique and interactive fun place where children up to 12 years of age could learn about life sciences and discover the process of plant growth.
The Jacob Ballas Children's Garden has an annual visitorship of more than 200,000. To further its outreach to the community, the Children's Garden has set its sights on increasing its capacity and engagement to older children up to 14 years old.
The estimated cost of expanding the Jacob Ballas Children's Garden is S$4.5 million. This is made possible by NParks and generous support of the Jacob Ballas Trust Fund.
Visit Jacob Ballas Children's Garden website here.
Mingxin Foundation Rambler's Ridge at Gallop Extension
Partnership
Mingxin Foundation
$1.2 million to develop the Mingxin Foundation Rambler’s Ridge, allowing visitors to learn and get up close and personal with forest ecology.
About the project
Drawing its inspiration from forest habitats on the tropical mountains of Southeast Asia, the Mingxin Foundation Rambler’s Ridge brings visitors close to unique flora and fauna. Some of the environments in this region are known to be harsh, with poor soil and exposure to strong winds. Plants in these landscapes have evolved fascinating adaptations to thrive in such environments.
Through the exploration of the Rambler’s Ridge, visitors will get the opportunity to view some of these unique plants such as the Ant Plant, as well as the carnivorous Narrow-Lid Pitcher Plant and Raffles’ Pitcher Plant.
The ridge-top hiking trail on the Rambler’s Ridge provides adventure seekers access to one of the highest points in the Singapore Botanic Gardens. Along the way, they will encounter trees that are Critically Endangered in Singapore, such as the Spike Oak and Braided Chestnut.
OCBC Arboretum at Gallop Extension
Partnership
$4 million for the development of and outreach programming at the OCBC Arboretum, home to 2,000 specimens of over 200 species of dipterocarps, and the upcoming Forest Discovery Centre @OCBC Arboretum.
About the project
The OCBC Arboretum is a conservation project for trees of the family of Dipterocarpaceae. The work at the Arboretum may have an impact on climate action, as the 2,000 trees at the Arboretum alone can store 80 million kg of CO2 in their lifetimes!
Conservation, research and education are key focus areas of the OCBC Arboretum. It acts as a ‘gene bank’ for the dipterocarp species where the seeds produced from these trees will be used in forestation projects. The OCBC Arboretum will be instrumental to scientists’ understanding of dipterocarps, and provides students with an outdoor classroom to learn about conservation efforts as well as participate in forest restoration activities.
The generous donation by OCBC has enabled this first-of-its-kind high-tech arboretum in Southeast Asia,comprising a living library of trees with more than 200 species of dipterocarp saplings that will one day grow into forest giants!
The Ecological Network of Tree Sensors (ENTS) uses remote sensing, environmental sensors and the Internet of Things (IoT) to conduct ecological research, providing a scientific foundation for the OCBC Arboretum. The ENTS regularly measure trees growth and health in response to the environment, allowing us to collect more data to better understand and care for trees around Singapore.
Outdoor Classroom at Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve
Partnership
Toyota
S$70,000 to build the first Outdoor Classroom at the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.
About the Project
Living in a City in a Garden provides great opportunities for our children to make use of the natural environment to learn about eco systems and bring fun into science classes.
Designed to bring learning outdoors, the Outdoor Classroom, launched in April 2005, has benefited many schools and students by enabling educational activities.
The Outdoor Classroom is surrounded by five different habitats, namely, mangroves, back mangroves, secondary forest, herbs and spices garden, and a freshwater pond.
Toyota's contribution was used for the refurbishment of the facility and addition of field equipment such as stereomicroscopes, magnifying glasses and the production of various educational games and materials. Five participating schools created and designed these educational games and materials on Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve.
Visit the Wetland Reserve's website here.
Sembcorp Forest of Giants
Partnership
Sembcorp Industries
S$1 million to set up a living gallery of giant tree species which are threatened in the region, and to fund green educational programmes at the Southern Ridges to benefit the community.
About the Project
Visitors to the Southern Ridges can now learn more about a special collection of giant trees native to the region. Named the Sembcorp Forest of Giants in appreciation of a sponsorship of S$1 million from Sembcorp Industries, the arboretum - a living gallery of trees for education and research is part of the NParks' initiative to enhance biodiversity within urban areas.
The Sembcorp Forest of Giants collection comprises over 600 trees that originally dominated our regional landscape before the advent of urbanisation.
Also known as emergents - large trees that grow above the forest canopy - some of the 55 species selected for the collection can attain heights of over 80m in the wild. These giant tree species can take more than 50 years to mature and reach such great heights. NParks has also planted a visually striking collection of trees with large leaves.
The generous donation funded the planting of these giant trees, as well as outreach programmes to promote awareness and enjoyment of the Forest. Part of the donation was also used to establish the Sembcorp Education and Conservation Fund to support deserving projects under the GCF.
As the number of giant trees has dwindled within the region, the Sembcorp Forest of Giants will enable park visitors to view and experience firsthand, rare and majestic specimens of the biodiversity that once thrived in our regional landscape. The Forest also allows researchers to better identify suitable species for future urban planting along our roads and in our parks.
Read more here.
The Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage
Partnership
Shaw Foundation
S$1.5 million to redevelop the Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage.
About the Project
The stage is an important icon and a much-loved feature in the Singapore Botanic Gardens since the 1990s. It has brought together a diversity of talents who entertained over millions of visitors.
In 2005, the stage was redeveloped at a cost of S$1.5 million to cater to a wider variety of performances.
Named the Shaw Foundation Symphony Stage in appreciation of the sponsorship from the Shaw Foundation, it now features a bigger stage area, improved sound system, stage lighting and back-of-house facilities.
More than a concert venue, the Shaw Stage is also a civic sculpture. The design of the stage was inspired by its beautiful setting in the Palm Valley. The structure was built as two overlapping petal-like forms growing out of a floral stem, echoing the organic forms of flowers and leaves. The bigger petal shelters the stage while the smaller one at the rear houses the changing area and support services.
The petal-like form of the roof was constructed from free-standing steel ribs and clad with a titanium zinc roof to achieve the complex curvature. The ribbed texture of the roof also evokes the venation of flowers and leaves.
Visit the Singapore Botanic Gardens website and Facebook page.
The Singing Forest at Southern Ridges
Partnership
ST Microelectronics
S$150,000 to implement the planting efforts to create a forest that birds would be attracted to, and related educational initiatives for public.
About the Project
The Singing Forest is part of the NParks' plans to enhance biodiversity within our urban areas. Showcasing 38 native tree species that originally dominated our regional landscape before urbanisation, the Singing Forest project will intensify the already high diversity of native bird species in the Southern Ridges.
Visitors to Southern Ridges will, in time to come, enjoy a wonderful chorus of birds singing at dawn when the collection of bird-attracting tree species is established.
Care has been taken to select the native tree species from four botanical families that will provide a wide variety of suitable food sources as well as shelter and nesting areas for native birds. When established, the additional planting of suitable tree species will eventually provide an opportunity for visitors to learn and appreciate the diverse collection of birds and trees in Singapore.
STMicroelectronics's contribution supported the costs of implementing the tree-planting project, installing educational signs and organising educational programmes for the public.
Read here for more information.
The TreeTop Walk
Partnership
The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (HSBC)
S$300,000 to support programmes at the TreeTop Walk.
About the Project
The first of its kind in Singapore and in the region, this free-standing suspension bridge connects the two highest points in the Centre Catchment Nature Reserve.
The suspension bridge offers a bird's eye view of the forest canopy. One can also enjoy the panoramic view of the verdant greenery of the Nature Reserve and the placid waters of the Upper Peirce Reservoir.
The total length of the walkway is about 250 m and its height from the forest floor varies, with the highest point at 25 m.
The TreeTop Walk, besides providing another avenue for nature recreation for Singaporeans, also plays an important role in forest canopy research – an area many researchers were not able to study previously because of the lack of access.
HSBC and NParks established the HSBC-GCF TreeTop Walk Fund to support a host of programmes and activities for conservation, education and outreach, including programmes for school children, workshops for teachers, training of nature guides as well as the production of educational materials.
Read more here.
Yishun Park Dipterocarp Arboretum project – Raising the Forest Giants
Partnership
Banyan Tree Holdings Limited
S$160,000 to support the cost of implementing Singapore's first Dipteropcarp arboretum and its educational activities.
About the Project
Towering nearly 80 m high, Dipterocarps are iconic trees unique to this region and form the backbone of the Indo-Malayan rainforests. However, many of these forests have diminished over the years.
To highlight the biodiversity of these majestic giants in an urban area, Singapore's first Dipterocarp Arboretum was set up in Yishun Park. Showcasing more than 800 trees of over 70 species, the Arboretum serves as a living gallery of trees for education and research benefiting our community today and for generations to come.
Visitors to Yishun Park can learn more about this unique family of rainforest trees. The Arboretum is part of the NParks' initiative to enhance biodiversity in urban areas.
Banyan Tree's contribution supported the costs of implementing the project, installing educational signage, and organising educational programmes for the public, including guided walks and tree hunts. The arboretum was officially opened on 10 July 2008.
Read more here.