The Cactus Sunrise Community Farm was established in June 2015 and has since engaged the local community through various gardening activities almost every weekend. These activities include constructing garden beds, building fences, harvesting produce, composting, and educating youth. The garden focuses on environmentally friendly practices like composting, using coffee grounds as fertilizer, and crop rotation to improve soil quality and biodiversity. It is a place for community bonding and contributes to the neighborhood by hosting cooking events using garden produce. The garden group actively participates in NParks events and initiatives like Gardeners Day Out workshops.

1. Established on 6th June 2015. We first learnt from Thomson Sin Ming garden and Wo Wu
Yuan, then broke ground!

2. 2 weeks later, on 28th June 2015, we held our first garden launch party with our community to
build interest & inspire more members.

3. We’re proud of the progress we’ve made in just 9 months - and of all our recycled
materials and team work to build all the beds, fence and entry trellis!

4. We’ve been active in contributing to Singapore! We’ve been showcased in NEA’s SG50
KeepSingaporeClean campaign (link here) and have created a planting calendar with AVA.

5. We’ve also participated in NParks events - such as SG50 show garden where our member
even created an art piece! And we’ve had 4 members attend AVA growers courses.

6. We’ve had 35+ activities in 9 months to engage our community, including harvesting,
garden and cooking parties, & teaching how to plant seedlings.

7. We’ve created activities to create youth interest and educate about plants and the environment,
such as the plant signs, Tic-Tac-Toe and our swing. We’re proud of our Kampung Spirit.

8. We’re had lots of bonding, learning, sharing and enjoyment between new friends - from
building the fence, to sharing Kopi and snacks, to building new planter beds!

9. Our “edible garden” is essentially symmetrical. The focal points are the entry, the items of kampung
spirit. We focus on a variety of plants to ensure maximum member interest and learning.

10. We’ve focused on environmentally-friendly practices (composting, using coffee grounds,
marigolds, crop rotation) to improve the soil and promote biodiversity.

11. Our energy on soil quality and using organic methods such as neem has paid off! Our
plants have been very healthy - strong growth, colour and high produce :)

12. Our members are passionate about recycling and minimising what we need to buy. We’ve
recycled trees cut down by NParks, received donations from the community (such as Gazebo and
old floor boards for the fence) and used rocks for plant signs.

13. Criteria Description Cactus Sunrise Community Farm
1
Number of participants
involved
The level of interest of the community in gardening 43 members signed up. Active involvement of 32.
2
Types of gardening-related
activities organised and
their frequency
Evidence of gardening/plant-related activities that
engage the community throughout the year (e.g.
gatherings, garden parties, plant exchanges, visits,
etc)
Approx 35 activities over last 9 months. Almost every weekend
such as - constructing beds, building fence, harvesting,
composting, learning to grow seedlings, planning meetings
3
Ways to sustain the
garden
Support in the form of volunteer numbers, funds,
sponsorships, donations through local grassroots,
commercial and corporate sectors, schools and the
general public, which helps sustain the garden
1. Membership fees of $10 per 6 months for each member =
approx. $400 from every 6 months.
2. Donations from neighbourhood and friends - e.g. wooden floor
boards, pebbles, gazebo
3. grass roots (NC) funding
4. Aiming to get corporates and schools involved in 2nd half of this
year.
4
Gardening initiatives
conducted for schools
and young people
The active involvement of youth helps sustain the
garden in the long term. Initiatives such as mentoring,
sharing of information and guiding, help raise
awareness and develop their interest in plants,
gardening and nature appreciation
Activities for youth such as learning:
• to grow and plant seedlings
• types of plants and harvesting
• how to build fences and structures
• how and why to compost
5
Types of help offered to
other gardening groups
and the frequency
Collaborations and activities which have resulted in the
direct or indirect creation of new community gardening
groups
• Having sister gardens - Thomson Sin Ming & Wo Wu Yuan.
• Teaching vegetable gardening to wider Cactus Sunrise
Community so they can grow vegetables in their homes
6
Ways that the garden
contribute to your
community and
neighbourhood
As a place for bonding, learning, sharing and
enjoyment of beauty
1. Cooking with garden produce & pot luck dinners
2. Sharing cooking recipes
3. Bonding over lots of farming - and construction & hard work!!
7
Types of NParks events
your gardening group
is participating in and their
frequency
Support for NParks activities
1. Gardeners Day Out - 1
2. Workshops - Orchid Gardening
3. SG50 Show Garden - throughout. Created art piece for CDC
garden.
Plus AVA master growers events & NEA Keep Singapore Clean
filming
Summary of Our Community Involvement

14. Summary of Environmental Quality & Biodiversity
Criteria Description Cactus Sunrise Community Farm
1
Environmentally-friendly
Cultural Practices
Minimises the need to purchase new resources to sustain
the garden and waste generated (e.g. use of recycled
bottles as planters, discarded slabs for pathways, old
timber for edging and plant signage, etc)
• Recycling cut down tree for seats
• Recycling old floor boards for gate, fence and
tables
• Using old timber for edging
• Rocks for plant signage and decorations
• Posting in online forums about areas of need so
people can donate unwanted items
• Making use of things people in the
neighbourhood donate
2
Environmentally-friendly
Practices
The use of natural methods to control pests and diseases
in the community garden helps create an ecologically-
balanced environment (e.g. use of coffee grounds as
fertilisers, composting, using recycled water for watering,
etc)
• Anaerobic Composting (underground)
• Using coffee grounds as fertiliser
• Marigolds and Lemongrass to control mosquitos
• Rotation of plants to manage diseases
• Use of neem weekly to manage insects
3
Practices Enhancing
Biodiversity
The use of different species of plants and garden features
to attract fauna such as sunbirds, butterflies, dragonflies,
and ladybirds among others, helps create a diverse and
healthy ecosystem
• Planting variety of plants - vegetables, fruits,
flowering plants (e.g. Marigold)
• Attracting a variety of fauna - ladybirds,
dragonflies, butterflies
• Mulching and composting to enable good soil
health

15. Garden Quality
Criteria Description
Cactus Sunrise
Community Farm
1
Garden Presentation,
Forms and Colours
A garden that is well-planned adds value to the community and enhances the character of its
surroundings. Good planning is needed to ensure that elements of aesthetic such as forms and
colours are presented in a coherent way, complementing the surrounding
Yes
2 Focal Point(s) and Balance
Well-placed focal points exist to draw the viewers’ attention to the garden. The placement should
consider the spatial scale of the garden and must be balanced so that the viewers are neither
bored nor distracted
Yes
3 Innovative Elements
Creative application of new ideas in designs, garden techniques and other innovations tailored to
the context of the garden
Yes
4
Presence of Essential
Garden Items/Amenities
Essential tools/items (e.g. proper edging, a garden shed, pavers) help enhance the garden’s
aesthetics and increase the overall level of enjoyment among participants
Yes
5 Plant Health
Plants should be of a natural healthy colour without obvious signs of pest infestation, diseases
and nutrient deficiencies such as yellowing, curling and wilting leaves, stunted and deformed
plant growth, etc
Yes
6 Soil Maintenance Ensuring that soil condition is suitably maintained for supporting plants grown in the garden Yes
7
Maintenance of Physical
Structures
Physical structures such as paths, sculptures, trellises, etc, have to be well maintained to
minimise danger to garden users
Yes
8 Hygiene and Cleanliness
The garden should be checked regularly to prevent accumulation of stagnant water; dead or
diseased plant materials and rubbish; and not be overgrown with weeds
Yes
9 Safety
The garden does not put the health and safety of the surrounding community at risk (e.g. plants
on roadside verges are trimmed to prevent obstruction to pedestrians and motorists, unused
tools and dangerous chemicals are properly kept)
Yes