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The pandemic has been a boon to garden centres in Singapore given the rise in the number of people who have taken up gardening as a hobby - but the surge is likely to be temporary. Jesse Chua, business development person for Hua Hng Trading - which owns of World Farm, the country's biggest garden centre - said the hobby saw a spike in the island-state during the pandemic period due to a "culmination of factors" that included restricted mobility, the temporary shutdown of retail establishments and malls, and the work-from-home directive, along with the psychological impact of tending to flora.
But the interest in gardening would likely stabilise as Singapore gradually eases restrictions, he added. "Now that the Covid case rates have gone down locally, a lot of offices are requiring their staff to go back to the offices, even if not full time. We are starting to see some hobby gardeners slow down in their gardening pursuits as they now have less time on their hands," he recently told DIY International. Nevertheless, the new normal would still see more plant lovers than there were pre-pandemic, he said.
Despite a small population of 5.7 million and space constraints, Singapore - which has a land area of 728.3 km² - has a thriving gardening culture. Landed hobbyists keep gardens on their properties while residents who live in flats - around 80 per cent of the country's population - keep plants in common areas of their buildings or in community plots that the government makes available for a minimal fee.
Singapore has in large part been able to effectively contain the spread of Covid-19 through a series of measures, including a "circuit breaker" event that saw all but essential retail establishments shuttered from 7 April to 1 June 2020.
World Farm, which operates 2.4-hectare garden centre in the republic, sells 3 000 to 5 000 unique plant species and 15 000 to 20 000 plant SKUs, apart from garden supplies, gardening tools, packet seeds, pebbles and stones, pots and pot stands, potting media, sand, saucers, vegepods and coconuts. It sources its products locally and abroad, with neighbouring Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, China, Australia, Taiwan, Belgium, The Netherlands, Chile, Lithuania and Germany being regular suppliers.
But the interest in gardening would likely stabilise as Singapore gradually eases restrictions, he added. "Now that the Covid case rates have gone down locally, a lot of offices are requiring their staff to go back to the offices, even if not full time. We are starting to see some hobby gardeners slow down in their gardening pursuits as they now have less time on their hands," he recently told DIY International. Nevertheless, the new normal would still see more plant lovers than there were pre-pandemic, he said.
Despite a small population of 5.7 million and space constraints, Singapore - which has a land area of 728.3 km² - has a thriving gardening culture. Landed hobbyists keep gardens on their properties while residents who live in flats - around 80 per cent of the country's population - keep plants in common areas of their buildings or in community plots that the government makes available for a minimal fee.
Singapore has in large part been able to effectively contain the spread of Covid-19 through a series of measures, including a "circuit breaker" event that saw all but essential retail establishments shuttered from 7 April to 1 June 2020.
World Farm, which operates 2.4-hectare garden centre in the republic, sells 3 000 to 5 000 unique plant species and 15 000 to 20 000 plant SKUs, apart from garden supplies, gardening tools, packet seeds, pebbles and stones, pots and pot stands, potting media, sand, saucers, vegepods and coconuts. It sources its products locally and abroad, with neighbouring Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, China, Australia, Taiwan, Belgium, The Netherlands, Chile, Lithuania and Germany being regular suppliers.
