People are increasingly switching to a lifestyle of planting their own herbs and vegetables in their gardens to become more self-sufficient and promote environmental-conscious habits.
Growing your own herbs and vegetables also provides better food security during a crisis.
Moreover, owning a gardening patch saves you money in the long-run, and does not require much space or land. In fact, container gardening has become a popular trend for those living in compact homes or high-rise buildings.
Plus, the activity is a productive hobby to take up given the added time at home, and there’s a satisfaction in watching the fruits of your labour grow before your eyes then devouring them when they ripen.
As such, StarProperty is organising a contest to encourage Malaysians to grow their own herbs and vegetables at home.
The details of the contest are as below:
Link to Contest Quiz: https://bit.ly/StarPropertyMidorie
A total of 30 winners will be selected and they stand to be rewarded with a goodie bag from Toyota Suntory Midorie (Midorie). More details about the goodie bag can be found at the end of the article.
Here are some herbs and vegetables participants can grow:
1. Lemongrass
Lemongrass, or more commonly known as Serai here in Malaysia, is also touted as a natural mosquito repellant, so there’s more than one advantage to growing this herb.
Place the lemongrass from the grocery store in a jar of water and wait for it to begin rooting. Once the roots have grown two or three inches, transfer to a pot of soil with proper drainage and provide plenty of sunlight.
Be warned though that lemongrass can grow pretty sizeable if planted outdoors so keep it in a pot and regularly trim to curb its growth.
2. Mint
Mint is surprisingly easy to grow and merely involves cutting off the top stems with its leaves intact. Place the seedlings in soil and keep it indoors, away from direct sunlight for a week.
But be careful of this herb because it grows like a weed and it will take over your garden.
Move it outdoors as it grows and water frequently. Besides using it as a herb or garnish for your dishes, mint is a great addition to your cup of tea.
3. Curry Leaves
Curry leaves are a staple in Indian cooking and require very little maintenance. The easiest way to grow this plant is by using seedlings from a local nursery.
A trickier alternative is to use a curry leave stem with the leaves and branches intact. Shave the lower end of the stem, just below the lead node and plant in moist soil. Remove any dead branches as the plant grows over a few weeks.
4. Chilli
Add a dash of spiciness to your life with this attractive plant. All you have to do the next time you buy chilli is to keep the seeds.
Plant the seeds with soil and fertilizers. Water the plant daily and soon you will never need to make run to the supermarket to stock up on chillis ever again.
5. Spring Onions
In a mixture of organic compost and moist soil, place four to six red onions with the bulbs pointing upwards.
Keep the soil moist and away from direct sunlight and it should be ready for harvest in eight weeks.
6. Bok Choy
If you prefer to avoid the use of soil, Bok Choy is a vegetable that can easily be regrown in a container with water. Chop off the base of the bok choy similarly as you would chop off a celery base.
Leave the base to grow in a jar with water by the window sill or sunny location, with the chopped off section facing upwards. Change the water every alternate day.
Midorie gifts for winners
Prizes for the contest are sponsored by Midorie, a company that specialises in vertical green walls and the retail of soilless potted plants among others.
Pafcal is the latest technology in soilless planting mediums that are imported from Japan. Marketed under the tagline “Soil Free, Fuss Free”, it is a recyclable and organic product that allows for the convenient growing of potted plants without the need for soil and frequent watering.
Goodie bags by Midorie to be handed out to the winners.
Each winner will receive a goodie bag containing a large moulded Pafcal with Pafcal chips and Vegetory seeds to grow a micro radish. Vegetory specialises in growing vegetables in a modern farm setting at a plant factory.
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