Underneath The Foliage

More than 40 years ago, when Singapore banked on lush parks and roadside verges to create jobs and attract investment, the mandate was clear: green Singapore and green it fast. Today, the Garden City has another urgent task: to care for its ageing trees. Extreme, erratic weather and the frenzied pace of construction are raising the stakes.
Tan Hui Yee Straits Times 29 Jan 11;

THE clock has been ticking for some time now.

More than 40 years ago, when the Republic was trying to find its footing, its leaders banked on lush parks and streetside verges to attract investment and create jobs. The mandate was clear: Green Singapore - and green it fast.

In the years that followed, Singapore experienced the flora equivalent of a baby boom: As many as 470,000 saplings, 34,000 instant trees and three million shrubs and creepers were planted between 1970 and 1980 alone.

Today, the affluent city state sits pretty with a lush canopy of 1.3 million trees in its parks, roadside verges and vacant state land. It is a model of environmental sustainability, with subways, viaducts and housing blocks that blend seamlessly into swathes of green connected with waterways.

But underneath the growing foliage lurks a growing demographic burden. Singapore is now grappling with its next urgent task: caring for its ageing trees.

Extreme, erratic weather is raising the stakes, while the city state's frenetic pace of construction puts the heat on urban trees and landscapers. More than 40 years after the first saplings were planted, Singapore is now being confronted with the mounting costs of succeeding in its early frenzied greening efforts.

ageing population

The fact is, urban living is tough on trees. It exposes them to constant heat, dust and choking fumes and crams them into a 1m-deep verge with drains on one side and the road kerb on another. It can also dramatically shorten their lifespans.

For example, according to botanist Veera Sekaran who runs landscaping firm Greenology, a Senegal Mahogany, or Khaya senegalensis, lasts 100 to 200 years in the forest, but the ones planted beside roads can start showing signs of deterioration from the age of 40.

Given how rapidly the Garden City sprouted in its early years, an entire batch of trees in its older estates will soon come of age. They now require scrutiny for signs of deterioration and disease.

'These are geriatric trees,' says Mr Sekaran, referring to some of Singapore's first plantings. 'We should be looking at them more carefully.'

The financial impact of caring for the aged has already been felt in some quarters. Many town councils, for example, have seen their landscaping bill bulge by an average of 30 to 50 per cent over the past 10 years, according to Mr Tay Ah Bah, senior horticulture manager of town management company EM Services. This is not just because of the usual increases in the cost of labour, machinery and waste disposal, he says, but also because maturing trees require more resources as they need to be pruned and checked more often.

rising costs

Over at the National Parks Board, the annual bill for watering, pruning and other maintenance and improvement work on urban greenery has swelled 129 per cent from $22.9 million in 1997 to $52.4 million last year. The area under its care has also doubled to 10,000ha.

The agency takes comfort that those figures, when broken down, look somewhat less startling. The cost of maintaining urban greenery - including staff salaries - has remained 'reasonably constant' at around $11,000 per ha per year over the last 20 years. NParks streetscape director Simon Longman attributes this to productivity savings from, among other things, figuring out the correct frequencies of maintaining its trees.

Yet, with the growing number of ageing trees, it is unclear how long the costs can be contained.

Mature urban trees need to be inspected closely for signs of frailty. Their thick, heavy crowns need to be trimmed to prevent them from being felled by wind tunnels created during new bursts of construction activity, say arborists.

The wind tunnels are created when the new buildings funnel strong winds through a narrow area.

Urban trees, unlike those in the forest, also do not have the benefit of natural selection and protection offered by dense clusters of greenery. Their species are hand-picked - depending on their hardiness, foliage, and what's available - and for the most part they bear the full brunt of the elements from their solitary plots.

At the same time, what is heartening is that trees are hardy and can take years to die.

But crowded, fast-paced Singapore cannot afford that luxury of letting them atrophy on their own. Its more than 1.3 million urban trees and millions of other shrubs are packed into an increasingly built-up 710 sq km island along with five million people. With leaves lapping against windows, branches arching over walkways, and roots poking out of concrete, they are deemed too risky to leave untouched if their health is in doubt.

To cope with the greying tree population, NParks in recent years has tried to replace some of its fast-growing but weaker trees like the Cabbage Tree, or Andira inermis, with hardier species like the Bunga Tanjong, or Mimusops elengi. It has tried planting new trees in between mature ones to prepare for the latter's demise.

Mr Longman says: 'We have to provide for time when older trees decline and have to be replaced. Trees don't live forever, just like humans don't live forever.'

But this succession plan does not take away the need to care for its pioneer batch of trees and their distinguished canopies, which are still the hallmark of the city state.

Global warming has also made the task more urgent. Climatologists expect the world to experience more extreme weather conditions like heatwaves, droughts and fierce storms. Arborist Jacqueline Allan from landscaping firm Nature Landscapes notes: 'In the past six years, the weather here has changed a lot, it's become more erratic. And with so many new condominiums being built these days, trees are now subject to wind tunnels that didn't exist before.'

The freak weather has already claimed one life. In July last year, as NParks was accelerating its tree-pruning programme to shape them up for the year-end thunderstorms, a strong descending column of air toppled a tree along Yio Chu Kang Road. The tree crushed a car, killing 32-year-old motorist Chua Loong Wai.

In response, NParks plans to increase the frequency of tree inspections from once every 18 months to once every year for those along major roads.

Mr Longman muses about its financial consequences: 'It's something we need to think very, very carefully about - how we need to accommodate this within our existing expenditure.'

What this all amounts to is Singapore's maturing mosaic of green, just like its fast-ageing population, will increasingly pose mounting and expensive challenges.

Mr Wong Yew Kwan, who was Singapore's commissioner of parks and recreation in the 1970s, notes wryly: 'We spent millions to plant trees, now we may have to spend millions to correct their sizes.'

instant gardens

Not that cost has slowed the pace of greening. The inhabitants of today's Garden City now root for ever bigger, faster and higher urban greenery.

Having grown up in verdant surroundings, they are less inclined to wait years for saplings to turn into trees. They demand instant foliage in new developments, and perfection from the get-go.

To meet these expectations, NParks keeps a rolling stock of more than 16,000 trees in 24ha worth of tree banks around the island. Saplings are nurtured there for about four years before they are planted along public roads or in parks.

For two prominent private sector projects - the integrated resorts at Marina Bay Sands and Resorts World Sentosa - hundreds of trees were specially trucked into Singapore and then nurtured in local nurseries for a few years before being planted in their designated locations.

This meant that, despite a tight construction schedule, Marina Bay Sands' 200m-high SkyPark was able to open last year complete with leafy Black Olive trees rising tall against the city skyline.

Lower-profile housing developments demand these 'instant gardens' too. In a remote corner of Seletar, row upon row of lush young trees in special bags are tended to by doting landscape workers from contractor Scenic Landscape, waiting for the day they are transplanted to the grounds of a 300-unit condominium off Holland Road.

foreign talent

The speed of greening in modern-day Singapore is remarkable, given that the country does not have much land to produce plants from scratch. The vast majority of the saplings, trees, bushes and other horticulture elements used here are imported.

In 2009, Singapore shipped, trucked and flew in $91 million worth of live trees, plants, cut flowers and other horticulture elements from around the world, from as far as Europe and Latin America. Out of that, $55 million worth came from neighbouring Malaysia.

The easy availability of imported greenery has bred the impatience for quick results that push the boundaries of nature. Horticulturist Lam Man Qing from landscaping firm Garden & Landscape Centre says some of her clients 'expect plants to cover the ground fully and flower immediately'. They don't understand that a garden looks its best only a few months after planting, she says.

Meanwhile, one landscape architect, who requested anonymity, recounts how he was recently 'forced' to accelerate work on a section of a park, just six months into its two-year development period.

The reason? A politician was visiting. Till today, he is aghast at his hurried creation because it sticks out like a sore thumb compared with the surrounding developments.

In recent years, Singapore's foliage has also been travelling upwards, driven by a need to incorporate green lungs on higher and higher storeys of densely populated skyscrapers. It is brand-new territory, and one which some quarters worry does not receive enough oversight. (See story: High anxiety)

In many ways, Singapore's greening story is a victim of its own overt success. The Garden City has made it hip - and economically viable - to be green. Its landscape designers are respected overseas, while developers clamour for the cachet of eco-friendly labels like the Green Mark.

But Mr Mason Tan, a former president of the Singapore Institute of Landscape Architects, fears this enthusiasm does not spill over into a more studied appraisal of sustainable greenery.

He says: 'What scares me now is that when you look at the proposal for a project, there is green drawn all over the place. Some of it is not workable, or requires a lot of engineering to take place.'

price to pay?

It is a worrying thought, especially since moribund landscaping prices are making it tempting for landscaping companies to cut corners to increase profits.

Property management companies like Knight Frank Estate Management and Wisely 98, which run more than 100 condominiums between them, both say the value of standard landscape maintenance contracts has barely moved up in the past 10 years.

While prices of trees have risen because developers are demanding higher-quality specimens, old-time landscape contractors like Mr Eliam Eng of Nyee Phoe Flower Garden bemoan the fact that the cost of turfing has remained constant at $20 to $22 per sq m in the past 30 years.

Meanwhile, landscape budgets have fallen by 20 per cent to 30 per cent over the past two decades, says landscape architect Sherman Stave from Sitetectonix, who has been based in Singapore for 20 years. He estimates that taking into account rising costs, the 'real value you are working with is 50 per cent less money than you had 20 years ago'.

Landscapers think the situation is due in part to the reluctance of many Singaporeans to pay anything more than the bare minimum for greenery. They have simply got used to landscaping being done on their behalf and as far as the extensive public greenery is concerned, it being free of charge.

The chairman of the Landscape Industry Association of Singapore, Mr Michael Teh, says: 'They take a lot of things for granted. They drive by, see the trees being planted and the grass being cut.'

Landscaping here unfortunately is still perceived as low-end, labour-intensive work, even though the country is slowly trying to grow its pool of horticultural professionals and researchers, and is getting attention for its biennial Singapore Garden Festival.

NParks chief executive Poon Hong Yuen says it increased its budget a few years ago so that its contractors could meet the higher standards it required of them, such as having more certified workers and better machinery. Productivity gains have allowed its costs since then to slide to close to what it was before.

It may be a different matter, however, for other buyers of landscape services. 'If you are not willing to pay for it, you get low standards,' he says.

Yet the issue could be larger than one of mere standards. Besides holding back industry development, rock-bottom pricing is making some firms resort to inferior or even pollutive soil mixtures, say landscapers here. (See story: Soil cheats polluting the ground)

It is a complex ecosystem that requires stronger regulation as well as constant scrutiny from a citizenry that takes more ownership of its urban greenery because they see its intrinsic value. The latter, says National University of Singapore geographer Victor Savage, may take a generation to come about.

For now at least, Singapore is waking up to the fact that its much-celebrated 'clean and green' tag comes with costs that will be keenly felt for years to come.

The work, it seems, is never quite done. As landscape designer Nick Ng from greening firm Oh Heng Huat puts it: 'It's not like building a building, which you can walk away from after it's completed.

'Once you plant a plant, you have to look after it every day. You cannot leave it alone.'

What more, a Garden City.

High anxiety
Straits Times 29 Jan 11;

While some landscapers think there should be restrictions on what type of plants and trees can be used on rooftops, others say it will overly constrain a fledgling industry
By Tan Hui Yee, Correspondent

THE storm clouds moved in, transforming the light drizzle into a heavy downpour.

Two hundred metres up in the sky, on the 57th-storey rooftop park of the Marina Bay Sands (MBS) integrated resort, hotel guests and visitors scuttled for shelter.

Meanwhile, the fronds of the tall foxtail palms flapped vigorously like flags on a pole. And the trunk of an almost two-storey-high Bucida buciera leaned dramatically as its crown caught the wind like the sail of a ship.

The SkyPark - one of the most prominent newcomers to Singapore's high-rise greenery scene - has caused some quarters to wonder if enough thought is put into the safety aspect of high-rise plantings.

As the Garden City becomes more and more built-up, the authorities are making a concerted push to promote high-rise greening through a mix of guidelines, incentives and seminars. For the past few years, the Singapore Institute of Architects and the National Parks Board (NParks) have also given out awards for good examples of integrated greenery, like that found in Khoo Teck Puat Hospital and Orchard Central mall.

But what is needed, as gardens are built higher up, is more stringent guidelines too, say landscapers.

There are simply higher stakes involved with skyrise gardens, notes Mr Veera Sekaran, who runs landscaping firm Greenology. A falling branch from a tall building can cause a lot more damage than one from a tree planted closer to the ground.

High-rise conditions require hardier and more wind-resistant trees.

Current regulations, however, look more into the structure of a building and whether it can support the weight of a high-rise garden, rather than what types of plants are used there.

Mr Sekaran says the authorities should restrict the type of plants and trees that can be used high up, but the NParks, Singapore's greening authority, is wary of that.

It does not want to constrain Singapore's high-rise greening movement when it is still in its infancy.

Dr Tan Puay Yok, deputy director of research at its Centre for Urban Greenery and Ecology, says: 'The more we regulate, the more stifled the design becomes.

'Architects will find a previously approved plan and say, 'NParks has approved this before, I'm going to modify it a bit, and send it out, and you will be assured that this one will be approved very quickly.''

Agreeing, landscape architect Henry Steed from ICN Design International, who has been based in Singapore for more than 25 years, says: 'I don't think regulations will help.'

Instead, what will improve safety is if the Government requires building owners to hire 'qualified and experienced designers and contractors to execute these works', he says.

An MBS spokesman, when contacted by The Straits Times, says its choice of trees for the SkyPark was 'carefully discussed' to ensure the selection was sturdy and long-lasting. The bucidas, she says, were chosen because they have 'certain sculptural forms that were used in such a way to accentuate special areas on the Sands SkyPark such as main entry points and the perimeters'.

According to the sub-contractor that installed the SkyPark, Exklusive Landscapes, the trees have been trimmed to reduce their vulnerability during storms. Most of the trees also have their bases anchored down with steel cables and pre-cast concrete.

Exklusive's director Andrew Sze says maintenance work on the SkyPark is 'quite intensive'. 'We need to do light pruning every two months.'

That said, NParks does not rule out taking extra steps to keep high-rise gardens safe in the future.

Dr Tan says: 'Maybe at some point down the road, when we see more and more trees going really high-rise, there may be a need for us to come up with some sort of guidelines on wind-resistant trees.'

'Instant' trees take root in giant pots
NParks' 'container trees' can be transplanted in hours instead of weeks
Grace Chua Straits Times 29 Jan 11;

THESE trees could be the world's biggest potted plants.

The National Parks Board (NParks) has devised huge containers for 'instant' trees - trees that can be planted, pot and all, along roadsides and grass verges, and be transplanted with ease when they are no longer needed.

The so-called 'container trees' - possibly a world first - are part of a pilot project launched last night at the Cashew estate in Upper Bukit Timah. Holland-Bukit Timah MP and Minister for Community Development, Youth and Sports Vivian Balakrishnan was guest of honour at the event.

Dr Tan Puay Yok, deputy director of NParks' Centre for Urban Greenery and Ecology (CUGE), explained that the agency is testing the scheme as a way to avoid disruption during construction.

Often, roadworks or construction means trees have to be moved or cut down. It typically takes two months of digging, pruning and preparation before a tree is moved, to prevent it from becoming dehydrated and to protect its roots.

With the containers, all it takes is a few hours, some digging and a crane to lift them out of the soil in which they are buried.

The 27 container trees have been planted at a small park in Cashew Terrace, lining a temporary road behind the upcoming Cashew MRT station. When the station is built, the road they stand along will be diverted and the park expanded.

At that time, the trees will be moved 'to do their duty along different stretches of road', said NParks' streetscape director, Mr Simon Longman.

The 1.5m-high containers, which are nearly 2m in diameter, resemble sections of pipe with holes punched in the sides to let in water and nutrients. With a tree and soil inside, each container weighs nearly a tonne, and can weigh as much as 10 to 15 tonnes when the tree is full-grown.

The species used, an endangered native tree called Bintangor bunut (Calophyllum soulattri), was picked as it does not grow too big. In a few years, it will be about 10m tall.

It took CUGE, working with engineers from Nanyang Technological University, three years to devise the containers. They also ran computer simulations to make sure trees would not tip over.

The containers are lined with a fabric mesh that grips tree roots.

Asked whether such 'instant trees' could pose safety problems, Dr Tan said the simulations showed the trees were safe at a height of about 10m to 12m, but NParks would be monitoring them.