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Fri, 03 Sep 2010
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 NEWS WITHOUT BORDERS :: CityPlus |
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Secret Garden at 1 Utama unveiled
Isaac Hiew
A SECRET GARDEN on the roof-top of 1 Utama shopping complex has finally been unveiled to the public.
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From left ... See Hoy Chan Holdings group chairman Tan
Sri Dr Teo Soo Chiang, Teo and Ng releasing butterflies
at The Secret Garden. | At nine storeys high, the roof-top garden occupies almost 30,000 sq ft and houses over 500 species of rare tropical and temperate plants - making it possibly the largest roof-top garden in Southeast Asia in terms of variety and number of plants.
The garden is the brain-child of 1Utama director Datuk Teo Chiang Kok who had been concerned about preserving the environment in the face of mushrooming development.
Teo had way back in 2000 called for the development of a roof-top garden to be integrated with the construction of 1 Utama’s new wing, to help reduce the complex’s carbon footprint and alleviate global warming.
It was fondly nicknamed The Secret Garden to the few who knew about it, because its very existence was not revealed to the public or to most of the shopping centre staff.
Previously only accessible through one hidden lift, The Secret Garden is now open to receive visitors from 10am to 6pm every Saturday and Sunday.
The number of visitors at any one time will, however, be controlled to preserve the serenity of the place. Those who wish to visit the gardens need just drop by 1 Utama customer service centre on the ground floor of Highstreet to get a ticket before proceeding to the upper roof level by lift.
“We’re excited about the potential of The Secret Garden to promote awareness and develop the appreciation of plants,” Teo said at the opening of the garden last Saturday.
“It’s a great teaching tool especially when we have achieved many technological and research breakthroughs through cultivating the garden.”
The roof-top garden coincides with another green initiative – an actual rainforest enclave cultivated within 1 Utama called the Rainforest.
Both projects were led by distinguished botanist and researcher Dr Francis Ng, who recently was awarded the prestigious David Fairchild Medal 2009 (Plant Exploration) presented by the National Tropical Botanical Garden of the United States.
The garden uses high performance, building-integrated technologies such as chilled water irrigation sourced from 1 Utama’s air conditioning system to grow temperate plants and a rainwater harvesting system to recycle rainwater for general irrigation, making it energy efficient and environmentally friendly.
A welcome, visual respite from the norm of dreary concrete roofs, The Secret Garden is divided into seven themed sections linked by foot paths, accomplished with facilities include a walking guide, pergolas, waterfall, plant nursery and ponds.
A vast variety of flowering shrubs, herbs, temperate plants, vegetables, even a cactus bed and mini padi field are there with their names and origins shown.
For details, contact 1Utama customer service centre at 03-7710 8118 from 10am to 10pm daily or visit www.1utama.com.my / www.onecard.com.my
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Updated: 09:31AM Mon, 04 May 2009
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