Tv royalty in Toucheng Leisure Farm!

Growing money

The money tree seeds (Pachira aquatica) are germinating! Soon we can transplant these seeds out from the box once they are ready. These seeds will be planted by primary children next week. At the mean time, the seeds are being look after well.

紅鳳菜

 Part of running a farm is to have a vegetable garden and Toucheng Leisure Farm is proud of their vegetable garden. One of the pecks having your very own vegetable garden, is that you don't have to worry about going out to buy vegetables. Toucheng Leisure Farm grows some of their vegetable which they include and serve to their visitors.

Grass Jelly in Toucheng Leisure Farm

In Toucheng Leisure Farm, I came across a black jelly where back home it  is known as cincau or leung fen. But to my amazement, Toucheng Leisure Farm have an even cool name for the black jelly. Here it is called the "Burn Fairy" (literally 仙草茶, Grass Jelly Tea).

Pizza and alot of KIDS!

Today 150 primary students from one of Toucheng's Primary School came to visit for a day trip. The farm came alive with children chit chatting away. The highlight of their day was when they were brought to the pizza making place. The children were divided into groups and they got a hands on experience in making pizza.

Plucking leaves in the Kitchen

During the afternoon, I was called to help out in the kitchen. When i entered the room, in front of me was a pile of purplish plants. I was told to separate the leaves from the plant since it the leaves that the farm wants.

Activities for the upcoming Summer Camp 2013

This year summer camp, the Farm planning to organize an activity where the children will be teach how to say greetings in another country language and get to know different countries food.

First Kilning Experience

Today I got to experience first hand how to make a kiln (natural oven made out of mud rocks). The process is called kilning and visitors at the farm can experience it in one of they activities.

Never ending of white radishes

Yesterday I helped out with the kitchen department in washing tons & tons of white radishes. The farm ordered many boxes that I didn't have the chance to count.

"Good Man Good Food 好男人.好料理" in Toucheng Leisure Farm!

This morning, I was brought along to the Cang Jiu Winery to witnessed a cooking variety show done by 2 singaporean artist under Mediacorp Pte Ltd. The name of this show was "Good Man Good Food
好男人.好料理"

Beauty within the family.

The tea plant (Camellia Sinensis) is part of a family called Camellia. But in this family there is another member whose beauty draws attention from the crowd.
It also known as the Rose of Winter, ladies and gentlemen, the Camellia Japonica!

Butterfly, Butterfly, We were meant to FLY!

Toucheng Leisure Farm is home to the Rice paper butterfly or the Giant wood nymph butterfly. TLF specially prepared an environment where these butterflies make their humble home.

Visitors from Home!

Today, a group of Malaysian Visitors!! Hearing them speak brings me back home. They are from a company called MAEPS Management which is a government link company with the Ministry of Agriculture of Malaysia. Their visit to Toucheng Leisure Farm was for a business trip whereby they came to get some ideas to bring back and develop their agro exposition park in Serdang, Malaysia.

Sugar, Vinegar and Whole lot of Kumquats!

This morning I get to see how TLF make their signature kumquat vinegar or kumquat preserved in a bottle filled with sugar and vinegar. Unlike the Kumquat Marmalade, the procedures to make this kumquat vinegar is much more simpler and takes a shorter duration of time.

Money, Money, Money

"Money, money, money
  Must be funny
  In the rich man's world"

Not for long, if you have have the Money Tree at your backyard. The Malabar Tree ( 馬拉巴栗) a.k.a the Money Tree (發財樹) is grown around  Toucheng Leisure Farm. The scientific name is Pachira aquatica but the local usually called it the Malabar chestnut tree. 

The Taiwanese believe the Malabar Tree brings fortune and prosperity therefore during the Lunar New Year, many Chinese will bring back these trees to place in their entrance way symbolically luring more wealth into their bank account.

Though the nuts are often eaten raw, their taste is more like a chestnut when they are roasted or fried in oil.

Legend has it, a poor Taiwanese farmer first started to plant the Money Tree after he come across this strange tree in his field and believe is a gift from God to help him. The tree grew and the farmer started  the nuts and seeds. From the seed, the farmer grew more of the Money Tree and soon he prosper in his sales. The farmer became a wealthy man. Thus, the tree was name the Money Tree.

Today, we when to picked the fallen seeds of the Money Tree and germinated them for an upcoming event whereby the farm will teach a group of children coming in next month how to grow these trees.

More on the Money Tree can be found by clicking the links below
http://www.ehow.com/about_6763878_history-pachira-money-tree.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pachira_aquatica

These purple sweet potatoes (Ipomea Batatas) are grown in the farm. These sweet potatoes contain anthocyanins that served as natural colorant because of their high heat and light stability and are commonly used in juices, alcoholic beverages, jams, confectioneries, bread, snacks and noodles. 

Recently, Toucheng Leisure Farm have incorporated the leaves of these sweet potatoes into their bread. And the result, DELICIOUS!
 

Blooming of the Kumquat Tree

Springtime in TLF

This month, expect more sunshine in the Farm!. With spring just around the corner, the trees and flowers are awaking from their winter slumber, ready to blossom once again. Butterflies and dragonflies are busying themselves, flying from one flower to another. The water flowing from the small stream as the background music. Cool breeze from the wind cool the warm air.

TLF's very own Kumquat Marmalade

Toucheng Leisure Farm will make their signature kumquat marmalade every once a week. The whole process takes a whole day, from morning until the early evening. But at the end of the day, the result will be a sweet jar of kumquat marmalade ready to taken home! Yums!!

Up, Up and Away

It was a Saturday, I was invited to ride the cable car located next door to Taipei Zoo. I was rewarded with a magnificent view of Taipei and the Taipei 101 was visible from the cable car.

New Flowers + T.G.I.F!!

T.G.I.F

T.G.I.F is so overrated right now. Anyways, today we did lots of field work under the hot sun.
First we started off with digging holes which will be later fill with flowers. It been a challenging morning because the ground was rocky and full with stones. 2 interns had to use all their strength to make a decent deep hole.

An Educational Outing

Today I visited the Lanyang Branch Station, Hualien District Agricultural Research and Extension Station Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan. I tagged along with Ah Ma (founder) and another TLF intern to attend an extension talk given by a farmer on organic farming.

At the desk.

Today I decided to stay behind the desk since I'm feeling under the weather. It must something i ate last night. Do not get me wrong, Toucheng offer yummy and delicious food. Maybe it my sensitive stomach that can't take in the delicious delicacy.

A piece of Toucheng to bring home with you

I'm currently in the process of going around the farm collecting small plants which will be transplanted into small pots.

The aim is for future visitors to bring back a pot so they can decorate their office desk or home desk with a mini plant pot. It might have an aesthetic effect towards the surrounding, who knows?

Introducing Taro

It my 3rd week at the farm and I start to noticed Taro are growing everywhere!

 

It no surprise, since Taro (Colacasia Esculenta) thrive and survive in tropical habitat and it distribution range from India, South-east Asia, South China, Melanesia and Australia. Taro was also cultivated in temperate latitudes, for instance, in China, Nepal, Japan, Korea, the Mediterranean and New Zealand, when the European navigators documented its presence.

Taiwan Lantern Festival

This year Taiwan Lantern Festival was held at Hsinchu County. A 2 hour 1/2 minute journey if your departing from Toucheng Station (which I did =D ).

Invaders in Toucheng Leisure Farm!

Impatiens walleriana (非洲鳳仙花 ) also known as Touch-Me-Not is an invasive species found in Toucheng Leisure Farm.

Although this species of flower look pretty but surprising this flower is disturbing other native flowers of Taiwan.
Touche-Me-Not are invading the native plants habitat.