Launch of the RGS Butterfly Garden

As part of a green initiative by the RGS Cogitare Club (a Mathematics, Science and Environmental CCA in RGS), a Butterfly Garden was officially launched on 23 April 2021!

The Butterfly Garden, located across the school’s Eco-Garden on level 1, aims to:

Create a colourful and green space for staff and students alike to learn about and enjoy nature
Increase awareness of green spaces in RGS
Protect butterflies, bees and other pollinators (these species, while vulnerable, are essential in the reproduction of many flowering plants, preserving the genetic diversity of the garden by allowing natural selection to continue to take place)

“Along with other members of the RGS Cogitare Club, we started working on the Butterfly Garden at the end of 2020 by first brainstorming ideas for the type of plants that we wanted to have in the garden. We also talked about whether we wanted a Spice Garden, Vegetable Garden or a Butterfly Garden, which was eventually decided on through a vote by all of our members.

Our CCA teachers-in-charge also engaged an instructor to teach us how to garden properly and not just swing spades around, and thereafter, over three to four sessions this year, we enlisted our CCA members to plant the plants, prune, do stem-cutting, and overall, learn the workings of the garden so that we can propagate the Butterfly Garden.

We hope that visitors to the Butterfly Garden will understand the biodiversity that it can attract to the school because with such a great variety of plants, we have noticed that it has already been attracting quite a few species of butterflies, more than four at any given time! We also hope that visitors realise the importance of having shared green spaces and how we should provide for nature, because within this same environment, it is not only a relaxing green retreat for our students and staff to enjoy and a nice view to have, but it also allows the butterflies to have a home here in RGS.

Over time, we want to expand the garden so that it will no longer just be individual plots of plants, but rather, a larger expanse of greenery. We also hope to create a path for the garden made up of recycled materials.”

- Sheryl Tay Ke Ying, Quoid Jing-En Anthea, Liu Yihua, Yeo Su Lyn Chloe Aiko and Lu Shiyi Rachel, Exco Members, RGS Cogitare Club

RGS Cogitare Club Exco Members (from left) Sheryl Tay Ke Ying, Yeo Su Lyn Chloe Aiko, Quoid Jing-En Anthea, Liu Yihua and Lu Shiyi Rachel.

To mark the launch of the Butterfly Garden, a photo-taking challenge is also on from now until 14 May 2021, where students are tasked to take photos of butterflies in the Butterfly Garden. They will be judged based on the aesthetics of the photograph, the number of butterflies in the photo, as well as the number of butterfly species named correctly in the photo. For more information on the challenge and to view the winning entries from the challenge after the closing date, visit the RGS Environment Hub website here or follow the RGS Cogitare Club on Instagram here!

Some of the flora and species of butterflies that can be seen at the RGS Butterfly Garden:

Video of a Tawny Coster (a species of butterfly that can be commonly found in Singapore) in action at our Butterfly Garden as captured by the RGS Cogitare Club. Did you know? That the Tawny Coster was first discovered in Singapore in 2006?