Cannabis is not allowed in Singapore, with severe penalties for consumption, possession and trafficking.
That’s why some residents may have been surprised to see a pattern on a new HDB block in Woodleigh that looked like the leaves of the plant.
Source: u/pixdam on Reddit
However, the design is reportedly composed of maple leaves, not cannabis.
The questionable pattern has been spotted by netizens on Reddit since last year, according to more than one post on the platform.
Netizens identified the block’s location as Woodleigh Glen, a cluster of Build-To-Order (BTO) flats along Woodleigh Link.
From the photos shared, the “cannabis leaf” pattern appears to be limited to the yellow and grey-coloured sunblock panels lining the corridors of the block.
Source: u/daixhara on Reddit
Instead of using the taboo word “cannabis”, many netizens described the pattern as “kangkong” instead.
Source: Reddit
This is an obvious reference to the Singaporean woman who mistakenly consumed cannabis while on holiday in Thailand, thinking it was kangkong.
Another netizen quipped that the pattern was meant to make the people living on the lower floors feel “high”.
Source: Reddit
One comment, however, claimed that the leaf depicted was supposed to be that of the Japanese maple.
The difference, they said, is that while cannabis leaves connect directly to their stem, maple leaves fuse together first before reaching the stem.
Japanese maple leaves (left) and cannabis leaves (right). Source: Noriko Yamamoto on Unsplash and Elsa Olofsson on Unsplash
This is apparently correct, according to a report by Lianhe Zaobao.
Signs have reportedly been set up in the estate, explaining the history of the Woodleigh District and the design elements of the blocks there.
They described the pattern on the sunblock panels as “overlapping maple leaves”.
Source: Lianhe Zaobao
These are to commemorate the Alkaff Lake Gardens, which used to be at the location.
Residents interviewed, however, didn’t seem to be too concerned about the pattern.
40-year-old housewife Yang Yizhi (transliterated from Mandarin) told Zaobao that it would be inappropriate if the pattern were indeed composed of cannabis leaves.
However, she added that she didn’t pay much attention to them.
She also noted that the authorities painted some of the leaves orange and red a few weeks ago to look more like maple leaves.
31-year-old product manager Lin Wenjie (transliterated from Mandarin) said it’s more important that residents live comfortably than the decor outside the blocks.
Strangely enough, this wasn’t the case in Tampines when residents of new BTO flats there complained of “eerie” red walls.
Perhaps the leaf pattern in Woodleigh, much like the leaves they resemble, has had the curious side effect of making residents there more chillax than usual?
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Featured image adapted from u/pixdam on Reddit and u/daixhara on Reddit.
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