‘Gardening brings peace, positivity, hope’

Get hooked to gardening and flush out all the accumulated unwarranted stress from your system. Invest your energies in tending plants, creepers, herbs and vegetables for a beautiful harvest at the end of that hard labour. Tangy, juicy or sweet succulent fruits, pretty colouful flower bulbs and eye-grabbing variegated leaves are an extra bonus to your daily toil at the orchard. Discover the nature lover in you and plan your future retirement as a constant gardener. Rest assured, you sowings will bear satisfactory results.

Ever since the birth of life on this planet and the inception of human civilization, the race of mankind has always looked up to nature for survival, shelter, inspiration, love, holistic healing etc. As if, he is incomplete without its bounteous beauty of the natural flora and fauna that this earth is copiously bestowed upon with. Conservation of this natural resource is thus a primary responsibility for us all, especially at a time when the environment is badly encroached with grave issues like global warming and climate change.

It’s always desirable to cultivate a healthy hobby so as to keep all personal and professional tensions at bay. This is more or less like clearing backlogs and deleting excess files from a cluttered drive or releasing that pent-up steam from a pressure cooker.

As a matter of fact, this continuous interaction with Mother Nature — be it on busy weekdays or on the lazy weekends — not only encourages healthy eating but also keeps one grounded to his roots, both metaphorically as well as literally. The modern-day realtors too earnestly take a leaf out of the ‘pollution control’ book only to reduce carbon foot print and they also believe in leaving behind empty landscapes for a lush growth of verdant vegetation within massive construction complexes, designed with multiple amenities.

Kolkata-based psychologist Dr. Shikha Dey opines that “the gardening routine infuses peace, positivity and hope of new possibilities consistently. Each day brings in growth of a young new life bit by bit.” “It is therefore recommended to wisely sow and grow a certain type of plants and fragrant flowers which won’t easily perish even in want of proper regular care,” she further deduces. White orchids and cactus are the best examples of this category. Some cacti also bear blossoms. Seasonal florets on the contrary will die and decay after a temporal spell of full bloom, she instances.

Her comments are seconded by Dr. L.R. Rahman, joint secretary of Agri Horticultural Society of India. “Just seeing the nature in itself is simply amazing. You see, gardening has become all the more necessary for the very reason that we live in concrete jungles and lead such unhealthy claustrophobic lives, where even inhaling fresh air seems next to impossible. Hence to get rid of this pigeonhole existence, it’s necessary to breathe easy and find some space to rejuvenate. What better option other than gardening can give you this golden opportunity ” he observes. Standing in its 196th year, the organization would hold its bicentenary year celebration in 2020.

Botanists may cite some scientific benefits behind growing a certain type of plants or sowing a particular kind of crops on health grounds. But beyond that, if a kitchen garden is situated close at hand right in your backyard, then you may frequently avoid going to the sabzi mandi and haggle with the sellers over sky-prices of green produce. “You see, in every housing society of Mumbai, there is enough space to plow a kitchen garden with seasonal veggies. Like for hot summers, one can feasibly grow bhindis (ladies’ fingers). Also edible greens and vegetable creepers like bitter gourd, brinjal, lauki (bottle gourd) and pumpkin can be widely sown during this season. These are conducive to good health as well as contains nutritional supplements,” he informs. Dieticians always suggest a daily balanced diet with wholesome ingredients in it.

A good quality soil needs to be ensured for the seeds of bhindis to sprout within three-four days from the day they are sown. One must also provide sufficient amount of sunlight to the seedlings. Besides, cow dung, mustard cake, soya cake and neem cakes are required for a rich soil composition if one resorts to organic manure. The texture should be a sandy loam to drain out the water quickly. A potted plant must not be overly waterlogged and make the soil damp and clayey to suffocate the roots. The soil should consist of nutrients and the amount of water is to be judiciously applied. The outer surface of the root zone with tufts of hair smoothly absorbs the water from soil. Leaves, vermicompost, bone dust, earthworms and animal excreta are also part of organic manure, easily available at market shops. “See, organic manure encourages slow and a steady growth rate, while chemical fertilizers give out fast development but again after 20 days, this vigorous effect can vanish,” explains Rahman.

Fragrance of certain flowers and aromatic fruits also cause a soothing effect to the nasal sense. Flowers like Zinnia, Gomphrena, Coreopsis and tobulaca are in great demand now. Ornamental plants for beautification like the Kochia bamboo, comes with only foliage sans flowers and has a good conical structure to gaze at. Apluda bamboo is smaller in size and can be well-maintained by cutting and trimming to adjust its height periodically.

Rajan Sharma, proprietor of Chandra Farms & Nursery from Meet Nagar, Delhi, deals in attractive indoor house plants, foliage plants and ornamental plants to adorn government properties and office buildings. “From the flowering bulbs to shrubs and trees, ornamental plants add spice and a charming appeal to an otherwise commonplace garden. Often it is farmed as a bushy hedge to enhance other plants or exhibited as stand-alone stuff, especially in commercial settings like the malls and business arcades or mansion-porticos,” he informs.

For an artificial turf in the stadiums and sports-grounds, the synthetic grass-length is kept smaller, sturdier and stronger, while real grass blades measure longer and softer to let the feet dip into it over a dewy surface. “Greenery is good for sharp vision and walking barefooted on wet grass is also favourable to health that early risers and morning walkers would agree with,” reveals Shraddha Bhagwat of Ankur Nurseries from Mumbai.

Landscape gardener Urvashi Kapoor Verma concedes that “gardening is no doubt cost-effective but I don’t always hint at a higher range to my clients. Even simply done piece of things can add more worth and quality in comparison to exorbitant objects.”

Bougainvillea of white, pink, magenta and yellow variety is highly recommended for the sweaty summer months ahead as it can stand immense heat and humid weather conditions, followed with bouts of heavy rainfall brought in by the Nor’westers, she insists. Petunias, night queens and sweet-scented jasmines are other choices on her catalogue. Her well-furnished chamber at Kolkata’s posh Park Street throws up a live display of a small adjacent garden slot inside her showroom. “When people walk in to that one-and-one-fourth sq. ft. enclosure from the chaotic world outside, they are immediately thrown into a rejuvenating zone. It acts as a detox per se,” she sums up.

Many plants/herbs also possess medicinal value and therapeutic properties like the Aloe vera, Ghrita kumari, sanjivani booti, et al to cure different sorts of simple disorders. Tulsi (basil leaf) purifies the environment, while bhringraj is mainly prescribed for hair care and helps in its growth.

So why wait any longer Lift up the trowel and start digging the earth.