5 Secrets To Creating The Most Amazing Terrace Garden – From The Father Of Terrace Gardening Himself!

In case you are a first timer and do not know how to grow your own veggies, here is your guide to get a healthy organic terrace garden –

Image & Article courtesy : thebetterindia.com

“It is very easy. We the human species can naturally relate to plants, we live among them. So there is nothing major to teach or learn. You just show lots of care and you will get the return,” says Dr. Kadur.

1. Getting started – Get the right space

If a house is built as per the books and in the right way, anything can be grown on the terrace and it can take the weight of even bigger trees. You can also cover the entire surface with soil to make a lawn and experiment with it. In case you are covering the surface of the terrace with soil, make sure you water proof the surface to avoid any leakage into the home. If you are going for a regular terrace garden with pots, there are no extra efforts required.

2. How to get the right soil which is rich in nutrients

The right type of soil is very important as the nutrients decide the growth of the plant. The right mix of soil requires regular soil, compost coir peat (or sand) and vermicompost in equal quantities. “After the heavy rains make sure you add essential nutrients back to the soil as water tends to wash them away. You can add compost every week or so to make sure the soil has enough nutrition,” Dr. Kadur says.

3. First time gardener? This should be your first step

If it is your first take at gardening, you can start with a small pot and single vegetable and than gradually expand to other veggies. Plants like tomatoes and chillies are easier to grow and do not require much care, so you can start with those. “You have to be very patient. It will take a couple of months to start giving results so you should not give up and keep taking care of the plant,” Dr. Kadur says.

4. What all can you grow on a terrace garden?

“Everything!” says Dr. Kadur. French beans, chillies, tomatoes, brinjal, okra and lime are easier to grow. You can also try cucumber, ridge gourd and bottle gourd. Root vegetables like potatoes, onion, radish, carrots, groundnuts can also be grown but they require a larger area.

Apart from these veggies you can also grow fruit bearing trees like guava, banana, etc. “I had seen a coconut tree on a terrace garden. If one can grow that, one can grow anything here,” Dr. Kadur says. He advises against growing a mango tree on the terrace as it requires a lot of effort. “Though mango can be grown, but it requires immense care and effort, which might be a bit difficult for urban gardeners,” he says.

5. Other important things to keep in mind

Watering regularly is a must. In summers, your garden requires watering twice a day. In winters you can just press the soil with the back of your hand to check the moisture and water accordingly. “I would advise not to water the garden in rains and even one day after the rain as excess water drains all the nutrition away from the soil,” Dr. Kadur says.

Another important thing is enough sunlight. The terrace garden should receive at least four to six hours of direct sunlight, and in areas where the sun is too harsh, people can use a shade to prevent the plants from getting scorched.

Dr. Kadur advises people not to use portable water and do their own Rain Water Harvesting. “Also, prepare your own compost by using waste veggies,” he says.

With the efforts of people like Dr. Kadur, Bangalore has over 5,000 terrace gardens now, with an increasing interest among youngsters.

One of his favourite gardens is located in Hyderabad and is probably the oldest terrace garden in India. This 35 year old garden hosts trees like banana, guava and sapota, and the entire terrace is covered with plants, trees and grass. Dr. Kadur believes that with the government’s support, the country should be able to meet its vegetable needs through urban gardeners.

“There should be better facilities made available in villages so that people stop migrating. An old man cannot work in his farms as much as he did before. Once he stops, who will produce food for us as the younger generation is migrating to the cities? We need more people to go back to farming,” he says.

Source:thebetterindia.com