Gardening tips & tricks

Gardening can be so much fun, it's such a great stress buster and it's the best feeling to grow your own food. 

Like everyone i too faced a lot of failure, not that i was able to harvest easily, but I had to be patient and work harder. It has been six years since i started my balcony garden.   

Plants are living organisms, they breathe, grow and reproduce. A little patience, time, care and efforts is all you need for a good garden. Most of my plants are six years old and every time i think of giving it to my mom (some are growing way too fast) or just a thought of removing it from my garden makes them sick. Yes, you read it right, it actually makes them sick. That's when they surprise me  either with a new branch or new buds. Now, this has been happening for the last four years, such a connection with my plants makes me want to do more for them. I thank them each day for they have given and giving me plenty of veggies, flowers (heavenly fragrance) and fruits. 

For beginners, start on small scale and then move on to a bigger garden. 

Select the right plants 

There are different types of plants like shrubs, herbs, climbers and trees available at the nursery. Some are easy to grow while others need proper guidance. To give you a gist of what the types are:

Shrubs : They are smaller in size, with thin, hard, woody stem and has many branches eg: Hibiscus, rose, tulsi, etc. 

Hibiscus

Herbs : Basil, mint, thyme, rosemary, etc. 

Basil

Climbers : Climbers need support of another plant or window grill or wall or stick like Pothos, grapevine, etc.

Pothos

Creepers : Creepers cannot stand erect, they crawl either along the wall or ground or window grill, like melons, pumpkins, bitter gourd, bottle gourd, etc.

There are water plants as well, they grow in water like the Lotus and water lily. 

Decide on what you want to start first whether kitchen garden or flower garden or plant veggies or fruits. 

Sunlight  

Not all plants need full sunlight, some plants need partial or no light. This is one of my favourite plants 'ZZ plant' easy to grow, looks attractive, with glossy leaves, propagation too is very easy, does not require full sunlight, whether it's kept in shade or sunlight, this plant will grow anywhere. 

ZZ plant

Planters  

Nowadays, planter comes in different shapes and sizes. Always buy a well drained planter. For more images, please check our instagram page https://www.instagram.com/bellagardena/

Soil

Always remember if the soil is healthy then your plants will be healthy. Good organic soil holds moisture, but at the same time it drains well too.  The natural organic soil is loose and fluffy filled with air which is important for the roots. The soil has a lot of minerals with living organisms like earthworms. Organic fertilizers in the form of good manure ( i use animal manure for my plant), mulch and compost is the best way to prepare soil. I prefer organic over chemical fertilizers, as chemical ones provide few nutrients while organic will give everything the plants would need. Mulch helps to retain water, protects from heat and cold. It's the best solution during summers. 

Water your plants well 

Water plays an important role in plants growth, but do not over water, else your plants will start to rot. It is easy to revive dry plants than the rotted ones. 

Calcium (this trick has always worked well for me)   

Eggshells are the main source of calcium for your plants. It's been more than a year that i started storing eggshells. The method is pretty simple, first rinse the eggshell and leave it to dry. Once you've stored enough eggshells, grind it (if you crush the eggshells and sprinkle, it will take a lot of time to absorb in the soil unless you want to give birds a feed), Grind the eggshells and sprinkle the powder to give a good calcium boost. Here i've added coffee powder, dried banana leaves and eggshells together. 

This powder is ideal for all plants, specially tomatoes and roses love calcium and this is the best you can give them. 

Roses

Eggshells are good for birds too, so i grind it for my plants and at the same time crush eggshells for birds. The best part of a garden is you get to see a lot of birds and insects. From butterflies laying eggs to caterpillars resting in cocoons i've experienced it all and that too in my balcony garden. You get closer to nature, so trust me it's never too late to start your own garden. 

Vegetable cooking water to fertilize plants 

I am on a no-waste method, i save everything either for my plants or for the birds. A lot of people think that cooking water is of no use and hence they pour the water down the drain. Cooking water can be a great source of fertilizer. It is full of nutrients which is ideal for your plants. Hence, next time you boil veggies, remove the water into another container, let the boiling water cool down and then use the water for your plants. 

Banana leaves 

Banana peels are rich in calcium, sulfur, sodium, magnesium and potassium which is good for plants. 

To make peeled banana powder, first dry the peel, grind them in a grinder and sprinkle the powder to your plants. You can mix eggshells, dried banana peels together, grind them and use it as a fertilizer. 

You can also make peeled banana tea, take a jar and add all banana peels, then add water to it and leave it for a day or two, drain the water into another container or a bottle and spray it to your plants. 

Coffee ground

Coffee grounds are a good source of nitrogen. You can add just 20% not more to the compost. Apart from your plants even worms love coffee but should not be given in excess. The organisms in the coffee grounds break down slowly as it adds nitrogen to the soil and improves the overall quality of the soil. Worms too helps in improving the soil texture.

Tea ground

Tea and coffee grounds are acidic and your plants specially roses, tomatoes love them. Tea leaves are good for your plants as it contains the three most important nutrients (NPK) along with other nutrients. Like coffee grounds you can add tea leaves to the compost pile making the soil richer. 

Animal manure 

If you ask your parents or grandparents about manure, they would tell you the benefits. 

Animal manure has been used by all farmers. It adds nutrients making the soil healthy and rich. What you need to keep in mind while getting animal manure is : 

• Animal manure (wet) can spread disease, however it is advisable to let the manure dry first and then add it to the soil. There are high chances of contamination and hence fresh manure can cause a lot of problems to the plant. 
• If you are buying the manure from locals, make sure you ask them whether their animals have had any health issues. 
• The parasites in the manure can infect pets and hence you need to keep your pets away from your plants. 
• Most importantly wash your hands, nails, feet before and after harvesting/ pruning plants specially grown with the help of manure. 

Repellent 

Insects or mosquitoes can't stand garlic onion, marigold, mint smell. Grow these plants to repel insects.

Marigold

Pruning 
Pruning helps healthy growth and flowering. Plants benefits more from regular maintenance, but pruning at the wrong time can lead to less fruits and flowers. Removing dead leaves, pruning dried thin stems can be done anytime of the year. 

For now, 
Save trees
Save water
Save electricity
Save mother earth
Throw less 
Eat fresh  
Grow more and
Keep your garden clean and healthy

Happy gardening!

P.S : All the pictures in my blog are taken from my garden and are subject to copyrights.