For the love of plants: DIY tips for newbie gardeners

If you’ve created your own little green haven on your balcony, you would be aware of its therapeutic benefits. In the hustle and bustle of city life, a few hours spent in Nature can be like feel like a spa retreat for your mind and soul. However, growing plants, even on the balcony or inside the house, has its own share of challenges, especially for newbies at gardening.

So, we spoke to balcony gardening enthusiasts about their teething problems when they first took up the hobby, and they assure us that it’s not rocket science. But one must be ready to get their hands (a little) dirty and be ready to do some research.

Know your garden space

1. Look into how much space your balcony has and the duration and strength of sunlight it receives. Choose which plants to grow based on that. Consider the future space requirements of a plant. It may be a tiny sapling when you bought it, but will it get too big for your balcony later?

2. Smaller vegetables, flowers, and herbs suit balcony spaces better — spinach, tomato, chilli, basil, rosemary, beans are some good options for those looking to grow edibles.

3. Maximise your garden space by getting hanging planters, railing planters and window boxes.

4. Picking the plants that are native to your area can make your life very easy as they won’t struggle to adapt.

Cheat sheet FTW!

1. Place plants with similar needs together. For example, plants like pothos, monstera, syngonium, etc have similar needs and so does snake plant, aloe vera, peace lily and ZZ plant. That way it will be easier to remember which section of your garden needs how much water.

2. If you’re planting seeds, label the pots so that it’s easier to remember.

READ | Bloom in blues: Stress buster balcony gardens thrive during the pandemic

DIY plant food

1. Compost your kitchen waste for some extra nutritious and inexpensive food for your plant babies. All you have to do is collect all your food waste into a compost bin, add some soil and let it sit covered for about two months.

2. Soak a handful of onion peels (only the outer skin) in one litre of water. Cover and leave in the shade or indoors for 24 hours during summers and 48 hours in winters. Strain the water the following day and use it directly on the soil or as a foliage spray.

3. Banana peels are excellent for promoting growth of fruits and flowers. Put banana peels (whole or chopped) onto a large plate and let them dry in the sun. Once they have turned black and brittle, crush them up or make a fine powder and add to your soil.

4. Grind cleaned and dried egg shells, and mix this into the soil. It take several months to break down and be absorbed by a plant’s roots so don’t add it very frequently. You can store the unused powder in an airtight jar for over a month.

DIY pest control: Remember, not all insects are pests. Good insects, such as bees and ladybugs, are also natural predators who kill or drive away unwanted insects. Here are some easy and non-toxic solutions for pest control.

1. Mix of two teaspoons of neem oil, one teaspoon of mild liquid soap with one quart of water. Shake well, then spray on the plants affected by common garden pests.

2. Yellow sticky pads, inexpensive and easily available in stores and online, can be placed around plants to trap flies, aphids, etc. The bright colour attracts the bugs who then stick to the adhesive, and are unable to get into your plants.

3. For infestations, make a paste with 500g each of green chillies, ginger and garlic. Mix it in one litre of water. Keep it in a jar overnight. Spray this mixture on the foliage to knock out or drive away insects.

Plant care for the monsoon:

1. Check drainage of pots, and ensure that the bottom of the pot or planter has a proper, unclogged hole. Remove the pot plate as they hold excess water in monsoon and can cause root rot.

2. Cover your plants that are most exposed to the harsh wind and rain, with transparent plastic sheets to protect them.

3. Rearrange your pots so that plants that don’t like too much water, such as succulents, are away from the edge of the balcony. You could even move them indoor to keep humidity at bay.

4. After a day of heavy shower, tilt the pots to pour out the excess water

5. Change the watering schedule during the monsoon. If the plants have enough water, courtesy of the rain, you can skip watering it for some days

Gardening is a never-ending learning. Like driving, you need to practise it to learn the skill. What works for one plant may not work for another, so keep learning through observations, experiments and research.

(Inputs by plant geeks and gardening enthusiasts Ann Mathews, Dipti Mudaliar, Pranav Sukhija and Megha Chauhan)

Author tweets @TheMissCurious

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