Brave attempts at food security saw me planting all kind of vegetables on my terrace.Now while they have not managed to bring down my food bill they have nevertheless taught me a few lessons.Lessons in patience,love and inter race relations.
It started with a tomato and the okra,both of them grew well and flourished until a little bug got both of them and with that all my efforts at organic farming went right out of the window.It was chemical pesticide as the bug was resistant to all manner of organic remedies.My next attempt was to grow bitter gourd and ridge gourd (both creepers)who needed a fine trellis to grow on.In the absence of any kind of prop,I spent three hours working my way with rope and twine to make a fine cris cross of trellis and there it was.Enough place for my plants to grow and flourish.The plants like me unfortunately have a mind of their own so in their own way both of then ignored my labour of love and climbed instead onto a rough wall.My morning are spent training them on to the trellis i have created.This morning however love and fresh air seem to have taken over.The gourds have now got so involved with each other that they have wound themselves against each other in a serious love knot.The husband had plenty to say about the affairs that were happening on the terrace.Now here was a true inter caste marriage if ever there was one.Same family types but different caste if one is to use the Hindu cast system as a base.As a not very amused parent (by virtue of being the grower) I tried to disentangle them but they held tight.I decided that those whom god has brought together let me not put asunder.So they continue to hug and grow and flourish.
My beans on the other hand grew beautifully considering I had tilled the soil and enriched it with all manner of organic manure.They were green and tall and beautiful until a few days ago when they wilted and I found them covered in fine dust particles.Much hosing and cleaning did nothing to them hence it was back to chemical pesticide.With a heavy heat i sprayed them and plucked out all the infected leaves and like the doctor (who prescribes antibiotics in the hope that an infection will go away ,only to find that he has to re prescribe a new set) i watch them everyday to see if the pests are back.
If anyone wonders why I don't give up on my plants when it is so labour intensive to look after them,its simple.Nothing is more fulfilling that watching little shoots become big plants,which then yield good fruit.The joy of plucking vegetable and serving them up in less than an hour from plant to table is something that any one who has taken a turn at gardening will understand.I can spend hours tending to my vegetables and have learnt so much in the last few months more than i could have by reading or attending courses.I have learnt a lesson everyday about the soil,about the behaviour of different plants,who loves the sun,who doesn't,who wants to be left alone and who wants all the attention I can offer and each of them has their own personality even the weeds.....gardening even when one has limited space is a happy pastime
It started with a tomato and the okra,both of them grew well and flourished until a little bug got both of them and with that all my efforts at organic farming went right out of the window.It was chemical pesticide as the bug was resistant to all manner of organic remedies.My next attempt was to grow bitter gourd and ridge gourd (both creepers)who needed a fine trellis to grow on.In the absence of any kind of prop,I spent three hours working my way with rope and twine to make a fine cris cross of trellis and there it was.Enough place for my plants to grow and flourish.The plants like me unfortunately have a mind of their own so in their own way both of then ignored my labour of love and climbed instead onto a rough wall.My morning are spent training them on to the trellis i have created.This morning however love and fresh air seem to have taken over.The gourds have now got so involved with each other that they have wound themselves against each other in a serious love knot.The husband had plenty to say about the affairs that were happening on the terrace.Now here was a true inter caste marriage if ever there was one.Same family types but different caste if one is to use the Hindu cast system as a base.As a not very amused parent (by virtue of being the grower) I tried to disentangle them but they held tight.I decided that those whom god has brought together let me not put asunder.So they continue to hug and grow and flourish.
My beans on the other hand grew beautifully considering I had tilled the soil and enriched it with all manner of organic manure.They were green and tall and beautiful until a few days ago when they wilted and I found them covered in fine dust particles.Much hosing and cleaning did nothing to them hence it was back to chemical pesticide.With a heavy heat i sprayed them and plucked out all the infected leaves and like the doctor (who prescribes antibiotics in the hope that an infection will go away ,only to find that he has to re prescribe a new set) i watch them everyday to see if the pests are back.
If anyone wonders why I don't give up on my plants when it is so labour intensive to look after them,its simple.Nothing is more fulfilling that watching little shoots become big plants,which then yield good fruit.The joy of plucking vegetable and serving them up in less than an hour from plant to table is something that any one who has taken a turn at gardening will understand.I can spend hours tending to my vegetables and have learnt so much in the last few months more than i could have by reading or attending courses.I have learnt a lesson everyday about the soil,about the behaviour of different plants,who loves the sun,who doesn't,who wants to be left alone and who wants all the attention I can offer and each of them has their own personality even the weeds.....gardening even when one has limited space is a happy pastime
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