Survival of the Fittest: My Journey to Organic Terrace Gardening – Part 2

My Terrace Garden

           My readers have gone through my previous write-up on “My Journey to Organic Terrace Gardening (OTG)”. Well, it has been quite a while now since I started, and I must admit that I am beginning to gather a lot of knowledge. From an ignorant man to becoming a novice is a big journey so to say. Well, there is still a long way to go. This write-up is in continuation of my first one and is a brief look at my experiences and lessons from this wonderful journey. I shall be specific to my observations and experiences of plant life and all the changes I have seen both within and without.

            When I say “Survival of the Fittest”, anyone will remember Charles Darwin and his theory. Considering the reference to OTG, anyone should conveniently conclude by conferring the reference upon the plant life that survived or died out. Yes, what I have learnt from Organic Terrace Gardening (OTG) is this – ‘From among the many seeds that you sow, the fittest, strongest, and the healthiest ones survive.’ But, my reference to survival is something different here. For any thing in life to yield, what is required the most is the “Commitment”. For anything in this world to yield you must pay enough attention. Being consistently attentive is sine-quo-non with yield. So, for any starters this is a big lesson. There is a proverb in kannada “ಹೊಸದರಲ್ಲಿ ಅಗಸ ಎತ್ತಿ ಎತ್ತಿ ಒಗೆದ” - The launderer has high spirit at the start and loses the spirit by every cloth that he washes. A Gardener loses the spirit with every unyielding plant. In the worst case, one may lose out on the way to even water the plants (Plants require constant, adequate, and proper care). I had to work out of my strengths and capability to water 40 saplings in the scorching hot sun, to mix the bacterial-fungus filled composite pot, even more to carry bags and bags of soil, compost, and some other gardening tools and materials. This case is true of a boy who has grown up in a city without an idea of farming, labour, and plant life. I had to be careful enough not to become like the laundering who loses the enthusiasm with every other cloth. In fact, the love for plants and Gardening not only kept my spirit alive, but also increased my enthusiasm with every other pot that I grew. I had to “survive” the scare of “loosing enthusiasm”. More so this happens in young age, where the mind wanders to every other new thing, hobby, or desire. It wanders from one thing to another. What the plants required was a bit of nurturing and love to survive. For me to survive through this journey (of organic terrace gardening), I had to put a herculean effort within and without. Therein, I survived, revived, and lasted. Therein, I proved (to myself) to be the fittest. It was never a desire to die out; it was never the youthful foolhardiness to kick the bucket; it was just plain love, dedication, and commitment that survived (lasted), in the test of time.

              My Garden is as comprehensive as it must be at the inception. It has a tools corner, a compost corner, and place to store soils bags, pots, seeds, and wormy compost. Most of the pots are under the shade net and a few are in the balcony sit-out. A few grow bags have also been used for potting. 

I am sharing a few pics of my Garden here. 

Germinated Mentya

Beans Plant

Tools Corner

Compost Corner: Aerobic Composting

The Pot Line: Bitter Gourd

Basale Soppu

Palak in Black Organic Soil

                     

Doddapatre

Basale Soppu in Balcony

Wormy Compost, Soil Bags, and Seeds

           I am making a comprehensive study of my plants on spreadsheets and documents. Each time manure is added, or a disease is witnessed or potting is done, on every occasion care has been taken to record the observations. I am planning to come up with a detailed write-up on plant specific observations. However, I am tabling here a synopsis of my initial observations. 

Sl.No.	Name of the Plant	*Gestation Period
1	Corriander
2	Mentya	2
3	Beans	5
4	Palak	3
5	Tomato	6
6	Bitter Gourd	3
7	Ridge Gourd	7
8	Peas	7
9	Basale Soppu	3
10	Capsicum	5
11	Harave Soppu	3
12	Doddapatre	NA
13	Snake Gourd	6
14	Brinjal	6
15	Carrot	4
16	Onion	6
17	Cucumber	6
18	Knol	3
19	Bettle Leaves	NA
20	Basale Soppu (Balcony)	NA
21	3 Flowers	5
22	Here Kai	3
23	Chapradavare	5
24	Daniya & Mentya	3
25	Tulsi	5
26	Ladies Finger	2
27	Red Chilli	Observations Yet to Come
28	Green Chilli
29	Watermelon
30	Ginger
31	Potato
32	Tomato (Repot - 3)
NA - Saplings Planted and not seeds. *Gestation Period means the time taken for a seed to sprout and grow into a seedling.

Harave Soppu

    

The Plant life      

     
     Since the inception, this was a wonderful journey to be, and so shall it be. Watering the plants, prayers for its well-being, talking to them, and what not. It has been a journey of love and caring; of a mother and the child; of brethren in life.  

Thanks to OTG, bees and birds have become friendly to my terrace. More birds come on to my terrace to drink the cool water placed in a pot on the rooftop. It is livelier to have a stroll on the terrace. The time is more useful spent than to saunter away. It is an addition inter alia to politics, yoga, music, and food as a part of discussions at home.

          It is a wonderful experience personally. In the like manner or so better, I would like all to take up to “Gardening”. Waste management, cool terrace, home veggies, peaceful place, disciplined mind, inter alia the holistic growth of life is assured. In the tiring efforts of potting lies a more relaxed body, and the humdrum of watering plants has in store something new every time. This much is true, “It is motivation and enthusiasm that gets one started, and it is love, commitment, hard work and determination that gets one going.”