DIY part 2

8. DIY part2 – Lists of plants and trees to grow in the frontyard, backyard, herb garden, Build frame for creepers, Plant saplings into trays, Potatoes in tyres – How to transplant young plants and Trees. Building raised beds, rockeries. Build your vegetable shade for the summer.

Parts of a plant.

Roots- Absorption of water and minerals. Root hairs increase surface area for more absorption of water.
Stem - Contains vessels that transport water and other nutrients from the roots upwards and food from the leaves downwards.
Leaves - Produce food with the aid of sunlight, water and air. Also contain pores through which the plant breathes.
Flowers - The reproductive organs of the plant.
Fruits - The child bearing the seed. To feed the rest.

The human - To eat and spread the seeds around.

Parts of a flower -
The female - pistil (stigma, style and ovary)
The male - Stamen

Pollination- When the pollen is transferred from the insects or the wind from the anther of the stamen to the stigma of the pistil thus fertilizing the ovaries. Thus the fruit and the seed are formed.
The human body and structure.

Both were created to live, breathe and produce till eternity in harmony with the laws of nature.

Nutrients needed by the plant - these from the sun and the soil.
Nitrogen - For the green.
Potassium - For the colors and immunity. It aids the development of sugar and starches in the plant.
Phosphorous for a healthy root system - young plants and seedlings need it the most.

Stages of plant growth - THE seed, Seedling, The plant.
Stages of human growth - The unborn child, The child, The person.

Label your garden – Plant a paper.
To choose the perfect plants – Take a walk around nearby botanical gardens and nursery to see which plants grow well around.
There are many kinds of gardens –

Roof gardens, lawn gardens, pot garden.

An urban garden in a big house could be planned something like this –
(you can pick and choose and adjust according to time and space constraints – most of everything other than bigger trees can be grown in pots and raise beds)

There are various ways to shape your beds as well.
A few examples –
Rectangular – this is a classical way of doing things by planting things in rows. It isn’t too great for tight spaces.

Hillock – Is a better way of using up space and calls for intensive planting of crops.
Keyhole – Uses a circular mandala pattern and expands from the centre outwards.

Frontyard plants and trees.

Ornamental Trees – Potato tree, Champa, gulmohar, cork.
Groundcover – Wandering Jew, Sweet potato, Green gram.

The tiny plants –
Impatiens – perennial / shade plant
Chrsanthemums – perennial/ sunlight
Dahlia (grown from bulbs) – perennial/ sunlight

Candy tufts – annual/ sunlight
Marigolds – Ditto
Cosmos – Ditto

Taller plants
Hollyhocks – annual/ sunlight

Bushes (smaller and low lying) – do well in rockeries, hanging pots and make for excellent groundcover)

Zinias – Annual/ sunlight
Petunias – Annual/ Sunlight
Nasturtiums – Annual/ sunlight

Creepers – (Train these along walls and fences, around taller trees or around columns of the house)
Bouganvillea – perennial/ sunlight
Jackmontia – ditto
Rangoon creeper – ditto
Jasmine creeper – ditto
Passion flower.

Bigger bushes and plants.

Hibiscus (fountain, Hawaiian hybrid, Orleander), Heleconias, Poinsettias.

Aromatic plants –
Chameli
Rat ki rani.

Air cleaning plants –
These plants filter most of the air pollutants and provide fresh clean oxygen for the house. So plant them in and around the house in pots.)
Areca palms, rubber plant, dwarf date palm.

Your front yard would look something like this.

The rockery and the pool –
Build your rockery –
- Gather big stones and rocks.
- Lay them around to outline the shape you want for your rockery.
- Fill up the hollow with soil, mulch and compost.

Layer this with smaller rocks on top and fill with soil for higher level planting.

Level one – low lying shrubs and ferns. Nasturtium, impatiens are great for these.

Palms – bananas and papayas – grow a heleconia next to it.

If you want a little pool – grow lilies and lotuses.

The strawberries and bamboo patches can form one side of the house.

Strawberries – perennials – can be grown easily from seeds or saplings.

Plant the seeds nice and deep in well drained soil. These can be grown in concrete pots, planting one or two plants in each pot. These can be grown in the same patch as greem grams or other legumes. Fertilize the soil with nitrogen before planting and once after the crop begins to grow and once after the first fruit comes in.

There are different kinds of strawberries and Bangalore has a variety named after itself. So go and choose the ever bearers or the Bangalore variety. Water and mulch well. Enjoy yummy sweet strawberries.

Bamboos – Easily grown from root clippings. These spread easily over the beds and appreciate space, plenty of mulch and water.

Rule of thumb – never plant the seed in a hole deeper than thrice its size.
Cover lightly with soil and compost.
The creeper vegetables –
Build an archway to look something like this.
Or simply provide the creeper with strong support and train them against the walls.

Bottle gourd,
Cucumber,
Ridge gourd,
Bitter gourd.

These annuals can be planted directed into the pot or narrow strips of soil.
- Grow in sandy to loam soil - takes 55 - 70 days to mature and can be grown in pots, rows - 2ft apart in rows 4-6' apart.



The trees to grow
- Mango
- Guava/ pomegranate
- Drumsticks + lemon/ curry leaves tree.

All of these are hardy and can be grown from a bought young plant or seed.
To transplant a tree from pot to its bed, crack open the clay pot, keep all the soil around the roots, and make sure the young tree isn’t buried too deep in the ditch, none of the leaves should be buried under or touching the soil.

For the Vegetable bed –

These need to be grown in trays till they are tiny little plants and then transplanted to pots or beds.

These need to be grown in trays till saplings bear a few true leaves: (bush)
The saplings are grown in shade and then shifted to pots/ beds.
The ideal time to make this shift would be when the plant is 4 - 6'' high.

Refer back to page. For ideal soil for pots and trays.
Brinjals, Capsicum, Chillies and Celery are other bush vegetable which needs transplanting from trays to pots/ beds.

Tomatoes- 2-3 months maturation period, warm weather crops... the plants are deeply rooted. They need 6- 8 weeks in the nursery - mulch well, provide suppost for young plants and keep them away from legumes. Not too many nutrients are needed.

(Petunia’s grown in tomato beds would do the crop some good)

Eggplants - (similar to tomatoes) - 3- 4 weeks germination period, The period of wait from sowing to trasplanting to pot/ beds - 10 weeks. Takes 3 months to mature - Eggplants are ornamental plants as well... Harvest the crop regularly.

Celery- Cool weather crop, Plant in mid summer in a shaded area and harvest in cool fall weather. The plants should be grown in a nursery for 10 weeks before shifting to pots/ beds. Plant in well drained moist soil. Give the crop 8 inch deep cavities and plant the sapling nearer to the surface 8 - 10'' apart.

Leeks- (similar to onions) - Grow first in trays - 100 days maturation period - Transplant when 4'' high - 4'' apart and give a steady supply of water. No fertilization is necessary.

Chillies and capsicums can be grown similarly.

These can be planted directly as seeds/ bulbs into the beds or pots.

Onions - Sandy to loam soil, needs Bone meal and potassium as inputs and can be grown from bulbs or seeds. The seeds have a longer maturation period ( 4 months)... Dry onion bulbs mature in 95 days.
Plant in rows 15 - 18'' apart. Steady supply of water. when the top leaves being to yellow simply bend the plant over to the ground.
Peas - sow directly into the soil in winter - 60 to 80 days of maturation period. loamy soil, well drained- water the soil before planting the seeds. Harvest regularly and use garlic spray.
Radishes- cool weather crop - And takes three weks to a month to mature. Require light sandy to loam soil. Sow in early spring or when cooler weather begins.
Liquid fish/ bloodmeal - 1: gallon of water if the soil is infertile.
Spinach and fenugreek- Light well dug bed - cool, The sowing period should be cool and moist - 45-50 days maturing period. Like lettuce these can be sown repeatedly every 2 weeks
Beans - warm weather crop - plant inch deep in soil, 3'' apart, rows should be 2 - 3' apart. Mulch and fertilize only till the beans start growing. (2 - 3 months)
Beetroots - cool weather crop, mild winters are good too. Fertilize soil with bone meal before planting. 55- 80 days maturation period. Plant 3'' apart and sprinkle with water regularly. These require light fertilization and mulching. The plants are 5- 6'' high.
Carrots - Similar to beets, can endure warmer weather - they mature 65- 75 days from sowing. They need light sandy - loam soil... fed well with organic matter.

Pumpkin patch and melon beds for the corners

Squash and Pumpkins- Same soil as cucumbers - summer cros takes 60 - 65 days to mature and the winter crop takes twice as long. The summer crop should be harvested a little before the squash matures.
Water the summer squash well in rows 5' apart and the seeds should be planted 2' apart.

Melons - grown in rounded raised beds - sandy to loam soil, well watered. Plant the seeds 6'' - 10'' apart and 6'' deep.
Light mulching and avoid too much watering after the fruits appear.

Some tips :

Interplant root crops (carrots, radishes, potatoes, sweet potatoes) with crop plants.

Intersperse these with herbs, nasturtiums, petunias and marigolds to keep insects and diseases away.

Marigolds in melon and pumpkin patches are great as well.
Grow leafy vegetables with mint/oregano/ thyme.

Your herb garden in the kitchen.
Ideal soil for herbs – 1 part soil, 1 part coarse sand, 1 part peat moss/ mulch/ compost.
Pack the soil in loosely and fertilize with bone meal before planting.


Coriander – Grow in pots/ beds with chillies on the periphery.


Basil – Tall herb – give it a slightly deeper pot. Choose a Sunny – semi shaded spot.

Goes great with tomatoes.
To store – dry and crumble.

Chives – These are pretty and grass like with real pretty flowers. Plant in rows 1/8 in deep with one seed every two inches.
To store – cut and freeze.

Yummy on omelettes, and sourcream on bread.

Dill – Again a tall herb, These are annual so have to plan them each year. Plant them in pots with 8 in diameter – 10- 12 inches deep. Plant 6 – 8 in one pot, 1 inch apart. Water once a week.

Dry, store and freeze.

Yum yum in chicken broth and roasts.

Mint – This grows better outdoors, don’t pluck them till they are 10 – 12 inches high.

Don’t store it.

Tastes better infused fresh into dips, dishes and drinks.

Parsley – Grow this herb in pots and use mulch well.
Use this to garnish soups, salad s and chop them up and use in egg sandwiches.
Freeze them to keep them fresh.

Rosemary – This grows in dryer soil – use humus, water once a week till its 3 – 4 inches high. And then once every two week.
Dry and store.

Use in meats and gravies.

Thyme – These are happy herbs to have around and grow pretty flowers. They appreciate loamy soil, plenty of sunlight and good weather.
Plant the seeds ¼ inches deep, 2 inches apart, keeping the rows 18 inches apart. Mulch regularly and water every few weeks.

Use with fish and chicken.

Sources – My own herb garden – Allan A. Swenson.
Sunset’s guide to organic gardening.


Potatoes in tyres/ large empty barrels.
These are cool season plant . Cool season plants.

Bury cut up eyes of the potato in a soil trench and cover with mulch, ferlizer and light and loamy soil. As the sprout appears over the soil cover up with soil again. Repeat process till the soil fills up till the top. You now have a barrel full of potatoes.


Tips from a certain gardener –

You can easily gather seeds from vegetable like tomatoes, beans and chillies. Simply store the harvested crop till its slightly soggy and inedible, break open and spread into the soil.
For beans, Dry them up first within the pods, break the pods open and dry the beans within again and then plant back into the soil.

For garlic, simply take one clove, plant it into the soil the thinner side up.