Its the start of a wonderful Saturday morning and in case you're wondering what you ought to be doing this weekend, I suggest you try your hand at beginning to grow your food. No better day than today and all it takes is some seed/plant, water, earth and sunshine. However, though we are almost always eager to start off, we sometimes stop because we don't know where to get the seed or the earth/mud or how/what to grow plants. This blog-piece will try to show you easy ways to start off.
It may surprise you to know that every city has more than enough seed-shops/nurseries where you can all kinds of seeds, plant growing aids and other implements. The best place to start searching is obviously on the internet and you'll find plenty of places to choose from ( one simple search pulled up over 100 places for me http://www.asklaila.com/search/Mumbai/-/plant%20seeds/10?searchNearby=false&v=listing).
Visiting the shortlisted seed-shop/nursery can be an exciting start as you will be able to see the variety and possibilities of your food growing journey. The minimum you need for starting is a few seed varieties and some soil-compost mix, The rest of what you buy depends on how much you yield in to temptation.
What to plant: If you're on the first attempt on the GYF journey, then I recommend you start with the easy-to-grow variety of plants. Herbs are a good pick as they many of them grow easily and within just a couple of weeks of tending you'll be able to relish the 'fruits' of your food project. Basil is great to start of as it is easy to grow, sturdy and can be used in a wide variety of salads, continental dishes and dips. The other advantage of Basil is that with every pluck, it grows prolifically giving you the opportunity to gift cupfuls of fresh basil to your family or friends (this act of gifting homegrown food is a wonderful way to spread interest in growing food at home). The other vegetable that grows really easily at home are radishes. Of this, there are over 200 varieties so you can take your pick - white, scarlet, red, red-long among many others. You can easily have your first harvest within just 25 days of seed planting. The radish is also a great vegetable to grow at home since you can use every part of it as food (the leaves can be had cooked and are a great salad accompaniment). Both of them need plenty of sunshine and good moist, fertile soil to grow.
How to plant: For germinating the basil seeds take a shallow pot or plastic cup with about 3 to 4 inches of soil-compost mix. For the radishes, use a deeper container/pot they need the depth to grow long - a typical 10-12 inch deep dish should do fine.
For both, dip holes approximately half inch deep and about 4-5 inches apart, drop one seed per hole and cover with soil.Wet this with water and be careful not to drown the seeds. Spray or sprinkle water twice a day till the seeds germinate. Keep in a warm and dark place till the seeds germinate (the top of the fridge works perfectly).
But feel free to experiment and remember that everything you do will not be perfect at first. But as you go along, you'll get the hang of it and you, your friends and family will enjoy both the process and the product immensely. When you finish this article, I suggest you search for seed stores/nurseries around your area - its the first step necessary to start.
All the best!
It may surprise you to know that every city has more than enough seed-shops/nurseries where you can all kinds of seeds, plant growing aids and other implements. The best place to start searching is obviously on the internet and you'll find plenty of places to choose from ( one simple search pulled up over 100 places for me http://www.asklaila.com/search/Mumbai/-/plant%20seeds/10?searchNearby=false&v=listing).
 |
| What you may see in a seed shop |
What to plant: If you're on the first attempt on the GYF journey, then I recommend you start with the easy-to-grow variety of plants. Herbs are a good pick as they many of them grow easily and within just a couple of weeks of tending you'll be able to relish the 'fruits' of your food project. Basil is great to start of as it is easy to grow, sturdy and can be used in a wide variety of salads, continental dishes and dips. The other advantage of Basil is that with every pluck, it grows prolifically giving you the opportunity to gift cupfuls of fresh basil to your family or friends (this act of gifting homegrown food is a wonderful way to spread interest in growing food at home). The other vegetable that grows really easily at home are radishes. Of this, there are over 200 varieties so you can take your pick - white, scarlet, red, red-long among many others. You can easily have your first harvest within just 25 days of seed planting. The radish is also a great vegetable to grow at home since you can use every part of it as food (the leaves can be had cooked and are a great salad accompaniment). Both of them need plenty of sunshine and good moist, fertile soil to grow.
How to plant: For germinating the basil seeds take a shallow pot or plastic cup with about 3 to 4 inches of soil-compost mix. For the radishes, use a deeper container/pot they need the depth to grow long - a typical 10-12 inch deep dish should do fine.
For both, dip holes approximately half inch deep and about 4-5 inches apart, drop one seed per hole and cover with soil.Wet this with water and be careful not to drown the seeds. Spray or sprinkle water twice a day till the seeds germinate. Keep in a warm and dark place till the seeds germinate (the top of the fridge works perfectly).
But feel free to experiment and remember that everything you do will not be perfect at first. But as you go along, you'll get the hang of it and you, your friends and family will enjoy both the process and the product immensely. When you finish this article, I suggest you search for seed stores/nurseries around your area - its the first step necessary to start.
All the best!
No comments:
Post a Comment