Terrace gardening in India may be a new concept, but it is for sure a much-loved concept, especially in the metropolitan cities, and is here to stay. Bangalore, amongst other Indian metropolitan cities, is loving the concept of terrace gardening owing to the lack of free land space and major urbanization. If you are a Bangalorean who is fed up with staying monotonous indoors while you work from home, terrace gardening ideas are not a bad way to amp up your space. Here’s everything you need to know about gardening on terraces in Bangalore.
A terrace garden, or a balcony garden, just as the name rightfully suggests, is a kitchen garden that you grow on the terrace, roof, or balcony of your house. Such a garden would not obviously be as large, natural, or expansive as a regular backyard garden and hence, also comes with several limitations in terms of what plants can be grown.
Terrace gardening in Bangalore, however, can be done in almost any or every building; be it a residential dwelling or commercial centers like factories or office spaces. The only essential prerequisite, however, is to ensure that you carry out the waterproofing on the roof.
Though it may sound rather complex and tedious a job to do, you need not have solid gardening or agricultural knowledge to start gardening on the terrace in your home. All you need is the will to create a green space and the persistent patience to take care of the space created.
The cost to establish a basic roof-top garden of 30ft x 40ft in Bengaluru can cost anywhere between Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 12,000. An organic terrace garden if this measurement, is well maintained and catered to, can easily yield a product of 25 kg to 50 kg per year.
Not only is Bangalore good but one of the best cities in India for terrace gardening. Here’s why-
Favorable climatic conditions: Bengaluru, for the most part of the year, experiences a tropical savanna climate with distinct wet and dry seasons, owing to the high elevation from the sea level. The minimum temperature goes down to 15, while the maximum records at 35. This allows most plants to grow in Bengaluru and some particular plants, in fact, thrive exceedingly well, which we will talk about later.
Favorable soil composition: Bengaluru’s soil types range from Red Laterite to Red, fine loamy, and clayey. Both these red soils are rich in iron and favorable for a lot of plant growth like Bengal gram, green gram, groundnut, and castor seeds. With a couple of additional elements, this soil works great for growing vegetables or fruits for a terrace or balcony garden.
A terrace garden, apart from the aesthetic appeal of it, offers a lot of monetary and health benefits which makes it a must-have, especially in today’s majorly concrete, natural-air-depleted world. here are some solid reasons for considering building yourself a balcony or terrace garden in a metropolitan like Bengaluru-
As many as 6 vegetables per season can be grown by terrace gardening per season. Now, given that just 1 sq.m. of a terrace or balcony garden area can yield 25 kg to 50 kg in a year, you can grow a lot in your terrace garden- even in a metropolitan like Bengaluru!
Here are some particularly favorable fruits, vegetables, flowers, and herbs you can grow in your terrace garden in Bengaluru listed below.
Here are a few basic requirements to get started on terrace gardening in Bengaluru-
Once you get yourself the aforesaid equipment of sorts, you are pretty much halfway on to building your own little terrace garden. Here’s what to do next-
Plan it out: It is never recommended to randomly visit a nursery for buying saplings/ seeds. Nurseries usually have so much to offer, it could become overwhelming even before you’d realize it. Plan in advance the kind of fruits/plants/veggies/herbs you want to grow based on the size of the garden and pick just that.
Prepare yourself to deal with bugs: Multiple pests, insects, and birds will also want to be a part of your growing garden; be prepared to deal appropriately with the invaders.
Keep room for dead plants: Not all plants will thrive. You could over-water, over-manure, or just over-expose the plant to sunlight which will eventually kill them. While that is not a great feeling to have, understand that it is okay and you can always learn from the experience.
Be patient! As much as we’d all like it to, plants do not grow in days and you will need to be patient to bear the fruits. Do not lose your patience and do not interfere with the growth process trying to figure out how far the growth has reached. Just keep watering as required for the plant in question and keep calm!
Learn, learn, learn: While you begin growing your garden, try to gather as much information as you can around how to grow the plants and how to take care of them. All plants have different needs and hence, all will need to also be catered to differently.
You need certain tools that will come in handy when you begin gardening on terraces. Here’s a list of gardening tools that will save your wallet and yourself from frequent trips to the gardening store:
Speaking of a balcony or terrace garden in a tropical city like Bengaluru, one cannot avoid or ignore that the garden will inevitably attract a lot of bugs and insects, potentially harmful to the growth of the plants. Birds like pigeons are also very common to visit houses in Bengaluru and to cause disruption. While insects, bugs, pests, and birds cannot be blamed, a few steps can be taken to keep them at bay-
Organic pesticides: The keyword here being ‘organic,’ organic pesticides are your best bet to keep the uninvited guests away as they neither harm the plants and nor the intruders. Any organic pesticide would have neem, salt spray, mineral oils, citrus oil, cayenne pepper, orange citrus oil, eucalyptus oil, onion and garlic spray, or tobacco spray in combination or stand-alone would be a good choice.
Wire mesh: While organic pesticides will protect your garden from bugs and insects, a wire mesh or a garden shade will work best to keep animals like cats and birds like pigeons stay away from your produce.
Now that you’re mostly equipped with all the knowledge you’d need to start building your terrace garden in Bengaluru, are you set to dirty your hands? let us know your experience in the comment section below!
Gardening can be a real stress-buster when it comes to a bustling life in a city which is why many residents have resorted to gardening on their terrace, their personal space. Plants keep your space cool in the summers and clean the city’s polluted environment.
Terrace gardening is an activity that required less maintenance yet a huge harvest in your little space. Rainwater is easily available on the terrace and your daily spend on vegetables subsides as now you have fresh produce of your own.
Growing vegetables is very easy in your own little terrace or balcony garden in Bengaluru. you will need to make sure that your vegetable seeds or saplings are covered with loose soil and that the soil is not tightly packed which is moist at all times. This will make sure that the water gently and equally seeps in to nourish the seeds/ saplings. Also, make sure that the veggie seeds or saplings get enough direct sunlight for at least 5-7 hours each day, are suitable for. your region and are transferred into a bigger pot as they grow. Multiple vegetables including spinach, cucumber, lettuce, chili, brinjal, okra, etc. are suitable for Bangalore.
Chilli, cucumber, tomatoes, and radish are some of the fastest-growing vegetables for a balcony or terrace garden in Bengaluru, all growing under 30 days from sowing to harvest.
Though Bengaluru’s red soil in itself is considered very good for plants like Bengal gram, compost coir peat, and vermicompost in equal quantities work exceptionally best for growing plants, fruits, and veggies in a balcony or terrace garden. It should be noted that one will need to add regular manure/ compost, especially after heavy rainfalls (as rainfalls wash away the natural soil ingredients), to the soil for attaining good produce.
Your terrace for gardening must be waterproof as it is going to be filled with heavy pots and soil that may lead to dampness in the building. You could hire a professional for the waterproofing or if you are doing it alone, use a drainage mat as a waterproofing agent.
You could prepare a potting mixture of equal amounts of sand, vermicompost, and normal soil. Note that all the important nutrients might wash away after a rain so you need to replenish your soil each month for growing healthy plants.
