A lot of things have changed (and not changed too) in the meantime. For one, there is no sign of all those saplings we planted at our Panchgani land. What with the legal procedure (boundary demarcation etc.) dragging on, we really haven't been able to do much there - so once the monsoon was gone last year, there was no source of water for those saplings. Besides the villagers got their cattle there to graze as there was no fencing - sitting in Pune, there was very little we could do. In 2009 March, we contemplated moving to Panchgani, living near the land and to start doing some planting, but again, things took a very different turn.
We have now bought a house (an apartment) in Pune. Yeah!Yeah! It does sound like we sold out....but hey, hear us out. We got this nice large terrace above the flat along with the house too. Besides the house has 3 large balconies. So our enthusiasm is back and we are looking forward to starting our little green patch, on which we will have our full control and attention. Already the number of plants in pots has tripled - and there is atleast 1 flower in bloom every other week. Wonder of wonders, our curry leaf plant seems to be reviving too - after being dormant for more than a year. Mulching is in full flow - none of our kitchen waste now goes out of the house. And we can already see it benefitting the plants. The plants get a lot of sunshine and breeze and we can see that's doing a lot of good to them - they are visibly happy. So are we :-)
Last week we visited 2 ladies - Mrs. Kaveri tai Dadhphale and Mrs. Jyoti Shah. Both of them have done work on terrace gardens, though following slightly different techniques - but the results are very encouraging to behold. Kaveritai had created a terrace garden on the terrace of her hospital - she has unfortunately had to take it off now due to construction activity there. However, she still has a nice flourishing garden at the ground level made of kitchen waste topped with some soil. Her veggies requirements come fully from her garden. She reuses and recycles almost everything - makes her own brooms from the 'kunja' plant she grows tying it up with used saline tube; makes detergent out of lime peel and tamarind, makes loofahs out of dried gourds......we need to still discover all the other things she does.
Mrs. Jyoti, on the other hand, does not use any soil on her terrace and yet she has a full-fledged farm/ forest on her terrace visible from the busy Satara road. She has fully grown Mango, Chiku, Pomegranate, Papaya and Seedless Lemon trees besides loads of rose bushes, Tulasi, Ginger and other seasonal vegetables. All this grows on just half-an-inch of garbage - all food waste not only from her home but also from an Udipi hotel hearby besides dry leaves from trees. She also uses a bioculture (from Dr. Bhawalkar) to help the whole garbage decomposition process. Her farm has been up for the last 15 years and she is still a lady on a mission. She is out to urge as many people as she can to follow her path.
Both these meetings have spurred us on to action. For the last month or so, we have been collecting straw and coconut fibers discarded by fruit-sellers and shop-keepers. Now, we have created our first bed on the terrace and are looking forward to transforming our terrace into a green haven too. We are also thinking of ways in which we can do this organically and without spending money on it. Have green garbage to throw away anyone? We'd love to have it - just give us a holler!
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