Tag: terrace

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Unlocking the healing power of plants

Garden as a means of joy and wellbeing

We often, perceive and use plants for their sheer beauty, overlooking their innate potential to nurture all life on earth. 

Beyond providing tangible benefits such as medicine or food, plants play a far deeper role in supporting us mentally, physically, socially and spiritually. Irrespective of how one engages with them – actively, passively or sub-consciously, there’s constant interaction with plants. In our everyday lives, there are countless instances where one directly or indirectly reaps their benefits. Be it the food we eat or day-to-day materials we use or the air we breathe, every single thing we consume is a derivative of plants.

Unfortunately, over the years, the meaning of gardens and landscapes have changed radically, thus undermining their value in our lives today. From being a place of enjoyment to being a platform of appeasement, the inherent ability of a garden has been truncated. The indiscriminate use of templatized and over-commercialized non-native materials such as exotic ornamental plants, lawns, non-biodegradable products, is gradually changing their identity to mere beautiful decor objects.

On the brighter side, a garden full of plants can be many things beyond grandeur. A pharmacy, an orchard, a farm, a meditation corner, a fitness centre, a cultural or social hub – a garden can serve many purposes if designed with a vision and built with the sustainable principles.

3 things that you must consider in your garden to unlock the healing power of plants:

1) Sensory experience:

Several landscaping experts restrict the use of flowering plants in design in the name of maintenance issues. However, flowers are integral to our environment and our health. Fragrance, colour, texture, the process of blooming, every aspect of flowering plants have a deep impact on our emotional and mental well-being. Such stimulation of senses is one of the important and intangible benefit that such a garden offers.

2) Natural elements:

The idea of listening to running water from a fountain, touching or walking on stones, tasting berries or smelling flowers, together create a healing effect on the mind and soul. What is a garden if it’s not a place that is characterized by peace and silence, free of rubbish but just the sound derived from wind, water, birds or insects! By integrating natural elements such as native vegetation that attract and support biodiversity or water bodies that regulate the internal climate, there are several ways in which a restorative garden can have a healing effect on our body and mind.

3) Garden design:

Design of a garden is not just affected by desire of its designers but also by the establishes who organize it. A garden should be shaped functionally and aesthetically in order to attract and fulfil the user’s needs. From deciding the size of a garden, to creating opportunities to interact with nature and reducing the maintenance in the long-run, there should be a balance between aesthetics and sustenance.  

According to World Health Organization (WHO), more than 1 billion people are living with mental health disorders, with conditions such as anxiety and depression inflicting immense human and economic tolls. Several studies have indicated that nature has positive effects on our health and can be a place for restoration from stress. 

In the coming new year, let this be your new resolution. Don’t think of creating a beautiful garden, alone. Think of how you can create an opportunity to restore the joy and well-being at your disposal, a safe space that helps you establish a deeper connection with nature, an ecosystem that makes you feel beautiful from within.

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blog Sustainable Gardening Basics

Plant of the Month – Parijat

Botanical Name: Nyctanthes arbor-tristis

A marriage of beauty and benefits, Parijat, popularly known as Harsinghar and Prajakta, has many surprises in store.

Native to India and rest of Southeast Asia, this plant has been revered in several walks of life. From blooming in the night to being used as a key ingredient in food, Parijat is integral to India’s rich traditions from medicinal, religious and landscaping uses.

It is known by many names across the world – Night-blooming Jasmine, Tree of Sadness, Tree of Sorrow, Coral Jasmine, Sephalika and the list goes on. A small, deciduous shrub, Parijat produces striking orangish red and white flowers that are highly fragrant in nature that open at dusk and finish at dawn.

In addition to beautifying any garden or recreational space, Parijat offers a host of other benefits too. The orange dye from the corolla, nyctanthin, is used to dye silk. Traditionally, the native people of Eastern India used the plant to help predict weather and rainfall as the flowers were deeply associated with the autumn season. Being a sacred tree, this divine flower is widely used in India for making garlands, and other forms of worshipping.

Talking about medicinal purposes, the leaves have been long used in Ayurvedic and Homeopathy medicines for treating several bone related illnesses.

Religious and mythological stories around the flower are abundant too. It is being said that this flower has the bark of gold, leaves of copper colour and bears a fragrant, rejuvenate fruit. In Hindu mythology, Parijat was one of the five trees that emerged during the legend of the Samudra Manthana as described in the Mahabharata and the Puranas.  

Parijat can be easily grown at home in pots, provided the plant receives full sun – 4-5 hours of direct sunlight. It does wonders in an outdoor environment, if planned well.

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blog Sustainable Gardening Basics

3 ways to transform your terrace

Let’s be honest. To have a terrace space in a space-starved city like Mumbai, is a blessing and privilege, both.

Beyond serving as a hang-out zone or an unused corner, a terrace can fulfil several lifestyle goals for its users, be it a personal or society space. With a burgeoning concrete jungle around us and rampant felling of trees, creating your own green sanctuary could be a good idea for your long-term health & well-being.

Here are a couple of ways in which you can transform your terrace into a multi-functional garden space:

1) Edible Garden

To have a sun-kissed space and not utilizing it to generate your own organic food, can be a big oversight. While several experts may argue that a vegetable or herb garden doesn’t meet the aesthetic goals of a terrace landscape, the fact is that there are ways on which it can accomplished.

From creating neat garden beds around the walls to raised beds which can serve as a central courtyard, an edible garden can be wisely integrated with the other elements. All you need is the intent of plucking your own food, at your convenience, at your doorstep. Be it a herb garden or your favourite fruits or the daily veggies you consume, such a terrace garden can become the purest source of your health journey.

2) Fitness & Wellness  

If the idea of an edible garden seems overwhelming, then you can consider balancing it with something more suitable to you. If you’re a fitness enthusiast, imagine working out in an open environment which is free of pollutants, fresh air and perhaps a degree or two cooler than its surroundings.

Yes, this can be made possible by integrating nature thoughtfully in your space. For instance, in place of using exotic hedging plants, one can create a border of tall, dense fruiting and flowering trees. Just the corners while keeping the central space free for your gym equipment or yoga mat. This way you can ensure two things a) create optimum shade in the central space while ensuring privacy from the surroundings b) maximize therapeutic benefits with the fragrance of fresh flowers in the mornings and fruits, edibles that you can relish. 

3) A Green Extension 

Still looking for something simpler? Then, consider having a simple green space which could be an extended space of your interior. Sometimes having even a smaller patch of green is good enough. Several studies show that people who spend time gardening or in garden, tend to have a better quality of life with improved physical, mental and social abilities.

From selective potted plants to an open lawn space with a comfortable outdoor seating, a water feature or just simply a green carpet, are a few ways in which this minimal green space can be created.

However, before you embark on this green journey, there are a few thumb rules to follow. Fundamentals of setting-up a terrace garden starts from waterproofing, drainage channels, structural strength and weight-bearing capacity are paramount to creating a low-maintenance gardening effort.

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blog Sustainable Gardening Basics

FAQ: How to create a sustainable garden?

Such balanced, consistent, and self-sustained ecosystems require minimal or no intervention, resulting into ecological conservation at a macro level.

At an individual level, choosing eco-friendly materials, native plants, optimising time and resources to create your home garden, makes it sustainable.

Such methods encourage natural ways of –

Growing

(with no frills attached)

Fertilization

(where the kitchen is the gold mine)

Pest control

(when the job can be done gently)

Watering

(when less is more)

Creating a sustainable garden at home requires a holistic approach towards incorporating natural ecosystems at a smaller scale. From the choice of planter materials to the type of plants and maintenance of gardens, one can create a self-sustaining microcosm within the confines of one’s home.