CHENNAI: When Blany D’Souza wanted to grow jackfruit in a pot, people laughed at him. He has been a gardener for 22 years and he was persistent. “Today they are surprised by my harvest,” says the Mangaluru-based urban gardener who has huge fan following on social media.
Blany also grows grape vine on his terrace, perhaps the only one in the city. He grows over 200 varieties of fruits and vegetables including corn and purple okra in his small garden and promotes an initiative — ‘Grow Your Own Veg.’ “I barely have time for my own garden these days. I go to schools and deliver lectures and encourage children to grow their own vegetables,” he says.
Blany started gardening to beat boredom. He had returned home, leaving his job as an Income Auditor at a five-star hotel in the Middle East, when he realised that he had a lot of free time. “I had to put that time to good use... I began planting ivy gourds and harvested about 150 to 200 kg every month.
I slowly progressed to grapes, vegetables and my latest are jackfruits in pots.” But he has always had an interest in gardening. “Even as a seven-year-old, I used to bring plants home,” he says. “Today my friends help me source plants from other countries. I have grapevines from the USA and papaya seeds from France.”
Blany’s garden also knows no seasons. “All fruits grow all through the year,” he says. His terrace garden now inspires others and students are brought for school trips here. “I think children should have growing vegetables as a subject. People talk about excessive use of pesticides, the solution is to grow your own food.” He says that his family never buys vegetables from the market, all that is had is from the garden.
Blany practices organic gardening through and through. He uses neem oil or picks out insects by hand. He has helped more than 100 houses set up their own customised gardens and all in his signature ‘organic-style’. He is now helping cultivate a 17- acre project in Moodabidri in Dakshina Kannada district.