CHENNAI: In a bid to breathe fresh air in an otherwise polluted city, many citizens are setting up terrace gardens to save the greenery of Bengaluru. One of them is a doctor who takes her hobby of gardening very seriously.
“It’s been a while since I last purchased mint, basil, aloe vera, spinach, curry leaves as I get them all from my kitchen garden that’s there in one of my balconies,” says Dr Olinda Timms, an anaesthesiologist, author and columnist. Taking delight in sharing her story about her terrace garden, she recalls the time when the garden was just an idea. As Timms and her husband were planning to purchase a house in the city, they found a penthouse apartment with a terrace at Avenue Court in Ulsoor.
This was when their idea of a terrace garden became a reality. They decided to convert the terrace into a green space, which later became a solace for the couple away from the hustle and bustle of the city life.
The terrace garden was first filled with earth, saplings of various plants, creepers and a fountain. This made them feel close to nature. Discussing about the species of plants that her garden has, she begins with the Mexican grass spread across. It includes ornamental palm trees, Ficus creeper on the walls, Heliconia, Ixora, Geranium, Lily, Pentas, Anthurium, Hibiscus and Begonia plants. “The lower terrace has a fountain which has water cabbage and water bamboo to keep water level low. We have done this keeping in mind the water crisis that the city has been facing. We do not want to waste water and thus keep recycling it,” says Timms.
She also adds that the garden needs a lot of care and therefore, the plants are watered every second day during summer. However, during the rainy season, watering all the plants are not required. Timms has a gardener who comes twice a week for re-potting, replanting and trimming the plants. On other days, the garden is taken care of by her.
Youngsters should take the fact of diminishing greenery in city seriously, she says, adding that they should try and convert open spaces at their homes into gardens and plant as many saplings as they can, asserts Timms.