I spend on hour tending to my garden every day – watering, weeding, harvesting, sowing, fertilizing, nurturing, changing their positions, planting companion flowers or garlic, and just saying hello to them ensuring the sun is not too harsh during the day. That’s my therapy for the day – my way of forgetting life’s thorns for the moment. My heart sinks when they are affected by pests, the leaves turn yellow, those white mealy bugs take over the stem, or when I find a lot of ants around the plant I know danger is lurking around the corner.  At the same time, my joy knows no bounds when I hold 3 okras, or four cherry tomatoes in my palm every morning carting them carefully down to…

Gardening is a mindful activity. Having my ginger tea in the morning on this bench over the weekends is soothing and sets the tone for the day. This piece of green was what appealed to both of us about this house. A garden can also be high maintenance if not tended to every morning. I spend about 20-30 minutes on an average each morning after son goes to school to deweed and water the plants in the terrace and lawn. Every Sunday morning, I add manure. So except trimming the grass once a month, there is nothing much for a gardener to do. Usually I trim the grass myself. this time I called in the gardener. If you haven’t been maintaining your balcony/terrace garden regularly,…

The pleasant aroma of basil wafts through the living room as I pick a handful of fresh leaves from the garden and put it in a jug of water; it’s intoxicating in a nice way. Visitors to the house are often greeted with a glass of fragrant basil water that lifts the mood instantly; kind of a sudden jerk to the senses. I brought home five saplings of basil in April that have grown into a mini jungle now. The basil you see in the picture above is after heavy pruning over the past week. Herbs are easy to grow. The herbs in this post are growing on the ground, but I have all of them on the kitchen windowsill as well in small pots.…