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1. How did you start gardening?
From childhood, I've seen my Mom tendering to her plants. I'm a Homoeopathy doctor having a private practice. Once my kids started school I did get a little time for my hobbies and started buying plants.
I was always fascinated about growing veggies over other plants. 4 years back we shifted into our own villament which has a terrace. That's when my steady gardening journey started.
2. What are some of your favourite plants to grow in the garden?
I like growing all kinds of vegetables and fruits over ornamental plants. I usually try to sow seeds as per season.
3. What are some of the plants that you’ve not had as much success with?
I haven't had much success with capsicum, cabbage, and watermelons. Also, I tried growing flowering plants like sunflowers, Aster dahlia, cosmos, and zinnia from seeds but failed.
Other vegetables I've had good success with but again depends on the quality of seeds too. All that grows seeds had a good successful germination rate.
4. Are there any new plants on your wishlist?
I would love to have a good harvest of bell peppers. Mostly my plants fail because of leaf curling.
Check out Dr Vanessa's instagram account at urban_green_heaven.
5. What would you like to say to our new gardeners?
If you are new to gardening, start with easy-to-grow plants such as greens such as spinach and amaranth veggies like tomatoes, brinjals, chillies, radish, cherry tomatoes and herbs like mint, basil, and rosemary.
The potting mix should be well drained and use fertilizers every 15 days. Buying good quality seeds is important else all hard work and time go down the drain. I use homemade compost bio enzymes ready-made fertilizers like seaweed extract cow dung vermicompost etc.
6. Any gardening hack you wanna share with us?
A gardening hack for me is growing greens and most veggies in an almost soil-less medium. My potting mix has more of cocopeat and compost than soil. I also add a little bit of perlite mustard powder neem khali and cow dung. Also most important is it should be well-draining soil.
7. Any particular Instagram accounts you follow for inspiration?
haryali_by_cherie has really inspired me because Raveet also posts her failures too and not just the successful crops.
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