Lockdown gardener grows over 200 varieties of plants

Growing vegetables has not only improved the quality and taste of the food her family consumes but also encouraged them to eat healthier

What started as a survival instinct during last year’s national lockdown, has now become a blooming garden amidst the hustle and bustle of Bengaluru.

Jincy Samuel has grown over 200 types of fruits and veggies in a year, in her soil-free 500-square-foot terrace garden. She is growing her plants using novel methods like hydroponics and aquaponics that are a shift away from the typical soil-based methods.

In hydroponics, a nutrient-charged, aquatic solution is flushed through the roots of the plant to provide the necessary resources for optimal growth. Aquaponics, on the other hand, is a combination of aquaculture and hydroponic systems. It utilises the waste of one element to benefit another thus mimicking a natural ecosystem.

Jincy talks to Metrolife about her experience so far.

Has gardening always interested you? What made you start your own terrace garden?

Gardening was something that I always enjoyed. I was more into decorative and flowering plants rather than vegetables and fruits. But the pandemic changed that. When we had to wait in queues to be able to get our food, is when my husband suggested that we try growing our own. Our terrace was barely used, and so we decided to use the space to explore how we could grow our own food.

Why did you choose the methods of hydroponics and aquaponics?

My husband and I have been in the technology space all these years, and he is always fascinated with new-age technology. So, when we came about the idea of growing our own food, it was only natural for him to do some research on the most effective way of doing it. That’s when he ended up reading about hydroponics and aquaponics, and he was sure that was the best way forward.

During our research, we found that these methods best work in urban setups, with space constraints. In addition to that, these methods help in water conservation, as the entire process uses a re-circulating water system.

How do the two methods work?

Hydroponics is the method where we grow plants and leafy greens using a reservoir filled with nutrient solution and nutrient film technique (NFT) without soil. The water from the reservoir is pumped up through the NFT channels and the plants then absorb the required amount of nutrients it requires for optimal growth.

Using aquaponics, on the other hand, we are able to grow fish that you can consume plus plants. The waste produced by the fish goes into a mineralization tank and the water is then pumped through the NFT channel for the plants. The plants then absorb the nutrients as needed.

How did you set up the garden?

It was a lot of work for just my husband and me to set up the whole thing by ourselves. So we did some research and found a professional team to help us with it. We worked with Garden Guru and Hydrilla to set up the entire system on our terrace.

For a beginner, what would you suggest the easiest fruit or vegetable would be to grow?

We’ve grown leafy greens like spinach, iceberg lettuce, methi, mint, red batavia lettuce, romaine lettuce, kale, red amaranthus and veggies like broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, carrots, radish, brinjals, lady’s finger, bhut jolokia chilly, etc. Out of all these the easiest to grow, I’d say would be spinach. It’s not only easy to take care of but you can also grow huge amounts of it with minimal effort.

The key is to start small, see what works and then expand as you learn the process better.

Have you contemplated selling the produce you grow?

Most of what we grow, we consume or it gets distributed among friends and family. But yes, recently we’ve actually been selling a portion of produce to our local community and to an organic store near our place. We have also been working on identifying new opportunities in this space.

What future plans do you have for your gardening journey?

We run an aquarium store in Bengaluru called Splashy Fin, we are now expanding and adding hydroponic & aquaponics kits, nutrients, consumables among other items in this space. We want to make this hobby accessible to all.