For her father who was unwell in 2019, Ravneet Kaur grew her first plant, wheatgrass. There has been no looking back for her ever since.

Today, Ravneet’s terrace garden in her Ludhiana home is an oasis of green, with over 200 pots and plants.

She grows everything from fruits, vegetables, and has huge flower beds around her terrace of almost 2,000 square feet. She grows seasonal fruits and vegetables.

In the winters, it’s cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, radish and carrots while summers see her terrace filled with cucumber, bitter gourd, lady’s finger, pumpkin, squash, tomatoes and melons.

Her journey began in earnest during the lockdown, when she experimented with planting new varieties of fruits and vegetables.

Seeing the plants thrive motivated her to grow more. She was also inspired by famous gardeners like Ekta Chaudhry and Worm Rani on Instagram.

She started her gardening journey with five pots, which included spinach and brinjal, which she considers ‘easy vegetables to grow’.

However, it was far from easy as she waited a long time for the brinjal and lemon plant to flower.

“Despite being easy plants to grow, I got nothing from them. What it taught me was patience – the more patience, the better the chances of growing your food,” she adds.

After the initial hiccups, she started with planting zucchini and bitter gourd (karela). On average, she says she spends close to two hours on her terrace tending to the plants.

The self-confessed “plant aficionado” has an Instagram following of over 1,82,000 followers on her page Haryali_by_Cherie, where she shares videos on how to tend to each crop.

An MBA graduate with a BEd degree, it was in this green oasis that she found peace and happiness.

She asks every aspiring gardener to be ready for failure due to unfavourable weather conditions or pest attacks.

“The best way to deal with it is to keep going. Start with the assumption that you might fail,” she says.

Here are four tips for novice gardeners:

1. Have patience:

“Not everything will grow at the same pace. Allow it the time it needs and you will reap the benefits.”

2. Go Desi:

“As much as possible, plant things that are indigenous to the place you live in,” says Ravneet. Look for desi seeds from your local nurseries and communities.

3. Grow What You Eat:

“There is no point in growing fruits and vegetables that you do not consume. Ensure that you plant and nurture what you and your family can enjoy,” she says.

4. Always Grow Seasonal:

“The best way to get your plants to flourish is by planting them according to the season.There are specific winter and summer fruits and vegetables, so learn up before you start,” she adds.

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