Now create a beautiful garden in a dish

Gardening is always fun. You can sense positivity the moment you put your hand in the mud to plant a sapling. Perhaps this can be understood only by people who are fond of plants. Those who love greenery can find a place for plants in their small flats too.

Pots hanging in balconies and pots arranged in rows with flowering plants is a common sight. Even kitchen gardening has become quite a trend in the last few years. What is attracting people more these days is ‘miniature gardening’ or creating a small garden in a dish.

P M Mathai, The Indian Society of Cacti & Succulents, says, “Dish gardening is not a complicated thing. One can prepare the basic set up in an hour or so. But before that you need to have the idea about the right kind of plants to be used.”

According to him most important is selection of plant varieties which should depend upon their co-existence. “All varieties which you are planning to plant together in a dish should have good compatibility in terms of water consumption, light and shade. Otherwise it will become difficult to maintain the growth of the plants.” 

Therefore, he suggests cacti and succulents are the best options for miniature gardening. “Succulents are not fast growing and they don’t need enough water. So their growth is almost the same. Even after maturity they take up a geometrical shape which makes their maintenance easy.” 

And best is, one need not be a gardening expert. “You should know atleast something about plants,” he says. After you have selected the varieties, the role of creativity comes in decorating the dish. You can give it a landscape or a village look. Interestingly, you can use colourful stones to give a vibrant look to the dish. You can also place, small toys to make it lively. 

For those who do not want to devote time to gardening yet wish to see greenery, can opt for miniature garden in wine glasses. They are easily available in the market these days. Even they have succulents inside them which hardly require any maintenance. Only a bit of light and water once a week is sufficient for their survival.