Veggie prices going through the roof is no worry for her

Manmeet Singh Gill

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, November 16

Living in the city, Kulwinder Kaur (60), always missed the fresh and ‘straight-out-of-her garden’ veggies of her village. To help her tide over the blues, her son set up a vegetable garden on the terrace.

Presently, Kulwinder Kaur grows carrot, radish, coriander, green chilly, tomato, cauliflower, brinjal, methi, different kinds of gourds and many other seasonal vegetables. “Not only are we able to get fresh vegetables but it also keeps me occupied in my free time,” she said.

Her son, Jagmeet Singh, an MSc in soil and water conservation and presently employed as an agriculture sub-inspector at Kapurthala, had designed the terrace garden keeping in view his mother’s interest.

“In cities, most people do not have sufficient space to grow plants and vegetables. A terrace garden is a viable alternative for such people,” said Jagmeet. The space for growing vegetables has been created by constructing a concrete slab alongside the length of the roof. Kulwinder said initially, they had constructed only one slab to which additions have now been made. With people always worried about the indiscriminate use of pesticides on vegetables, Kulwinder boasts of growing them naturally.

“To keep insects and pests away, a spray of ‘neem’ water (neem leaves boiled in water) once a week is sufficient. In place of fertilizers, we use spray of cow dung cake by dissolved in water,” she revealed. Talking to The Tribune over the phone, Jagpreet said growing vegetables directly on the roof by putting soil should be avoided as it causes dampness. “The concrete slab should be at least one-feet high from the roof. It also needs to have pores at the base so that excess water seeps down,” he said, adding that the side walls of the slab could be as high as two feet.

Jagmeet added that more height of the structure means more soil which is essential for growing vegetables, including carrot, radish and potato.