I should have known that it wouldn't be possible to give up gardening for a whole year while I was abroad in Pakistan. I need plants in my life, I need the quiet peace and satisfaction that come from having your hands in the dirt, from watering and weeding, from being in the fresh air. So, it's time for Lahore Balcony Jungle!
The idea occurred to me last week as Amjad, the driver, was taking me home from somewhere and we drove past a nursery...I saw the little plants and thought hey, why not. The terrace at the house is vast and empty, with only a sad laminate table and a few chairs breaking up the barren expanse of gray faux terrazzo. I went and picked out a little asparagus fern and a crown of thorn euphorbia. Lovely! But when I brought them home I noticed two problems. First, the plants were so small that they made the terrace almost more depressing by contrast. Second, they clearly needed repotting.
A few days went by, and I toyed with the idea of expanding my garden, but was torn. Did I want to invest time and money into something that I'm probably going to leave by the end of summer? Shouldn't I try to focus on my research? As I was driving from Government College to meet someone at Geo TV I saw a tiny store tucked behind a little white mosque: "Sunny View Seed Store." I took it as a sign and told Amjad to remember the place.
After my meeting we went back and I spoke with the proprietor, who hooked me up with seeds for squash (I meant to buy pumpkin, but oh well...), bitter melon, and cucumber, as well as a zinnia/dahlia seed mix. Hooray! I was in business. He recommended I get some cowdung for fertilizer.
The next day, I had Amjad take me to the big nursery in Defence. He had jokingly offered to just steal some pots for me but I declined, pointing out that the vegetables might not grow well in stolen pots. I talked with the nursery guy, explained what I wanted, and eventually ended up with six large pots (gamle) and two small pots (pyale 'cup'-style pots) filled with a dirt/cowdung mixture. They were loaded carefully in the trunk of the car and we drove home at a snail's pace, trying to stop them from spilling or breaking. Only one tipped over, and fortunately none of them broke.
I should have known that I would not be allowed to carry the pots upstairs myself. When I tried to lift one of them I was firmly stopped by Amjad and Mushtaq, who insisted on carrying them up to the terrace for me. At one point they even asked if I wanted to arrange for the gardener, who comes twice weekly, to take care of the watering for me. I declined.
So now I have ten pots, and have planted seeds in them and watered them. The soil seemed to have a lot of clay, and not great drainage, so I'm not sure how well this will work out. I've never worked with soil like this. Anyway, I have two of each of the cucurbits in the sunniest corner next to a trellis they can climb, and I repotted my euphorbia and asparagus fern into the cup-style pots. Into the small pots that were left I put dirt and some flower seeds.
Now, we wait.
Small pots
Big pots
Sunny end of the terrace
Looking back at the shady end of the terrace (with my clothes drying there)
The idea occurred to me last week as Amjad, the driver, was taking me home from somewhere and we drove past a nursery...I saw the little plants and thought hey, why not. The terrace at the house is vast and empty, with only a sad laminate table and a few chairs breaking up the barren expanse of gray faux terrazzo. I went and picked out a little asparagus fern and a crown of thorn euphorbia. Lovely! But when I brought them home I noticed two problems. First, the plants were so small that they made the terrace almost more depressing by contrast. Second, they clearly needed repotting.
A few days went by, and I toyed with the idea of expanding my garden, but was torn. Did I want to invest time and money into something that I'm probably going to leave by the end of summer? Shouldn't I try to focus on my research? As I was driving from Government College to meet someone at Geo TV I saw a tiny store tucked behind a little white mosque: "Sunny View Seed Store." I took it as a sign and told Amjad to remember the place.
After my meeting we went back and I spoke with the proprietor, who hooked me up with seeds for squash (I meant to buy pumpkin, but oh well...), bitter melon, and cucumber, as well as a zinnia/dahlia seed mix. Hooray! I was in business. He recommended I get some cowdung for fertilizer.
The next day, I had Amjad take me to the big nursery in Defence. He had jokingly offered to just steal some pots for me but I declined, pointing out that the vegetables might not grow well in stolen pots. I talked with the nursery guy, explained what I wanted, and eventually ended up with six large pots (gamle) and two small pots (pyale 'cup'-style pots) filled with a dirt/cowdung mixture. They were loaded carefully in the trunk of the car and we drove home at a snail's pace, trying to stop them from spilling or breaking. Only one tipped over, and fortunately none of them broke.
I should have known that I would not be allowed to carry the pots upstairs myself. When I tried to lift one of them I was firmly stopped by Amjad and Mushtaq, who insisted on carrying them up to the terrace for me. At one point they even asked if I wanted to arrange for the gardener, who comes twice weekly, to take care of the watering for me. I declined.
So now I have ten pots, and have planted seeds in them and watered them. The soil seemed to have a lot of clay, and not great drainage, so I'm not sure how well this will work out. I've never worked with soil like this. Anyway, I have two of each of the cucurbits in the sunniest corner next to a trellis they can climb, and I repotted my euphorbia and asparagus fern into the cup-style pots. Into the small pots that were left I put dirt and some flower seeds.
Now, we wait.
Small pots
Big pots
Sunny end of the terrace
Looking back at the shady end of the terrace (with my clothes drying there)
No comments:
Post a Comment