July 06, 2006

 Zahrah Nasir advises the readers on growing easy to manage, low-maintenance plants

Q: I live on the first floor of a house in Karachi. I am interested in having a few easy to care for house plants but I’m afraid I don’t have truly green fingers. My home allows for lots of sun and breeze in nearly every room. What type of plants should I grow?

A: Your home sounds to be the perfect place for plants as long as you keep the delicate ones out of the direct breeze as this may adversely affect their tender leaves.

The easiest and hardiest plants to try include: asparagus ferns, chlorophytum which is commonly known as spider plant, coleus, diffenbachia (be warned please the sap is poisonous) sometimes called dumb cane, dracaena, peperomia, sanseveria or mother-in-law’s tongue, money plants, tradescantia and zebrina, both of which are known as wandering Jew. The first has greeny leaves with either yellow or white stripes, the second leaves of a purple hue.

All of these can thrive as long as the compost is not allowed to totally dry out at any time. Each variety will need different amounts of water and they will not need watering everyday. Some are trailers suitable for hanging baskets and others are upright plants.

A little more tender, needing to be located out of direct breeze and which also prefer indirect sunlight are ferns, of all types, such as alocasia or elephant’s ears, caladium which has gorgeous leaves, ficus elastica or rubber plant, marantha, monstera deliciosa or swiss cheese plant and crotons. Of course there are also flowering plants, many of them seasonal, such as cineraria, calendula, carnations, petunias, pansies etc which should thrive in a sunny location during the appropriate season.

Q: I have recently started growing pot plants as a hobby and want to succeed with this. We live in Karachi and are often short of water so have to use saltish water from a tube well. Is it okay to water my plants with this water? Also, is it true that if we mix pulled up weeds and leaves with the soil then it will be good for the plants. Finally, where can I purchase a mother-in-law’s tongue from?

A: A majority of pot plants will not tolerate saltish water for any period of time. I suggest that you stick to growing varieties of cacti and succulents which survive such water and which also do not need watering very often at all. In fact too much water kills them.

Weeds and leaves should be totally dried out before adding them to the soil, only then will they further rot down to feed your plants. If they are still green when dug in they will heat up before decomposing and may harm the plants in the process.

Sanseveria, commonly known as mother-in-law’s tongue can be purchased from most nurseries.

Q: Please guide us on how to create gardens in flats where sunlight is limited along with space.

I would also like to know the Urdu names for rosemary and thyme and where to obtain these plants in Karachi?

A: May I suggest that you read the answers to the above two questions as you should find some guidance there.

I’m afraid that I do not know of an Urdu name for rosemary. Many recently introduced herbs and other plants do not have an Urdu name. Nurseries which I have visited simply call these plants by either their botanical or English names. In respect of thyme, botanically classified as thymus, the Pashtu name is ‘sperkai’ but whether the same name is applicable in Urdu I do not know.

Q: I live in Karachi and have some 30-40 rose plants in clay pots. Some are doing well and some are not. I follow the instructions from nursery owners but still do not know if I am doing things correctly. Please tell me about rose care, feeding plan and the prevention of diseases according to our climate.

A: You have not mentioned either the size of the clay pots or the age of your rose plants. If your plants are mature they will need to be in deep pots with at least 16 inches diametre, although preferably pots over 20 inches in diametre would be best.

The soil/compost in the pots should be changed on an annual basis as the plants will have used up all of the available nutrients and will not flourish without new soil. Many people seem to be of the opinion that soil in pots lasts forever; this is not the case irrespective of the type of plant being cultivated.

Roses like well drained growing conditions so ensure that the pots drain freely. You may need to raise them on bricks or something else suitable in order to achieve this. Pots standing directly on concrete for example do not drain well as a rule. Soil should be a healthy mixture of sweet earth/organic compost and well rotted organic manure. You should re-pot your roses after pruning them hard back at the on-set of the hot summer weather.

In Karachi, you should not allow the centre of your rose bushes to become congested with growth as this prevents air circulation and causes numerous diseases including mildew. Any damaged or infected stems and leaves should be removed regularly using a very sharp pair of secateurs so as not to further damage the plant. Damaged and diseased material should be disposed of in a proper manner well away from your garden in order to avoid any build up of disease. Burning it is the best method but this is not always possible in a city locality.

If you adhere to this short guide, plus deadhead your roses when flowers finish, then I would hope that you will be happy with the outcome.

Q: I want to know all about black roses and where to purchase them in Karachi.

A: As far as I am aware black coloured roses, which are not black but either dark purple or very deep crimson, have not yet been introduced in Pakistan on a commercial basis.

Q: I have a backyard in my house in Islamabad measuring almost 800 square yards. I grow normal vegetables, lemongrass, mint, basil, loquat but I want to have more varieties of fruit. Can you suggest something else, preferably unusual?

A: You may like to try growing quinces (they do very well in Abbottabad), kumquats (these thrive in Islamabad and plants are available from specialist nurseries in that area) and maybe you can search for seeds of kiwi fruit as these are successfully grown in the Mardan area and should do well in your own locality. n

* Readers, please note, that I cannot provide you with precise information concerning the names and locations of nurseries and gardening shops. I suggest that you look in the ‘Gardening’ section of the Dawn Advertiser for assistance.

Send your gardening queries to zahrahnasir@hotmail.com. Answers to selected questions will appear in a future issue of ‘The Review’.

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