Q. I am a Karachi-based architect and need some assistance regarding plants that are low maintenance and need little water, for a project that aims to be sustainable in every manner. Indigenous plants are preferred.

A. You can easily find succulents in a wide range of drought-tolerant, both sun and shade-loving varieties in the nurseries here. There are succulents for every situation as in creepers, climbers, trailing varieties, miniature, medium height, and tall ones. As well as having interesting leaf forms in a surprising variety of colours, many succulents bear stunning flowers too.

Q. Which perennial plants should I use to create a beautiful garden in front of my house in Lahore? I would also like to know the names of some fast-growing and shady trees.

A. Some perennial shrubs to consider are roses, hibiscus, barleria, crossandra, russelia, buddleia, hamelia, jasmine, motia, jatropha, lantana and frangipani. Perennial flowers include gerbera, sweet violets, carnations, hollyhocks, daylilies, dahlias, chrysanthemums, rudbekia, gaillardia, osteospermums, and many others. There are also many bulbs and corms to meet your requirements, with lilies and amaryllis being amongst the easiest to grow. Fast-growing shade trees for your location include flame of the forest, jacaranda, gul mohur, ashoka, and neem. Some of these trees may be slow to begin growing, but they can grow at a surprisingly fast rate too.

All your gardening queries answered here

Q. I have grown annual poppies for the very first time and was delighted with the colourful result. They have become infested with tiny black and green flies on their stems, and the poppies are now so weak that their heads are drooping, and I am afraid that they will die. How can I eradicate the flies?

A. Your poppies have been attacked by aphids, in this case blackfly and greenfly. Control is easy. Mix one litre of warm water and one dessert spoon of liquid soap in a sprayer, and spray the poppies, making sure to spray underneath the leaves as well as on top. Spray in the evening just before sunset. Repeat each evening until all signs of the pests disappear. Most poppies naturally hang their heads when in bloom.

Q. Last summer, I purchased a pomegranate sapling, and planted it outside my academy, in Larkana. I watered it on alternate days, during winter, but it has stopped growing and the buds have dried up. What can be done to revive the plant?

A. It sounds like the plant has died. I seem to recall that you have submitted questions quite a few times now and, each time, it involves the same area of land and your plants die. I seriously suggest that, before trying to grow anything else, you improve soil conditions, perhaps even totally replace the soil with new sweet earth mixed with fully rotted-down animal manure.

Q. I recently shifted to Bahawalpur and have no idea about what flowering plants, herbs, and succulents to grow in my small garden. Can you help? Please suggest some indoor plants too.

A. You can grow exactly the same range of plants as you would elsewhere throughout the plains of the country. Your local nurseries will have an extensive stock from which you can select. The same goes for indoor plants.

Q. I am currently looking for blueberry plants, but have been unable to source them. Could you advise as to which nurseries they are available in?

A. You have, unfortunately, omitted to mention your location so I cannot provide localised advice. The best I can do is to suggest that you search the internet for suppliers in Pakistan. Check if there is one close to you or if plants can be sent to you somehow.

Q. Where can I find asparagus plants?

A. Please refer to the above reply. Additionally, if you fail to find asparagus plants, and if you reside in an area that is climatically suitable for them, they are easy to grow from seed. Seed, from Pakistani suppliers, can be found through the internet.

Q. An open sewage drain runs next to my factory in Lahore. What kind of plantation can be done on its banks?

A. This depends on how heavily polluted the drain is, and also on what it is polluted with. If the drain contains only sewage, then there is a wide range of indigenous trees and shrubs which may do reasonably well, and your local nurseries should have a varied selection in stock. If the drain contains industrial effluent, be this legally or illegally discharged, even the hardiest of indigenous species may refuse to grow.

Please continue sending your gardening queries to zahrahnasir@hotmail.com. Remember to include your location. The writer does not respond directly by email. Emails with attachments will not be opened

Published in Dawn, EOS, March 13th, 2022