Q. This is in reference to your article printed on January 21, 2024, about the role of egg shells in gardening. Can I put egg shells in water for a certain number of days and then put that water in the plant (containers)? It seems much easier than crushing the egg shells.

A. You do not necessarily need to crush the egg shells to an absolutely fine, powdered form. They can be roughly crushed with your palms or hammered with anything heavy inside a bag. These crushed egg shells can then be gently sprinkled over the soil surface in the containers or mixed with garden soil. The sprinkled egg shells then continue to provide for the calcium requirement of the plant through most of its life cycle.

If your plant’s need is urgent, you can try another method that gardeners use. They simply add vinegar to their egg shells. It helps to quicken the process of calcium separation from the egg shells. The resulting paste can be added to the containers before watering or mixed with water as a solution for watering. By following these processes, calcium becomes readily available for the soil and ultimately for plant absorption and growth.

Q. I have grown a desi tomato plant variety at home and am looking after it well. I am watering regularly and providing the plant with different fertilisers, required at different stages of its growth. It started flowering and later fruiting this season. There is an issue, though. The tomatoes have been there on the plant for a long time now, but are still green, and not turning yellow or red at all. Please suggest what needs to be done more. I am from Hyderabad.

A. At this time, the only issue I can think of is temperature, which can be a crucial factor. Higher temperature stops tomatoes on the plant from ripening and changing colours from green to yellow, orange or red. The best temperature range for tomatoes ripening on the plant is usually 20 to 25 degrees Celsius. Once the temperature exceeds 30 degrees Celsius, the pigments, namely lycopene and carotene, are inhibited. These pigments provide the mature, green tomatoes with the orange and red colours. Higher temperature, therefore, increases the duration of the green tomatoes on the plant without changing their colours. We will be carrying a few articles on how different varieties of tomatoes can be easily grown at home. Keep reading and happy gardening.

All your gardening queries answered here

Q. My night blooming jasmine (raat ki rani) plant is not bearing leaves. What do you advise? I’ve attached a photograph for your reference.

A. Judging by the photograph, your plant seems to be dead. The next time you grow a night blooming jasmine plant, keep in consideration these following basic points. Ensure your plant is exposed to daily direct sunlight from morning to noon, which is around six hours. The plant requires generous watering, daily. However, it should be ensured that the soil is well-drained and the container does not retain any water on the surface. Soil should be boosted every month with the application of NPK fertiliser.

Q. One of the trees in my backyard died recently. I was wondering if I can grow a fruit tree in its place. My gardener says that when a tree dies, one should not grow another tree on the same spot. Instead, there should be a distance of at least four to five steps on either side, roughly three feet. I don’t have too much uncovered space available near that spot. Please advise. If it is not possible, I might convert the space for composting, otherwise my father is likely to cement it up.

A. There are three points that you forgot to mention in your query: which city you live in, the type of tree that died, and, most importantly, the cause of its death. Your city would give me a better understanding of the climate and temperature the trees are being exposed to and also the fertility of the local soil. As for the second point, roots of some tree grow vertically below while roots of others spread horizontally. Regardless of the type, you may need to clear the soil beneath any dead roots as well. Finally, the cause of the tree’s death is the most crucial. I am assuming that it was not killed in the first place and died due to natural causes. There can be a number of diseases and critters that can cause a tree death and sometimes lack of nutrition or addition of inorganic substance as well. These issues manifest with different signs and symptoms before you can arrive onto the diagnosis. If all of the above mentioned have been taken care of, then there is no issue in growing another tree at the same spot.

Please send your queries and emails to doctree101@hotmail.com. The writer is a physician and a host for the YouTube channel ‘DocTree Gardening’ promoting organic kitchen gardening

Published in Dawn, EOS, February 25th, 2024