GARDENING: GROW FOOD INSTEAD OF GRASS
Q. I have been unsuccessfully trying to grow grass in a garden area that receives just three to four hours of sunlight per day. Can you suggest a type of grass for these conditions? A column on grass types and lawn maintenance in Karachi would be appreciated.
A. Grass needs at least six to eight hours of direct sunshine for a lawn to be successful. It also needs huge quantities of increasingly-precious water — along with a disproportional amount of labour and other inputs — for it to survive. In my opinion, lawns have absolutely no place in a water-stressed society in which countless people queue for hours, irrespective of weather conditions, to get a mere bucketful of this life-sustaining liquid. This is not to say that gardens shouldn’t exist because along with more trees, they are desperately needed in the battle against climate change, but please use water to grow food and not purely ornamental grass.
Q. I have grown bottle gourd in Defence, Karachi. The vine faces south-east and gets the morning sun. The soil and fertiliser are good. The vine is watered by a drip from the neighbours airconditioner. It flowers profusely but the fruit turns black and withers away. Some leaves are also withering and have brown patches. What can the problem be?
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A. Taking full advantage of the neighbours’ otherwise wasted AC water is a great initiative but, unfortunately, it is also the source of the plant’s problems. At this time of the year, the AC is, presumably, in use almost throughout the day so dripping water all the time on to the plant may be fine during the hours of darkness but can be lethal during daytime as direct sun on wet leaves results in damage/leaf-burn. The plant, thus weakened, is protesting by shedding its fruit. Place a large container to catch the AC drips and use the accumulated water to irrigate the plant each evening when the sun is going down.
Q. Please can you name some drought-resistant trees and plants that I can grow?
A. It would help if you provided your location as different plant species are suitable for different areas of our climatically diverse country. Generally speaking though, cacti and succulents — of which there are many different ones with varying growth habits and in many sizes — are largely resistant to drought once established. The same applies to species such as Acacia dealbata (Mimosa tree), Cercis siliquastrum (Judas tree), Ginkgo biloba tree, Fan palms and Bauhinia (kachnaar). General drought-resistant plants include: Jasminium shrubs/climbers, Passiflora (passion flower) vine, Osteospermum daisies, Amaranthus, Arcotis, Verbena, Mirabalis jalapa (four o’clock flower), Mesembryanthemum and Portulaca. Seedlings of drought-resistant species do need regular watering until established. For trees, this can take up to three years.