The staircase leading to her home is lined with greens of different shades and shapes. Indoor plants are the crowning glory inside her apartment too and she loves them so much that subconsciously, has even done up her living room predominantly in green. Jayanti Das employs no gardener and prefers to tend to her plants herself, finding in them both solace and joy.
When I moved into this house in 1992, there was no question of whether or not to grow plants. I’ve been brought up in Darjeeling, amidst greenery and natural beauty, and to me plants were as obvious as furniture.
One of my favourite plants is Erica Palm, of which I have a pot next to my living room window for five or six months now. If the leaves start looking dry, I send it to the terrace to get some sun. The Monstera, with unusual holes in its leaves, is another favourite.
I also have Song of India, Snake plant, Jade plant... Somehow the latter does not thrive indoors so I keep it on the terrace. I have many other leafy plants whose names I do not know but among flowers there are Bougainvillaea, Miliis and Lilies — lots of white, pink and orange Lilies.
The Hibiscus plant produces huge flowers in red and orange but somehow they hadn’t bloomed on Kali puja. So we had to buy red Hibiscuses and offer the goddess last week.
Actually many plants have suffered this year due to the heavy and persistent rains. I’m trying all I can to salvage them.
Lantanas are quite hardy and grow easily and I’ve picked some from the streetside and potted on my terrace. I sometimes cut open my Aloe Vera leaves and apply the juice on my hair and skin too.
It’s not that I don’t like seasonal flowers. They are so pretty! But then they don’t last. Compared to them, leafy plants are at their best round the year. And they require less attention.
We have some Chillies and Lemons but I can’t bear sour food and my husband has to eat all of them. I tried growing Brinjals too but they weren’t much of a success.
I turn to plants to keep busy and I turn to them when I feel low. They never fail to cheer me up. In fact, I feel that anyone who starts gardening is bound to fall in love with it.
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