My Vegetables/Herbs Garden

I consider myself lucky to be raised in a family where blooming of flower or vegetable is considered an occasion. I have fond memories from childhood seeing my parents always talking about how to mend and care our garden. We have always had flowers in front and side of the house and different kinds of vegetables in back as long as I can remember. Mom would always offer flowers to God every morning from our garden. We had luxury to have home grown vegetables almost all winter.

So when I got married and came to US, I have always wanted to continue this tradition. Unfortunately, I did not have an apartment so far with outdoor space. Hence when we moved to this new place last winter, I was eagerly waiting for summer. (Though my parents are quite pro, I myself had never done any job.) I shared this idea of having few plants with my husband. He did not sound as enthu as I was but he left everything up to me.Finally one fine evening I went to Home Depot, picked few vegetables which I will be using frequently. I was quite disappointed to find that all of them require direct sunlight at least 6 hours a day since direction of my balcony does not support it. I read tutorials online and watched videos and yes, kept my fingers crossed.

It has been couple of months now and all of them are fully grown. This year I have only 4 of them but next year I intend to have more, thinking to add parsley, jalapeno and oregano. And yes, I am indeed happy and satisfied.

Sweet Cherry Tomato

Sweet Green Pepper

Basil (I use fresh ones during summer and dried leaves during winter, I use it in pasta/pizza sauce and salads)

Mint (This has been my favorite. It hardly requires any care and I use it almost everyday in Raita, Chutney, Tea and Salads)