Visakhapatnam: A terrace that offers plenty of choice for daily menu

Visakhapatnam: The drums are converted into pot holders. And so are the thick plastic bags, buckets, tubs and assorted containers.

The terrace garden of D Sridevi, a homemaker, at East Point Colony is a house to an array of organic veggies, herbs, leafy vegetables, fruits and many more.

Space is never a constraint for the homemaker as every nook and corner of her 1,250-sft terrace area has been utilised to the optimum extent.

From tomatoes to ivy gourds, bottle gourds to bitter gourds, rig gourds to ladies finger, lemongrass to radish, pineapples to mangoes, pomegranates to sweet-lime, grapes to dragon fruits, guavas to chickoo and cascades of betel leaf, coriander, mint, spinach and fenugreek leaves, Sridevi grows almost everything that she cooks.

"Even during the global pandemic, we had sufficient quantities of home-grown veggies and fruits that are not only healthy but also pesticide-free. The 'lockdown' meals were made with fresh produce. Apart from our family, there is always sufficient quantity to share with other families as well," elaborates Sridevi.

The turmeric rhizomes grown in her kitchen garden cater to her cooking needs for the entire year. "The rhizomes last longer when they are boiled, sun-dried, pounded and powdered. We get more than five kilos a year," says the homemaker, who spends a couple of hours a day with her greens.

Growing a terrace garden has multiple advantages. "One, the vegetable bills can be halved. Two, it is a healthier option. Three, the risk of consuming pesticide-laden produce is zero," says Sridevi.

Besides neem oil, the kitchen gardener uses a concoction of ginger, garlic and green chilli paste to guard her plants from the pest attack.

Amid concrete jungle, the patches of green at Sridevi's residence not only offer a visual treat but also a plenty of choice to pick up from for the daily menu.