Soil Tilling - Benefits

This is a blog post about the benefits of regular tilling and turning over of the soil to maintain healthy houseplants.

In order to get sufficient nutrition from the soil, the roots need to penetrate deeper. This can only happen when the soil is turned free and loose.

This facilitates water and fertilizer absorption in roots.

Moreover, the roots can breathe easily in loose soil because tilling adds oxygen in it.

Useful microbes also grow well in such oxygen-rich soil.

Regular tilling also prevents building up of compacted soil and clay lumps which can choke even the most sturdy of houseplants.

Soil clumps and compact soil prevent nutrients and water absorption

So every time you want to put fertilizer in your potted plants, first till the soil.

You can use a small hand trowel or a garden tiller for this purpose. 

I simply use a screwdriver (mostly because I have been lazy in ordering the proper gardening tools and I use whatever I find convenient).

Do not forget to clean the tool thoroughly with alcohol cotton swab (to avoid infection in plant/soil) before and after tilling.

In potted plants, the roots can be quite near the surface, so please be gentle when using the tool. 

Try not to rush it or one might cut or injure the roots. Remove all the weeds and stones and break the hard soil clumps for healthy plans in your pot.

Happy Tilling! 

Agony

You get hurt badly, but don't know how to do basic first aid. You have seen everyone ignore cuts and bruises like these, so you ignore it too, thinking it would heal on its own.

Maybe if you ignore it, or distract yourself, it will go away on its own.

But it doesn't. Instead, it becomes worse, it gets infected. The pain becomes intense.

You take courage to tell your friends or close ones that it is hurting a lot, but they tell you to be positive. Have courage, it will be fine, just keep yourself busy. They tell you - maybe you think about the pain too much just because you have nothing interesting in your life.

So you try to keep yourself even more busy. Even when the constant pain makes you feel weak and low in energy, you try to stay optimistic. You cant sleep due to the pain, but you force yourself to carry on.
You think that's how every brave person handles their pain, and you are a fighter too.

So instead of getting medical help, you carry on, you ignore the pain, you 'just keep swimming' like Dory.

But soon no matter what you do, the wound and its torment is getting worse. Your appetite, sleep, mood, libido, concentration, everything is shadowed by it.

Everyday, you try to get up to carry on with your routine - some days you can, while other days you can't even get out of the bed.

Everyone asks you why aren't you regular at school/college/office/parties etc anymore.
When you try to communicate the intensity of your pain, they again tell you to be strong.
You feel the sarcasm in their tone and you feel humiliated since can't be strong enough.

And yet,  you tell yourself I will be fine one day.

But eventually it doesn't become fine.
It comes to a point where you are absolutely debilitated from the pain.

You are profusely bleeding from the wound, which has now turned into a deep gash in your heart.

Soon, you see blood everywhere around you.

You are sick with gut-wrenching pain, you aren't able to move, you can't breathe.

You start weeping in sheer agony.

You panic because you don't know why this is even happening to you.

You wonder if you will get better again.

First you are crying in silence because you know they won't understand even if you share with them.

But you can't bear the pain, so you cry for help. You implore somebody to help you, to at least help you to get up.

Your friends, your family, if and when they look at you - they see you sitting on floor in pain, but they do not see the blood. They do not notice the deep gash.

Some ignore you, others try to help you by telling you - get up, you can do it, don't be a baby, it isn't that difficult. We have been telling you for so long, why are you so sensitive?
Everyone has a life which is full of problems. You just have to learn to look at the bright side, look at the big picture.
We also got up when we bumped ourselves, we also got up on our own when we fell down, and so can you!

You try to tell them that you can't get up, even though you are trying your best.

They pity you since you can't get up on your own.

You are sick with the sight of blood and the excruciating pain isn't allowing you to even move.
But they keep trying to motivate you to push yourself more.

You feel guilt, you try more and more to ignore the wound and the bloody mess which you are in, so that you can prove to your loved ones that you aren't weak.

But the bleeding has taken a toll on your senses, it clouds your vision, it makes you fumble and you realize you can't move at all.

Eventually, you give up. And the ugly lies of Depression take over:
You feel like a failure, you think you deserve to die because nobody understands you, nobody can help you.
You are a burden on everyone, you cant do what everyone else can do - you are a disgrace to your parents and those who love you.
Nobody even knows how to help you since they have no clue what you are going through.
Everybody will be better off without you. Nobody deserves to be around so much negativity and it is best to end your life.

You feel alone.

Now you don't even feel the pain just a dull ache in your heart.

You feel numb with hopelessness and loneliness.

You decide you will just stab your wound to make a quick kill. 

To save yourself from further pointless suffering.
Just like you would put down a suffering dog from his misery.

Nobody can help you.

Nobody knows how to.

Fuck! Nobody even knows how much you bled.

They might never see the blood even after you die.

They will judge you even after you are dead.
Oh! She was so rich, so talented, so popular, so good-looking, so loved by her family/friends! Why did she have to kill herself!! Couldn't even recover from a minor setback, and we thought she was stronger than that.
What a waste. She should have at least thought about her parents/children!! How will they bear such a terrible loss!

But the true extent of your pain, the real nature of your wound, the amount of blood you lost, the way you felt helpless in trying to get help - will remain invisible to them.

-----

This is what describes a mental illness and how it leads to suicide.

-----

Too many people go through this, if not worse, when they suffer from a mental illness.

The guilt, the loneliness, the hopelessness, the intense psychological trauma, the humiliation they go through! You won't even wish it for your enemies if only you knew how they suffer mentally.

The invisible illness is taking its toll on too many bright, talented and strong people.

Depression is a disorder/disease - not a decision

We need first aid and emergency treatment training for mental health too. There is simply no time to lose.

I implore all my fellow psychology students to spread the word, and I request my friends to read up about common mental health diseases such as Depression, Anxiety, OCD among others.

If anyone wishes to learn about the biological aspect of Depression, I would recommend this lecture which  explains the way changes in the brain of a Depression patient effects his/her sleep pattern, energy levels, mood, libido, and appetite, thus making even the daily mundane tasks difficult to complete.

This lecture was given by Dr. Robert Sapolsky, the renowned neuro-endocrinologist and author who is currently a professor of biology, neurosurgery, neurology and neurological sciences at Stanford University.

Link of the lecture:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NOAgplgTxfc

Time to talk about Depression

Yet another man becomes the victim of Depression. Yet another precious life lost!

Yet another coverage blunder from the media.

It is pathetic to see media talking about late Sushant Singh Rajput's successful career, how much money/fame he earned etc. as if they understand nothing about Depression and mental health issues.

There are too many misconceptions about Depression in our society.

Just because someone is successful, rich, famous DOES NOT mean s/he is immune to mental health issues.


Depression is a not an illness which only effects a person when s/he is facing major issues in life, it occurs due to complex interplay of genetic, biological and environmental factors.

While it is true that adversity, financial losses, relationship issues etc. might trigger the onset of Depression but inherent natural tendencies, mental conditioning, biological factors too play a part in the severity of this illness.

A depressed individual needs a holistic treatment plan - therapy/counseling, dietary changes, support and love among other things.


To simply say why don't you look at the bright side, why don't you think about the positive in your life, is like saying to an asthmatic person - hey why can't you breathe, there is so much air! Or to expect a person with fractured leg to walk.


This illness is invisible but as real as any other fatal/life-threatening disease.
We don't expect a cancer patient to recover from sheer motivation! Same is true for mental health issues.


How many more more lives will be lost before we as a society will begin this conversation?


The blog I wrote when CCD founder V.G. Siddharth passed away, still seems relevant!
So heart breaking. 💔

http://sharmaswati666.blogspot.com/2019/07/modern-story-of-shiddhartha.html?m=1

Green Thumb or just good sense?

In this blog post, I am sharing my experiences of taking care of houseplants over last couple of years. I started with about a dozen houseplants and now I have over 100 houseplants in my 2000 sq ft flat.

I have come a long way in terms of learning how to take care of various houseplants and since some of my friends and close family members asked me about the issues with their houseplants (wilting, not growing fast enough, brown leaves etc.), I have decided to write this blog.

The information provided in this blog has been gathered by me from various local gardeners, houseplant owners and horticulturists.

So without further adieu let me begin with the top five common mistakes which I had made initially, and which typically happen with other houseplant owners too:

1. Over-watering 

This is by far the most typical error when it comes to houseplants. Based on what we have seen in gardens, we tend to think that houseplants too need water daily. But the truth is that potted plants cannot absorb the extra water and their roots begin to rot slowly, resulting in killing the plants. Typical water clogging signs that  your plant shows are brown tips, lighter shade of leaves, drooping leaves and ultimately, complete wilting.

We need to water potted plants when the soil feels dry. Before watering the plant, check the soil with the finger, if the soil seems cool or moist, you need to wait before watering it again. 

Typically succulents like Aloe Vera and cactus need less water whereas tropical plants like Arrowhead and Pothos (money-plant) need more frequent watering. 

This pic demonstrates the signs and effects of over-watering and under-watering:

During Indian summer months, some houseplants can need water daily but do not flood the pot, preferably use a watering can or a small cup to water.

If you want to learn more about how to check the soil and whether it is ready for watering or not, please watch this video by a horticulturist who has been taking care of indoor potted plants for over 30 years:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBBh0RPPqu0&list=LLaojSoypq6ygSNzP4e4q2PQ&index=30&t=0s

2. High salinity in water 

Another common error which houseplant owners make is that they use tap water for watering the plants. The high salt content in the water gets deposited in the soil over a period of time and most plants cannot grow well in such high saline conditions. 

They begin to show signs of salt stress such as brown tips or spots on the leaves, as shown in the picture below:

In my personal experience using filtered drinking water from RO or Aquaguard has worked quite well.  

3. Wrong light 

Horticulturists have divided the houseplants into 3 categories based on the kind of light/shade they need - bright, medium and low light plants. 

Bright light area is considered that part of the house where the light is good enough to read. Medium light areas are the ones where we can read but not without straining the eyes, Lastly, low light area is that part of the house where it is extremely difficult to read (for example bathrooms). It stands to reason that bright light areas are suitable for bright light plants and so on and so forth.

Therefore, when buying plants, do a background research about the light requirement of the plant and keep it at a spot where it can thrive under the appropriate light. 

For example, Pothos (money plant) and snake plant can thrive in low to medium light whereas Areca Palm and Song of India plant need bright light to thrive.

The plants which have been exposed to wrong light begin to show signs as a cry of help. Scorched or burnt (brown) leaf tips is the most common sign of a plant being kept in too bright light/direct sunlight. Conversely, some plants' variegated leaves (green, golden, white) may turn completely green as they need more chlorophyll to compensate the less light. Therefore if you notice your Golden Pothos' leaves loosing their variegation, it means it needs to be kept in a brighter spot.

The following picture shows the leaves loosing their variegation:

4. Not removing dead leaves

When we let the dead leaves fall in the pot soil thinking that it will ultimately end up being used by the plant, we give invitation to infection. The dead leaves rot in the soil and the frequent watering gives the fungus and various bacteria a chance to make it a host and consequently it effects the plant root and branches. 

To avert this vicious cycle, it is necessary to remove all the dead/fallen leaves from the pot.
Following two pictures demonstrate the signs which the leaves might show if the plants has a fungal or bacterial infection:

5. Fertilizer 

Providing too much or too less fertilizer to a plant also results in plant issues, ultimately causing dead plants. When we use too much fertilizer, the plant cannot absorb water as well as they can, and begin to have brown tips, yellowing of leaves, wilting and stunted growth. 

Each plant has it's own requirement for fertilizers, hence it is best to check about the same with the gardener at the nursery from where you are buying your plants. There is also a season when some plants need more fertilizer, specially the flowering plants or kitchen garden plants. 

Following are two examples of fertilizer burn on the leaves:

Thus, while we need to understand that the potted plants/houseplants need extra care than the plants in the garden/earth, but that extra care does not necessarily mean watering daily, it means getting in tune with the specific light/water requirement of that particular plant. 

So the next time you go to buy a plant, do a little research regarding what kind of soil, watering, fertilizer is best suited for that plant.

It is more about common sense and right information than having the proverbial green thumb when it comes to nurturing the houseplants. It might take a bit of getting used to, but let me assure you, it will be completely worth the time and effort you will invest.

As the famous historian Jenny Uglow had said, 

"We may think we are nurturing our garden, but of course, it's our garden that is really nurturing us."

Every new leaf, every new bud - brings great satisfaction and delight to one's heart. 

I will end this blog post by sharing some of the pictures of my houseplants for you to feast your eyes! 

Happy gardening :)

Areca Palm

Areca Palm and Spider Plant

Pothos (Moneyplant)

Arrowhead Plant

Aloe Vera

Lemongrass