Help is at hand for those who want to bring a bit of greenery into their tiny apartment balconies in the city. Transgender women self-help group ‘Tiruchi Pasumai Pattru’ (TPP) is reaching out to aspiring and expert green thumbs by offering to establish terrace gardens from scratch in residential complexes.
The SHG, that functions from a stall at Poomalai Vaniga Valagam building on Bharatidasan Salai, recently set up a terrace garden for a customer in the Cantonment area, and is hopeful of offering the same service to everyone.
“We were requested by a homemaker to create a green space on her small balcony in her apartment; we were very encouraged to be accepted as part of society and treated on a par with other gardening professionals,” Kajol, the transwoman entrepreneur who heads TPP, told The Hindu .
All the members of the group have done a certificate course in organic farming methods at the ICAR-Krishi Vigyan Kendra (affiliated to the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University) at Siruganur.
To make the most of the limited space available on the balcony, Kajol and her colleague Pooja used grow bags rather than flowerpots filled with fortified planting soil. Rubberised tiles help to drain the excess water.
One terrace plot has been designed as a herb garden, with plants like ‘Omavalli’ (country borage), ‘Tulasi’ (holy basil) and ‘Rambha’ (Pandanus amaryllifolius), while the other, slightly bigger balcony will become a vegetable patch.
“Our planting mix contains bone meal, natural fertilisers and other nutritional supplements. A medium-sized grow bag with soil costs around ₹300,” said Ms. Kajol. “Most home gardens are ruined by over-watering. We are willing to maintain the terrace gardens for a separate fee.”
Grow bags are chosen according to the root length of the plant, said Ms. Kajol. “Tomatoes, chillies and brinjals can be grown in a medium bag; vegetables like snake gourd will need bigger sizes,” she said.
Shade nets are set up to protect the plants from climate exposure.
The success of the venture would depend on patronage, said Ms. Kajol. “We don’t have the premises to stockpile our raw materials, so at present, the group is functioning only per order. If we are able to maintain such garden plots in public buildings or parks, it would help us to inspire others in the transgender community to take this up professionally,” she said.
