For over a month now, visitors to the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital in Park Town are greeted by hanging rows of used plastic bottles with flowering plants. Each row of these plastic bottles issupported by a bamboo pole. The initiative is part of an exercise by hospital authorities to promote vertical gardening. The decision to go vertical with the garden was taken to make optimal use of the limited space on the premises of the hospital.
The move is primarily aimed at upcycling the accumulated plastic waste at the hospital, most plastic water bottles, in a manner that would send out a strong enironmental message.
On an average, around 80kg of plastic waste is generated at the hospital every day. Besides food waste, the plastic waste is being collected by the civic body on a daily basis. The generation of biomedical waste at the hospital stands at a whopping 14,500 kg every month. In the State, biomedical waste is being handled by the Tamil Nadu Waste Management Limited for more than a decade. “Apart from planting saplings that grow into big trees, we also wanted to make use of the small space on the hospital premises to grow small plants mainly flowering ones to increase the greenery,” says a hospital source.
Flowering plants, which include Marigold, money-plant, rose plant and tulsi are among the 100 small plants that have been planted mainly in small old pots and used plastic bottles. A few medicinal and bonsai plants also form part of the hanging collection of saplings. Most of these flowering plants are colourful and have improved aesthetics at the hospital. Between them, six rows of “green plastic bottles” cover a surface of 15ft. They are supported by bamboo poles.
Regular watering of these plants is carried out by the hospital staff. Advantages of the vertical garden include better utilisation of limited space; easy maintenance; cost-effectiveness and greater asthetic appeal.
At present, a few MRTS railway stations and the airport have such vertical gardens on their premises. “The vertical gardening at the hospital is being done on a pilot basis. It’s success depends largely on periodic maintenance,” says the hospital source.
