December 2016 - Terrace Gardening the Organic Way

Amrut Jal for Plants – Preparation and Usage

In an earlier post I wrote about how to prepare and use Panchagavya. Panchagavya is an excellent pest repellent, foliar spray and fertilizer for your plants. In our garden we use it mostly as a foliar spray and pest repellent. That is because the recipe of Panchagavya calls for a wait period of 18 days, but it can be stored for 2 months time. Hence it is convenient to make one batch of Panchagavya every two months and use small quantities as a pest repellent. For fertilizing the plants we use two other cow dung based solutions. Namely Amrut Jal and … Continue reading “Amrut Jal for Plants – Preparation and Usage”

How to Grow Radish in Containers… Even in a Plastic Bottle

Radish is one super friendly vegetable to grow in small spaces. Hence it is a favorite among people doing container gardening. You can grow them in as small container as a recycled plastic soft drink bottle. Yes you heard me right. You can grow full fledged radishes even in small containers as plastic bottles. All you need to do is to do it in the right way. This post is a complete guide on How to Grow Radish in Containers from seeds to harvest. Quick Reference Table to Grow Radish in Containers There are many varieties of radishes to choose from. From … Continue reading “How to Grow Radish in Containers… Even in a Plastic Bottle”

Pumpkin Leaf Stew Recipe from Odia Kitchen

In a post earlier on how to grow pumpkin in containers I had mentioned that all parts of a pumpkin plant are edible. A lot of people actually were surprised to hear that. Which naturally meant that many people have never tasted a pumpkin leaf stew before. Which obviously meant that I had to make this post on Pumpkin Leaf Stew Recipe. This is my mother’s recipe and hence is a great comfort food; simple, nutritious, delicious all at the same time. We generally have it with steamed rice or rotis. But add a little more water, you can enjoy … Continue reading “Pumpkin Leaf Stew Recipe from Odia Kitchen”

What People Are Saying About Us

Nikky PujariChicago, Illinois
The Organic Terrace blog is well researched, simple to follow and written by someone who is not just passionate about growing organic vegetables but very experienced in all of its facets. I followed instructions on tomato growing and immediately saw results - 13 big, red, sun-ripened organically grown tomatoes on a 10 inch container..wish I could attend the workshop too. Love the blog!
G JagadishFormer LIC Officer
The "Organic Urban Farming Crash Course" organised by Sri.Prabal Mallik, Founder, Organic Terrace and Ms.Shweta Agarwal, Director, Paz Farming has come to my fortunes at the right time when I was in need of it the most.

I knew that my desire was ripe to start my own terrace vegetable garden but was unsure of how to start one. I came to the program with almost zero gardening experience. Thanks to Prabal Babu and Madam Shweta for making the aspirants like me learn most of the latest skills in organic terrace gardening. Now with this 21-day course I feel that I am thoroughly equipped having bestowed with the right knowledge, skills, abilities and confidence to start a successful "terrace garden" and "open land farming" as well.

My sincere thanks with whole lot of appreciations go to the duo for a splendid academic exposure clubbed with hand-holding guidance.
I wish OT n PF all success in their future endeavors.
Hemant Kumar JenaTerritory Manager, BPCL
Being a plant lover it was a coincidence that I happened to visit organic terrace garden developed by Mr.Prabal Mallick. The varieties of vegetables grown in healthy plants was attraction as well as inspiration for me.I was amazed with the taste of raw vegetables like beans, carrot, cherry tomato, lettuce etc. I spent more than 2 hours in Prabal's garden, got inspired and started developing a small terrace garden in my home. Now, I spend my mornings in my terrace garden filled with different flowers and vegetables. I and my family enjoy the taste and sweetness of healthy and fresh vegetables. I am really thankful to Mr.Prabal for his systematic guidance and conviction towards organic urban farming which helped me develop my garden.Now even I am passionate about organic farming and planning to go into full scale organic farming as my post retirement plan. Thanks to Prabal, thanks to Organic Terrace. I wish both bright future.
Susmita PaniFormer Reader in English at Ravenshaw University, Freelance ELT Consultant
Attending the three-week organic urban farming workshop, organized by Paz Farming and Organic Terrace was a revelation. Both Shweta and Prabal are extremely knowledgeable, competent and exude confidence that comes from experience. They are keen, dedicated, helpful and more than willing to share information. The wonderful team created a climate of collegiality among all of us who ranged from 20 to 60 years. It was a genuinely interactive and participatory workshop where we covered a wide gamut of topics through hands on practice. Anyone who has the slightest interest in environment and organic farming must attend this workshop.
Navneet AroraHome Maker
The summer course on Urban Farming organised by Prabal and Shweta was just what I needed. Though I am an enthusiastic amateur kitchen gardener, I was beginning to feel tired due to poor yield and crops lost to pests as I was against using any chemicals. Learning tried and tested methods from Prabal's and Shweta's own experience as successful organic gardeners filled the gap in my understanding. I feel I now understand the entire process of soil preparation, composting, crop rotation etc much better. I am back into gardening with renewed vigour and am looking forward to a bumper harvest this season.
Uday SahuAtmaram Chain of Hotels and Restaurants
I had been planting the odd vegetables in my terrace without real success. But last year I started taking consultation from Prabal of http://organicterrace.in and things have completely changed since then. Not only I learned proper ways of growing vegetables in containers, the passion of Prabal was so inspiring that in approximately 3 months I had a full fledged vegetable garden on my terrace. I also managed to get free giveaways of eggplant, tomato saplings by organicterrace.in, which helped me to build my garden faster. Huge thanks again to organicterrace and Prabal.
VanshitaStudent at KIIT International School
Our generation really needs to understand and appreciate the skill of growing one's own food. It is important for each of us to have the knowledge and skill to do so. Urban Farming course with Shweta Di and Prabal sir was of the eye opener experiences of my life. Not only did I understand the actual importance, but also got to know that urban farming is not so tedious if done correctly. I would suggest every student of my age to take up these courses in order to become independent and responsible in life. If we grow what we need it will be a two fold benefit. First there would be minimum or no wastage and second we'll consume minimum chemicals. Being self sufficient has always been a goal in my life and this course has helped me to take a huge step towards my goal. Both Prabal sir and Shweta Di are very helpful and interactive which made the experience and learning interesting and fruitful.