Bhopal: Shalini Gupta’s terrace garden a riot of colours

Bhopal: Shalini Gupta’s terrace garden a riot of colours

SmitaUpdated: Thursday, May 30, 2019, 09:29 AM IST
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BHOPAL: With around 400 plants of myriad varieties, the terrace of theatre artist Shalini Gupta apartment in Paras City is a veritable riot of colours.

“As my father was in the defence services, my childhood was spent in bungalows with sprawling gardens in cantonments across India. So, when I moved into this apartment, I decided that I could not do without a garden”, she says. And she decided to covert her terrace into the garden.

Shalini’s garden boasts of 45 varieties of roses, including climbing, green, floribunda, modern, old shrub roses, standard tree roses and 50 varieties of ornamental plants. Besides, there are 15 varieties of cactus, seven varieties of money plant and five varieties of Guldaudi. She also has ample of flowering plans including marigold, hibiscus, magnolia, dahalia, daisy et al. Not only this, she has a 22-year-old Easter lily plant, rubber and even Banarasi paan plants.

“After my marriage, I started growing plants in small pots at my rented house and gradually their number grew to around 35”, she says, adding that “when I shifted into my own home in Paras City, we got made cemented pots with wooden texture. We shifted some plants like rubber and Christmas into iron drums because they need more space to grow.  Due to lack of space, we have donated around 15 types of plants including a 22-year-old Christmas tree to my residents’ society garden”

 She uses green fibre net to protect the plants from harsh sunlight and relies on her gardener and Google for maintenance tips. And she spends around Rs 3,000 per month on her terrace garden.

On being asked what these plants meant to her, Shalini says with big smile, “They are just like my children. My garden could become possible only due to the immense support of my children and husband. I have two children and I am very lucky that they also love plants. You will be surprised to know that they never plucked or destroyed plants even when they were very young.”

She has been participating in various terrace garden competitions organised by the government and private institutions. She won the second prize in Rose show in terrace garden category and also secured first, second and third positions in photography competition. “I posted my garden photographs on FB too. You can’t imagine how happy I feel from inside when people come to visit my garden and appreciate it”, she gushes.

What had begun as a hobby has turned into a passion. “I simply cannot do without them”, she says, as she carefully plucks a dried leave from one of the plants.

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