Ratanshi Nursery was established 50 years ago in Mumbai by Shantibhai Shah, to spread greenery around. Today, it is run by his sons Vijay and Bharat Shah, who are doing their bit to carry forward their father’s legacy.
Recently, on India’s 75th Independence Day, 10,000 saplings were distributed in the city to make Mumbai a greener space. Speaking about it, Bharat said, “We distributed saplings of four trees — Tamhan, Shetur, Kadamba, and Neem. The motive is to make the planet greener one sapling at a time. The distribution was done under our Ratanshis Manjushanti Foundation.” Sharing why they chose these saplings, Bharat said, “They were chosen as they are best suited for Mumbai climate. Their survival chances are more.
The foundation was established in May this year and this was the first activity the brothers conducted.
If you are into gardening or want to give it a try, or simply want to make your home or office space a bit greener, the nursery has an awesome range of indoor plants.
Their website (www.ratanshis.com) also has a range of gardening tools, equipment, and fertilisers that will help you get started. If you have a bigger space, there’s a huge range of outdoor plants to choose from. Be it fruits like papaya, watermelon or herbs like basil... Name it, they have it.
“We have a store at Byculla main road and a bigger garden a little away from there. People can simply walk into our nursery and pick up plants and trees of their choice. It’s open for all,” Bharat shared. Bharat further said that they will be conducting such activities in the future, but nothing is planned as of now.
At a time when the city is struggling with air pollution, nurseries like Ratanshi Nursery are the ‘green’ hope and ‘lungs’ of the city.
