This is another Miyawaki model which we are trying out for those who wish to cultivate a vegetable garden on the terrace. This is a fairly large fibre tank, not portable, but three feet wide and eight feet long, covering an area of 24 sq. ft. A tank that is easier to handle would be two feet wide and four feet long, thus covering eight sq. ft. This one is two feet tall and we have filled one-and-a-half feet of it with potting mixture. Following the Miyawaki model, we have sowed a variety of seeds – lady’s finger, yardlong bean, tomato, brinjal, millet, green chilly, dwarf snake bean and Chinese potato. More can be grown here like ginger, turmeric, shallots, potato and mint.
You may ask: Why have such a huge tank on a terrace? The advantage is that you don’t have to water the plants every day. We have fitted a pipe to it, that is turned upwards now. If it is turned downwards, excess water will flow out. So it can be used for water regulation. In Kerala, we get plenty of rains except during the summer months. If we need to irrigate at all, we can adjust this drain pipe. Many pots would mean a lot of work because we would have to pour water into each of them. In this case, one bucket of water will be sufficient. This is a Miyawaki vegetable garden because we have adopted the multicrop system, as advised by Prof. Miyawaki. If we grow only millets here, all the worms and insects that eat it will destroy the crop. But since we have an assortment of millet, brinjal, lady’s finger, tomato and other vegetables, there will be different types of pests, and so one species will eat another.
If this experiment proves successful, it will be possible to cultivate up to 20 types of plants simultaneously. After the millet is harvested, its waste can be put back in the soil. It will be a good manure. Another advantage is that when all the plants grow tall, their shade will cool the lower storey. At that point, it may be possible to grow cabbage, cauliflower, spinach and amaranthus too here. Thus, those who do not have a plot can grow vegetables on their terrace, window ledges or balconies. In place of a fibre tank, you can purchase a barrel, split it into two and mount them on stands. In this manner, you can make use of cheap objects that are easily available, grow vegetables, and eat them fresh.