As someone who spent more than 23 years in the densely populated city of Mumbai, Milan Kumar never really had the chance to stay in an apartment that had ample space to carry out gardening.
Even then, I’d grow vegetables and flowers using a method called square foot farming. In this method, a space of 9 x 9 feet is divided into 81 parts and a plant is grown in each spot. This is a common method used by urban gardeners,” Milan tells The Better India.
He continued to experiment in the available space and resources. Four years ago, after moving to his native place in Dehradun, Milan discovered a novel way to grow garlic cloves.
Garlic has the ability to help lower blood pressure. It is also known to solve digestive issues and contributes to the fine taste and aroma for many dishes.
“Garlic contains antioxidants that can help protect against cell damage and aging. It may reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia,” reports Healthline.
“All you need set up a garlic garden are a few old plastic containers and baskets. While green garlic or garlic leaves can be grown in the container, the basket can be utilised to cultivate garlic as a whole,” he says.
Every year during October or November, Milan sets up the garden in containers, to which he has made some alterations. While a container of 8 x 5 inches has room for up to 160 green garlic cloves, a similar basket can hold up to 10 whole garlics.