The urban landscape of Colombo is being rapidly transformed. Skyscrapers and high rise buildings have now become a way of life. With the amount of space rapidly disappearing in the city, going vertically when designing buildings has become a necessity. People have begun to realize the importance of greenery and home gardens. District Agriculture Instructor of Deputy Provincial Director of Agriculture Office K.N.K. Jayathilake speaks to Green Thumbs on how Cultivation Tower and Cultivation Racks – Structures in Vertical Home Gardening can help to have a home garden even in a congested city.
“Home gardening is extremely popular in rural areas. However we can see a growing interest amongst urban dwellers too. This is because these urban dwellers have realized the value of cultivating at home. The idea of mental satisfaction and physical health a home garden can bring is now gaining momentum,” said Jayathilake.
A large percentage of Sri Lanka’s population dwells in urban and semi urban areas. There is an influx of villagers into urban areas. As a result of understanding the importance of greenery, they try to replicate the village environment in urban areas.
“However the lack of horizontal space made it a problem. With the hectic lives one has very little time to devote to gardening. The idea then is to make time through time management. If there is a lack of horizontal space then the logical conclusion is going vertical. There are techniques to make the most out of your spaces. We need to plant vertically creating rooftop gardens and balcony gardens. For this perhaps you can use discarded containers,” stated Jayathilake.
“Living in a tropical country we have abundant sunlight. After identifying the spaces sunlight falls into, in your house or apartment, and how long sunlight falls, you can choose your crops. Some crops need more sunlight than others. You can use the shade for crops that require it. According to your family needs you can grow your crops. There is no point trying to maintain a home garden that yields more than you require or less than you require,” he added.
Crops for the cultivation tower include eggplant, Chili, Tomato, Cabbage, radish, and leafy vegetables that can be grown in this structure. Pod vegetables can be grown in places with more sunlight and leafy vegetables can be grown in shady sites. What you need to consume will soon be available in your garden.
“When planting in Cultivation Towers, you need to water the tower every day during dry periods. Liquid fertilizer can be used as required for an increased yield. There are many advantages in this form of cultivation. It can be erected in a small space and utilizing the vertical space. It also guarantees a clean production and less growth of weeds,” explained Jayathilake.
Cultivation Racks too, are a popular way of utilizing vertical spaces. There are three main designs. They are Inverted V Shaped Racks, Single Sided Cultivation Racks and Vertical Racks.
“When it comes to the soil mixture in cultivation racks, combining organic fertilizer and top soil in equal parts, you need to add coir dust and paddy husks. The mixture gets lighter and controls the amount of water retained, and prevents against any threat of fungal attacks,” pointed out Jayathilake.
When selecting the right crops to plant in a cultivation rack, you need to keep in mind that leafy vegetables such as Centella, KanKun, Mint and Lettuce are the most suitable to be cultivated in Cultivation racks. You need to take well rooted healthy plants. You can cultivate sun light loving species on the top gutters and shade loving species in the bottom gutters of the rack. A rack must be made using wood or iron bars to hold these gutters. There also needs to be a proper drainage system,”
explained Jayathilake.
When it comes to fertilizing in cultivation racks, if the need for extra fertilizers arises, you can use a liquid fertilizer for speedy growth. After harvesting, organic fertilizer must be used on the soil in the rack.
“When it comes to maintenance and harvesting you need to place the cultivation racks in a spot with ample sunlight. A several species can be planted in one rack, and they can be harvested batch wise. After six months of planting and harvesting, refill the gutters with new soil mixture,” added Jayathilake.
As in cultivation towers there are so many advantages to cultivation racks. Since there is no requirement for an area of land, cultivation racks are urban friendly. The crops are cleaner because they are grown above ground level.
The racks also can be moved depending on your wishes. Actually it is the mobility of cultivation racks that make them extremely popular.
Just like shifting tables and chairs in your house you can move it to any part of your garden. You can move it to places with lots of sunlight or lots of shade. In addition to this several species can be planted in one rack. So what you have is a multi-purpose mechanism. You can control the outcome of the weather. If it is the rainy season you can make it work for you,” explained Jayathilake.
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