Plant library
Explore Plants
Filter by what you want to grow, the space you have and the season you are in.
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21 plants match your filters
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Arabian JasmineमोगराJasminum sambacA pot by an open window does more for a summer evening than any air freshener.Chinese Hibiscusगुड़हलHibiscus rosa-sinensisFlowers nearly all year in a warm city, and sunbirds find it within a week.HennaमेहंदीLawsonia inermisThe mehndi hedge of the dry west — scented flowers and dye leaves.TecomaतेकोमाTecoma stansYellow bells almost all year on a shrub that survives a forgotten terrace.Water LilyकुमुदिनीNymphaea nouchaliA cement tub of still water becomes a dragonfly habitat in one season.LotusकमलNelumbo nuciferaThe national flower — a big tub, full sun and patience is all it takes.Frangipani WhiteगुलचीनPlumeria albaThe white frangipani of temple gardens, tougher than the pink and just as scented.VincaसदाबहारCatharanthus roseusFlowers every day of the year and asks for nothing. Indigenous to the deccan.Ixoraरुग्मिनीIxora coccineaCompact evergreen with flower heads butterflies work all morning.TuberoseरजनीगंधाAgave amicaBulbs planted in March give heavily scented white spikes through the monsoon.Marvel of Peruगुल-ए-बासMirabilis jalapaOpens at four in the afternoon and self-sows itself around the garden.Cockscombलाल मुर्गाCelosia argenteaVelvet crested heads that hold colour for weeks, in sun or half shade.Zinniaजिन्नियाZinnia elegansThe most reliable cut flower for an Indian summer terrace.SunflowerसूरजमुखीHelianthus annuusA fortnight of spectacle and then a head of seed the birds will take.Portulacaकुल्फा फूलPortulaca grandifloraOpens in full sun on a terrace where nothing else will survive noon.Hibiscusगुड़हलHibiscus rosa-sinensisFlowers nearly all year in a warm city, and sunbirds find it within a week.Not sure where to start?
Answer three questions on the home page — your region, your space and your goal — and we will name two plants to sow this month.
How the library is organised
By regionEach entry notes where the plant grows well across India, from the Gangetic plain to coastal soils.
By seasonSowing windows for every month, so you never plant a winter green in May.
By spaceWindowsill, balcony, terrace or ground — filtered so you only see what will survive with you.
Checked by a botanistNames and facts are reviewed before publication; traditional uses are labelled as traditional.