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Explore Plants

Indian plants documented for the way people actually garden — filter by what you want the plant to do, the space you have, the month you can sow and the region you are in. The result count below is live.

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Use the filters on the plant archive to narrow by goal, growing space and season. Every record carries a Hindi name, a botanical name, a care note and the months in which to sow.

Roselle Leaf (मेस्ता), Hibiscus sabdariffa var.Job’s TearsगुरलुCoix lacryma-jobiHard glossy grain used as food, as beads and as a brewing grain in the hills.Roselle Leaf (मेस्ता), Hibiscus sabdariffa var.Proso MilletचीनाPanicum miliaceumA short-season millet of the northern hills, sown when the season has been lost.Foxtail Orchid (द्रौपदी माला), Rhynchostylis retusaLady’s Slipper Orchidलेडी स्लिपरPaphiopedilum insigneA pouched terrestrial orchid of the eastern Himalaya, cool-growing and slow.Foxtail Orchid (द्रौपदी माला), Rhynchostylis retusaBlue Vandaनील ऑर्किडVanda coeruleaThe blue vanda of Meghalaya — tessellated flowers, and protected in the wild.Resurrection Fern (संजीवनी), Selaginella bryopterisLotus-leaf PennywortखुरखुरीHydrocotyle sibthorpioidesA tiny creeping mat for the wet edge of a tub — the softest possible ground cover.Assam Lemon (कागजी नेमु), Citrus limon var.RingalरिंगालDrepanostachyum falcatumThe slender hill bamboo of Uttarakhand, cut for baskets and matting.Assam Lemon (कागजी नेमु), Citrus limon var.Bird CherryपइयांPrunus cornutaA Himalayan cherry with long fruit racemes that thrushes and bulbuls strip in weeks.Assam Lemon (कागजी नेमु), Citrus limon var.Himalayan OakबांजQuercus leucotrichophoraThe banj oak that holds the water in a Himalayan hillside; slow, dense and vital.Assam Lemon (कागजी नेमु), Citrus limon var.AlderउतीसAlnus nepalensisA nitrogen-fixing pioneer of Himalayan landslides and north-eastern jhum fallows.Assam Lemon (कागजी नेमु), Citrus limon var.Indian Horse ChestnutपांगरAesculus indicaBig palmate leaves and white flower candles in the western Himalayan valleys.Foxtail Orchid (द्रौपदी माला), Rhynchostylis retusaBottle BrushचीलCallistemon citrinusRed brushes of stamens on drooping branches; a hardy naturalised garden tree.Assam Lemon (कागजी नेमु), Citrus limon var.Wild Mangoवन आमMangifera sylvaticaThe forest ancestor of the orchard mango, still fruiting in eastern hill forest.Foxtail Orchid (द्रौपदी माला), Rhynchostylis retusaHill Gooseberryकिलमोड़ाBerberis asiaticaA thorny yellow-wooded Himalayan shrub with blue berries and traditional root use.Foxtail Orchid (द्रौपदी माला), Rhynchostylis retusaHimalayan CherryपदमPrunus cerasoidesPink blossom in November, out of season by every other measure — the hill wild cherry.Assam Lemon (कागजी नेमु), Citrus limon var.Indian MahoganyटूनToona ciliataA tall hill-forest tree with pinnate leaves and scented pink-tinged timber.Assam Lemon (कागजी नेमु), Citrus limon var.ChinarचिनारPlatanus orientalisThe plane tree of Kashmir, planted for four centuries and unmistakable in autumn.

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Answer three questions on the home page — your region, your space and your goal — and we will name two plants to sow this month.

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How the library is organised

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By regionEach entry notes where the plant grows well across India, from the Gangetic plain to coastal soils.
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By seasonSowing windows for every month, so you never plant a winter green in May.
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By spaceWindowsill, balcony, terrace or ground — filtered so you only see what will survive with you.
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Checked by a botanistNames and facts are reviewed before publication; traditional uses are labelled as traditional.