Plant library
Explore Plants
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Job’s TearsगुरलुCoix lacryma-jobiHard glossy grain used as food, as beads and as a brewing grain in the hills.
Foxtail Orchidद्रौपदी मालाRhynchostylis retusaThe kopou phul of Assam — hanging foxtail sprays, and the flower of Bihu.Blue Vandaनील ऑर्किडVanda coeruleaThe blue vanda of Meghalaya — tessellated flowers, and protected in the wild.
Staghorn Fernस्टैगहॉर्नPlatycerium wallichiiAn antler-shaped epiphytic fern of Assam’s forests, mounted on a board.Lotus-leaf PennywortखुरखुरीHydrocotyle sibthorpioidesA tiny creeping mat for the wet edge of a tub — the softest possible ground cover.Red Water Lilyरक्त कमलNymphaea rubraThe deep red night-flowering lily of eastern tanks and temple ponds.MussaendaमुसैंडाMussaenda frondosaOne enlarged white sepal per flower, so the whole shrub reads as pale bracts.Madhavi Lataमाधवी लताHiptage benghalensisA woody climber with fringed white-and-yellow flowers and a heavy sweet scent.Indian Pennywort Waterब्राह्मी जलHydrocotyle sibthorpioidesA creeping mat for the wet edge of a terrace pond or a bowl garden.Lemon Grass Wildजंगली लेमन घासCymbopogon flexuosusEast Indian lemongrass, distilled in the north-east for citral oil.
MulberryशहतूतMorus albaFruit in March, silkworm leaves all summer, and shade in between.Chinese Hat Plantटोपी फूलHolmskioldia sanguineaA sub-Himalayan scrambler with brick-red bracts through the cool months.Water LilyकुमुदिनीNymphaea nouchaliA cement tub of still water becomes a dragonfly habitat in one season.Ratanjyot Flowerकृष्णकमलPassiflora incarnataPassion flower — intricate blooms and the host plant of tawny coster butterflies.Buckwheatकुट्टूFagopyrum esculentumA Himalayan pseudo-grain that flowers white and feeds every bee for miles.Sweet FlagवचAcorus calamusA marginal water plant for a tub, aromatic-rooted and steady for years.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.