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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Kodo MilletकोदोPaspalum scrobiculatumThe kodo of the Deccan and central hills — drought-proof and long-storing.Proso MilletचीनाPanicum miliaceumA short-season millet of the northern hills, sown when the season has been lost.
Water Chestnutसिंघाड़ाTrapa natansSinghara — a floating annual grown in ponds and tanks across the north and east.Tamarind Leaf SorrelगोंगुराHibiscus sabdariffaThe gongura of Andhra kitchens — sour leaves and later, calyces for sherbet.Roselleअम्बाड़ीHibiscus sabdariffa var. altissimaGrown for fibre and calyces in the west and centre; a striking tall annual.
BerबेरZiziphus mauritianaThe fruit of the dry west, cropping where irrigation is impossible.Indian GooseberryआमलाPhyllanthus emblicaFeathery-leaved and drought-hardy; one grafted tree feeds a household in winter.
KarondaकरौंदाCarissa carandasA thorny hedge shrub that gives pickling fruit and keeps animals out.PhalsaफालसाGrewia asiaticaSmall sour-sweet berries in May, from a shrub that shrugs off a Delhi summer.MulberryशहतूतMorus albaFruit in March, silkworm leaves all summer, and shade in between.FigअंजीरFicus caricaTwo crops a year in the west, and content in a large container.PomegranateअनारPunica granatumHandsome, thorny and productive on poor dry soil; good in a big pot.LimeनींबूCitrus aurantiifoliaKagzi lime — the single most useful pot tree for an Indian household.Sweet OrangeमौसंबीCitrus sinensisMosambi — a grafted tree in a big tub crops well in the west and centre.MangoआमMangifera indicaThe tree the subcontinent is organised around; a grafted plant fruits in four years.GuavaअमरूदPsidium guajavaThe most forgiving fruit tree for a small Indian garden or a big pot.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.