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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Hill Gooseberryकिलमोड़ाBerberis asiaticaA thorny yellow-wooded Himalayan shrub with blue berries and traditional root use.Seabuckthornलेह बेरीHippophae rhamnoidesA cold-desert shrub of Ladakh, nitrogen-fixing and vitamin-dense.VincaसदाबहारCatharanthus roseusFlowers every day of the year and asks for nothing. Indigenous to the deccan.
GarlicलहसुनAllium sativumPlant single cloves in October and lift whole bulbs in March.
RatanjotरतनजोतAlkanna tinctoriaA dry-hill root used to colour oil a deep red; slight above ground, tough below.ChirataचिरायताSwertia chirayitaAn intensely bitter Himalayan herb of mid-altitude meadows, slow and particular.Indian ValerianतगरValeriana jatamansiA hill herb of stream banks with aromatic roots and heads of small white flowers.KutkiकुटकीPicrorhiza kurroaA high-altitude Himalayan herb — only worth trying in the hills, and only from nursery stock.JatamansiजटामांसीNardostachys jatamansiThe spikenard of the high Himalaya, aromatic-rooted and strictly a mountain plant.IsabgolइसबगोलPlantago ovataA slight winter annual of dry western fields, grown for the husk of its seed.AjwainअजवाइनTrachyspermum ammiA winter annual of the north-west, grown for the thyme-scented seed.MintपुदीनाMentha spicataGrows from a cutting in a glass of water. Keep it in its own pot — it will…
TulsiतुलसीOcimum tenuiflorumThe household holy basil — thrives in a pot, keeps pests down and brings pollinators to a balcony.Krishna Tulsiकृष्ण तुलसीOcimum tenuiflorum (purple)The dark-leaved tulsi, sharper in scent and a little slower to grow than the green.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.