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.
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.
33 plants match your filters Answer three questions on the home page — your region, your space and your goal — and we will name two plants to sow this month.Filters2 on
AmaranthचौलाईAmaranthus tricolorThe monsoon green that grows itself — heat-proof, rain-proof, ready in a month.
AmlaआमलाPhyllanthus emblicaFeathery-leaved and drought-hardy; one grafted tree feeds a household through winter.BaelबेलAegle marmelosA slow, tough native tree for a hot courtyard, with fruit that makes the summer sherbet.BananaकेलाMusa acuminataA single sucker in a corner gives shade, cooking leaves and, in time, fruit.
BhringrajभृंगराजEclipta prostrataA low monsoon weed of wet ground, gathered for hair oil for as long as anyone remembers.Bhumi Amlaभूमि आमलाPhyllanthus niruriA tiny monsoon herb that appears in every wet pot, with fruit strung under the leaf.
Chinese Hibiscusगुड़हलHibiscus rosa-sinensisFlowers nearly all year in a warm city, and sunbirds find it within a week.
Curry Leafकढ़ी पत्ताMurraya koenigiiA small tree that lives happily in a deep pot and gives leaves all year.Durantaनील कांटाDuranta erectaBlue flower sprays and orange berries at once; the standard clipped Indian hedge.False AshokaअशोकMonoon longifoliumThe narrow green column planted along every Indian driveway and boundary wall.Field BeanसेमLablab purpureusThe winter sem of the plains, purple-flowered and heavy-cropping on a fence.GiloyगिलोयTinospora cordifoliaA climbing vine of the monsoon, long used in home remedies and generous with shade.GuavaअमरूदPsidium guajavaThe most forgiving fruit tree for a small Indian garden or a big pot.Hameliaरक्त पुष्पHamelia patensOrange tubular flowers, continuously, and the sunbirds that follow them.Hibiscusगुड़हलHibiscus rosa-sinensisFlowers nearly all year in a warm city, and sunbirds find it within a week.Horse GramकुलथीMacrotyloma uniflorumThe hardiest pulse of the dry deccan, grown where rain is unreliable.
Not sure where to start?
How the library is organised