Regions: North India

One plant on a sill supplies a household, and crops for two years.

A long-season crop that rewards a big pot and steady feeding.

Summer staple for a sunny terrace; pick every second day or pods turn woody.

A monsoon climber that will roof a terrace in eight weeks given a frame.

Ridged monsoon gourd, quick to climb and quicker to over-mature.

A sedge most people fight as a weed, though its tuber is an old perfume material.

A tough climber that fruits through the worst humidity of the year.

Cut-and-come-again greens ready in six weeks from a shallow trough.

Sow thickly in a wide tray and cut the whole crop at three weeks.

The monsoon green that grows itself — heat-proof, rain-proof, ready in a month.