Growing spaces: ground

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

The big white-waxed gourd of the south, stored for months after harvest.

Sprawls generously and stores well; the leaves and flowers are food too.

A long curling gourd of southern and eastern kitchen gardens.

Pods, beans and green manure from one undemanding monsoon plant.

The lichen of the spice box — not planted, but a reason to keep old trees standing.

A hill herb of stream banks with aromatic roots and heads of small white flowers.

Camphor basil — a big grey-green bush that fills a terrace with scent.

A riverbank giant with pale bark — a tree for a campus or a colony park, not a pot.

Feathery-leaved and drought-hardy; one grafted tree feeds a household through winter.