Roadside garden gives street a pretty edge

N. Prasannam has developed the green patches outside his home

The short strip of land outside the home of N. Prasannam in Kambar Street, New Selvanagar, present a cool and green vision to passers-by. Planted with medicinal herbs and flowers like rose and hibiscus with high fencing to deter stray animals, this ‘roadside garden’ has been Mr. Prasannam’s pet project for over a year.

“Our road connects the rest of the colony to the main highway, so we get a lot of traffic through the day. I felt that having a floral patch on either side of the thoroughfare would be a pleasant sight for the passing motorists,” Mr. Prasannam, 68, told The Hindu.

The retiree, who formerly worked as a typist at the Tamil Nadu Co-operative Marketing Federation (TANFED) and a fertliser company, took permission from the local municipal officials before developing the two narrow plots (measuring 120 feet in length on one side and 80 feet on the other) on opposite sides of the road as a green patch.

“I spent around ₹25,000 for setting up the gardens. On the suggestion of a neighbour, I planted one part with herbs like tulasi (holy basil), thiruneetru pachalai (sweet basil) and omavalli (thick-leaved lavender) that can be used to make home remedies for common ailments like cold and fever. Anyone in the area can pick the leaves for their use,” said Mr. Prasannam.

The senior citizen, who has been residing here since 1992, sweeps the area and then waters the garden first thing in the morning before carrying on with his daily routine. “We have a good supply of water in this area, so irrigation is not an issue,” he said.

He makes his own fertilisers, mixing commercially sold inputs with the manure mix sold by the Municipality. “I usually buy 20 kg of Municipality’s manure mix and then add a proportionate amount of bio-fertlizer to it. I tend to share the extra with those who help me with my gardens,” said Mr. Prasannam.

After excessive rain destroyed the tulasi plants in the hedges late last year, Mr. Prasannam has germinated a packet of the plant’s seeds that he bought online, and is waiting to transplant them into the garden. “In an age when oxygen is being sold in shops, I think it is better to get it free from plants like tulasi,” he said with a smile.