Whether you have a sprawling backyard or a cosy balcony, home gardening offers a rewarding and sustainable way to connect with nature

With a few essential tips and tricks, you can cultivate a thriving garden that yields fresh produce, vibrant flowers, and a sense of accomplishment. Tropicana Golf & Country Resort’s resident horticulturist Mohd Suriga Md Sachari shares some tips to make your garden lush and beautiful. 

Home gardening tips:

• Give it time
  Caring for nature, whether a landscape or a home garden, is like caring for a partner. It takes time and patience. If you don’t have the time to commit, it’s better not to take it up.
• Set a schedule and stick to it
  This includes watering, trimming, fertilising and cleaning.
• Get to know your garden
  According to Mohd Suriga, plants and trees have “souls”. Some are independent and hardy, while others require more care. Adapt your habits to their needs.
• Natural air purifier
  For indoor gardens, plants that purify air are ideal. Dracaena (“dragon’s tree”) and sansevieria (“snake plant”) are popular and common choices in Malaysia.
• Avoid the bedroom
  Plants stop photosynthesising during the night and their net oxygen consumption increases.

• Edibles
  Those with a garden plot can opt for edibles such as pandan, lemongrass, calamansi and curry plants.
• Be practical, not trendy
  While organic fertilisers are trendy, they require lots of space and time to produce at home. Store-bought fertilisers such as wood vinegar are more practical and usually come in one-litre bottles.
• Macronutrients 
  For fertilisers, most plants need the “NPK” macronutrients: nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. These are sold in different ratios, such as 8-8-8, 15-15-15 or 12-12-17, in nurseries and           supermarkets. Do check on suitable amounts and frequencies before use.
• Say no to dead leaves 
  Avoid compacting dead leaves around indoor plants as a fertiliser. The decomposition process is exothermic and can impact growing temperature, while attracting germs.
• Different plants, different needs
  Flowering plants need more potassium (e.g. 12:12:17), while foliage plants without flowers do best with equal ratios (e.g. 8:8:8).
• Affordable options 
  Fragrant lemongrass and wood vinegar sprays can be used as affordable home pest repellents.