The longest effort I ever made to grow anything was when I tried to grow Green chillies in Egypt (fresh spicy green chillies are not available in the market there) They grew quite well for a couple of weeks and then just withered and died.
However, with the constant coercion and encouragement from these 2 women, I decided to try my hand once again, even though, I even manage to kill of those lucky bamboo plants that just need water every week or so.
The 2 of them realised that the only way to get me hooked was by planting edible stuff. With our frequent travel, it's not just the cat, but also these plants I now have to be worry about. when I put down extra food and water for the cat, I also have to appropriately over-water the plants in my balcony.
One of the easiest things to grow from scratch was coriander / dhaniya. This is a herb that is used as garnish for a large number of Indian dishes and is beautifully fragrant.
My office maali told me to soak the dried coriander seeds (also used in seasoning) overnight. In the morning I put them in a pot with a light layer of soil on top. He told me to just sprinkle water daily until the shoots came out and then water as usual. He warned that if I put normal quantity of water initially, the seeds would rot.
I have friends who have also planted discarded dhaniya roots directly and have achieved success with that method.
The leaves smell lovely and I'm waiting for them to grow higher, so I can start using them in our food.
Also visible in the pot is a curry leaves plant.
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