How to do vegetable farming on house rooftop:
In cities where garden or lawns are not there, the farming should be done in pots, boxes, old containers, cut drums or in tarpaulin containers. Prefer only those type of vegetable crops in which fruits bear much like cucumber, tomato, brinjal, chilly, capsicum, etc. foreign vegetables such as broccoli, lettuce, Chinese cabbage and leafy vegetables such as mint, coriander, fenugreek can also be sown. Depending upon the compatibility of the area, family preference and time, vegetable should be chosen. By this way it can be grown successfully in the containers.
Choosing container:
12-14 inches (30-35 cm) deep containers are suitable for vegetable farming. Containers should be chosen depending upon the root length. Sow one healthy plant in each container. Many plants of some crops such as onion, lettuce, mint, coriander etc. can be sown in single container. 2 seeds of cow-pea, 4-5 seeds of okra and France bean can be sown in one container. Many seeds of radish, turnip, beetroot, spinach, fenugreek, coriander can be sown in single container.
Care:
Plants need more care in containers. Its irrigation will depend on the season, variety of vegetable, and size of the container. If containers are placed on rooftops then in summers watering should be done two times (morning and evening) in a day. In winters more irrigation and in summers less irrigation is harmful. In rainy season, proper drainage of water is necessary and remove the excess water by tilting the container. For the good growth and development of the plant add 2 kg rotten manure and half kg earthworm manure per m2 after 3 weeks of sowing or 2 weeks of seedling sowing. Use of manure in less amount is more beneficial in crop growth.
Vine vegetable and cow-peas required support. For weed control, hand weeding should be done. If dense sowing is done, then remove the weeds from hands.
Spacing for sowing crops in containers:
- For vine crops, use 2 seeds/plant per container (size 40-60 cm deep and 60 cm wide). Sow the seeds on both the corners and place the containers at the spacing of 2 cm and then support the vines with wires.
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