Ms. Nhu Hoa, 37 years old, from Long Bien, transformed her terrace from a gray concrete block into a garden full of vegetables and fruits for her family after just one year.
At the beginning of last year, Hoa and her husband completed the four-story house. Liked to grow crops, she discussed with her husband to design a solid rooftop for growing vegetables.
Ms. Hoa ordered alluvial soil and more than 200 bags of fertilizer, hired a crane worker to go up to a 60 m2 terrace. Every day, from 5 am to 7 am, she breaks the ground to mix before going to work. In the afternoon, she spent another hour in the garden. “I’m not used to manual work, so I hold a hammer with many hands that are hard, peeling, and all my limbs are scratched,” Hoa recalls the first day of gardening.
Initially, the seeds did not germinate, and the plants had many aphids. Ms. Nhu Hoa went online to learn how to mix the soil, kill worms and refer her friends to a reputable seed seller to order. In addition to making a solution of garlic, chili, and alcohol sprayed on vegetables to kill pests, she watered in the ratio of two cold, one hot to kill worm eggs.
After three months, the vegetables and fruits in the garden are green. In addition to seasonal green vegetables, Ms. Hoa covered the net with experimental plantings of cantaloupe and cantaloupe. The owner of the garden estimated the cost of making the truss was about 7 million VND, the plastic pot cost 12 million VND, and the iron shelf was 25 million VND. If the cost of buying seeds and fertilizers is added, the garden is invested more than 50 million VND.
Last year, Ms. Hoa sowed five seeds of cantaloupe. To fertilize plants, she composts organic fertilizers including bananas, eggs, and milk. On average, for 3-5 days, she dilutes water for plants. The buds from the first to the ninth leaves are removed, leaving only the buds from the 10th to 12th leaves to grow fruit.
The gardener has to self-pollinate the melons and each plant leaves only the most developed fruit. From pollination to harvest about 45-50 days. “Testing the sugar level is just like melons in the supermarket, but melons are grown by myself, so eating them feels cooler and more fragrant,” she said.
Under the truss, Ms. Hoa grows vegetables, water spinach, spinach, kohlrabi, cabbage, kale. On the rig, she grows tomatoes, melons, bitter melons, nail grapes… Because it’s planted with suitable soil. sa, mixed with 50% of the substrate consists of rice husk ash, shredded eggshell, coconut fiber, fertilizers, lime, and bean residue, so every day, Ms. Hoa only watered the vegetables and remained green.
Tomato octopus plants are planted in the autumn and early winter, harvested on the occasion of Tet. One tomato plant gives about 70 kg of fruit.
Like tomatoes, Ninh Thuan grapes are periodically fertilized once a week. Grapes only grow a large branch until they are on the rig. This branch can climb the truss two meters will cut about one meter, forming the first-class branch. Level one branches grow to about a meter cut again to develop secondary branches.
Flowers form after secondary cuttings. From the time the grapes see the buds to the time of harvest is 4 months and 15 days.
The garden formed during a pandemic year not only helps Hoa’s family relax during the quarantine period but also provides clean vegetables and fruits. “Currently, the garden has enough clean vegetables, sometimes delicious fruits like toadstools, star fruit, … for the whole family,” said Ms. Hoa.
Hoa’s two children enjoy exploring the green space on the terrace. The children know the names of many vegetables in the garden, understand how the process of taking care of the plants takes time and effort.
“It is possible that the investment cost for the garden is more expensive than buying vegetables to eat in the market, but the spiritual value it brings cannot be exchanged,” Ms. Hoa said.
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