Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, July 5

Rupinder Singh Kanwar, a toxicologist, has inherited the love for gardening from his agronomist and sugarcane researcher father Dr Ranbir Singh Kanwar. His wife Anjleen Kanwar, an English teacher, also assists him in maintaining a verdant garden.

At the entrance, one is greeted by two huge Alstonia trees and a towering Araucaria (Christmas tree).The garden is lined with palms and during spring, a host of violet, pink and red marbled petunias leave the garden blooming with a rainbow of colours. Out on the front porch, a delightfully pink Rangoon creeper presents a resplendent view.

The couple grew more close to their green space at their home during the pandemic. They also host a variety of veggies. A huge canopy of green creepers also presents a refreshing view.

Dr Rupinder Kanwar says, “Our mangos and lemons were all sourced from Patiala. I dream of creating my own poly house on our village land in Hajipur. But until that, we are nurturing our garden here.”

The two lemon trees, which are now being developed as a hedge, yield basketful of lemons, so does the mango tree at the back — which yields sumptuous mangoes.

Anjleen Kanwar says, “We started off with ornamental plants and now we are doing a mix of both the veggie produce and other plants. Areca palms are my favourites. So we have got loads of them. Apart from that, we also have bottled palms, Calcutta palms, ashokas, monsteras, fig tree, and my loved front wall ornamented with green creepers. We keep adding more varieties. I also have a lot of succulents which are great as they are quite low maintenance during the summer and survive the sun.”

The couple keenly looks forward to planting their own farm at their village land in Hajipur as the pandemic eases.