International Journal of Environment, Agriculture and Biotechnology

Vol-9, Issue-4; Jul-Aug, 2024

Peer-Reviewed International Journal
Journal Home Page Available: https://ijeab.com/
Journal DOI: 10.22161/ijeab

A Complete Guide: Kitchen Gardening

Ms. Harsha S. Kumbhalkar1, Mr. Rushikesh D. Aghav2, Dr. Suraj P. Khedkar3
1Ph.D. Scholar, Fruit Science Department, Post Graduate Institute, Dr. Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, Akola, Maharashtra, India
2Ph.D. Scholar, Department of Agriculture, Sunrise University Alwar, Rajasthan, India
3Ph.D. Scholar, Department of Horticulture, Dr. Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth Dapoli, Maharashtra, India

Received: 14 Jul 2024; Received in revised form: 12 Aug 2024; Accepted: 19 Aug 2024; Available online: 26 Aug 2024
©2024 The Author(s). Published by Infogain Publication. This is an open-access article under the CC BY license
(https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Abstract— With the help of technology, we can cultivate nutritious vegetables at home using clay pots,
empty tins, and discarded utensils. This is known as kitchen gardening. It has been discovered that
kitchen/home gardens significantly contribute to the improvement of food security for rural, resource-poor
households in developing nations. It is essential for people to keep their health to eat a nutritious diet.
Grains, breads, legumes, fruits, vegetables, herbs, and so forth make up a balanced diet. Vegetables are a
vital part of a balanced diet since they offer a range of nutrients required for many body functions. About
300 g of vegetables and 100 g of fresh fruits are needed each day (50 g of green leafy vegetables, 200 g of
other vegetables, and 50 g of roots and tubers). Growing a variety of crops in your home garden is one of
the simplest methods to guarantee that you have access to a balanced diet with enough macro- and
micronutrients.
Keywords— kitchen gardening, nutritious vegetables, food security, balanced diet, home cultivation.

I. INTRODUCTION grow herbs and vegetables for domestic use. A small plot
th
India ranks 111 out of 125 countries in global of land next to the house has been used for seasonal
hunger Index and suffers from a serious level of hunger vegetable gardening since ancient times. In the kitchen
with a score of 28.7 on a 100 scale where 0 (zero) is the garden, local varieties are grown, including radish, broad
best score (no hunger) and 100 is the worst. (GHI, leaf mustard, chilli, beans, pumpkins, tomatoes, etc. It is
2023).One of the most crucial areas to concentrate on in common knowledge that we ought to consume our
developing countries like India is food security and vegetables. That is the path to health, and we will be
nutritional diversity. Many strategies are required to happy and healthy if we grow our own greens. You will
address the problems of food production and food always be content if you engage in creative endeavours,
security. The current social, political, and economic and gardening is no exception. Cooking in the kitchen
landscape as well as the resources available to plan and brings so much flavour to life. Many of our elders stressed
carry out the intervention will determine which workable the value of garden produce for a healthy diet long before
strategies are best. Using home labour in the kitchen doctors began prescribing vitamins, minerals, and fiber.
garden can increase the household's nutritional diversity Vegetables grown in gardens without the use of pesticides
and food security. Even in the tiny regions surrounding are increasingly becoming popular hobbies. It is
the house when land resources are limited, a difference in inexpensive and requires little space to grow food in the
life can be made. Small towns and households make use kitchen. You can even grow food in your kitchen by using
of vacant land to supply their own food needs as well as your window sills or balconies.
the needs of the city in which they live. (Dresche, 2000). Importance of kitchen garden:
A kitchen garden is a garden that is grown in the backyard A healthy diet is crucial for people to maintain their
of a home using the waste water from the kitchen. Also health. A balanced diet consists of grains, breads, pulses,
known as a "home garden," "nutrition garden," "kitchen fruits, vegetables, herbs, and so on. The daily requirement
garden," or "vegetable garden," these spaces are used to of vegetable is around 300 g vegetables and 100 g fresh

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Kumbhalkaret al. A Complete Guide: Kitchen Gardening

fruits/day (green leafy vegetables 50 g, other vegetables producing food and revenue.
200 g, roots and tubers 50 g) (Singh et al., 2018). As they ❖ Additionally, to providing fuel wood, furniture,
provide a variety of nutrients necessary for numerous crafts, baskets, and other household necessities,
bodily processes, vegetables are an essential component of gardens also serve as a source of food for
a healthy diet. Vegetables are vital for development, domestic animals.
energy, and illness prevention. Particularly for the young How to make a kitchen garden?
and for women who are pregnant or nursing, vegetables
Many people are unable to cultivate the
are important. Vegetables are widely acknowledged for
vegetables necessary for a healthy diet because there is
their importance in terms of human nutrition, the national
frequently no tradition of kitchen gardening.
economy, and health standards. They are an excellent
Alternatively, they overspend on vegetables, or the
source of minerals, proteins, and vitamins. Compared to
deficiency in vegetables negatively impacts their health. It
other crops, vegetables yield a significantly higher income
is possible that you have failed to establish a kitchen
per unit area and time. Due to their short growing seasons
garden. There are several reasons why starting a kitchen
and year-round availability, they make excellent choices
garden can be challenging, or why starting one will not
for home gardens. Fruits, vegetables, and other food crops
work out.
are grown in the nutrient-dense home garden, which is
typically close to the house. It is the area of ground in the For example:
backyard that family members cultivate a variety of fruits, • The crop was damaged by livestock disease
vegetables, and spices to augment what is immediately s, or pests.
needed in the kitchen. This practice not only ensures a • No good seed or seedlings
healthy diet but also lowers living expenses and increases • Lack of space
family income. Home gardens can aid in the recycling of
• Lack of water
leftover materials, particularly if a compost pit is
• Lack of fertility
established.
• No spare time
Benefits of the kitchen garden • Lack of the right skills
❖ To reduce the expense of purchasing herbs and In order to create and maintain a kitchen garden with ease
vegetables. and optimal yield, the following elements are critical:
❖ Grow your own vegetables for health benefits.
1) Site selection: Backyard of house
❖ There are ways to turn household waste into
The backyard of the home; ideally, this should be an
something useful.
open space with lots of sunlight close to the water
❖ Supply fresh fruits and vegetables high in nutritive
source. Vegetable garden dimensions and design are
value.
determined by
❖ Provide a diverse range of fresh produce that is
high in nutrients and devoid of harmful chemicals. • Availability of land
❖ Vegetables from your home garden have a better • The number of family members and
flavour than those you buy at the store. • Spare time available for its care
❖ Making efficient use of kitchen garbage materials • For a household of five, around five cents of
and wastewater. land (200 m2) is enough to produce vegetables
❖ To increase health for both the mind and body. all year long.
❖ This will only make it easier for us to successfully • Rather than a square plot or a lengthy stretch of
produce the vegetables we need. ground, a rectangle garden is preferred.
❖ Developing a garden yields two benefits:
Table 1: Crops suitable for kitchen garden
Fruits Vegetables Spices Medicinal Plants Flowers Trees
Mango Tomato Turmeric Aloe Rose Bottle brush
Banana Brinjal Coriander Mint Jasmine Pagoda tree
Sapota Chilli Fenugreek Basil Nerium Gulmohor
Guava Onion Garlic Vetiver
Marigold
Papaya Okra Ashwagandha
Ginger Chrysanthemum
Acid lime
Cabbage sarpgandha
Amla

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Kumbhalkaret al. A Complete Guide: Kitchen Gardening

Pomegranate Bitter gourd Adulsa Tuberose

Anona Snake gourd Sadaphulli Sunflower
Date Pam Rigde gourd
Gulvel Hibiscus
Jamun Bottle gourd
Hirda Periwinkle
Fig Pointed gourd
Amaranthus Behada Night Jasmine
Dragon fruit
Lab lab Shatavari
Jackfruit
Pea Lemmon grass
Ber Beetroot
Karonda Carrot
Radish
Curry leaf
Moringa
Spinach
Cluster bean
Cowpea
Tapioca
Agati
Pumpkin
Taro
Cucumber

2) Garden design: surface, where they are used as mulch, and then returned
When seeds and seedlings are placed too far apart, a to the soil.
large portion of the interstice is wasted and becomes home 4) Land preparation
to weed growth. In addition to taking up valuable water 1. Stones, stubbles, bushes and perennial weeds
and compost, weeds require more work to keep free. should be removed.
Additionally, you must put in more effort to replenish the 2. Soil should be porous that is why through spade
water and compost that the weeds steal. For this reason, digging is made to a depth up to 30-40cm
dense vegetable planting is ideal. However, if a single 3. Well decomposed at about 100 Kg farmyard
variety of vegetable is planted in large quantities, it will manure or vermicompost is applied and mixed
fight with itself for resources both above and below with the soil
ground, making it a poor crop. Therefore, it is preferable to 4. Flat nursery bed, raised seedbed, ridge seedbed,
grow a variety of small and large varieties to create distinct should formed as per the requirement.
layers of crops on one bed. Additionally, the soil's root 5) Sowing and planting
layers for these will change. 1. Direct sown crop like okra, cluster beans and
3) Edge planting: cowpeas can be sown on one side of the ridges at
a spacing of 30 cm. Amaranthus can be sown
Edge planting helps to make maintenance work
after mixing 1 part of seeds with 20 parts of fine
easy in the kitchen garden. Edge planting means the
sand by broadcasting in the plots.
growing of support crops or companion crops in the edges
2. Small onion, mint and coriander can be planted/
around the garden and its beds. These plants help support
sown along the bunds of plots.
the garden by providing mulch, protection from weeds,
3. Seeds of transplanted crops like tomato, brinjal
wind breaks, repelling pests and producing other useful
and chilli can be sown in nursery beds or pots one
resources. Plants such as marigold, lemongrass, mulberry,
month in advance by drawing lines.
basil, and many others are good for edge planting. Edge
4. Flat bed- Vegetables such as beet leaf, coriander,
planting helps to protect the garden and produces fodder,
fenugreek, spinach and root vegetables like
fuel, nectar for bees, herbs for medicines, soil
carrot, radish, turnip, beetroot are sown by
conservation, habitat for pest predators, etc. Edge plants
broadcasting or line sowing. Peas beans are sown
take nutrients from deep in the soil and cycle them to the

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Kumbhalkaret al. A Complete Guide: Kitchen Gardening

in lines are facilitates ease in intercultural furrows of 30-45 cm width on either side for
operations and harvesting. irrigation. The objective using such raised beds in
5. Raised seedbed- These beds are prepared for rainy season is to provide protection to the fruits
raising cucurbitaceous crops like bitter gourd, against rotting.
bottle gourd, round gourd, smooth gourd, 6. The perennial plants should be located on one
pumpkin, watermelon during rainy season where side of the garden, usually on the rear end of the
stagnation of water becomes problematic, beds of garden so that they may not shade other crops,
required size depending on crop to be grown are compete for nutrition with the other vegetable
raised 15-25 cm high from the ground level with crops.
Table 2: Crop calendar: Recommended vegetables, tuber crops and fruits for kitchen gardening.
Recommended

Duration

Availabilit
Transplan

(g/Marla)
ting (Pot

Seedrate

y period
Season

or field)

(Days)
Crop

Vegetables Winter Summer

Tomato Oct.-Nov. --- After 25-30 0.789g 135-150 April- July

Days
Peas Oct.-Nov --- --- 1875g 90 Nov-Dec.
Okra --- March --- 62.5g 45-50 April-Sept.

Onion Oct.-Nov --- After 40-45 25g 145-150 May

Days
Brinjal Sept.-Oct. June- July After 30-35 1.25g 160-165 April- June
Days
Cucumber Feb-March July- Aug --- 6.25g 120 April- May
Sept.-Oct.

Chili/peppers Oct-Nov May- June After 3.12g 210-240 May- July

40-45Days
Pumpkin Oct- Nov ---- --- 12.5g 135-180 April-May

6) Seeds and seedlings garden. Good quality seed can recommend that gardeners
A kitchen garden can provide very good food should emphasis on high yielding and hybrid seeds along
from local, traditional vegetables and its importance not to with local varieties. Cultivated crops for kitchen gardening
lose these local varieties. However, sometimes farmers are are generally- tomato, brinjal, chilli, capsicum,
also interested to try new varieties. So, it is very important cauliflower, cabbage, broccoli, knol-khol, radish, carrot,
to save and protect any good seed- this is the farmer’s peas, bottle gourd, bitter gourd, cucumber, okra, French
responsibility. From good seed, it is important to be able to bean, palak, sweetpotato, ginger, turmeric, dolichos bean
raise good, healthy seedlings for transplanting into kitchen and Colocasia.
Table 3: Cropping pattern, which may prove helpful for kitchen under Indian conditions.
Vegetable Sowing time Spacing rows Plants (cm)
(cm)
Carrot August-September 45 7.5
Radish Mid-September to October 45 7.5
Coriander October-November 30 Inrows
Spinach September-October 20 Inrows

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Kumbhalkaret al. A Complete Guide: Kitchen Gardening

Metha October-November 22.5 Inrows

Methi September-October 20 Inrows
Peas Mid-October to mid-November 30 10
Okra February-March and June-July 45 15
Bottle gourd February-March and June-July 250 60
Bitter gourd February-March and June-July 150 45
Cucumber February-March 250 60
Cowpea February-March and June-July 45 15
Pumpkin February-March 300 60
Sponge gourd February-March and June-July 300 75
Round gourd February-March and June-July 150 45

7) Layout of Kitchen Garden • In a kitchen garden, where cropping is done

• Fence: a live fence with agati or a fence with continuously and intensively.
barbed wire. • The soil's texture and fertility can be preserved by
• The kitchen garden's periphery should be planted regularly adding enough organic manures.
with perennial crops (mango, sapota, acid lime, • Every plot has ridges and furrows created in it.
amla, and morniga); avoid shading them.
• Planting season: June–July and September–
• On one corner, there can be one or two compost October
pits.
• A bee hive can be provided for purposes other
• Use cucurbitaceous vegetables (bottle, bitter, than honey production to guarantee sufficient
snake, and ridge gourds) to train fences on all crop pollination.
sides.
• On the other hand, chemical fertilizers are also
• Certain vegetables, like amaranthus, bottle necessary for a decent crop to be harvested.
gourds, bitter gourds, and snake gourds, are sown
• Remove and remove any larvae that are on fruits
directly.
or vegetables, and then apply 4 milliliters of neem
• Certain veggies (onion, tomato, brinjal, and oil or 3 percent neem seed kernel extract per liter
chilies) are transplanted from nurseries. of water.
• Create equal-sized plots in the region to be used • Steer clear of harmful chemical spraying.
for growing annual vegetable crops.
Fig. 1. Layout of Kitchen Garden
Goose
Drumstick Manure pit
Berry
Papaya Coccinea
Acid
Pomegranate
lime
Nursery beds
Curry leaf
Bitter
Lab lab Checkurrminas
Herbal plants (Vetivar, Aloe, mint, Lemmon Gourd
grass, Tulsi)
Mint Amaranthus

Snake Spinach Bhendi Green pepper Elephant foot yam Ridge

gourd Gourd
Coriander Chillies ENTRANCE Peas Cluster bean

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Kumbhalkaret al. A Complete Guide: Kitchen Gardening

Fenugreek Brinjal Carrot Cow pea

Small
Bellary Onion Tomato Tapioca Radish Beet root
Onion
8) Maintenance of Kitchen Garden guidelines included with your seedlings or printed
• Place all kitchen trash in the manure pits and keep on the back of your seed packets. Add the
them moist; composted kitchen scraps to every crop.
fertilizers with complex contents at 5 grams per
• Train the plants to grow on the fence. plant for 30, 60, and 90 days after sowing. All
• Take care of your food plants: For direct-sown season long, organic plant foods will nourish your
plants, thinning or stalking the plants is a crucial plants because they release nutrients gradually.
step towards maintaining a healthy vegetable 11) Weeding:
garden. Vegetables that grew tall and climbed As and when necessary. It is important to remove
needed to be trellised or stalked in some way. If weeds from surrounding pathways and grass as well;
the plants' suckers are allowed to grow and begin if they are allowed to go to seed, those seeds might
to compete with the original plants for nutrients, end up in your garden.
remove them. 12) Mulching: It suppresses weeds, cools plant roots and
9) Irrigation: conserve water. Seed free straw. It makes nice cover;
it is easy enough to push aside for planting and it can
When and if required. Even with drip irrigation,
you cannot always rely on rain. for water to be be turned into the soil at the end of the season.
delivered to the plant roots directly. 13) Provide shade: In the hot season trees can provide
shade to the kitchen garden. A few small trees or even
10) Manures and Fertilizers: fruit trees in the fence or within the garden can be
used for this purpose. As well as giving shade, these
• Fertility:It is common knowledge among farmers
trees can also provide other benefits, such as
that crops cannot flourish in unfertile soil.
firewood, fodder or mulch materials.
However, fertility might be as scarce as water.
14) Wind break: Wind will dry out the soil, so stopping
Compost cannot be taken and used for the kitchen
the wind helps to conserve soil moisture.
garden if there is not enough for the field crops.
15) Plant Protection: The kitchen garden requires
For this reason, the fertility of our kitchen garden
protection right from the beginning. Livestock should
must be self-sufficient. Below are some ideas for
not be allowed to enter the area. The fence needs to be
fertility sources:
built permanently. Although thorny plants can be
• Liquid manure:Produced in a pit or a drum,
chopped and used to create a fence, planting a living
liquid manure provides nutrients to plants while
fence is the most effective way to keep the garden
shielding them from illnesses and pests.
safe. Furthermore, the crops in the garden will require
• Sweepings pit:You can create enough compost
protection from various pests and diseases. To do this,
for the kitchen garden by gathering daily
there are numerous methods. Crop protection
sweepings from the house and yard in one
techniques include mixed cropping, crop rotations,
location.
liquid manure, picking and killing fruit and vegetable
• Legumes:Adding additional nitrogen to the soil
larvae before spraying, avoiding the use of toxic
through the planting of legumes, such as peas,
chemical sprays, etc.
beans, sesbania, sun hemp, etc., benefits other
Organic method of plant protection
crops.
• Neem oil
• Green manure: Planting green manure seeds
• Neem seed kernel extract
improves soil health and increases fertility for
• Panchakavya
greater yield.
16) Implements used in kitchen garden
• Other sources:You can enrich the soil with ash,
• Spade
oilseed cake, and other materials to boost fertility
• Pick Axe
and ward off pests and illnesses.
• Hoe
• Vegetables are rich in nutrients. Naturally,
• Hand sprayer
different plants have different requirements, so it
is critical to pay attention to any fertilization • Water can
• Secateur

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Kumbhalkaret al. A Complete Guide: Kitchen Gardening

17) Constraints in adoption of scientific kitchen needs of our nation's population. Food ingredients include
gardening carbohydrates, proteins, fats, fibers, vitamins, and
1. General constraints: minerals. Food grains are adequate to supply the body with
i. High poultry and monkey menace the necessary amounts of fat, protein, and carbohydrates,
ii. Problem of proper protection of local goat but not the necessary amounts of vitamins, minerals, or
and cattle grazing fiber. Our countrymen—especially the impoverished and
iii. Less priority of kitchen gardening as landless—are victims of malnutrition, which results in
compared to other farm activities child mortality, morbidity, anemia, and other problems—
iv. Frequent deluge of kitchen garden during because they do not consume enough vitamins, minerals,
rainy season. or fiber in their meals over an extended period. It is now
2. Input constraints: necessary to figure out how to include vitamins, minerals,
i. Unavailability of quality planting materials and fiber in our diets. It has been noted that fruits and
for fruits and vegetables vegetables provide an adequate amount of vitamins,
ii. Lack of irrigation facility due to scarcity of minerals, and fiber to the human diet.
water in area
iii. Unavailability of land for kitchen gardening
REFERENCES
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[2] Dane Kane, 2019, “Tips to maintain Kitchen Garden in
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India”, Agricultural Goods.
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3. Technical constraints: tchengarden.htmlhttps://vikaspedia.in/agriculture/farm-
i. Lack of knowledge regarding sowing time, based-enterprises/kitchen-garden
improved varieties and seed rate [3] Drescher (2000). Urban food security: Urban agriculture, a
ii. Lack of knowledge regarding nutritious response to crisis? UA Magazine (2000) 1.1 http://
fruits and vegetables selection www.ruaf.org/index.php?q=
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their identification and management Almanac Vegetable Gardener's Handbook.
[5] Komar, Stephen (2017). "Some tips as you prepare your
iv. Lack of knowledge regarding critical
spring vegetable garden", New Jersey Herald.
growth stages of crops for irrigation [6] Singh V. et al., (2018) Kitchen Gardening: A Promising
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fertilizers recommendation Households. International Journal of Microbiology
vi. Lack of knowledge about seed Research, ISSN:0975-5276&E-ISSN:0975-9174,
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vii. Lack of knowledge about seed treatment.
4. Socio-cultural constraints:
i. Fear of farm produce robbery
ii. Prejudices/orthodoxy
iii. Adoption of age- old traditional practices
iv. Migration of rural youth towards urban area
v. Low involvement of housewives in
cultivation practices.

CONCLUSION
Therefore, growing food in one's kitchen is a
sustainable and environmentally friendly way to boost
economic growth and food security. Considering the
current global food crisis and skyrocketing food costs,
kitchen gardening appears to be a more effective means of
strengthening and constructing local food systems. We
placed a lot of emphasis on food grain production during
and after the green revolution to meet the growing food

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