Hi my loving Hivers,
How are you dear friends? I believe you are doing well. Last Sunday I had the opportunity to go to my mother-in-law's house because it was a hodiday due to duty. I finally reached my mother-in-law's house about three months ago. Due to busy duty and my father's illness, I was unable to reach there during the last period. However an opportunity arose for me to reach there. I did not have the opportunity to consider the condition of my mother in law's garden for a long time, so the first thing I did was to abserve the changes in that garden. A bountiful harvest is the hope of all farmers. Therefore, their sacrifice should be appreciated.
Turkey berry is a very tasty and nutritious small vegetable. Turkey berry is prepared according to different tastes in different countries. My wife's mother's garden currently has only a few Turkey berry plants. These days, many crops have been destroyed due to the extreme temperature in Sri Lanka, and adding water constantly has become an essential task. Soil moisture is important for plant growth.
Measures should be taken to protect these turkey berry plants from insects and ants. Especially since the leaves of these are eaten by ants, the plant can be destroyed very quickly. It is best to use soapy water for that. If there is more turkey berry vegetables in the mother in law's garden she will definitely give the extra portion to us. But this time she did not want to give it because turkey berries are very tasty food and there was a very small harvest in the garden. Sri Lankan village housewives know very well how to prepare turkey berries in the most delicious way by tempering them in oil with dried fish.
Turmeric is a spice used to flavour food. The harvest of these are made underground and the housewives are tempted to use the tubers by dried, grinding and adding powder to foods. With the severe temperature in Sri Lanka at this time, many turmeric plants in my wife's mother's garden have been destroyed. It was unfortunate to see. I understood that this situation has arisen because she does not have the strength to distribute water regularly.
A type of green leaf called Kankung, which Sri Lankans and foreigners prepare in a very delicious way, is growing in the mother-in-law's garden. They thrive in muddy soils with plenty of water. Further plants can be made by planting the ripe stalks of these vines that grow along the ground. Compared to other leaf types, the nutritional quality is lower, but the taste is higher.
Due to the high temperature, the growth of the ginger plants in the mother-in-law's garden has also decreased. However, the fruit of ginger had not decreased. As ginger has a high price in the market, growing it in a garden like this is a comfort to the wallet. The taste can be increased by grinding ginger root and mixing it with tea.
Every time we go to my mother-in-law's garden, we don't forget to bring the small vines with leaves known as gotukola to the house to add to the food. No matter how much those vines are pulled from the ground, there is no lack of growth. By adding these to food as sambal and salad, the nutritional value remains the same. If it is boiled and eaten, it is sufficient to boil it for only two minutes.
The species of leaves that Sri Lankans call Sarana in Sinhala can also be added to food as a delicious vegetable. My mother-in-law had planted it in a small pot and the growth was stunted due to lack of water and too much sunlight. You can eat more by boiling it with saran dal. We hope for more fruit next time we come back here.
Very recently, my mother-in-law had prepared the ground and planted eggplant, lemon, gourd and long bean plants. If these are given proper care like water and fertilizers, a rich harvest can be expected in the future. Fresh vegetables with high nutritional value can be used for consumption at home.
She told me that my mother-in-law had prepared the soil properly using discarded polythene covers and planted chilli seeds. Now they are growing well. Chilli fruit can be increased by properly maintaining the space of the forest where sunlight falls properly. Housewives use it to cook food in the kitchen to increase the spiciness of the food.
A few banana trees were planted behind the mother-in-law's garden, which fetched a high price in the current market. One of the trees was producing bananas, which looked like they would only ripen in a couple of weeks. Apart from this, the mango tree planted a long time ago is also blooming and the mango harvest is approaching. Mangoes are harvested only twice a year.
