Assalamu Alaikum, friends. I hope you are all doing well; by the grace of Allah, I am doing well too. The topics for the engagement contest organized by @steemitblog this week are even more wonderful. I am here to participate in the topic of the first question.

How Does Your Garden Grow - Vegetable Garden

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Have you got a garden?

Since we live in a village, most of our homes have at least one or two small gardens. However, our own home has very limited space, so we do not have a garden large enough for vegetable cultivation. Although we do have flower and fruit trees, there isn't enough room for a vegetable patch. That said, my cousins ​​live right next door; they cultivate vegetables on a vast plot of land, and we buy our vegetables from them. Sometimes, out of goodwill, they even give us some for free.

This is how winter vegetables are cultivated.

Do you spend much time tending the garden? Are you a keen gardener?

In reality, due to limited space around our home, we lack the capacity to cultivate vegetables on a large scale. However, we do grow small quantities of vegetables in the immediate vicinity of our house. Eggplant is one of them; it is a year-round vegetable and a favorite food for many of us. Since we don't have a large garden, it doesn't require much maintenance—plus, I have limited time.

Nevertheless, I occasionally check the plants to see how the eggplants are developing or if there are any pest infestations. Just a short while ago, I noticed a small, healthy eggplant growing on one of the plants. I also checked on another large eggplant and observed blossoms on the other plants.

Small eggplant
Large eggplant
Eggplant flower

What do you grow in your garden - flowers, fruit, vegetables?

As I mentioned earlier, we grow a small amount of vegetables at home. However, my brother cultivates a wide variety of vegetables, as he has long-standing experience in this field. He receives an annual government grant to support his vegetable farming.

01	Sponge Gourd

Occasionally, he shares the cucumbers he grows with me. He cultivates various types of vegetables, and I sometimes visit to see them. Among these is the dhundul (sponge gourd); it is a vegetable that first produces yellow flowers and later develops into a large vegetable. The market price is approximately 40–60 Taka or 8–12 Steem per kilogram.

Sponge Gourd flower
Sponge Gourd vegetable

02	Leafy Greens

In the picture, I have illustrated the step-by-step growth process of the vegetables. Nearby, you can also see various types of leafy greens being cultivated. These include different varieties of greens, which are delicious when served with hot rice. Varieties such as water spinach (kolmi shak), Malabar spinach (pui shak), and amaranth greens (data shak) are grown here; these crops are cultivated above ground and require relatively little labor. Market price per kg is approximately 60–80 Taka or 12–16 Steem.

water spinach
Malabar spinach

03	Bottle gourd

Next, one of the most appealing and valuable vegetables is the local bottle gourd. It is a favorite among us all because it can be prepared in a variety of ways—stir-fried, mashed (bhorta), cooked as a standalone vegetable dish, or combined with meat or fish.

Bottle gourd seeds are sown after lightly tilling the soil, and the plant gradually climbs upwards. A bamboo trellis is then constructed around it to support and tend to the plant. Eventually, a flower blooms and transforms into a large bottle gourd—a process you can observe step-by-step in the images below. Market price per piece is approximately 60–80 Taka or 12–16 Steem.

Bottle gourd plant
Bottle gourd flower
Bottle gourd at a mature stage

If you have fruit and vegetables, are you trying to grow more this year because of the increasing global threats to food production and food security?

To be honest, I have very little personal experience in this area because I do not cultivate vegetables myself; however, my brother and cousins ​​do. Based on their advice, if one has sufficient space at home, one should certainly grow vegetables. We constantly buy various vegetables from the market at high prices, yet with just a little effort, we could grow them at home and alleviate our financial burdens.

It simply requires some hard work and ingenuity. Vegetable prices in Bangladesh often skyrocket due to floods; having a home garden would allow us to meet our own needs during such times. Therefore, considering all these factors, cultivating vegetables is a wise choice.

Assorted vegetable flowers
High yield of bottle gourd

If you do not currently have a garden but would like one, tell us about your ideal garden.

In reality, we have very little space at home, so my desire to cultivate vegetables and fruits had all but vanished. However, I have long harbored a wish to grow them. If I can manage to create sufficient space at home, I intend to cultivate a small variety of vegetables and fruits. I took two photos near my house and edited them to visualize what my dream crops would look like.

I want to grow pumpkins, cucumbers, and grapes, as well as vegetables that can be cultivated on overhead trellises. Growing these crops requires less effort while yielding a bountiful harvest. They can subsequently be sold at a good price, making the venture profitable. Just look at the photos—the vegetables look absolutely beautiful.

Cucumber, grapes
Pumpkin, vegetables

Bangladesh is primarily an agricultural country. Here, a wide variety of vegetables and fruits can be cultivated with great ease. Many people on this platform regularly grow vegetables and fruits. Additionally, many are reaping significant profits by cultivating and selling flowers; the flower trade is a major business in our region. However, the vegetable and fruit trade remains the most popular. That is why I intend to implement this idea in the future.

I Invite my Steemian friends @wilmer1988, @kiwiscanfly, @inspiracion, @sadaf02, @mahadisalim, @jimiaera02, @saniya9 to Participate in this challenge.