The interviews and reporting for this story have been performed in 2024.

On a go to to her mom’s pal’s residence, Kerala-based Anjali Pavan noticed a Kokedama which left her intrigued. Kokedama is a Japanese gardening technique the place plant roots are wrapped in a mossy soil ball to make hanging gardens.

“I liked the Kokedama a lot that I needed to create my very own,” she says. After researching on-line and on YouTube, she made her personal Kokedama at residence. 

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Whereas she made it out of curiosity, she was not conscious that this might lead her down the street of sustainable gardening. 

She discovered a ardour in it and shortly began to plant extra timber. Anjali’s backyard was beginning to blossom and he or she discovered a secret weapon to assist her flourish it — her amma (mom). She taught Anjali to upcycle outdated or waste supplies into eco-friendly planters.

The duo began to search out extra progressive methods to do that for his or her backyard through the use of waste supplies comparable to bottles and drums to make pots and planters.

“Our total backyard is stuffed with waste supplies. Amma makes use of issues like outdated paint cans, tyres, coconut shells, tyres, coconut husks, plastic bottles, outdated stitching machines and drums,” she says. 

Anjali’s amma additionally makes plant hangers utilizing macrame artwork. “She even made pots utilizing outdated garments in our residence,” provides Anjali. 

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By utilizing waste supplies, the duo has discovered a method to not solely save the planet but in addition avoid wasting cash that they might have in any other case spent on shopping for planters from the market. 

The duo shares their work and journey on Instagram and have a following of 76,686 individuals. 

You’ll be able to examine them out right here.

(Edited by Padmashree Pande)