The power is yours – Green Planet’eers

Greetings from SPACES!

We are finally back on our blogs after taking a bit of a hiatus. We have a lot of exciting news and programs to share.

Green Planet’eers is one such topic which we are very enthusiastic about.

To elaborate, Green Planet’eers is a gardening exercise tailored for children so that they learn both to appreciate their natural surroundings and learn about the very rich history of natural herbs and indigenous varieties that is often quickly forgotten by us.

It is an elegant mixture where children start learning by literally getting their hands dirty and how to care for and treat their natural entities around them.

We have put this theory to test at a couple of locations in Chennai and we have been super happy with the results and the fervor shown by both the teachers and the students.

Here are a couple of snapshots taken at different locations where we have established such herbal and veggie patches.

herbal patch at AMM , kotturpuram – by SPACES

recycled terrace veggie garden – at shelter homes ,redhills

recycled terrace veggie garden – Red hills – by SPACES

a view of the creeper support at redhills – by spaces

herbal garden patch at jai gopal garodia – choolaimedu -by spaces

herbal patch – CTTE perambur – by spaces

herbal garden done at AMM matriculation, kotturpuram done by SPACES

herbs around the tree at Rosary Matriculation – by SPACES

herbal garden patch at Rosary matric – done by SPACES

pathway in the model garden at sreeniketan patasala in tiruvallur

model garden at tiruvallur

rock garden at the model garden in tiruvallur

The result of creating such a space is that it automatically becomes an extension to the learning environment and often indulges the students to not just stick to what they ‘have to’ learn but what they ‘want to’. This is the essence of learning.

Childhood is filled with natural wonder and curiosity. The learning environment must reflect a classroom and outdoor space that inspires a sense of wanting to investigate, to find out and to explore” – Kathy Walker

Mad camp by spaces -at ECR

Mad camp by spaces -at ECR

Mad camp by spaces -at ECR

at AMM matriculation school

AMM matriculation school

workshop conducted by spaces at jai gopal garodia , choolaimedu

Mad camp by spaces -at ECR

at shelter homes – Red hills

At vidhya school – Medavakkam

We also believe strongly that children being our future generation could do with a bit more of nature orientation instead of staring at a screen. and we need to encourage their relationship with the environment and the experiences will emerge by themselves. These are the moments to cherish.These environments often also personalize children and helps in not molding but unfolding them.

If your institution or school is also interested in creating such a space around your learning environment, please do contact us. This could also be taken up as a CSR activity conducted by your institution or corporate. We would be happy to present and share our ideas with you. Our office no is 9840830880 or you could drop in a mail at SPACES  or text us at our Facebook link- spaces.

Herbal & Kitchen Gardens At Schools

After a short snooze, we at SPACES are back with some interesting projects that we have finished in the past few months.

We had the opportunity to work with two schools who were inspired by the idea of showing their students some common, indigenous herbs and plant varieties that were available within our vicinity. The staff at one particular school specially stressed on the point about how children were completely ignorant of these plants, their existence or their use. We hope the children have been able to gain the experience we have tried to inculcate.

At AMM Matriculation School at Kotturpuram, Chennai, the available space was just the terrace and we had taken it upon ourselves to make the best use of the area. And to be able to give the children a wholesome experience at least in terms of the different species of herbal plants and its types.

Here’s a pot shot of the entire terrace herbal garden placed by us.

Here we have our creeper section of the herbs.

Our initial stage of the miniature garden-lawn-waterbody.

For Rosary Matriculation School, since we could work on the ground, we had created for them both a kitchen and a herbal garden in the assigned plot of land.  We created a pebbled pathway in between where the students could walk through and observe the various plantations which we had labelled with their scientific and local identities. Here are a few glimpses of the same.

herbs around the tree at Rosary Matriculation – by SPACES

herbal garden patch at Rosary matric – done by SPACES

a view of the entire kitchen garden patch after the seeds are sown

bitter gourd

a close up of the vegetable creeper plant

creeper of the avarai plant

ridge gourd growing stages – peerkangai

“Seeing is believing” someone has rightly said. We hope we might have helped alter these students’ outlook a bit by introducing them to the food chain!

If you believe your school needs a concept such as this to exist ,then approach SPACES at gardeningredefined.com and get your ideas implemented through us!!

Terrace Kitchen Garden @ Velachery

A kitchen garden seems to have become a buzzword of sorts.Everyone wants to try a hand at it. Not all that difficult, but not as simple as well.

In our most recent project at Velachery, our clients had already taken numerous measures to make their roof waterproof. Further more they have used special tiles which reflect the sunlight and as a result make their rooms much cooler. These may,however, not be ideal solutions for the ones who cannot afford to splurge as much.

So SPACES explored the rule of three’s here. Three important point to keep in mind while setting up any terrace garden be it kitchen or ornamental!

Step 1: Ensure there isn’t too much weight that is concentrated across your terrace, identify load bearing points of your building. Typically this will restrict you to the edges of the terrace,and maybe a small portion in the middle.

Step 2: Make sure, there is never a chance for the water to seep through the roof. Always have a base, like maybe stands(which may add weight to your terrace) or in this case, drainage cells! These light weight contraptions allow water to either evaporate or run off, never stagnate.

Step 3: A shade net is a must for your ground variety of veggies, especially for the Chennai heat. And a sound support structure for your climber veggies.

A look at the pot garden set up on the other end of their terrace.

We literally can’t wait for this wall to become all glorified by the greenery we have planted by it!

If you too feel that your home requires more greenery, approach SPACES for a quote today!!

Front Yard Garden Restoration @ Mylapore!

There is always a charm that comes along with a traditional typical south-Indian houses and SPACES were very thrilled to revamp their landscape.

The redesign of Mr.Kavithalaya Krishnan’s home, done by SPACES now beckons to be explored and admired! Mr.Krishnan’s home, even though very shady and tree-rich, had a few things missing and we decided to spruce it up and add a little of our ingenuity to it as well.

Adding a grassy patch to the ground creates a magical effect. Very welcoming and attracts the eye,,..compared to the earlier barren land. Created a green patch right in the middle of the trees along the walk-way.We managed to make a make-shift garden sit out with the logs that were discarded at his household.SPACES not only refurbished their front yard, but also created a kitchen garden at the backyard.They are now proud owners of a truly green residence at the heart of the city in Mylapore!

Garden Workshop on 27th July – A look back!

SPACES conducted a Workshop this past Sunday, the 27th July, where in Horticulture specialists, Mr.Ramakrishnan and Mr.Cheenu, were invited to give talks on various topics for beginners on the basics of starting a garden. The host guests had a lot of information and the attendees were rapt in attention only interrupting for their doubts, questions and of course the tea break!

We had in depth talks about wide range of topics in the three hours from soil type,containers to grow, organic vegetable gardening,terrace gardening,the plants and herbs. While not everyone who attended were beginners at gardening, there was something worthwhile for everyone to share. 

Here’s a glimpse of the overall half-day workshop conducted.

 

 After the event,all the attendees were given a round about of all the products at display at our store GREEN THUMBS by SPACES to make gardening more interesting.Here’s hoping success for everyone who has started a garden! 

 

 

Garden Workshop by SPACES!!

All garden enthusiasts, hop on board for a lovely half day workshop on basics of gardening by a renowned horticulturist on 26th July, 2014 at SPACES’s premises at Mylapore, Chennai.

Do follow the link below to register for the workshop.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1pTPYewvHoCHlMx9au86RCpExe_551ai__PWvRGtkyKM/viewform?usp=send_form

Do ping SPACES website, fb page or on wordpress if interested. 🙂

 

Bonsai Week!

There’s always a certain amount of awe which fills the air when people talk about Bonsais.
So.. we figured, why not have Bonsai Week. There’s much to know about different bonsais. Therefore, the lucky numero uno bonsai to be featured on our page:

Murraya Exotica.

There’s a lot of information about this particular aromatic foliage variety on the net. 

Here’s a little compilation of all the important facts about this plant.

Murraya Exotica – A bonsai variety with fragrant flowers

So this little species is available at our store Green Thumbs – part of SPACES – Gardening Redefined. Price: Rs.1000

“GREEN THUMBS” One Stop Garden Shop – Inaugural Day!!

And finally our dream shop is open.
Catch some of the glimpses of the day.

Just before the opening!

The very moment!!

Aaaaand….We’re Open!!
Performing Pooja!!Some of our guests.

Mr.Sriram, who was a rock on the day and our own Hydroponics mentor!Proud owners!!A glimpse of all our newspaper media!A little token of best wishes from everyone.

And finally, a view of our newly decorated office!! 🙂 SPACES has yet again broken an important hurdle. Owning a brand new store! Do drop in sometime, whether to gawk or buy, doesn’t matter. 🙂

 

SPACES goes viral!!

Check out our latest Advertisement!!

The Wait Is Over- Green Thumbs

The Wait is over and finally the new store is to be unveiled for everyone at Mylapore, Chennai on 26th of June.

Here’s a small glimpse of the new shop and what’s in store for everyone to view.

Green Thumbs – Your ..One Stop Garden Shop is finally ready to hit the road!