Abu Dhabi couple grow food forest in desert backyard

Abu Dhabi - The garden in the home of Advaita Sharma and his wife Prachi in Khalifa City A has about 500 plants of more than 30 different types.

From a small barren land in their backyard in Abu Dhabi, an Indian couple has grown a food forest — teeming with a variety of fruits and vegetables, from melon to spinach, sweet corn and even taro.

Advaita Sharma and his wife Prachi just wanted to eat clean and live green, so when they moved from Dubai to Abu Dhabi in April, they started an agricultural project that could give them bountiful harvests of all-natural food.

“We are a vegetarian family and my wife is pregnant. So, we wanted healthy food stuff with no chemicals. I am also keen on reducing the organic waste going to the landfills. So, we are composting all the food wastes at our home and using it in the food forest,” said 34-year-old Sharma, who is a sustainability and green decor consultant at Urban Lifestyle Redefined.

The couple’s lush garden in Khalifa City A is now home to about 500 plants of more than 30 different types. In just two months, their 24sqm backyard is a forest of fruits and vegetables. They have watermelon, honeydew melon, Piel de Sapo melon, papaya plant, mango plant, as well as eggplants, sweet corn, sweet potato, yam, garlic, leek, chilli, onion springs, amarnath leaves — you name it.

They are also growing some moong lentils, spinach, Zirzir (rocket leaves), carrot, micro-greens, and herbs like mint, lemongrass, rosemary, paper-mint, holy basil (Tulsi), sweet basil, Thai basil, curry leaves; beneficial plants and trees like Aloe Vera, Neem tree, snake plant; and flowers like Mexican Ruellia and hibiscus.

Sharma said around 80 per cent of their plants were grown from seeds and through sustainable methods. They follow the ‘forest gardening’ technique, which originated from the southern part of India and explained to the world by English horticulturist Robert Hart.

“It’s like working with the nature rather against it, in a way a forest grows with different layers to it — canopy, sub canopy, small trees, shrubs, climbers, ground cover and tubers. We have also combined techniques like Miyawaki forest, companion farming, and permaculture together,” said the Indian expat.

ismail@khaleejtimes.com