I am brimming with pride. I am now a gardener par excellence. See the fruits of labour in our little patch? It could be argued (with merit of course!) that I did nothing towards the venture other than provide a square foot of land in the garden.

However, my links to the greatest feats of gardening are close. I had a friend in School, whose parents won the Annual Best Garden of the Year award in the Nilgiris Flower Show for many years in a row. I have walked in that garden and admired the roses. I am an authority when it comes to admiring flowers. Like art patrons are essential to Art, folks like me are essential to gardeners, what?!

If plants could move, I have no doubts that they would have happily fled my backyard in search of wetter pastures. In fact, I firmly believe that the untimely showers which wreck a day in the park for some are because my plants yearned for water.

I am not an insensitive person- far from it, just forgetful. If I heard the grumbling, I would have been on top of the case, watered them to floods and generally nursed them till they yearned to be left alone. As it turns out, these lovely trees and plants are remarkably quiet. So, I have gone for days, letting an apricot wilt away wistfully, while the pines in the backyard nearby shed their dew on this tree to keep it from shutting down. I know a phenomenal amount about insects in plants (that is to say, I can see them sometimes, but don’t know what to do beyond that)

For this tomato though, the seed was planted by the youngest, and the water fountains were turned on the by the eldest in the household. I am the proud presenter of the rich tomato – completely organic, since I know nothing of sprays or fertilizers.