A garden blooms in the hills

Neha Kirpal

As you reach the small hamlet of Mashobra, 10 km from the hustle and bustle of the state capital Shimla, you walk by a quaint trail off the main road. Suddenly, you are struck by the beauty of the Garden Resort at Sabina Orchard tucked away in a corner, with trees laden with apple blossoms, passages lined with white roses and lush green lawns fenced with hydrangeas. Just when you thought that there can’t be a sight more awe-inspiring, you are stuck by the magnificence of  an old cottage. 

Built in 1991 over an acre of land, the house was earlier an orchard of apple trees that were planted by the British. Its seemingly unassuming owner, Saroj Malhotra, has been a resident of Shimla ever since she was a young student at the city’s Convent of Jesus and Mary, when her father, an IAS officer, was posted here. The minute she starts talking about gardening, her eyes light up. It’s a passion that began in her childhood and got a further boost when she married her botanist husband.

 Their garden comprises a collection of plants and trees from across the world. She and her husband were also the first ones to grow tulips in the area. These are in full bloom every March. The garden won her, for the 17th year in a row, the award for Best Garden (small category) in Shimla region, given by the Shimla Amateur Garden & Environment Society.

The boundary of the garden blooms with creeper roses, wisteria and clematis. Also, there are cherry and apricots trees covering a large part of the garden’s area. Several rare varieties that grow only in the mountains, such as the daffodils, alstroemeria, fuchsia, clivia, columbine, begonia, wood rose and Asiatic lily from Australia bedeck the green canvas with colours. 

Incidentally, it was this communion with nature and gardening that inspired Malhotra to start writing poetry. Her collection of English and Hindi poems based on Mashobra has been published as Perceptions. She has been an ardent member of Sages, a conglomerate of garden lovers working for the environment, ever since it was founded. The organisation holds an annual flower show and encourages people to grow more plants and trees in the region. She is also a member of the All-India Kitchen Garden Association. She shares her views on gardening through a regular column in the association’s affiliate magazine. 

 While you want to behold every sight around, you must also realise everything comes at a price. The couple has built a greenhouse, boasting mostly of geraniums and other varieties of plants, where the bulbs remain protected from the harsh hail and snow. Further, many trees have to be covered so that monkeys do not peck the fruits. One of her poems, Woes of an Apple Grower, talks about such challenges.

Malhotra says she is now trying to follow the organic route by minimising the use of pesticides and other chemicals. For this, she has begun storing all kitchen peels in bottles of water datewise. After about two months, the mixture liquefies and can be used as an enzyme for plants. “When snails started eating strawberries, I decided to put some red chilli powder over the plant; it also works as a natural enzyme for them,” she says. She brings along much of her gardening equipment from Delhi and vitamin tablets for the plants are sourced from Singapore.

Malhotra spends the months between May and October at the cottage and goes to Delhi in winter. But even when she is not present there, she is working full-time, planning the new green additions for the new season.