Balcony Garden in Mumbai

Railing planters on a sea-facing or high-floor balcony are fixed with stronger brackets than an inland balcony needs, since coastal gusts, and the occasional heavy monsoon storm, put more sideways load on a hanging planter here than in a sheltered inland courtyard.

Plain metal fittings pit and corrode faster on these balconies too, so we specify powder-coated or plastic-coated hardware for any balcony within a few kilometres of the coast, rather than the plain steel that would be fine further inland.

Heat and light through the hottest months

A west-facing balcony catches the harshest sun of the year in May and June, when daytime highs reach the mid-thirties, so we place a shade net or position taller plants to break the afternoon light rather than leaving smaller pots exposed to it directly.

Once the monsoon sets in around 10 June, the same balcony often needs the opposite adjustment, moving delicate pots back from an open railing that would otherwise take direct, driving rain for weeks at a stretch.

Planting for Ganesh Chaturthi from the balcony

Red hibiscus, known locally as jaswand and one of the two offerings the festival calls for, is also a reliable flowering shrub for a sunny Mumbai balcony through most of the year, which is why several households ask us to include it specifically ahead of Ganesh Chaturthi rather than buying cut stems each year.

Durva grass, the second offering used in the same worship, grows easily in a small pot or planter and can be kept going year-round with minimal care, giving a household its own supply rather than a one-off festival purchase.