Grower’s Corner

Notes from the Indian kitchen garden

Practical guides for growing Indian vegetables, herbs, and chillies in California kitchen gardens. Seasonal notes, seed-starting advice, and real-life lessons from our garden.

These guides draw from the crops we grow in our California garden and the seed varieties we offer at Masala Central.

Featured guides

Start with a few practical guides for warm-season kitchen gardens.

Kashmiri chili on the plant

Growing Chillies from Seed

Seed starting, variety selection, and practical growing advice for Indian mirchi varieties in California gardens.

Bottle gourd hanging from the vine

Indian Summer Cucurbits

Bottle gourd, ridge gourd, cucumbers, and other warm-season climbers you can grow from seed for the kitchen garden.

Fresh coriander leaves

Growing Kitchen Herbs

Tulsi, dhaniya, methi, dill, and other everyday herbs you can grow from seed for the kitchen garden.

Green tomatoes ripening on the vine

Grow Tomatoes from Seed

Practical guidance for starting tomatoes, raising sturdy seedlings, and choosing productive varieties for warm-season gardens.

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Jump to a crop or garden theme.

Beans and LegumesChilliesEdible Flowers and OrnamentalsEggplant and TomatoesGourds and CurcurbitsIndian HerbsIndian VegetablesLeafy Greens

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Recent notes, practical guides, and seasonal lessons from the garden.

Okra flower and fruit.

Growing Okra

Okra is not a shoulder-season plant. It is not something you squeeze in before the heat arrives. Okra waits for summer a…

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