🥬 Edibles Encyclopedia • Hindi & English • Free
Edibles Encyclopedia खाद्य पौधों की पूरी जानकारी — Hindi और English में
Vegetables, fruits and herbs — complete growing guides, nutrition, harvest time and Indian kitchen uses
Chilli / Mirch
मिर्च
Capsicum annuum / C. frutescens / C. chinense
Chilli / Mirch — India's largest produced spice. Perennial — ratoon for 3-5 years! More sun = more heat. Green has 270% RDA Vitamin C. Bhut Jolokia to Kashmiri — all covered.
🌱 Jan-Feb (summer) | May-June (kharif) | Sept-Oct (rabi)
⏱️ 60-90 days green | 90-120 days red/ripe
Lemon / Nimbu
नींबू
Citrus aurantifolia (Kagzi lime) | C. limon (true lemon) | C. sinensis (sweet lime)
Lemon / Nimbu — squeeze on every iron-rich meal (3-6x absorption boost!). One container tree = family's year-round needs. Drought stress triggers flowering. Kagzi > imported yellow.
🌱 Feb-March or June-July | Grafted | Near year-round fruiting
⏱️ Grafted: 2-3 years | 300-800 fruits/year mature tree
Ashwagandha / Indian Ginseng
अश्वगंधा
Withania somnifera
Ashwagandha — less water + poor soil = MORE withanolides! Cortisol -32%, Testosterone +22% (clinical). Rajasthan conditions ideal. Berries mildly toxic. Thyroid medication — monitor.
🌱 June-July or Feb-March | Direct sow | 6-8 months root harvest
⏱️ 6-8 months from seed — annual. Leaves yellow = harvest signal.
Brinjal / Baingan
बैंगन
Solanum melongena
Brinjal / Baingan — India's own native vegetable (4000+ years). Shoot & fruit borer = #1 pest. Eat with skin — nasunin brain antioxidant. Ratoon for 2-3 seasons.
🌱 Year-round South India | Jan-Feb + May-Jun North India
⏱️ 70-90 days from transplant — continuous harvest
Papaya / Papita
पपीता
Carica papaya
Papaya / Papita — fastest fruit (9-12 months from seed!). Plant 5 seedlings, remove males. AVOID raw papaya in pregnancy. Leaf juice for dengue (clinically studied). Seeds = antiparasitic.
🌱 March-June from seed or seedling | Year-round tropical areas
⏱️ 9-12 months from seed — fastest common fruit! | 3-5 years productive
Brahmi / Bacopa
ब्राह्मी
Bacopa monnieri (true brahmi) — NOT Centella asiatica (South India brahmi)
Brahmi (Bacopa) — grows in WATER TROUGH (near-100% success!). NOT the same as South India brahmi (Centella). 12 weeks for memory benefit — patience. Fish tank growing possible. Daily 5-10 leaves.
🌱 Year-round from cuttings | Water trough propagation near-100% success
⏱️ Continuous from established plant | Grows in water containers
Okra / Bhindi
भिंडी
Abelmoschus esculentus
Okra / Bhindi — harvest at exactly 5-7 cm (one extra day = woody). India's largest okra producer. Mucilage manages blood sugar. YVMV-resistant varieties only.
🌱 Feb-June (summer) | June-July (monsoon)
⏱️ 50-65 days from sowing
Pomegranate / Anar
अनार
Punica granatum
Pomegranate / Anar — peel has 3x red wine antioxidants (dry it, never throw!). Most drought-tolerant fruit tree. 5,000 year Indian history. Cutting propagation easy. Mahashtra = world #1.
🌱 Feb-March or June-July | Cutting propagation 70-80% success
⏱️ Cutting: 2-3 years | 50-150 fruits/year mature tree
Giloy / Guduchi
गिलोय / गुडूची / अमृता
Tinospora cordifolia
Giloy / Guduchi — "Amrita" (nectar of immortality). Plant near NEEM = Neem-Giloy (most potent!). Virtually unkillable. Dengue platelet support clinically studied. Autoimmune: caution.
🌱 Year-round from stem cutting | Plant near NEEM for maximum potency!
⏱️ Pencil-thick mature green stems | Continuous perennial harvest
Showing 9 of 75 edibles
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