🥬 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
Bottle Gourd / Lauki
लौकी / घिया
Lagenaria siceraria
Bottle Gourd / Lauki — ALWAYS TASTE before cooking (bitter = toxic cucurbitacins). 10,000 year ancient crop. 96% water, 15 kcal. Hand pollinate for fruit set. Trellis recommended.
🌱 Feb-March (summer) | June-July (monsoon)
⏱️ 55-75 days from sowing
Dragon Fruit / Pitaya
ड्रैगन फ्रूट / कमलम
Selenicereus undatus (white) | S. costaricensis (red flesh)
Dragon Fruit / Kamalam — it's a CACTUS (never overwater!). Hand pollinate the ONE night flower opens — set alarm! Dry cutting 5-7 days before planting. 4-6 crops/year. Gujarat = Kamalam.
🌱 Year-round (cactus) | Cutting propagation — dry end 5-7 days before planting!
⏱️ 12-18 months from cutting | 4-6 crops per year!
Peppermint / Vilayati Pudina
पेपरमिंट / विलायती पुदीना
Mentha × piperita (natural hybrid — M. aquatica × M. spicata)
Peppermint — 40-55% menthol (vs spearmint 0.5%). NEVER for infants. Keep SEPARATE from spearmint (hybridize). IBS = comparable to antispasmodics. Headache = comparable to paracetamol.
🌱 From cuttings only (sterile hybrid) | ALWAYS separate from spearmint
⏱️ Before flowering — peak menthol 40-55%. Keep SEPARATE from spearmint!
Bitter Gourd / Karela
करेला
Momordica charantia
Bitter Gourd / Karela — most researched diabetes vegetable (charantin + polypeptide-p). Harvest GREEN only. Red seeds TOXIC. Bitterness = health — don't remove all of it.
🌱 Feb-March (summer) | June-July (monsoon)
⏱️ 55-70 days — harvest GREEN only, never yellow
Amla / Indian Gooseberry
आँवला
Phyllanthus emblica (syn. Emblica officinalis)
Amla — 10-20x more Vitamin C than orange! ONLY fruit whose Vitamin C survives cooking. 70-100 year tree. Hair growth + blood sugar proven. Supplement can't replicate whole amla.
🌱 June-July or Feb-March | Grafted plant essential
⏱️ Grafted: 3-5 years | Oct-Feb harvest | Tree life: 70-100 years
Rosemary
रोज़मेरी
Salvia rosmarinus (formerly Rosmarinus officinalis)
Rosemary — memory improves just from SMELLING it (room study!). Hair = minoxidil comparable (RCT). Terracotta pot ONLY. Never cut old wood. Overwatering = #1 killer. 15-20 year perennial.
🌱 From cuttings | Sept-Nov or Feb-March | NEVER cut old woody stems
⏱️ First: 6-8 weeks from cutting | Perennial 15-20 years
Cucumber / Kheera
खीरा / ककड़ी
Cucumis sativus
Cucumber / Kheera — India native (Himalayan origin!). 96% water, 11°C cooler than air. Eat with skin. Consistent watering = non-bitter fruit. Kakdi = sweeter desi type.
🌱 Feb-March (summer) | June-July (monsoon)
⏱️ 45-60 days from sowing
Jackfruit / Kathal
कटहल
Artocarpus heterophyllus
Jackfruit / Kathal — world's largest tree fruit (50 kg!). India native Western Ghats. Raw = vegan meat. Oil your hands before cutting (latex!). Seeds = 7g protein — never throw.
🌱 June-July (monsoon) | Grafted or fresh seed | Large tree 8-20m
⏱️ Grafted: 3-5 years | 100-200 fruits/year | 5-50 kg per fruit!
Thyme
थाइम / अजवायन पत्ता
Thymus vulgaris (common) | T. citriodorus (lemon thyme)
Thyme — Thymol = Listerine's active ingredient! Similar to ajwain flavor. Poor lean soil = MORE thymol. Flowers edible. Cough: Bronchipret RCT. More heat-tolerant than rosemary.
🌱 Cuttings or seed | Sept-Nov or Feb-April | Terracotta pot
⏱️ First: 6-8 weeks | Perennial 3-5 years | Just before flowering = peak thymol
Showing 9 of 75 edibles
🌐 Explore DotIAM Network
Our other free platforms you'll love