Meet Manasi Dunakhe—The Pune Techie Who Transformed Her Tiny Balcony Into A Thriving 500-Plant Jungle!

As urban skylines grow taller, we find ourselves drifting farther from nature. Our lives are increasingly confined to the walls of compact apartments, making our houseplants our closest connection to the outdoors. With a longing for greenery, we turn to balconies and terraces, which are often our only spaces to create a little oasis of nature.

These tiny bundles of joy keep us sane on the most difficult days. While we hear many stories of people creating huge gardens in their houses, a techie in Pune has created a mini jungle in her small balcony with a whopping 500 plants.

Her journey started in 2018

Working as a data scientist in IT for the last 15 years, somewhere along the way, Manasi Dunakhe in Pune realized the dream she always had—a quiet dream—to have a small garden of her own. And 2018 was the year when it finally happened when she moved into her own house.

She started her plant journey with a lot of excitement, but it didn’t go the way she had imagined. “The plants I brought home from the nursery looked great at first, but most didn’t survive. It was discouraging. I realized I needed to unlearn and relearn a lot,” she said.

During the COVID-19 lockdown, she returned to gardening more seriously. “With so much uncertainty and stress, this became my way of coping. I started studying the basics—understood how soil, drainage, light, and plant needs actually work—and slowly, things started growing,” she added.

After COVID, what began as a hobby turned into something far more meaningful for Manasi. In those unpredictable times of COVID, her plants and the hobby kept her grounded. “Even now, gardening gives me a sense of calm and clarity. It slows me down, teaches patience, and gives me something to return to when everything else feels overwhelming,” Manasi added as she dearly spoke about her plants.

Her favorite plants

Manasi, who now cares for over 500 plants, gave a list of her favorite plants, which includes philodendrons, monstera, thunbergia, tillandsia, dieffenbachia, fiddle leaf fig, radermachera, pothos, calathea, ferns, lilies, mogra, bougainvillea, and ranjani.

When asked about how she manages mosquitoes in her small apartment with so many plants, she said, “Of course, with so many plants—especially in a city—mosquitoes can be an issue. I’ve found that neem oil sprays with Azadirachtin help a lot, especially when used regularly. They keep not just plant pests in check but also help control mosquito breeding without using any harsh chemicals.”

“I truly believe everyone should try growing something. It doesn’t need to be a big garden—even a few pots on a windowsill can bring you joy, calm, and a surprising sense of connection,” she concluded.