BIN MATLAB PANGA

 

LT COL NOEL ELLIS

 

16/II/2025

 

Have you guys ever taken a “Bin Matlab Panga” (BMP). I have. Let me elaborate.

 

Today was another day to take a BMP. If I delayed it, the consequences could be disastrous. It was time to repot my water lilies. The tubs had also become messy and needed a thorough cleansing.

 

Algae had spread. The mesh grows uncontrollably and covers the surface completely. I was worried about the fish. They cannot surface to eat due to the green goo. It was time for taking “Bin Matlab Panga”.

 

Our lilies are grown in the "pot in pot" method. A six-inch pot with no holes, filled with manure and garden soil is what a water lily bulb/tuber needs to grow. Those small pots are then immersed in a 50l tub.

 

Water lilies consume mud like hell. Once they get to the flowering stage they constantly need manure. I bury compost in newspaper sachets deep near the roots. Size & quality of flowers reveal the results.

 

Equipment needed for transplanting has to be lugged to the rooftop garden. An empty tub and bucket. A pair of scissors, a scoop, a hand towel, a tray for making the new mixture, a mug, fresh vermi compost, garden soil, and a Muddha to park your “Ram Piyari”. Of course one needs a water connection. A sieve to catch fish while draining the tub water is a must.

 

Half of the original tub water has to be retained for the fish. Sudden change in water parameters can kill them. Water is decanted and poured into an empty bucket. This water has to be sieved as foreign particles, debris, dry leaves, and algae have to be segregated.

 

Pots are fished out and inspected. First thing is to physically free the leaves from algae so that leaves can breathe freely. Then the pot is turned upside down to extract the plant out completely.

 

Chances are that the plant would have got “root bound”. A major reason for the plant’s deteriorating health. Scissors get into action to chop off all extra roots and old leaves. Tubers and bulbs multiply during dormancy. In Feb, they start developing new shoots, which would be visible as the plant is pulled out of water.

 

One has to separate the bulbs/tubers. From one plant, you may get two new plants, if not more. They would be distributed to friends.

 

Rest of the roots need to be freed of mud sticking to the sides. For that, a strong jet of water helps. Now the bulb with freshly sprouting leaves is ready to be replanted.

 

Every pot has to be inspected. Roots put pressure and tear them. One of them had a slit with roots hanging out. Therefore, new pots without bottom holes also have to be kept handy. I had leftover pots from last year.

 

Fish have to be transferred with care. To my surprise there were dragonfly larvae too. Some naughty fish tend to jump off out of fear. If one is not alert, they can make their way to the drain. I caught two trying to go on liberty without an outpass.

 

Three inches of vermicompost at the bottom, followed by three inches of garden soil is the initial layering. This mixture has to be soaked in water or else when immersed in the tub, mud dissipates and dirties the water. Muddy water becomes another panga to tackle.

 

Before the pots are replaced in the tub, it is time to scrub the mother tub with a scrubber. Algae sticking to the bottom and sides has to be removed giving a fresher and cleaner look. My wife didn’t see me “manjoing the bhandas” (Cleaning the utensils) or else the maid would have been terminated.

 

Then the bulb/tuber is replanted. The remaining space on top is filled with clay. Clay ensures no dirt rises up.

 

Old water along with the fish are now poured back in the mother tub. It is also time to inspect the fish. I found a few “loaded” that are about to give birth. Fish were redistributed to keep their numbers balanced.

 

Then, the tubs are topped up with normal tap water with a hosepipe.  The water has to rise in the tub very gradually or it unsettles the freshly planted lily. Leaving an inch or so from the top of the tub, the panga gets done and dusted.

 

One learning from the Army life has helped me. At the end of a day we used to carry out the ‘last parade’. All tools and equipment are cleaned and neatly stacked. This I still follow. It helps me to get into action fast.

 

This was only one tub and two pots. I have seventeen more tubs to go. Will this BMP ever get over? I wonder!!!!!!

 

JAI HIND

©® NOEL ELLIS