What happens to your beloved balcony plants when you travel for weeks? For many in Navi Mumbai, the answer is Divya Shukla’s innovative Plant Sitting service, a unique offering by her all-women team that rescues, rejuvenates, and returns plants while their owners are away.

“People’s balconies and grills often have plants that need care, but no one to tend to them,” says Shukla, founder of Roots & Trunk Nursery. “That’s how the idea of Plant Sitting came about.”

Her team of eight women, ranging from young enthusiasts to middle-aged experts, collects plants from homes, nurtures them at the nursery, and delivers them back, thriving. “We train women in everything from pruning to understanding manure. Now, they’re experts with every variety of plant,” she adds.

Shukla’s love for nature began with a degree in B.Sc Agriculture and blossomed into a lush terrace garden in Navi Mumbai. Thirteen years ago, she turned her passion into a profession, setting up Roots & Trunk Nursery in Kopar Khairane. What started as a small venture offering garden maintenance, vertical gardens, and landscaping soon expanded, despite challenges.

The 2020 lockdown hit hard, just after she expanded to Kharghar. “I had invested heavily, but I was determined,” she recalls. Undeterred, Shukla pivoted to home deliveries and remote plant care, earning trust and growing her team to 42 gardeners.

Today, her all-women Plant Sitting team is a testament to her commitment to both greenery and gender empowerment. “I encourage women who want to work, whether young or middle-aged, to join us. Working with plants brings them joy and expertise,” Shukla says.

Shukla’s story stands out: a woman who turned adversity into opportunity, nurtured a green business, and created livelihoods for others, all while keeping Navi Mumbai’s plants alive and thriving.