QUETTA/BALOCHISTAN: The first thing that one notices when they step into Muhammad Asif Mengal’s “Small Paradise” in Quetta is the long rows of succulents, cascading vines, cacti and several other plants placed on well-lit shelves.
Mengal, a 38-year-old horticulturist in Pakistan’s southwestern Quetta city, has turned the upper portion of his home into a garden. It covers an area of 1,600 square feet within his house.
Mengal decided to transform the upper portion of his house into a huge garden when the coronavirus pandemic’s restrictions impacted life and socialization in Pakistan in 2020.
As the government imposed a lockdown, Mengal had an idea: with the outside world shuttered for the most part, why not turn his home into a place where he could spend quality time?
“So, I thought that why shouldn’t I make a small paradise in my home for myself and my family,” Mengal told Arab News.
Muhammad Asif Mengal checks his plants in his fancy garden in Quetta, Pakistan, on June 05, 2026. (AN Photo)
That small paradise is now a huge portion in his home that houses pelargonium, succulents, cacti and several other plants. Placed on well-lit shelves, they are kept in decorative pots of ceramic, glass and marble.
“I have countless plants and flowers, but my favorites are pelargonium and succulents which I have imported from Italy and Turkiye because they are not available in Pakistan,” Mengal said.
The horticulturist spent six years nurturing his passion for plants and flowers, recalling that for a period of seven months, he worked day and night to build his garden.
“In today’s fast-paced Internet age, I often spend hours, even entire nights among my flowers and plants without feeling any regret,” he said.
Opening such a green space in Balochistan, a land that features a mostly a rugged terrain and dusty climate was always a cumbersome task. Mengal knew his plants would require plenty of ventilation and sunlight.
For that, he built a removable glass rooftop with windows for ventilation and for his plants to get ample sunlight.
When asked how much the endeavor cost, Mengal said somewhere in the millions. However, he brushed aside the value of money when compared to the mental peace the garden brings him.
Muhammad Asif Mengal aerates a plant in his fancy garden in Quetta, Pakistan, on June 05, 2026. (AN Photo)
“I have no intention of selling these plants,” he clarified. “Instead, I want to keep expanding my collection and acquire even more varieties of plants and flowers.”
Lisa Gerani, who lives in Italy’s Turin city, is a collector of the pelargonium flower. She visited Mengal’s garden in 2025 and hailed him for promoting the Italian flower in Pakistan.
“I really love Asif’s garden and his collection of pelargoniums,” she told Arab News. “I also appreciated his other collection and display of plants.”
Mengal said Gerani has 1,100 colors of pelargonium flowers, while he only has 300.
“During her visit to Quetta, she even named two of my plants after my children: Sheez and Emaan,” he recalled.
’NEW SENSE OF LIFE’
Since the garden was completed in mid-2025, Mengal has opened his collection of plants and flowers to the public. He now uses the area as a massive guest room for his family and friends.
Muhammad Hasim, 40, is an admirer and regular visitor.
“We come here almost every day with other friends, we sit here and talk to enjoy the atmosphere that is incredibly peaceful,” Hasim told Arab News.
“In summer, it is a relaxing place because it stays cool and after watering the flowers, their fragrance fills the air.”
Mengal believes years of tending to his favorite plants and flowers have created a unique understanding between the two of them.
The horticulturist said he understands when his plants now require more shade, water, or treatment for a particular disease.
“A relationship with flowers and plants gives a person a new sense of life,” he said.
