Man with a mission
In two years, S. Natarajan, a retired agricultural officer, has motivated and trained over 200 people in Madurai to create gardens on their rooftops or balconies. It is a good start, he feels, even if it is begins with just a single pot. Growing vegetables at home shows that the movement is here to stay. “We should grow food and not ornamental lawns,” he says and believes housewives are the most effective agents of change in this green initiative.
When Natarajan started his own terrace garden after retirement in 2013, his wife — a Nursing Superintendent at the Government Rajaji Hospital — was the first to support him. “After the initial investment for trays, bags, seeds and manure, all I have given is an hour’s time daily and look what I get in return,” he says, pointing towards his 1500sqft rooftop.
Divided into two parts, one 750sqft has a green shed to grow seedlings in pro-trays. He transfers the saplings into small polybags and sells them at Rs.5 each. “I make it a point to talk, to explain and also give a sapling in order to create awareness.” In the remaining area, he grows plants in large trays and hydroponic bags and enjoys the yield round the year.
Natarajan grows green chillies, beans, lady’s finger, tomatoes, brinjal, drumstick, spinach and a variety of other greens. A bag of 5kg soil yields half to one kilo of vegetables within three months, while greens can be harvested every 30-40 days. Natarajan also runs a Agri Clinic and Business Centre, near the new bus stand, where he sells DIY kits and other supplies related to organic terrace farming. According to him, students and youths need to be drawn into the culture of terrace gardening because their generation will face shortage of space and water. “If more people take this up as a hobby, it will not only add to food production but everyone will also get to eat nutritious, tasty and healthy food,” he says, hoping that the State Government’s 50 per cent subsidy in supplies for organic terrace gardening will come to Madurai soon.
Better late than never
The desire to eat pesticide-free food and the plethora of articles on organic farming prompted Archana Deiva, a lecturer at the K.L.N.Polytechnic College, to start her own terrace garden. And, that was two years before 36 Vaiyadhinile released, she smiles.
Today she strongly believes there will truly come a time when only those who know how to plant will be eating. And that is why she has started a group called “Gather2Garden” (G2G) to promote the message that it is not too late to grow.
As a starter she began with growing the easiest – the greens – on 300 sq feet available space on her terrace. In less than a month, I got fresh green spinach and planted raddish next. That came in 45 days, she narrates. Then she bought more trays and now grows ladies fingers, chillies, brinjal, tomatoes round the year. Creeper plants such as snake gourd can be grown based on the appropriate weather conditions, she says.
Archana gets the harvest twice a week and it is enough for her own consumption. “My mother says vegetables grown in my terrace garden taste like what she used to eat in her childhood 50 years ago!” she says.
But what she is interested in is to get more people into growing their own food. I find the senior citizens are quite familiar with the basics of gardening. Young housewives who are lethargic and youngsters who grow up in apartments unaware about nature have to be motivated, she says.
Installing and maintaining your own terrace garden is like diverting yourself to doing exercise to keep fit,” says Archana, who conducts workshops, educates students and provides packages to set up organic gardens in available space. On an average she does two installations per week. Since January, her G2G has got 100 members and she uses the forum to inspire more people to grow and consume fresh and organic produce.
Quick tips
Cocopith is the buzzword in organic farming today. Coconut dust purchased from coconut fibre-making units is added to the manure. It replaces soil and needs less water but holds water 10 times more than its weight.
Terrace gardens are successful with kitchen waste but it has to be properly processed. Composting needs to be done with cow dung. Cow urine is one of the best pesticides.
The DIY kits range from Rs.500 to 5,000 depending on the quantity of soil, manure, size of bag and seedlings.
To begin with, greens are easy to grow, high in yield, and will give you the confidence to continue.
Vegetables like chillies, brinjal, tomatoes and capsicum can be grown all-year roundMedicinal plants and herbs like basil, lemongrass, sage, and mint can be grown in limited spaces Source seeds and organic soil supplements with care and learn about organic pest-control techniques Growing in urban spaces educates people that food can be grown and not just bought.
