On a drizzly day, if sitting on the windowsill and sipping a steaming cup of coffee interests you, Nelli Prasuna likes to disappear into the garden to tend to her world of plants.
Soiling her feet and plucking the vegetables that she has grown in the bungalow premises, aptly christened as ‘Van Vihar’, she says that from just a hobby, gardening has become a part of her life.
The backyard of her mansion, stretching close to four acres, houses a variety of vegetables such as brinjals, rig-gourds, bottle-gourds, leafy vegetables, plantains and bananas.
Immense satisfaction
Ms. Prasuna says that her husband, Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests N. Prateep Kumar, has been supportive in guiding her to use the right texture of soil and quality vermicompost to grow organic vegetables. “It took me three months of groundwork for the first harvest. A full-fledged garden needs a lot of planning and organising,” says the homemaker.
From sourcing quality seeds to sowing them, personally tending the plants to distributing the produce to workers and neighbours along with promoting organic food in a big way, Ms. Prasuna pays personal attention to every step of gardening. “I derive immense satisfaction in the process. The more we consume organic food; the better will be our health. Moreover, it is an effective workout and an excellent relaxation technique,” she says.
The harvest not only caters to Ms. Prasuna’s kitchen needs but also to a number of staff members.
“Earlier, this backyard was dotted with snake pits and weeds. Today, the same place has beds of coriander leaves, spinach, tomatoes, mint, bachala and other varieties that will yield not less than 200 kg. Sustained efforts help in understanding the technicalities of gardening.
For instance, the kind of soil required for assorted vegetables.
Over a period of time, we will come to know scientific farming dynamics,” adds Ms. Prasuna, who spends four to five hours a day in her garden.
Nelli Prasuna says from just a hobby, gardening has become a part of her life
