A workshop on ‘Organic Gardening in Cities’ organised by The Sustainable Urban Bio-Dynamic Horticulture and Agriculture Movement (SUBHAM) and Kasturba Nagar Residents Association, Adyar, was held on recently.
G. Venkataramani, an agriculture communication specialist, inaugurated the workshop, and spoke on ‘How green is your garden?’
“Organic farming was the first type of agriculture, prevalent during our ancestors’ time. With growing urbanisation, and mushrooming of high-rise apartments, people can cultivate their own organic garden in the comfort of home,” G. Venkataramani said.
You can grow your own vegetables and flowers in pots, containers and tubs in terrace or balcony making the green landscape area cool, removing carbon footprint and conserving energy.
Organic gardening costs less, yields more benefits. It cleans up the pollution, absorbs carbon-di-oxide, gives clean oxygen, he added.
In western countries, home gardening is used as a stress-buster therapy. Waste materials can be recycled effectively in organic gardening. Many people think organic gardening is a costly affair, but it is not so. It helps in mitigating the effects of climate change, which is the need of the hour, Venkataramani pointed out.
G. Ramakrishnan, former Joint Director, Department of Agriculture, Government of Tamil Nadu, spoke on ‘Organic Vegetable Cultivation on Roof Tops in Cities’. In his address, he advised the gathering to raise their own terrace garden.
“Terrace gardening helps to burn excessive calories, and acts as a source of organic food. Recycling of vegetable waste can be used as a manure for terrace garden. It is easy to have an own terrace garden, provided you have the passion and interest to make your terrace a beautiful organic garden,” he said.
A demonstration on preparing ‘Vermi Composting at Home’ was held by Syed Nasar and Abdul Jaleel, Assistant Professors, The New College. Technical sessions on ‘Utilisation of Domestic Water for the Gardens’ by Dr. Sekhar Raghavan, Director, Rain Centre, Chennai, ‘Preparation of Organic Formulations as Pesticides and Nutrients’ by Dr. N. Dayanandam, former Joint Director, Department of Agriculture, Government of Tamil Nadu, and ‘Advantages of Organic Vegetables in our Diet’ by G. Thyagarajan, an Organic Agronomist, were held as part of the workshop.
The workshop was held at Kasturba Nagar Residents Association Auditorium.
