The horticulture department in the Nilgiris is helping to pave the way for farmers to adopt floriculture, with the department successfully demonstrating to farmers how they can grow and sell carnation flowers ( Dianthus caryophyllus ) in the district.
The horticulture department said that the initiative to grow carnations in the Nilgiris was undertaken to encourage farmers to diversify, from monoculture farming, to switch to less intensive farming practices, like floriculture.
“Increasingly, soil fertility is being lost in the Nilgiris due to intensive, chemical fertilizer-based farming, leading to farmers being susceptible to huge financial losses,” said an official from the horticulture department. As a result, the department is trying to convince farmers to adopt floriculture and more sustainable forms of agriculture, to limit input costs and also help top soils recover.
Speaking to The Hindu, the Joint Director of Horticulture, Nilgiris district, Sivasubramaniam Samraj, said that a plot to showcase to farmers how to grow carnations successfully was set up at the horticulture complex in Charring Cross. “Farmers can visit here, and learn about the best practices to adopt, so that floriculture farms can flourish,” said Mr. Samraj.
The department is also selling the carnation flowers grown at their farms to the public.
While carnations being sold by private firms cost anywhere between ₹ 8 – 10 per flower, the flowers sold by the department cost only ₹ 3-5, depending on the season, officials said. “We encourage schools, and the public who need flowers for decorating halls or buildings during festivities to approach us to buy flowers. This will encourage farmers in the district too to diversify the forms of agriculture that they are currently pursuing,” an official said.
