A growing demand for homegrown safe-to-eat vegetables and water scarcity caused by the worsening drought conditions in the State are encouraging a large number of urban families to take to vertical farming and micro-irrigation methods.
Kerala Agricultural University has stepped up efforts to popularise the trend. The Integrated Farming Systems Research Station under the KAU has developed an array of vertical farming models for homestead cultivation of vegetables.
The university is also encouraging farmers to switch over to water-saving methods such as drip irrigation, sprinkler systems, and wick irrigation.
“To put it simply, vertical farming is the method of cultivation in vertical stacks to maximise the available space in a cramped urban environment,” says Jacob John, professor and head, IFSRS.
The station has developed several scalable models that can be used to step up terrace cultivation of vegetables in urban and peri-urban areas.
“The model terrace garden that we had earlier developed for a three-cent house could produce on an average 250 kg of pesticide-free vegetables every year. According to the Indian Council for Medical Research, the annual requirement of vegetables for a four-member family is 300 to 350 kg. This necessitated efforts to step up the production by at least 100 kg,” says Dr. John.
Easy to install
The IFSRS came up with several low-cost structures that could be easily installed on terraces, balconies, or kitchen gardens.
“We have static and revolving models and those with detachable rain shelters and micro-irrigation systems to grow all types of vegetables throughout the year,” he says.
Citizens approaching the station for a model are provided with Auto CAD diagrams that can be fabricated at a local workshop.
A structure that can accommodate 21 grow bags and equipped with a rain shelter and drip irrigation system costs about ₹10,000 and can fit in a 1.25-sq m space.
Meanwhile, the KAU is imparting the technology for wick irrigation to farmers, urban housewives, and self-help groups.
Ideally suited for terrace cultivation of vegetables, wick irrigation (Thiri Nana in Malayalam) involves the use of a thick cotton or fibre wick inserted through the bottom of a grow bag to suck up water from a container.
Dr. John can be contacted at Ph: 9847022929.
