Cultivating Hope English

Ist Edition
2023
Cultivating Hope
Edited by
Deborah Dutta & Amrita Hazra
disclaimer:
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2 / Cultivating Hope
Foreword
T he pandemic, apart from exposing people to the virus, also laid bare the
broken food system held together only by excessive dependence on fossil fuels
and skewed market forces. However, as the supply chains became dysfunctional,
communities also saw a surge in kitchen garden initiatives. ‘Lockdown’ edible
gardens in urban areas started gaining popularity, as people were driven by various
motivations to experiment with growing food. The practice offers potentially
revolutionary ways of reimagining the structure and function of cities. Far from
being a novelty, growing food in small spaces were the mainstay of many residential
areas, until modern city-planning created physical and structural barriers to utilise
areas for growing food.
In recent years, the practice has become increasingly popular for a variety of
reasons ranging from concerns for food security, urban biodiversity, recreational
spaces and so on. As urbanisation continues to grow at a rapid pace, urban farming
can become a crucial tool in re-imagining our relationship with the immediate
environment. On the other hand, increasingly erratic weather patterns, combined
with excessive dependence on fossil fuels to grow and transport food over thousands
of kilometres has made an average farmer’s work extremely challenging. With the
loss of traditional farming knowledge, and support of local community, they are
forced to buy seeds, pesticides, and fertilizers, often falling into vicious cycles
of debt when crops fail due to weather. The indiscriminate use of pesticides on
large monocultures decreases the fertility of the soil, thereby requiring even more
chemical input. The actual situation is more complicated due to influence of short-
sighted policies, market forces and local politics. The result is a massive loss to local
biodiversity and negative impact to the health of all living beings.
Apart from easing the pressure on rural land and resources, urban farming
practices offer a promising way to rebuild our connection to food, through
local production and consumption. We can bring back the traditional farming
knowledge, while exploring creative methods in smaller spaces. Farming can be a
way to bring communities closer. Through food gardens, we can enrich the local
biodiversity, and more importantly appreciate the joy and reciprocity of tending
to the soil. Cities are conventionally seen as a source of numerous environmental
issues. We can change that narrative, and it can all start with a handful of soil.
The stories and themes shared in this handbook illustrate ways to start your own
food garden, no matter where you are, and to involve the local community as well.
We hope these ideas and thoughts inspire you to begin your journey of building
equitable and regenerative cities where both present and future generations can
flourish.
Cultivating Hope / 3
Table of contents
Sustainable Food Systems: An introduction / 6

Educational Possibilities of growing some of our own food / 10
Part 1 Journeys in growing food
1. Homegrown harvests: Bringing food security to an educational campus /15

- Shantu Pindoriya
2. Learning as living – Life lessons from my journey of growing food / 20
- Samira Mukherjee
3. From resistance to resilience: The journey of connecting girls’ education to food
sovereignty / 27
- Suvarna Latha
4. Gardens as community learning spaces / 30
- Christopher Pareira
5. The journey from food to farm to people / 33
- Manasa Kambanna
6. “We all need some bit of wilderness in us” / 37
- Antara Ray
7. Celebrating the anarchy of a garden / 40
-J Vimalnathan
8. Ground Up: Sourcing, growing and consuming food ethically / 43
- Gayatri Desai
9. A paradise called a garden / 45
- Madhuri Somalwar
10. Growing a community / 46
- Vidula Mhaiskar
11. A balcony can be bountiful too / 48
- DhanashreeDoddanavar
Part 2 Growing a green thumb
12. Gardener’s Gold: Compost / 53

-Anjali Choudhary
13. Guardians of biodiversity – a seed-saving journey / 65
- Diipti Jhangiani
14. “Small is Beautiful” – Growing Microgreens in a Concrete Jungle / 72
- Berenice De Gama Rose
15. Understanding the undercover life: Mulching your way to healthy soils / 80
- Priti Bhosale
16. Don’t go with the flow! Watering plants the right way / 84
-Trupti Kedari
17. Making planters for a kitchen garden / 90
- Julius Rego
18. Why is the pest a pest? / 94
- Anshuman Das
19. Bountiful joy: Harvesting of vegetables, herbs and fruits in small urban gardens / 100
-Ashwin Paranjpe
20. Edible weeds: The story of forgotten greens and knowledge / 108
-Shruti Tharayil
21. Scaling urban agriculture initiatives: need for supportive policy ecosystems / 116
-Anita Pinheiro
Part 3 References and further reading / 124
Part 4 List of contributors / 126
Part 5 Acknowledgements / 129
Sustainable Food Systems-
An Introduction
Deborah Dutta
E very time you bite into a morsel of food, you are most probably enjoying the
literal fruits of thousands of years of experimentation and knowledge. Think
about it, how do you know that bitter gourd is edible, or some yams need to be
boiled to remove their itchiness, or some foods can be eaten raw while others need
to be cooked in specific ways? Think a bit more about your last meal, and answer
the following:
- What did you eat?
- Did you buy the food?
- If you cooked it, where did you buy the raw ingredients from?
- Have you grown or know how to grow any of the ingredients used?
Answering these questions, you’ll realise that most of us know very little about the
steps required to produce, process, transport, and prepare the food we eat.
On the other hand, we are living in unprecedented moments in human history,
characterized by ecological, economic, and socio-cultural crises. Ecological and
climate crises, environmental degradation, growing inequality, poverty, hunger,
and obesity are interconnected, with the food and agricultural system being central
to all of them. The convergence of crises is particularly visible in food systems,
which are reeling under multiple pressures of decreasing soil fertility, depleting
groundwater levels, loss of livelihoods, adverse impacts on health, and dependence
on chemical inputs amongst others. The food and agriculture system refers to all
the artefacts and activities related to the production, processing, packaging, and
consumption of food, along with their socio-economic and ecological outcomes.
Transitioning towards sustainable and equitable food systems requires systematic
shifts in collective values, public policies, markets and knowledge systems.
Recognising the fundamental ways in which food impacts the planet and our
wellbeing, UN held a food systems summit in 2021, and the opening address stated
the following –
“Rich or poor, young or old — every person in the world needs to eat. Safe and nutritious
food provides not only life and health, but hope. Every day, billions of people harvest,
process and transport food to market and to our homes. Consumers make choices of
what to eat, based on what is available and accessible. This daily activity touches us all,
and underpins our cultures, our economies and our relationship with the natural world.”
– UN Food Systems 2021
Given this deteriorating ecological situation, many efforts to reclaim a positive
relationship with the immediate environment have begun by reverting to the
traditional practices of farming. Attesting to the embodied values of farming,
Norman Wirzba, in the book ,‘The essential agrarian reader’ argues that,
“Attention and responsible action can occur most readily as we directly/practically
see and feel our connections with each other and the land... If we can see how our
living practices directly affect air and water quality, soil retention and health, species
contentment and diversity, communal cohesion, and other markers of environmental
health, and then learn to appreciate how nature’s services enrich our personal and social
lives, we will be much more inclined to change our practices in ways that benefit rather
than bring harm to others. The assumption is that we are less likely to misuse or abuse
the memberships we see benefiting us directly.” (2003, p.8)
As an activity, farming naturally provides a space to raise questions, and develop
an integrated understanding about weather, food, nutrition, the economics of food
production, water, and local geography. The connection between environmental
actions and the act of farming is succinctly captured by farmer and author,
Wendell Berry’s statement, “Eating is an agricultural act” (Berry 1992). Linking
the act of consuming food to the conditions under which food is grown and
brought to our plates requires a systemic way of thinking about human-nature
relationship. Nurturing pro-environmental values amongst urban communities,
which face a physical and psychological disconnect from various aspects of nature
is a challenging task. Yet, as author Michael Pollan notes, “Eating and drinking
especially implicate us in the natural world in ways that the industrial economy,
with its long and illegible supply chain, would have us forget” (Pollan 2013, 408).
Consequently, the potential of local urban food systems in promoting socio-
cultural and ecological sustainability is a growing field of research. A food garden,
by virtue of its elements and
their relationships, embeds
many action possibilities,
to understand principles
(such as interdependence)
and ideas (such as
recycling) related to the
environment. When done
as a community, farming
and harvesting food from
the garden allows for many
related discussions and
motivations to come to
fore, as would the regular
tending and care of the
Exploring the possibilities of foodscapes in cities living space. Community
based urban farming requires constant dialogue between participants to partake
the knowledge and skills involved in various tasks. The dialogue and sharing of
tasks in turn strengthens the feeling of community belonging, as people exchange
ideas and thoughts on a variety of related topics. Furthermore, the physical activity
of farming has a positive impact on the health of people involved, as they become
aware of better diet, in terms of fresh and local food. Several studies show that
exposure to the natural environment helps in reducing stress. The experience of
growing food also allows participants to understand various cycles in nature and
be more attentive to their needs, while respecting the interdependence in nature.
Urban farms can also serve as hot-spots of biodiversity, and contribute to better air
quality as well as micro-climate. The benefits of urban farming, from the nutrition
and food security perspectives, have also been well studied. A flagship initiative
by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), called the ‘Urban Food Agenda’
aims to enhance sustainable development, food security and nutrition in urban and
peri-urban areas, and nearby rural spaces.
However, it is also important to note that the concept of urban farming in India is
not new, as immigrants from rural areas have engaged in various forms of farming
for local consumption or market produce. As Cook et al. (2015) comment, “Less
traditional, but not necessarily less prevalent forms of urban agriculture include
open-space production of high-value products on undeveloped land that is public
or private land located along roads, railway lines, streams, and river valleys, and in
industrial areas and around airports. Rather than speaking of ‘urban agriculture’ in
general, more research is necessary to understand the particularities of each of these
forms in specific contexts” (p. 267). In India, the spatial constraint, and population
density in urban areas throw up unique challenges to pursue urban farming; yet,
these problems have also inspired innovative approaches and initiatives. Several
startups have facilitated the nascent interest in growing food by offering a host
of services and materials to grow rooftop farms. Examples include iKheti, Edible
Routes, Homecrop, and Squarefoot farmers. States like Kerala have seen civic
bodies initiate sustainable practices by providing kits and services to grow up to
30 vegetable varieties locally. This trend is accompanied by a revival of, and search
for, ecologically sound methods of farming that were embedded in traditional
practices. Urban home gardening has enormous potential in creating edible cities
and towns in India. With adequate planning and support systems, urban home
gardens can become sites of integrated production (vegetables, fruits, poultry, and
small livestock-- depending upon the specific context). Urban home gardening
can also reduce the issue of urban waste by integrating vegetable production with
household waste management. Therefore, creating edible urban areas through the
wide popularisation of urban home gardening practice in India can considerably
reduce waste at the source while bridging the urban systems with food production
and reducing its dependency upon the rural areas.
Urban agriculture in India, especially in metropolitan cities, also encompasses
technology-aided, capital-intensive entrepreneurial initiatives such as hydroponics,
vertical farming, and aquaponics. However, they need to have scrutiny. The mere
practice of urban agriculture does not ensure sustainability outcomes. Although
such enterprises contribute to short urban food supply chains, their promotion
should be based on a holistic and nuanced understanding of their functioning in
intensive production methods and external dependence on inputs. The potential of
local urban food systems in promoting socio-cultural and ecological sustainability
needs to be researched from various perspectives, along with clear directives for
urban local bodies to support such grassroots endeavours. As our lives get more
intertwined through various ecological, social and economic processes, it is clear
that a transition to regenerative agrifood systems cannot take place without the
development of regenerative cities, education and livelihood aspirations.
1
See for instance, Yao, W., Zhang, X., & Gong, Q. (2021). The effect of exposure to the natural
environment on stress reduction: A meta-analysis. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 57,
126932.
See Tresch, S., Moretti, M., Le Bayon, R. C., Mäder, P., Zanetta, A., Frey, D., & Fliessbach, A.
(2018). A gardener’s influence on urban soil quality. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 6, 25.
Educational possibilities of growing
some of our own food
Amrita Hazra
T he picture that comes to mind when you imagine a farm growing crops and
that of a higher education institute seem rather distant from one another. A
farm brings forth the imagery of a vast open area with neat rows of uniform green
crops, being tended to by a few women and men with the help of cattle or tractors
or other equipment. A higher education institute brings to mind a picture of neat
rows of students listening attentively to an instructor in a classroom, or conducting
reactions by mixing coloured liquids in test tubes. However, as a scientist and
teacher at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Pune,
I have often wondered why these are the only pictures in our imagination and in
popular media, and fundamentally, can a farm be a space for higher education, or
vice versa, can a place of higher education such as IISER be a space for growing
some of our own food?
One of the greatest joys of being an educator is having the opportunity to teach
– teaching allows me to deeply reflect on how I perceive an idea or concept in
the natural sciences and then convey it in a meaningful and interesting manner to
my students. In this context, it has crossed my mind several times that I perceive
growing food as a subject located right at the intersection of several disciplines.
Growing our own food, right from the scale of a small balcony garden all the way
to large fields, lends itself to a series of concepts at the level of primary, secondary
and higher education. Let me put forth why.
At a primary education level, tending to a garden introduces a child to the concept
of living things, and to a world full of various shapes, colours, smells, and tastes. It
also offers opportunities to spend time in the sun, play in the dirt, and learn what
the plant gives you -- lemons, tomatoes, onion, and ginger.
At the level of secondary education, the learning is all this and more – tending to
a small garden at home or school or learning to work on a farm imparts practical
knowledge in theoretical subjects such as soil, pollination, climate, pollution,
and their interplay. High school is also when most students encounter the words
‘climate change’, ‘global warming’, ‘carbon footprint’ and ‘pollution’. Most of these are
theoretical concepts taught as part of climate education or science, however, growing
a small garden at school or home offers an immediate way to engage with these words
in practice. By growing some of one’s own food, we experience first-hand, the effect
of pollinators on the health of the plant. You conduct experiments with how much
or how little water will allow a plant to thrive and bear fruit. You learn what happens
when you harvest too much or harvest too little. And all this naturally leads to asking
where is the food on our market shelves coming from. The powerful act of growing
some of one’s own food appears to provide tangible ways to engage with and have
discussions about the overwhelming concepts of global warming and our carbon
footprint. Also, equally importantly, growing some of our own food helps to build a
life-long appreciation for the taste and value of fresh food.
At a college/ undergraduate level, farming/ growing food fits well as part of several
natural science courses such as ecology, biochemistry, biophysics, plant biology,
geochemistry, genetics, and nutrition. This demonstrates the oft-discussed point
that we make to our students, that all science is inherently connected. That is,
even though we study physics/ chemistry/ biology/ math as distinct basic science
courses, they are just ways of looking at the world around us from a perspective of
one’s choosing. As a scientist at the interface of chemistry and biology, I can study
the biochemistry of how plants fix carbon dioxide to produce nutrients, and as a
physicist, my colleague can study the same process by probing how photons from
sunlight are harvested and light is converted to chemical energy in the process.
Also, farming offers the unique advantage of being a topic that blends theory and
practice together, an important aspect of good quality education. In spite of this
extremely central role that food and farming plays in our everyday and academic
lives, it seems that all theoretical and practical aspects of farming or growing/
tending to plants are designated to the syllabi of only agricultural institutes all over
the world.
There are several non-tangible benefits to growing some of one’s own food as well,
all of which fit in meaningfully with the purpose of education. Firstly, tending to
plants requires perseverance and attention, qualities that we as researchers and
teachers aspire for ourselves and for our students. A keen sense of observation and
meticulous follow-up on the part of the grower ensures that their plants thrive and
bear flowers and fruit. A plant regularly needs water, pruning, and enrichment with
nutrients – too much or too less results in problems. Thus, tending to plants instils
in us a sense of attention, observation and discipline. Second, growing a plant is a
first-hand demonstration of the cycle of life from seed to seed, with the experience
of how difficult it is to sustain life and finally, how sweet the fruits (and flowers)
of such an endeavor can be. The cycle of life, an extremely important practical
learning for young students, is most effectively taught via a scientific experiment
such as growing a plant than through classes or practical laboratories or text books.
Finally, food brings together all age groups of people – it has the power to cut across
the barriers of class, designations, academic areas, and professions. Whatever might
be one’s job at the institute - teaching or studying or an administrative role - the
college cafeteria brings together everyone under the same roof at meal times. Food
has the power to be deeply uniting, and I would argue, growing some of one’s own
food wields the same power.
Supporting community kitchen gardens and terrace farms perfectly complements
the mandate of educational institutes and their administrative and logistical
structures. Financially, such initiatives are not expensive, however, a robust
infrastructure and like-minded people that sustain the project is essential. Providing
encouragement and incentives to members who participate in the community
garden in addition to having a streamlined way for the campus community to
participate in this exercise is what can be enabled by the institute. Providing food
and farming a formal place in higher education institutes will allow us all to achieve
greater intellectual breadth and depth in our teaching, learning, and research efforts.
Part 1
Journeys in growing food
“Action on behalf of life transforms. Because the relationship between self and the world is
reciprocal, it is not a question of first getting enlightened or saved and then acting. As we
work to heal the earth, the earth heals us.”
- Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass
Homegrown harvests: Bringing food
security to an educational campus
Deborah Dutta and Amrita Hazra
U rban spaces can be innovatively used for food production, and help city
dwellers rethink their connection with food ecosystems and land in the
process. Educational institutions provide a unique opportunity conducive to
integrating food security as part of its curriculum as well as outreach activities.
To say that Shantu Pindoriya knows every plant on the farm would not be an
exaggeration. I was walking behind her as she went around the space, describing
everything that was growing in the area.
‘Like these are kohlrabi (ganthgobi) vegetables, these are fenugreek, in between
there is spinach, coriander. Look these are red carrots. Those are turnips. Those are
beetroots…’
We had been introduced to Shantu over an email as someone growing edibles
inside the IIT Gandhinagar campus and was curious to see the space. Reaching
there on a sunny Saturday morning in the winter when most of the natural roadside
foliage had turned brown, I was astounded to see rows of green, leafy vegetables
interspersed between fruit trees and flowering shrubs. The Moringa trees were
loaded with tender drumsticks, with the bees and birds buzzing amidst its flowers.
I wanted to know how this organic farm began.
Modest beginnings backed by the love for gardening
Ms ShantuPindoriya did not have any formal educational experience in farming.
As wife of a faculty member at IIT Gandhinagar, she was always interested in
social ventures and outdoor activities. In 2016, when the campus was being built,
the erstwhile director was keen on having some garden space with edible plants
on campus. A number of informal discussions ensued, and eventually she was
requested to take up the initiative on a small scale.
‘It was a casual talk… some of the faculty members knew that I am passionate
about kitchen gardening, flowering plants etc and they asked to try something in a
small scale and see. So, it all started in a small space of 30 by 30 feet.’
Shantu began by growing plants such as brinjal, chillies, and tomatoes that could
tolerate the local semi-arid and relatively hot climate. She referred to many videos
and tutorials available online, while also visiting local Krishi melas (farmer fairs)
to learn about farming techniques, organic inputs, seed quality and other such
logistics which she had not considered before. She recalled that very few farmers
in the nearby areas practiced organic farming, so she also relied on reading and
seeking advice from expert practitioners and trainers from other states. Finally, the
institute hired a few helpers from local nurseries to help her with various activities
such as tilling, sowing, transplanting, weeding, and harvesting. It all begain in
2016. The institute additionally supported her by providing the initial funding to
clear construction debris, level the land, and prepare the soil. In the first six months
or so, they spent ~Rs 40,000 for setting up the project, and sold vegetables worth Rs
3000-4000 to the staff members on campus.
Shantu wanted to make the farm as sustainable as possible. So, she decided to
prepare most inputs from materials available on the farm itself. She explained,
‘…..we are using plants from this locality and make medicines for controlling pests.
Mostly we use Jivamrut, Dasaparni, we also make Beejamrut here itself. There is
liquid from compost. We make use of that as well. Mainly we spray these liquids…
We use Jivamrut for nutrition and proteins for the plants, to ward off insects we use
Dasaparni, for fungi we use buttermilk. For flowering we spray mixture of milk and
jaggery… once in three years, we add a layer of dried cow dung to the land. That is
the only major expense’.
Growing food, creating communities
Since its inception in 2015 and its humble beginnings, the farm in 2022 now spans
nearly eight acres. And now, the farm produce earns Rs 25- 30,000 per month.
Shantu works with seven helpers to cultivate and maintain the land. Four acres are
devoted to vegetables and medicinal plants, while the rest is being used to grow
fruit trees. She describes,
‘We have mangoes, custard apple, purple berries, naseberry (chiku), sweet lime
(mausambi), orange, black plum (jamun), dragon fruit, berries, lemon, avocado --
all these trees we have planted. Total we have all most 1400 fruit trees.’
Shantu follows multi-level cropping to use the space optimally, with spaces between
trees to grow short-duration plants, along with mixed cropping techniques. The
harvest is sold within the campus through a stall that operates three days a week.
They also sell some value-added products such as pickles and fruit candy from
fruits obtained from older trees on the campus to supplement their income during
lean months. According to her, the farm has shaped up as a community-supported
space with many people informally volunteering along with young children. The
institution has also made use of the space by allotting it as part of awareness sessions
and community-service for students in their first year. This has also helped students
gain exposure to the farm, learn a little about where their food comes from, and
enjoy some of the fresh harvest.
A pandemic-ridden opportunity
Shantu’s initiatives spurred a lot of interest among other residents, some of whom
started with composting and planting a few edibles at their home. However, Shantu
felt the value of being able to grow edibles at home was really felt during the initial
days of the pandemic.
‘When I started, one of my friends asked me the method of making the compost,
how to grow, from where to get good seeds etc. Few of my friends started growing
creepers like bottle gourd (lauki) and green gourd (turai), and a few other
vegetables. They began making their own kitchen compost. This way, there are
almost 90 smaller kitchen gardens on campus. During the lockdown, we distributed
seeds and manure, and almost every patch with soil had something growing, and
someone tending to it. I did not have any helpers at that time, and many people
pitched in as volunteers. The effort was appreciated, as our target was to become
self-sufficient as far as vegetables were concerned. Everyone got together and learnt
to grow something’.
Many common spaces in the campus have edibles growing in it, and the produce
is shared among the volunteers working in those areas. The appreciation and
understanding of consuming seasonal edibles in the community has grown through
direct experience and sustained interaction with the farm spaces.
Learning something everyday
There have been many challenges along the way, especially from monkeys, wild
pigs and rodents destroying the crops, but Shantu and her team have learnt to
manage and accept these issues through digging trenches and keeping a close eye
on the farm. ‘This land belonged to forest department earlier, so I suppose the
animals also deserve a share of the harvests’ explains Shantu with a laugh, while
shooing away a langur that had been feasting on some tomatoes while we talked.
She continues, ‘Every day, I experience or discover something new on the farm,
either an insect or fruiting, pest, flowering… farming is all about observation and
patience, I feel.’ Shantu has plans of expanding the farm space and aims to be able
to supply fresh harvest to the IIT Gandhinagar student mess eventually.
Experiencing interdependence at the farm
Such thriving ecosystems can be part of living classrooms for the immediate
community, ones which provide valuable lessons in systemic thinking while
nourishing their bodies. Edible food gardens are hotspots for local biodiversity,
and provide an experiential understanding of pollinators, pest-prey relationships,
soil ecosystems and the interdependence of plant health and root microbial
communities. As if on cue, Shantu plucked a cabbage head and showed me the
vigorous roots that supported the plant. ‘Taste and health are not separate’ she says,
‘eating these vegetables reminds me of my childhood when everything was grown
organically. You don’t get that taste from the market vegetables now. I want my
children to experience and remember this taste.’ Many children on the campus are
regular visitors to the farm, and according to Shantu, have become very conscious
about not wasting food after seeing it first hand, the time and efforts that go into
growing it. They are also curious to try everything that they have seen growing on
the farm, and this has led to occasional cooking sessions too.
Drawing lessons for kickstarting similar initiatives
The IIT Gandhinagar organic farm is a testament to the possibilities of community-
driven and locally supported farming in urban and peri-urban places. Educational
institutions are uniquely suited to act as outreach hubs and experimental spaces
to grow food gardens owing to availability of safe space, access to water, and a
ready customer base. It can provide a much-needed space for building stewardship
and affinity towards the land, and help people develop skills to grow food in their
immediate environment. The farm space itself can become a hotspot for biodiversity
and contribute to the well-being of the larger ecosystem. Listening to Shantu’s
experience, we found the following points worth reflecting on –
• The need for administrative support: Such an idea required the explicit support
of institutional authorities. Once this was provided, it facilitated mobilising initial
funds and fulfilling administrative requirements to start creating the space.
• Starting small, and building on results: The idea of starting in a limited space
allowed her to show some initial tangible results in terms of harvest and gain
the skills required to expand. Starting in a bigger area immediately with limited
resources at hand may have been intimidating and difficult for her, and an
abstract concept for the community members.
• Planning for financial sustenance: Selling the produce at a fair price by
understanding the preferences of local customers helped in covering the costs
of running the farm. Except the salaries of the workers which are paid as per
central government scale, all other costs of maintaining the farm are covered
by the sale of produce.
• Carving out some space for experimentation: Every year, new crops, variations
in methods, farming inputs, etc. have helped her gain new knowledge while
customising for local weather, geographical conditions and adequate sales to
achieve business sustainability.
• Building collective ownership: Opening the space for volunteering allowed
residents to actively connect with the space and support the initiative in various
ways. The campus residents are not just passive customers but have a stake
in the initiative through supporting the sale of harvest, providing feedback,
bringing seeds from other states, assisting with smaller tasks on the farm and
so on.
• Iterative learning and feedback: The growth of the farm is a result of continuous
cycles of learning and feedback, through close observation of the plants and
the conditions that contribute to their growth. Understanding that this is a
continuous process is an important part of sustaining such initiatives.
Such urban farm community spaces serve multiple purposes - they provide access
to fresh food and the opportunity to children and adults alike to get their hands
dirty while also playing a vital role in the first-hand understanding of the delicate
balances that sustain our ecosystem. From seed to farm to table, how food reaches
us today is a nuanced lesson integrating the natural sciences, social sciences,
economics, and business. Thus, finding ways to include urban farms as part of our
community spaces and educational curricula is a worthwhile pursuit.
Endnote:
1. A version of this article was published in the LEISA magazine. Dutta, D.
&Hazra, A. (2022). Homegrown harvests – Bringing food security to an educational
campus. LEISA India, March, Issue 24.1
Learning as living :
Life lessons from my journey of growing food
Samira Mukherjee
S amira Mukherjee, 53, recently retired as a school teacher, now works with
children focusing on language development. She also develops activities to create
awareness amongst people about sustainability by practising waste management and
urban farming. In this article, she shares her journey and lessons in growing edibles.
Joining the dots between personal ideas and professional commitments
My long-time dream has been to use my balcony and open areas of the building
terrace to grow food. I had read about the effects of the Green Revolution in terms
of the increased use of chemical inputs and pesticides and its adverse impact on
farmers, fields, animals and consumers. I thought that growing some food, even in
small quantities, would help to understand the connections between food, soil and
health.
I was enthusiastic but had no idea where to begin. I had seen my grandmother
growing various types of vegetables and fruits in the backyard of her house. My
mother used to collect kitchen waste and make compost. She would use them to
grow flowering plants and leafy greens on our balcony. However, there is a difference
between mere observation and actual practice. Mistakes and trials are inevitable
when starting something on your own. For example, I had no idea about the
growing seasons of plants and companion planting[1]. All I had was the willingness
to learn from my own mistakes as well as those of others.
I remember when I started working as a school teacher in 1997, we had only a
few indoor plants to beautify my living room. I had not begun segregating my
waste then and had hardly any idea about sustainable living. Teaching, in fact,
opened up a new arena of learning for me. Through teaching lessons as part of the
environmental science course, I realised doing justice to my teaching profession
entailed practising what I preached.
I started using my kitchen waste to make compost. There have been days when
I missed saving all the peels from my kitchen, either because I forgot or were
innocently thrown in the bin by some other family member, as a regular practice.
Then, I started speaking to everyone about the importance of managing our waste.
Learning through trial and error
Initially, I did not know that adding a catalyst (any entity that speeds up chemical
process) to my compost could hasten the entire process of decomposition. I
remember carrying the half-done compost to school to build a terrace farm
as I couldn’t see any scope of making good use of it at my place. As I got more
interested in methods for growing food, I discovered stalwarts such as Subhash
Palekar, whose practices and philosophy of ‘zero-budget natural farming’ appealed
to me. I attended a workshop organised by him in Vas. hi (Navi Mumbai) in 2016.
There I learnt the process of making Jeevamrit or Amritjal. Terrace farming project
being implemented at the school by external resource persons further bolstered my
experience and skills, as now I could learn from the school activities as well.[1]
Amritjal, also known as Jeevamrit, is a fermented mixture of cow dung, cow urine,
flour of pulses, jaggery and a fistful of soil with rich microbial content.
As the fermentation progresses, the microbes multiply and require a timely
supply of oxygen. Hence, the mixture is stirred twice a day at regular intervals.
The fermentation process is completed within 48 to 50 hours. This slurry acts as
an organic fertiliser and pesticide that promotes microbial activities in the soil and
increases its nutritional composition. The fermentation results in the formation
of a thick layer on the surface of the mixture. It also helps in preventing pests and
diseases in plants.
I began making this bio-fertiliser at home in 2016. The biggest hurdle in his process
has been sourcing cow dung and urine from animals that are in good health since
the quality of material collected is directly connected to the gut health of the cow. I
have observed that a weekly application of this liquid gives good results in terms of
plant growth, and they are also more resistant to pest attacks. In addition, it helps
decompose the materials in the compost pile speedily. And in the process, it keeps
unwanted pests away.
Sour buttermilk is also an effective ingredient that I often use in my balcony
garden. Diluted sour buttermilk works very well in repelling pests. A spoonful of
rock salt mixed with 5 litres of sour buttermilk, fermented for 3-4 days, make an
excellent fertiliser for fruit-bearing plants.
In my native place in West Bengal, mustard oil cake is used as a fertiliser. I have
also effectively tried this waste (mustard cake) liquid on my plants. To make the
concoction, I took a handful of mustard cake and soaked it in one litreof water.
Then I stirred the liquid mixture and kept it aside for two to three days. The mixture
was stirred once each day and after 3 days I diluted the liquid by adding 4 litres of
water to it. Depending on the size of the pot, 100-300 ml of the liquid can be added
in the soil 1-2 cm away from the main stem of the plant. In general, while adding
fertilisers and innoculants, direct application on the stem is avoided to prevent any
fungal decomposition on it.
Biodiversity and pests
Millipedes and earthworms are often spotted in the soil. Snails and slugs are
familiar visitors too. However, they typically eat the tender leaves and need to be
removed manually. Birds like bulbuls, sparrows, sunbirds and fantail flycatchers are
frequent visitors to the garden. They usually visit in search of worms and insects.
Butterflies often lay their eggs on curry leaves and lemon leaves. Squirrels drop in at
times. I remember once a monkey visiting the mango tree adjacent to our terrace. It
picked the only ripe tomato on one of the tomato plants. Rodents are very difficult
to remove from a farm like this unless cats frequent the place. Otherwise, seedlings
need to be protected and kept indoors at night.
Polyculture
My experience of growing various herbs in shallow containers of just 4-6 inches
has been amazing, as we commonly tend to use a lot of soil and larger pots. I
realised that the quality of the soil is more important than quantity. The lowest
layer (~ .5 inches) of the container is sand, followed by a rich mixture of compost
(~1 inch) (leaf mould+ cow dung compost +goat manure + neem cake + mustard
cake+ biochar). The topmost layer (~2 inches) is typical garden red or black soil
for best anchoring. I have tried coriander, mint, amaranth and spinach. Shallots
and radish greens also grow well together. Regular feed of liquid mustard cake and
Jeevamrit helps them grow well.
Bio enzymes
I have tried several methods of making liquid fertilisers for plants. One of them
is bio enzymes. Bioenzymes are solutions produced by the fermentation of organic
waste (such as fruit peels) in sugar and water. The sugar acts as a source of food
for the microbes in the organic waste, which multiply to form the bio-enzyme
concentrate.
Making bio enzymes at home is relatively simple.
The ingredients required are:
One part of jaggery, three parts of peels of fruits or vegetables and ten parts of
water,
i.e. for one litre of water, 300gms of fruit or vegetable peels and 100gms of jaggery.
The mixture needs to be stored in a 1.5 to 2-litre bottle to allow some empty space
for collection of the gas it produces.
If the proportion is correct, the chemical reaction takes place quickly. This reaction
produces gases that need to be released once daily for about a month. After a month,
the gas can be removed occasionally and kept aside for three months. After three
months, the organic matter settles down with a clear liquid floating on the upper
part of the air-tight container. Usually, a thick plastic container works well for this
process.
I have experimented with petals of marigold flowers, limes and oranges with
excellent results. These materials produce bio enzymes with a sweet natural
fragrance. Other than these, I have tried making bio enzymes with cooked rice and
with banana peels too. I have observed that it’s a good idea to water plants regularly
with a small portion of bio enzymes in them to keep them well nourished.
Wet waste management
As I have mentioned earlier about my composting experience, which has gradually
improved through years of trial and error, I find myself learning every day.
The basic composting process involves four components:
i.e. Organic matter, moisture, oxygen and bacteria.
The proportion is what matters the most (see the chapter on composting for
more details). Organic matter also is of two types, browns and greens. Greens are
materials that are rich in nitrogen or protein (such as kitchen waste). They help
the microorganisms grow and multiply quickly, whereas browns are carbon-rich
materials.
Any plant waste which is dry, fibrous, and hard is generally recognised as brown.
This is because browns are more resistant to decay. It can be considered as the
materials are food sources for all the soil-dwelling organisms that will work with
the microbes to break down the contents in the compost pile.
As a thumb rule, a ratio of 3-4 parts brown and 1-part greens offer the
microorganisms a “complete meal “. This helps the breakdown of the compost.
Without enough brown matter for compost, the wet and nitrogen-rich green
matter for compost becomes slimy, attracts insects, and seems slow to change.
Bins without enough carbon-rich material also don’t produce much volume as the
greens mostly rot and volatile compounds evaporate eventually.
Another important observation I have made is that the smaller the pieces of
scrap(peels), the faster the composting process. The use of a catalyst helps in the
bio-composting process. For example, sour buttermilk or liquid molasses work
well. However, Jeevamrit decomposes organic matter much faster than any other
material.
Presently I follow the general rule for composting: 3 – 4” thick layers alternating
Green (high nitrogen) and Brown (high carbon) materials. I water each layer as I
build it so the material is moist, not wet, like a wrung sponge. I end with a Brown
layer on top to keep flies and other insects away. Thin layers help prevent anaerobic
(smelly) pockets from developing and allow microbes to access both Green and
Brown food sources.
Successful composting has been a long journey. A strong desire to keep my wet
waste at home, preventing it from ending up in some landfill somewhere, has kept
me going. I feel ‘at source’ segregation is the easiest to manage and allows us to be
more mindful of our consumption patterns.
Following the Sun
Commonly, we all know that the Sun rises in the east and sets in the west. But
sunlight doesn’t stay confined to these two directions. During the short winter
days, the Sun does not rise exactly in the east but instead rises just south of the east,
and it sets south of west.
I started growing food on my shaded terrace in 2014. There is an area on my building
terrace that receives good sunlight during winter. After Dussehra, the area begins
to light up slowly. It stays sunlit till the end of February. As March approaches, the
Sun appears to move its position, and the entire area gets into the shade again. This
is the south-facing wall of the building. My plants require attention at this stage, so
I move them to the east-facing parapet. However, the parapet did not have a grill
for protection, and keeping the pots there was potentially dangerous. My husband
noticed that it could be perilous and installed a railing for safety. Since then, I have
grown sweet potato, ginger, turmeric and ivy gourd or pumpkin vines in this area.
The pumpkin and Ivy gourd vines grow well on the bamboo supports we have
constructed on the railing of this area to ensure that maximum sunlight is harvested
by plants.
My foray into growing medicinal plants
I also have a collection of medicinal plants. One of them is the thankuni, as called
in Bengali. It is scientifically known as called Centella Asiatica. It is commonly also
referred to as Gotu kola, kodavanor, Asiatic pennywort. Traditional Bengalis are
used to eating chutney made from the leaves of this plant at the beginning of a
meal. It is known for improving overall health and well-being.
Lemon grass or Gavtichaha is another plant which can be grown easily. Formally
known as Cymbopogon Citratusm, it is a tall, aromatic grass consisting of antibacterial
and antifungal properties. I like adding it to my tea and recipes like Thai curry.
Turmeric (Curcuma linga) or Haldi also grows easily. I use the leaves of this plant
for steamed sweets. The leaves of ginger plants can be used to flavour tea too. Both
turmeric and ginger being shade-tolerant plants, grow well in minimal amounts of
sunlight. I have also grown microgreens of mustard, chia, bengal gram, green peas,
amaranth, fenugreek and wheat.
Recently, I collected the cuttings of a rare medicinal plant from the forest of Yeour
Hills. It is known as Bukhara in Bengali, and the scientific name is Hydrophila
auriculata. It is beneficial in treating anaemia. This plant is also commonly seen in
a traditional Bengali kitchen. I often use the medicinal plants I grow to treat minor
ailments at home or prevent certain diseases like the common cold and stomach
ailments.
My plant teachers
My garden gives me hope. Being able to exist and develop without depleting
natural resources might seem to be overwhelming, yet I am always in awe of nature’s
abundance.
My journey in urban farming has been exciting, but several setbacks need to be
overcome. Pest management seems to be the biggest hurdle right now. The farm
is frequented by rodents who often gobble up most of the seedlings. Hence the
growth of microgreens and seedlings requires a lot of effort for protection.
Also, the availability of local seeds (non-hybrid) seeds is rare. I try to save different
seeds but have had limited success. I request all nature lovers to form communities
and start organic farming in cities. Any such attempt would not only provide people
with healthy food but also add value to the lives of the children who witness the
process. The children at school thoroughly enjoyed the process of growing their
terrace garden while learning to care for the plants and watch them grow. A school
farm is a living classroom offering everyone valuable life lessons in care, attention
and reciprocity.
It is said that “it takes a village to raise a child”. Similarly, I think it takes a community
to sustain green spaces. I am thankful to my neighbours who allowed me to use the
common walls of the terrace to manage my waste and grow food on it.
Being able to manage my waste and procure high-quality nutrients from it gives
me an immense sense of satisfaction. I have also sold my compost to two of my
acquaintances on request. However, the process of sieving the material is a tough
job which is inevitable if one has to sell the product, as most people expect a uniform
texture of the compost, and larger pieces need additional time to break down. I
avoid the sieving process and use compost as mulch, which works well.
I also propagate saplings and distribute them as gifts to my gardening friends. Some
people have also bought jeevamrit from me to improve the quality of their soil. I
look forward to lifelong learning and growth in finding ways to live sustainably.
End notes
[1] See ‘Pedagogy of dirty hands: Reflections from an urban terrace farm’ https://
publications.azimpremjiuniversity.edu.in/2106/
[1] Companion planting is a form of polyculture whereby different plants are grown
in close proximity for varied reasons such as pest control, pollination, optimum use
of space, overall productivity etc.
From Resistance to Resilience: The Journey
of connecting girls’ education to food
sovereignty
Suvarna Latha
M ost tribal residential schools in India struggle with poor infrastructure and
a range of social and administrative issues. However, the story of Telangana
Social Welfare Residential Junior College for Girls in the Adilabad district is different.
With single-minded determination, Suvarna, the school principal since 2014, has
been traversing the uphill battle of transforming the neglected educational space into a
vibrant learning community. With a focus on critical place-based education, Suvarna
saw the potential of the campus land to grow nutritious food for the students, with
the activities creating a sense of ownership and agency amongst the students and staff.
With each harvest season, the once-dilapidated infrastructure and a general sense of
demotivation experienced by students gave way to renewed feelings of achievement
and empowerment. Today, nearly 5 acres of land are used as a food forest, and the
nutritional security experienced by the girls is reflected in their academic performance.
With a bounty of local food and young voices, the school is an inspiration for creating
sustainable and equitable transformative landscapes.
Beginning with a barren landscape
Talking to Ms Suvarna Latha is like taking a brisk walk in the morning. Her energy
is infectious, and it is easy to infer that Suvarna is not an armchair administrator.
Instead, for the entire duration we spoke over Zoom, she gave me a virtual tour of the
campus kitchen gardens, multitasking an interview, administrative work and brief
meetings with teachers, all with a ready smile on her face. The smile is accompanied
by an equally loud and confident voice that makes it clear that she isn’t someone
who would take ‘No’ for an answer. It is this potent combination of optimism and
sheer stubbornness that has led the Telangana Social Welfare Residential Junior
College (TSWRJC) for Girls in the Adilabad district on its current trajectory.
Suvarna Latha joined TSWRJC as a principal in November 2014. An experienced
educator, having worked with various educational institutions for more than two
decades, Suvarna had no illusions about the difficulties of managing the space.
Unsurprisingly, the Junior College was struggling with a range of administrative,
academic and infrastructural issues that had grown over years of neglect and
mismanagement. The state of the facilities and poor nutrition through sub-standard
school meals had impacted students’ academic performance. Suvarna instinctively
knew of the fundamental connections between a healthy body and an active mind
and carved out the task of procuring nutritious food for the students. However,
budgetary restrictions meant that she could not buy large amounts of quality
produce.
It was then that she noticed that the school had nearly five acres of vacant land
lying idle. The entire 18-acre campus was also devoid of trees and other green spaces
apart from some neglected mango trees. Making use of state government initiatives
on tree planting such as ‘Haritha Haram’, Suvarna was able to source more than
1500 saplings and ensured that the trees were looked after. Her efforts began to bear
fruits, literally, as they began to harvest mangoes a couple of years later.
Building communities through creative collaborations
Raising resources for farming was a challenge for the school, so Suvarna reached
out to the families of the students, many of whom depend on agriculture as a
source of livelihood. The land mainly comprised of barren black soil, which could
be used for cotton cultivation. So she formed an arrangement with farmers such
that they could use the land for growing cotton and share some of the profits with
the school. They cultivated cotton for two years and raised funds to start a school
kitchen garden. The resources were used to construct vermicompost pits and buy
fertilisers, seeds and pesticides. The remaining land was used to grow a variety of
grains, vegetables, millet and cereals. Students and staff worked regularly at the
kitchen garden, and their efforts drew the state government’s attention.
Transitioning to organic farming
Suvarna recalls that they started out with no guidance on sustainable ways of
farming since most farmers in the vicinity also practice chemical agriculture.
However, in 2019 they received a grant and technical support from the Centre for
Sustainable Agriculture (CSA) through the Earth School Program. CSA and Synergy
India Foundation (SIF) partnered with Telangana Social Welfare Residential
Educational Institutions Society (TSWREIS) to establish Organic Farms using
Staggered Production of Fruits and Vegetables under Project Cornucopia. Suvarna
eagerly worked with them to switch to organic practices, and soon the students
were exposed to ways of making organic fertilisers, pest repellents and design
mixed cropping systems. CSA helped them make raised beds, use organic matter
as mulch, monitor the plants and create farm-based enterprises for the school
alumni as well. Over a year, students grew more than 30 varieties of local, seasonal
vegetables, totalling a yield of nearly 860 kgs.
The students felt the difference in the taste and quality of the produce and were
proud to be responsible for growing food for the entire campus. During the
pandemic-induced lockdown, they were also able to distribute excess produce to
migrant labourers returning to the villages. The collective motivation to grow food
on the campus helped them overcome issues such as waterlogging, pest attacks
etc, by working with villagers to devise solutions. Through saving money on the
mid-day meal rations provided by the state government, Suvarna is able to use the
funds to procure fruits that are not grown in the area, such as grapes and apples,
for the students. Access to a wholesome diet has improved attendance in school
and motivated better academic performance. Suvarna firmly believes that farming
played a crucial role in bringing students and teachers together as they began
thinking in terms of possibilities rather than failures.
The way forward
Though the school no longer receives support from CSA, Suvarna is determined
to keep the kitchen garden going. She enjoys the whole-hearted support of the
students and school staff, who feel that the food garden has become an integral
part of TSWRJC’s identity. That being said, Suvarna is aware that sustained support
and funding play a role when such projects encounter obstacles which are bound
to arise due to erratic weather, water supply, seed quality etc. Currently, the school
produces 50 kgs of food per month on an average, and they hope to inspire many
other educational institutions around the country to nurture sustainable food
systems on campus.
Gardens as community learning spaces
Christopher Pereira
C hristopher Pereira, 63, wants his garden to be a fertile learning space for people
of all ages to connect with each other and nature. He also runs a company to
help people design sustainable living initiatives through growing edibles using compost
generated from wet waste.
63-year-old Christopher Pereira is an engineer by profession and a nature enthusiast
by heart. His ancestral home in Bandra is a flourishing nursery cum training centre and
is hard to miss amidst the concrete jungle. His interest in gardening led him to start a
recycling and composting centre in 2008, where he slowly started maintaining a plant
nursery as well. His shop called D-ERT (‘The Earth Shop’) hosts a wide variety of edible
and ornamental plants, mostly maintained by young volunteers and interns who work
there to get some hands-on experience. Christopher has also hosted many workshops
over the years to train people in composting and gardening. He has also helped many
others install composting units like tumblers and rotating bins. Over 2000 sq feet of
his home is dedicated to growing nearly 160 species of edible and ornamental plants.
On the other side of his house, Pareira has three tumblers that can process up to 150
kilograms of wet waste. About 5 to 6 kilograms of garden waste goes back to the garden
regularly (depending on the waste generated, weather etc.) after being composted in his
backyard.
Low-cost innovations and upcycling experiments
Christopher’s home has a huge vertical hydroponic installation made of pipes. The
installation uses bathroom water, and the contaminants in the water get deposited at
the bottom, acting as manure. He says,
“My bathroom water is filtered and used in growing plants. What we are using is a
natural water filter. On a small scale, we can take kitchen water and bath water; when
we are using organic bath soaps, they act as natural pest controllers, so we don’t have
to use fresh water. The tap water after you wash rice and all is full of nutrients for the
plants. That should not go wasted.”
In the garden, one can also see plants growing in ceramic, clay, plastic and coconut
shells, with green glass bottles acting as barriers between plants. He has also made
innovative planters using wastepaper, cocopeat and a small portion of cement, such
that the planter itself acts as a source of nutrients for the plant. His other inventions
include the design of portable shredders to disintegrate biomass without making
much noise. He is currently tinkering with ideas of building natural cooling systems
by designing walls of indoor ornamental plants. He has also created modular
planters for terrace gardens made of packing case wood and steel frames, so there’s
a gap between the planter and the floor surface.
Christopher has also collaborated with organisations such as Safai Bank to
encourage people to segregate plastic waste. He has set up a collection centre at
his home for multi-layered plastic, tetra packs, wet waste and medical waste. Local
households and businesses get plants from D-ERT when they deposit plastic at
their place as an incentive.
Nurturing a love for nature

Christopher believes that school education can happen only when every child has
access to some green space. He says,
“Every classroom should have a window. We are disconnecting children from
nature with all the concrete buildings. Let them spend time outside and then ask
questions… We need to create those kinds of schools where children will be close to
the environment. What is education -- sharing experiences of people. Listen to their
experiences, share your experience; this is how you educate.”
Some schools in the area have sought Christopher’s guidance to teach students
composting and gardening, and he hopes that more schools are able to take up such
activities in their spaces. He wants the movement to carry on independently.
“How to connect to people, how to connect people with nature…? There should
be more schools where children can grow food gardens… See, I could be talking
to people and getting funded and associating with NGOs, but still, it will be in one
place. The objective of my work is to spread it to hundreds of places.”
Safai Bank’, an initiative started by an NGO — Mumbai Sustainability Centre (MSC), lets you deposit waste from multi-
layered packaging from fast-moving consumer goods in an account created under your name, and the NGO would
takes care of the waste without sending it to landfills. Citizens can contact Safai Bank at ‘https://safaibank.org/’.
The journey from food to farm to people
Manasa Kambanna
M anasaKambanna, 30, a journalist and public policy professional turned

ecopreneur, narrates how her food garden at home played an important role
in nurturing her vision to start a social enterprise geared towards sustainable food
systems. Through her food products, she tries to emanate the importance of growing
our food, processing with no synthetic ingredients, consuming homegrown food and
going local.
Following her mother’s nostalgia

Manasa traces her interest in growing food to her mother’s stories of their village.
Her mother would often lament the lack of fresh and seasonal produce in the cities,
and the thought stayed with Manasa. She recalls,
“As a teenager, I thought everything was possible. It kept me thinking – although
it’s such a simple thing, why couldn’t we grow our own food?” Thus began my
interest in food and farming. But at that time, I thought I would do this just as a
hobby and for the family alone.”
Manasa took to growing plants as a hobby, gradually moving from ornamentals to
edible varieties, and realised that the latter actually requires less maintenance too –
“it is actually easier to grow and maintain a native edible and medicinal garden than
an ornamental garden as most of the latter are exotic varieties which need greater
attention and care. With this transformation, my aesthetic sense too evolved, and I
started appreciating the beauty of an edible garden.”
More than the yield, Manasa found pleasure and wisdom in the act of growing
plants. The daily tasks of watering, weeding, raking, preparing manure and
observing the minute changes in each plant gave her a lot of satisfaction and a
much-needed break from her day job as a journalist. She grew wide varieties of
plants, especially local, edible weeds such as purslane, varieties of sessile joyweed,
black nightshade etc. and popular greens such as malabar spinach, moringa, indian
roselle, indian pennywort and fenugreek. She also grew leguminous crops such as
lablab and cowpea and plants such as mexican sunflower, passion fruit, hibiscus,
butterfly pea etc., for pollination.
Becoming an agripreneur
However, Manasa wanted to do more. She realised that farmers needed to have
a good customer base who could support sustainable farming practices, and her
efforts to build connections between farmers and customers in cities led her to
found a social enterprise called ‘Bayaluseeme’. In her words,
“Bayaluseeme is founded to do justice to ourselves, farmers and mother earth.
Bayaluseeme, in Kannada, means an expanse of the plains. A major portion of
Karnataka is in the plains where the majority of our food is grown; so it’s in a
way refers to local farming and production. Bayaluseeme currently does food
processing by procuring from local farmers and harvesting from regional forests,
and delivering it to people directly in Bangalore through its weekly delivery service.
In the coming days, Bayaluseeme intends to grow most of its raw materials on its
own naturally.”
She envisions Balayluseeme as a way to encourage farmers to engage in regenerative
agricultural practices while creating critical awareness amongst customers to know
about farmers and farming at a personal level. She firmly believes that customers
have an immense role in building local and regenerative food systems. Their choice
of buying locally and sustainably grown food versus supermarket food makes a
tremendous difference to human health, soil and climate. In many ways, the simple
task of just growing some edibles at home could prompt them to reflect more deeply
about their food choices. She says,
“Start now, be at any scale. Growing food teaches a lot about food– how to know
what kind of food is good, how difficult it is to grow, why growing your own food
matters, why our waste should go back into the soil and more.”
The journey is the goal
Through her exposure to other farmers and practitioners, Manasa has also been
designing two permaculture [End-Note 1] farms. that have water harvesting
trenches, bunds, a pond, a fruit orchard and a Miyawaki-style forest [End-Note
2] to prevent soil erosion in the flood-prone terrain. On a personal front, Manasa
and her husband Mahantesh moved to the outskirts of Bangalore, where they have
a patch of land to grow some food for self-consumption. Through Bayaluseeme,
they are also able to consume the processed food prepared by their small team of
two women staff. These include edible oils, breakfast mixes and tea. According to
Manasa, regular composting, mulching, and collecting dry leaves from the streets
has become her second nature. Sustaining the social enterprise itself has been far
from easy, given the challenges of competition with businesses glibly using terms
such as “organic”, “natural”, “herbal”, etc., to market their products, and consumers
lacking the critical awareness to understand the nuances. To keep prices affordable,
they currently don’t have additional staff to manage operations and do most of
the work themselves. Economies of scale also go against their efforts to operate a
small business at the local level, which often translates into high production costs.
Nevertheless, Bayaluseeme is determined to go for the long haul. Even as Manasa
slowly builds the enterprise, the small joys of being able to provide employment to
local women, procuring from farmers directly and encouragement from customers
bolster her confidence.
City Planning for urban farming
Manasa feels that cities can actively plan for food gardening spaces in urban and
peri-urban areas. She argues,
“Just as parking spaces have become a necessity, there should be spaces for edible
gardens in apartments, at least, as they would have larger common areas. City
planning should take into account not just civil engineering or architectural aspects
but also social, psychological and health aspects of a human being in charting out
its plan. The city planning board can start by working on public parks, for example,
and let local groups interested in growing food tend to a certain patch of the park.
The vegetables and fruits can then be shared within the group. Big hospitals,
schools and universities can also grow their own vegetables as patients and children
need the most nutritious food. IT parks must have a food garden adjacent to their
canteen which helps instil the growing habit in the young working force.”
According to Manasa, the possibilities are endless if there is a collective will to
reimagine urban areas.
1
Broadly, Permaculture is an approach to land management and farming that adopts arrangements observed in
flourishing natural ecosystems.
2
Originally designed by Japanese ecologist Akira Miyawaki, the Miyawaki method entails growing dense forest
vegetation of local variety in relatively small areas. The method has become popular in urban and peri-urban areas for
greening, though the local ecosystem also needs to be studied before implementing such interventions.
“We all need some bit of wild in us.”
Antara Ray
A ntara Ray, 44, is an ex-software professional turned educator and urban farmer.
She is a part of various food and farming groups and a vocal supporter of the
food sovereignty movement. With the belief that change must begin at home, Antara
shared about her urban terrace farming activities.
Antara lives on the top floor of a six-floored complex situated at Kestopur,
Saltlake, very close to the Kestopur Bajar in Kolkata. An engineer by training and
a former IT sector employee, Antara turned to grow food after a serious illness
led her to question many assumptions about work and life in general. Recognising
the truth in the famous adage, ‘You are what you eat’, Antara began experimenting
with growing food without synthetic chemical inputs. She visited organic farms
near Shantiniketan and began to adapt practices suited for urban areas. She began
kitchen composting in 2014 and started with growing leafy vegetables such as
Amaranth and Spinach, which grow easily. In the meanwhile, she also did courses
in agroecology offered by Calcutta University in collaboration with Welthungerhilfe
and continued visiting farms to learn from other practitioners.
Initial learning and reflections
Antara was able to use the terrace space above her apartment on the sixth floor to
grow a food garden. The space, approximately 700 square feet in size, provided her
with ample area to experiment with a wide variety of plants and planters. Initially,
she enthusiastically planted pumpkins, gourds and cucumber, only to realise that
she would need to create a structure to support the creepers too. She managed to
make some bamboo supports, but they were difficult to source in the city and had
to be replaced every couple of years. She also tried to pollinate flowers by hand
because there weren’t any bees, butterflies or other pollinators present in the initial
days. She recalls feeling so delighted seeing any seedling sprout that she tried to
plant everything that grew instead of being selective; “Initially, I tried to make space
for every little seedling I had. Now I feel like laughing at my attempts. It took me
a while to understand that I should select the healthiest seedling growing to avoid
nutritional scarcity due to overcrowding. It is also important to select varieties that
are in season. Otherwise, the plants may not fruit.”
Innovations and discoveries
Antara experimented with many kinds of planters, such as grow bags, earthen pots
and vegetable crates. She found each having some pros and cons and eventually
found vegetable crates to be most suitable and appropriate for her needs. She also
discovered that water hyacinth, growing in plenty in the nearby lakes, is a good
source of organic biomass. Her search for locally available nutrients has decreased
her dependence on commercial inputs such as cocopeat.
Her continued interaction with like-minded farmers and practitioners has helped
her source indigenous seeds and saplings. She also observed the interaction
between plants and insects and felt that each time she ended up learning something
new; Pointing to some plants in the garden, she explained, “This is called “Betho
saag” (Chenopodium greens). It always grows with potatoes. It is a weed but very
nutritious… Because whenever a weed comes out, it means the soil is deficient in
something, and the weed has come as a succession crop to help the soil. All weeds
are full of nutrition, whether for associated plants or for us. One must never uproot
weeds. I always allow them to be there.” Antara also grows many leguminous plants
that can fix nitrogen, as well as herbs that also act as pest repellents. She also uses
the hard biomass generated, like broken bamboo pieces, tree stems etc., to make
biochar. All the activities may look like a mess to an untrained eye, and Antara is
aware that her garden is mostly perceived as a ‘wild space’ by the neighbours rather
than an urban food forest. As an educator running a small school, she has more
hope for the children.
Way ahead
She regularly encourages children to have their own food gardens and save seeds for
different seasons, explaining that such skills should be an integral part of education.
“How disconnected people are from nature, I mean eating and throwing, living for
short-term pleasure. The Mustard when I tried to peel them, I realised how small and
fresh it was. I have grown spices like Mustard for my annual consumption. Again, I
will use it for mulching. We have to return to the soil whatever nature has given us,
or else how will soil give us again? The food is getting transported from village to the
city, so the soil of the village is becoming less fertile. So they are adding more and more
fertilisers from the factories into the soil. Unless you grow your own food, you won’t
realise the value of food. I compost those carton boards. Some of them I soak in the
water and put in the soil as mulching paper, and some I will burn. Normally I use it
for mulching. I burn those which cannot be used otherwise. “ Antara wants to create
a seed bank along with her students so that they learn to save seeds as well. She has
also been able to introduce them to the variety of insects, birds and critters in the
garden, helping them understand how such spaces can be a home for other living
creatures. Antara firmly believes that it is possible to start small and keep building
on the skills required to grow food by getting in touch with farmers, practitioners
and educators. Apart from being part of the education system, urban gardening
should be seen as a collective, civic action movement to reimagine nourishing city
spaces. Though her neighbours are yet to see the importance and potential of her
roof garden, Antara is hopeful that times will change.
Note: Recently, following extended complaints by some neighbours who felt that the
garden was compromising their common access to the rooftop, Antara had to clear
the terrace.The plants have been rehabilitated to the wild in Purulia, Kashipur block
Manihara village. Most gardeners don’t get a chance to find alternate homes for the
plants grown in the space. This is a terribly unfortunate but common issue faced
by many urban gardeners. Infrastructure support, educational interventions, and
incentives need to be designed to enable gardening initiatives at the community level.
It is disheartening to see such spaces vanish even as their importance grows by the day.
Celebrating the anarchy of a garden
J Vimalanathan
J Vimalanathan, known as Vimal by his friends and family, is a retired development

professional. At 67 years, he feels his connection with plants has been a literal life-saving
activity during the pandemic. “I grew up in a farmer’s family, and plants were always a
core part of my life. So, even after moving to cities, I always tried to grow something or the
other.” When he began building his home in the mid-nineties, he kept a significant part of
the land to plant trees such as chickoo, areca nut, coconut, jackfruit, mango, litchi, badam,
allspice, hibiscus and vanilla. Over time, the trees have outgrown the height of the house,
and the space is a haven for many birds, insects and smaller reptiles. He grows plants on
his 800 sq foot terrace.“I mostly had ornamental plants on the rooftop because my wife
(Mercy) is fond of flowers. However, in 2019, I became interested in growing food after
getting introduced to some terrace farming groups in Bangalore.”
Learning, inventing and discovering
The trees around Vimal’s house provided him with a lot of leaf litter, and he wanted to
use it along with the kitchen waste to make compost. He initially bought vermicompost
bins but found the maintenance of the worms a hassle. So, he drilled some holes in big,
plastic drums and found aerobic composting to be the easiest method to follow. He began
sourcing oil cakes and neem powder to add to the compost once it was ready and found
that plants responded well to the nutrient-rich medium. “I use whatever waste is generated
in the house and sometimes make liquid ferments to use as a spray or add to the compost. I
think whatever we are regularly using should be easily and locally available. I haven’t found
good quality cow dung, so I have developed my own recipes for nutrient mixes. Each plant
responds differently, and I am always learning that way.” He strongly feels that anyone
interested in growing plants must begin with composting to generate nutrients for their
plants. More so, he explains that it offers a deep understanding of ecological processes and
cycles, poetically quoting Thich Nhat Than, “Even while blooming, the flower is already in
the compost, and the compost is already in the flower. Flower and compost are not two...”.
Vimal recycles much of the greywater generated in the kitchen and collects discarded
drums etc to make various concoctions for the plants.
Pandemic, healing and health
At 67, Vimal feels that his garden has offered him more than just fruits and flowers.
“This space became my refuge during the pandemic, as I could not travel anywhere. I have
never hired any help, and pottering around the plants gave me an outlet to feel physically and
mentally active. Since I am retired, I spend 2-3 hours in the garden, tending to the compost bins,
observing the soil, plants, insects and everything else that happens in the garden. I take care
of the plants, and the plants heal me.” He grows various medicinal plants and herbs in the
garden for regular consumption and is increasingly focused on growing perennial rather
than seasonal plants. According to him, people must start by growing plants with which
they have personal, cultural or culinary connections. He says, “For people like me, who are
not too focused on yield and have limited energy, perennial plants are a good way to ensure
regular harvest and keep the space green.”
‘Green’ is probably an understatement for the seeming riot of plants growing on the terrace,
so Vimal calls it ‘wild garden’. He comments with a laugh, “Earlier, when I wanted to grow
chillies and tomatoes, I did not have any success. As I became more interested in maintaining
healthy soil instead, using compost and organic fertilisers, many plants grew from the compost
itself. Now chillies are growing in every other pot. I like how the garden takes its own course.”
Vimal regularly makes saplings and is always happy to share them with anyone interested
in growing plants. He also sources seeds and saplings from various horticultural institutions
or NGOs working with farmers. He has also interacted with many pioneers and activists
working in the farming sector, owing to his work in the development sector and has found
the community to be largely supportive. He is interested in seeing more spaces being used
for growing edibles so that individuals can help each other in sourcing seeds, nutrients,
exchanging harvest and so on. He says, “We think we are growing plants, but really, the
plants help us grow as human beings. Do we need any other reason to garden?”
Ground Up: Sourcing, growing and
consuming food ethically
Gayatri Desai
G ayatri Desai’s restaurant, ‘Ground Up’ in Viman Nagar, Pune, is a cosy space lined up
with edible plants and herbs for those who are observant. A dozen of large earthen
containers and numerous glass bottles are neatly placed in rows, each of them containing
vegetables, fruits or meat at various stages of fermentation. “I started this space on a very
idealistic note of wanting to source each ingredient directly from farmers, but I have realized
along the way that the process is much more complex than initially imagined. Farmers need to
be sensitized, customers need to be aware, and the market has to be more amenable to allow
small-scale enterprises like Ground-Up to function. These are long-term changes, and I need to
be patient.”
Apart from patience, sheer grit and tenacity push Gayatri to clock nearly 14-
16 hours of work on most days, to experiment with newer flavours, visit farms
personally, document local recipes and run a business at the end of the day. Besides
the herbs growing in her restaurant space, Gayatri’s balcony houses nearly 10-15
varieties of edible plants, including entangled beanstalks, millets and tall Indian
roselles leaning over her petite frame.
However, Gayatri has no illusions regarding the difficulty of growing and sourcing
indigenous varieties of crops. She comments, “I try to source non-hybrid, indigenous
varieties of grains. It is tough to source indigenous varieties of vegetables, though, and there
are immense logistical issues of having to source separate ingredients from different farmers
because most of them are not growing multiple crops. In my case, because I am not into mass-
production of cooked food, I have even tried contacting urban home gardeners to sell any
excess they have. For instance, there is this person from whom I source sesame seeds.”
Through repeated interactions with farmers, she has also explored wild variants
of vegetables and herbs, thus also stimulating their interest and memory regarding
wild edibles. She says, “This elderly farmer told me that he has mohar, a wild
vegetable, and I immediately asked him to sell it to me. I keep asking them what is
seasonal, what grows easily etc., and then try to create my menu based on what is
available rather than the other way round.”
Gayatri’s menu mostly consists of food which has undergone some process of
fermentation. Her fascination and expertise in the process embed the idea of enhancing
taste through microbial cultures rather than energy-intensive cooking procedures.
She reflects, “Fermentation allows me to amplify, transform and preserve the taste of
an ingredient. Fermentation broke all rules that I learnt in cooking school. I had never
grown fungus on rice before and slowly saw it turn into delicious miso!” She also sees
it as an excellent way to add value to things that are otherwise wasted or thrown. She
believes that greater awareness and acceptance of fermented food takes us one step
closer to appreciating symbiotic relationships between our gut and the land. She says,
“Fermentation in that sense is the antithesis of the fast food culture because the flavours
are a direct result of the time taken by the bacteria to work on the food. Being aware of
these processes shows the violence we do to our bodies and, by extension, the land, when
we value ‘faster, bigger’ etc.”
Amongst the many challenges, Gayatri feels that she struggles with creating an impact
because her current mode of operation has created a group of loyal customers but is
unable to break the price and class barrier. There is a need for wider and more popular
narratives that can bolster more
interest and encourage wider uptake of
similar initiatives. Gayatri is aware of
the trade-offs involved in economies
of scale and therefore wants to be
deliberate about how she would like to
take her initiative forward. “I imagine
my efforts in scaling to be more
integrative rather than expansive.
This could include increasing what I
grow in my kitchen garden, building a
bigger network of consumers, farmers
and chefs.”
The idea of local need not be restrictive. Gayatri’s garden consists of coriander and ginger
gifted to her by a collaborator in Nagaland, and they seem to have adjusted to the Pune
weather. Gayatri says, “I also try to grow newer varieties because many things which
existed earlier are not available here anymore. We need to be resourceful, innovative and
mindful in our relationship with food.
A paradise called a garden
Madhuri Somalwar
M adhuri Somalwar, 52, a resident of Baner, Pune, talks about how she started
her 340 sq ft garden. Along the way, she learnt how to make the most of the
space and resources, one pot at a time.
“It is important to start with whatever you have. Even if it is just one plant, it will
make a difference to your life,” says Madhuri, showing visitors the immense variety
of plants growing in her balcony. She adopts a utility-based approach to deciding
which seeds to plant. Most of her potted plants are edible, ranging from fruits like
strawberries to medicinal plants and spices used in everyday cooking, such as
turmeric and ginger.
Madhuri’s gardening adventures go far back to when she first planted black
mustard (mohri). Encouraged by the fast growth of the plants and easy availability
of black mustard seeds, she decided to continue gardening and planted pumpkin
seeds in 1998. After harvesting a number of pumpkins, she went on to grow more
plants that she could use in her everyday cooking. Now, the diversity of species
in her garden includes cherry tomato, green chillies, garlic, lemon, golden apple
(bael), gooseberries (amla), and curry leaves, amongst others. She has also planted
pigeon peas (toor dal) and uses it to make lentil soup. She grows a basil plant (Tulsi)
and marigold flowers to use in religious ceremonies, along with ornamental plants
like rose, champak, and gardenia (ananta). She also regularly saves seeds for the
next planting season.
The garden is a miniature ecosystem: coconut shells are hung on tall plants to
serve as nests for birds, sunflowers function as a food source for pollinators such
as parrots, sunbirds, pigeons, and bees. Madhuri has adopted a variety of unique
and innovative practices to ensure that her plants stay disease-free and live longer.
Every few months, she makes compost from leftover fruit peels and kitchen waste.
Planting Indian lilac (neem) alongside green chiretta (kalmegh) is said to prevent
infections, especially of the root and leaves. She is enthusiastic about trying out new
ways to improve her garden’s health and shares a few tips: human hair can be used
as a source of nitrogen when added to soil, wastewater from washing meat or rice
can be used to water plants, burnt coal and vinegar can be added to soil mixtures to
increase fertility, and bricks can be placed at the bottom of planters to absorb excess
water from pots.
“Money is usually not a hindrance when you are starting out. Earlier, I used to utilize
broken or old cooking utensils, paint cans, and buckets as planters. You can also use
cold drink bottles with cocopeat powder to grow saplings.” She recommends planting
leftover seeds from vegetables obtained from the market as the most efficient and
cost-effective way to grow multiple plants at once. Some of her vegetable plants
have been borrowed from her friends. Madhuri’s gardening endeavours serve as an
inspiration to her friends and family, and she strives to be more connected to nature
and encourages urban residents to discover their green thumb using sustainable
methods.
Growing a community
Vidula Mhaiska
V idula Mhaiskar’s terrace garden has a green and cool feel as I visit her on an
early summer afternoon in Pune, with a dry heat starting to take over the
city. A 30 ft x 20 ft space, the terrace garden located a floor above their apartment
was a labour of love of her father and is 25 years old, she informs me. She started
the garden with very minimal resources but a lot of interest and enthusiasm. The
apartment building members are all like a family, so there has been a lot of support
and interest in the initiative over the years, and it has survived the test of time.
Now, Vidula, her husband and her daughter take care of the space and continue
experimenting with the plants there.
A toy maker and educationist by profession, Vidula brings a deep sense of curiosity,
wonder, and careful hands-on care for the diverse life that thrives on her terrace.
The space hosts an impressive variety of tree species, along with herbs and other
small edibles. There are drumstick, lemon, banana, gooseberry, sitafal, sonchafa,
chikoo, kadipatta, pomegranate, and Champa trees along the edges of the space,
planted in soil laid out directly on the terrace floor, held by a foot-high brick bund.
Lemongrass, colocasia, spring onions, and chillies take up the remaining empty
spots along the edges. The soil is covered neatly with leaves and feels moist, and
looks really healthy. Vidula and her husband explain that the leaves, byproducts
of the trees, are reused in the same space to enrich the soil and to prevent water
loss. This process is called mulching and is an elegant and efficient way to recycle
organic matter and nutrients.
Other than the beds along the edge, there exist four beds in the centre of the terrace,
each with an interesting trellis pattern. Some are custom-designed and fabricated
at a local manufacturer, and others are home-designed with locally available waste
material. These host a variety of beans, ivy gourd, ridge gourd, and other seasonal
creepers. On the bed floor are bunches of basil and spinach plants and herbs such
as coriander and fenugreek. A cluster of sorghum catches my eye – planted on one
of the central beds, they stand tall, and the sorghum pod is just starting to develop.
Vidula informs me that they have noticed a much higher frequency of birds when
they have some millets on the terrace. So they often have small clusters of finger
millet, pearl millet, or sorghum dot the beds that invite a variety of seasonal and
migratory birds that stop by for a bite and a sip of water. The pots that surround the
beds and the open edges of the terrace host a large variety of flowers – colourful,
fragrant, and seasonal ones. These are a great way to get bees, butterflies and other
pollinating insects to the space. The family has documented bird and butterfly
varieties over the years and has an impressive list which includes a handful of rare
migratory ones.
Other than the greenery, there is a short kadappa bench nestled under the drumstick
tree, under which are stored the humble tools required to tend to the space. Two
watering cans, a pair of clippers, pruning shears, a shovel, some small buckets, pots,
and some seedboxes. Near the entrance to the garden, four metal chairs, a table,
and an umbrella create a beautiful space for just sitting down and reflecting or
some quiet reading. We sit there and chat a bit more about the inspiration to keep
this going. This space is integral to Vidula’s family and their lifestyle – during the
pandemic, this space served as a hands-on workspace as well as office space for
all the family members. It also provided respite from the redundancy that had set
in, as the garden always had something new to offer. There are always a couple
of ingredients from the terrace in each meal they eat. It serves as a reminder of
the energy and enthusiasm of Vidula’s father, who set it up. And it serves as a
common ground for many of the apartment residents who not only benefit from
the occasional bumper harvest of various produce but also from seeing their terrace
flourish as a green space. As we walk down to Vidula’s apartment, it is clear to me
that this terrace garden serves a purpose way beyond just the harvest of produce –
it is a living, growing, and ever-evolving part of the family and community.
A balcony can be bountiful too
Dhanashree Doddanavar
D hanashree traces her interest in gardening to her father. She has grown
up seeing him tending to plants in his spare time, and so even when they
moved from a spacious home to a more compact apartment, a row of potted plants
made their way into the balcony. A 25-year-old financial professional, she didn’t
get as involved in gardening apart from occasionally watering the plants until the
pandemic struck. “During the lockdown, I watched a lot of videos online; people
were getting into gardening, composting, and people whom I follow (on social
media) were doing these. So, I got motivated, and I got involved. I started putting my
hands into it. This is how it all got started.” Encouraged by videos and experiences,
she began growing edible plants and got her first harvest of chillis. Since then, her
family has grown a variety of edible plants like Curry leaves, Mint, Lemon grass,
Fenugreek, Garlic, Capsicum, Bitter gourd, Brinjal and Tomatoes. The lack of space
also motivated them to utilise the existing space in innovative ways. Dhanashree
explained,
“My mom does not want me to use the floor space (in the balcony) that we have.
She wants to use it for other things like storing other household appliances. What
we are left with is only the grill space. That is the restriction.Thus, we are restricted
to that space only… So, we are hanging the pots to the ceiling. What my father has
done is, he has used old wires to hang two pots, one below the other. Thus, we are
using the vertical space.”
Growing different plants helped Dhanashree learn more about the conditions
needed for their growth. She explained how she initially didn’t know that tomato
plants would need support as their stems tend to be weak. Attending to plants also
helped her to be more mindful of the local situations. For instance, she described
her observation of growing bitter gourd – “I had planted bitter gourd, but during
the summers, the metal grills became hot, and I noticed that the leaves were
getting dried faster because of the heat. So, what we did was we tied jute ropes, and
we made the creeper grow on those jute ropes. We made sure that the jute ropes are
wet all the time so that the leaves remain fresh.”
From gardening to sustainable living
Dhanashree reflected that their increased engagement in growing food had also helped
them be mindful of their consumption practices. The family reuses most of the kitchen
water used for washing vegetables, rice, dal etc, to water the plants. The kitchen waste is
also used in making compost. Dhanashree mentions that their biggest expenditure was
buying the compost bin itself, which cost them 4000 Rs. Dhanashree’s interest has grown
wider through her involvement in an NGO called ECA (Environment Conservation
Association), which works in tree plantation initiatives, reducing plastic consumption
and water harvesting in schools. Dhanashree felt that activities like growing food
have an important place in education. She commented, “I think cities should advise
the schools and big apartment societies that are coming up, Govt should ask them to
have their own rainwater harvesting system. It is good to have such activities in schools
because the children will get to learn from what the school is doing, what the school
is practising. Even the school students will get inspired and will do these things… If
children are connected to nature at that age, they will be more empathetic when they
grow up. This is something that will keep them grounded.”
The personal, cultural, educational
and ecological dimensions of food as
expressed by various people engaged in
gardening.
Here’s what a few people said, when we asked them “What

got you interested in growing edible plants?”
M y motivation is basically to give a taste of exotic veggies (that I grew up

eating in Bengal) to the kids...most of which I wouldn’t find here in Pune.
In my balcony garden, I have papaya, Malabar spinach, gondhoraaj lemon, and
pumpkin
- Anasuya Ghosh, Chef, Travel Agent, Pune
I like growing things that I will use in small quantities and only every now and
then. We’re currently growing Thai basil, ajwain, and cherry tomatoes. Buying such
things in bulk from the market makes no sense when I won’t be using all of it over a
short period and it goes bad. I have faith that even if I don’t wash these thoroughly,
there’s nothing on it that’s going to get me seriously sick. Plus, it is a joy in itself to
have plants flourishing, irrespective of their use or beauty.
- Pooja Sancheti, Assistant Professor, Humanities and Social Sciences, IISER
Pune
Gardening allows me to appreciate at a faster rate this natural law of everlasting

change in the universe. With minimal care an apparently insignificant seed, root or
branch unfolds with the energy of life, grows into a plant and blooms with purpose
to give itself or fruit for the continuation of the cycle of life and death, life and death.
-Ruth Pineda, gardening enthusiast, Bengaluru and Pune
There is a gap between production and consumption, nowadays a child should
understand, the wastage part. One third goes waste. So many foods are wasted.
A child should understand the importance of this thing. They should learn how
much effort a farmer is putting to grow plants.They are putting their effort almost
for 3 months, then there is some result, but you are wasting within 3 minutes. So
children should develop attachment with the plants, they should understand the
values, then wastage will be reduced. If you simply lecture, they will not understand.
One has to get oneself involved to understand what is happening.
K R Ranjan, volunteer at a community farm in Goregaon, Mumbai
What motivates you to grow a food garden?
Part 2
Growing a green thumb
“To garden is to make whole again what has been shattered: The relationship
in which you are both producer and consumers, in which you reap the bounty
of the earth directly, in which you understand fully how something came into
being. It may not be significant in scale, but even if it’s a windowsill geranium
high above a city street, it can be significant in meaning.”
- Rebecca Solnit, Orwell’s roses
Gardener’s Gold: Compost
Anjali Choudhary
H ealthy plants need healthy soils. What if you were told that all your kitchen
waste could turn into nutrients for your plants, instead of being thrown as a
pile of garbage? Alchemy, you say? Well, then it is time you turned into an Alchemist
and discover the gold hiding in your everyday waste. Welcome to composting.
My journey as a gardener didn’t start with growing my vegetables; rather, it started
with composting at home. With a lot of compost being made at home, I was
applying it to all the flowering plants in my garden. Gradually, apart from noticeably
healthier plants, I also spotted many saplings growing between the flowering plants
and in the pots. These were baby papayas with 6-7 sprouting leaves. I had never
sowed the papaya seeds or planted saplings. I realised that these had germinated
from the compost. With so many healthy papayas thriving in the garden, I thought
of growing other vegetables too. So, it was compost that led me to embark on my
gardening journey, as I began growing tomato, chilly, ivy gourd and many other
edibles over time. Some initial setbacks included monkeys eating all my tomato
harvest, but eventually I managed to get a share. Thereafter I planted brinjal,
pumpkins, bottle gourd, sponge gourd and cucumbers. Like all other gardeners,
my focus used to be on a healthy feed for my plants. Feeding them with homemade
compost, adding vermicompost to the plants, using banana peel fertilizer and
spraying other bio cultures became routine. All these applications introduce lots
of nutrients into the soil. As the human body derives energy from food for overall
functions and survival, the plants derive their energy from soil. The richness of
soil will dictate the nourishment of the plants and hence, gardeners focus on
building their soil and provide their plants with essential nutrients. I came across
expert gardeners who recommend vermicompost or homemade compost as feed
for plants. These composts are a natural way of fertilizing the soil and supplying
nutrients to the plants.
Image 1: (Right image) Spot the two-papaya trees in the images growing in my garden.
These are from the papaya seeds which germinated after compost application. (Left
image) I am harvesting the home-grown papayas.
Delve deep into to magic of compost
If you are wondering what this compost is like and what benefits does it hold?
Have you ever walked in a deciduous forest or an area with lot of trees? If you
observe the forest floor, the first thing you might notice is the thick layer of fallen
leaves in various shades ranging from light yellow to grayish-black. Some fruits
might have fallen from the trees, releasing the funky smell we associate with
over-ripe, sweet food going bad. You might spot some animal dung covered with
flies. You are witnessing the process that sustains life – decomposition of organic
matter. Underneath the decaying leaves, you might see white threads of fungal and
bacterial structures responsible for breaking down the complex organic matter into
simpler nutrients that will eventually replenish the soil. Dig around a bit more and
you’ll see many critters, earthworms and insects in the soil, which itself will be this
crumbly, slightly sweet-smelling substance – The stuff of life. Now, what if you were
told that you can observe, and even create this magic at home? This mini ecosystem
can be created in our homes and gardens using the process of composting. This
phenomenon recycles organic matter, such as leaves and food scraps, into a fertilizer
for plants.
Image 2: pollinators hovering near the flowers
Compost introduces so many microorganisms and life forms in the soil. It provides
further food for these life forms to flourish and thrive, enhancing the quality of soil.
With regular application, I have observed life thrives in my garden. Not only healthy
flowering plants, but also sightings of earthworms became regular. Earthworms not
only aerate the soil but also breakdown the organic matter further in the soil and
make it available for plants to absorb. The part of the garden which has earthworms
also has this dark and crumbly soil.
Compost has proven to be far better than the artificial and synthetic fertilizers
to provide natural and more resilient soils. Unlike artificial fertilizers, compost
contains macro and micronutrients, and these are released slowly over time. No
wonder, why plants bloom with application of these fertilizers. Composting has
not only added to the richness of the soil and growth of the plants , but it has also
helped in recycling kitchen and yard waste.
Types of Compost
As a composting enthusiast, I came across various types of compost and got
confused over which one to use. The magical thing about the variety of compost
is that any of them can be used for the garden. They are natural and good for soil.
To talk about a few of these compost, we briefly discuss vermicompost, green
manure, farmyard manure, and leaf compost. As a home gardener, not all compost
are feasible to prepare at home. Hence it is important to understand the type of
compost and requirement before starting the composting process.
Vermicompost: Earthworms are the star players of vermicompost as they eat
the waste, digest it and then excrete. Their excreta is known as vermi cast and
those are power packed with lot of nutrients . The organic material required for
vermicomposting can be crop residues, weed biomass, vegetable waste, leaf litter,
food refuse, waste from agro-industries, cow dung, organic portion of urban and
rural wastes. The earthworms are introduced depending on the waste compositions
and thereafter the process of decomposition starts. The whole process makes compost
which improves the soil’s water absorbing capacity, increases seed germination
and supplies continuous nutrients to all plant life. These fascinating earthworms
can transform your garden into a beautiful and blossoming wonderland. Usually,
farmers use large quantities of vermicompost as they have easy access to raw
material and earthworms. Vermicompost preparation demands more attention and
management as the
temperatures must
be in check for
earthworms. Lot of
heat generated in
the process or lack
of moisture can kill
the earthworms.
This method is
recommended after
some experience in
a simpler method
of composting.
Image 3 : Earthworms in soil.
(https://pixabay.com/photos/compost-earthworm-worm-7006499/)
Green Manuring: Using green plants as manure is known as green manuring.
For this process, we grow variety of legumes (green gram, chickpea, soybeans,
peas), cereals (Sorghum, Maize, Wheat, Pearl millet), oilseeds (groundnut, sesame,
mustard, sunflower) and vegetables seeds (fenugreek, spinach, coriander, beetroot
etc.). The above-mentioned seeds are sown in the soil and after 30-40 days of
germination, they are uprooted. These must be chopped finely and mixed into the
soil and watered. After 15 days, the soil is turned and left for another 50 days.
After a total period of 70 days, the green plants have decayed and converted into
nutrients in the soil. Now, you can use this soil to grow your vegetables and plants.
To grow crops for green manuring, we need some extra space dedicated to growing
these crops. Also, make sure that the plant is uprooted before the flowers set in.
Leaf Compost: This is the easiest form of composting which requires minimum
ingredients. Fallen dried leaves are collected and put together along with cow dung
slurry. Leaves should be dried and shredded. If you don’t have a shredder then
they can be crushed by hands or jumping over them. Cow dung slurry is added
to provide the nitrogen content and to speed up the process of decomposition of
carbon rich dried leaves. The leaves require 12 months to decompose and form
compost. But you can harvest them after 6 months and use it as leaf mulch for
mulching your garden soil. A small mesh wire of 3 to 4 ft can be bought and placed
in the corner of the garden to serve as aerated collection area to dump the leaves.
Image 4: Dried leaves being collected in the mesh wire fashioned into containers.
Farmyard Manure: Farmyard manure (FYM) is the decomposed mixture
of dung and urine of farm animals (cow, goat, buffalo etc.) along with litter and
left-over material from fodder. FYM requires supply of animal excreta and larger
decomposition area which makes it unsuitable for home gardens. These can be
easily bought from the farmers or cow sheds/dairy farms.
Home compost: Home compost is another easy option to make at home. The
raw materials required for home composting are generated in our kitchen every
day. Yes, I am talking about kitchen waste that is mainly fruits and vegetables peels.
Organic waste can be decomposed by using two easy composting methods: Aerobic
(with oxygen) or Anaerobic (without oxygen). Both methods can be used at home
for generating compost.
Let’s talk about anaerobic composting first. This composting can be easily done
by using a dustbin with a tight lid and a tap to drain excess water. Some microbes,
marketed as anaerobic starters are added to the composting bin. The process happens
in two stages 1) Fermentation of the waste in the bin: Add the kitchen waste every
day in the bin and make sure to press it down to remove any air. Always keep the lid
close after adding the waste. The excess water generated in the bin can be removed
by opening the tap. This water is known as leachate and is beneficial for plants or
can be poured in the drain to clean it. Once the bin is completely full, then keep it
aside for 3 weeks and start using the second bin. Stage 2: Decomposition takes place
for over a period of 3 weeks. Once harvested, mix the composted material with soil
or compost and keep it aside in a container with holes. This will help in air supply
and curing of the compost which can then be used
for soil application. Few things to remember while
doing anaerobic composting: There may be smell
only when you open the lid of the bin and the smell
will dissipate after closing the bin.
Image 5: Trustbin is a brand in India which sells

anaerobic composters : https://www.trustbasket.
com/blogs/composting/anaerobic-composting
Now moving on to Aerobic composting, I started this at my home in an earthen
pot using a ‘Do it yourself ’ method which I describe in detail below:
Requirement for items to start aerobic composting at home:
A bin: For beginners, an earthen pot is the best bin to start with. If earthen pots
are not available, use any flowerpot or a plastic dustbin with a lid. The lid should
be easy to lift but not too loose. For estimating the size of the bin, consider 1 kg of
kitchen waste for a 4-member household. A bin size of 30 litres will take around 30
days to be full. Start using another bin.
A stand to keep the pot/bin: The compost bin (pot/ dustbin/ bucket) should be
kept balanced. Using a plastic stand/iron tripod will ensure balancing and hassle-
free collection of leachate.
A Container: This will be placed below the compost bin to collect Leachate. It is
the brown water percolating through compost. This can later be used for plants
(dilute 1 part with 10 parts water) The size of the container should be small so as to
fit inside the stand just below the bottom hole of the compost bin.
A rake and stick: This will be helpful in mixing the compost. Rake is not compulsory
but a stick is.
Knowing the waste: In compost, we add our kitchen waste which is known as
‘greens’ or ‘wet’ waste and dry garden waste known as ‘browns’ or ‘dry’ waste. Good
composting will happen only when there is a specific blend of green and browns.
Brown materials are high in carbon, while green materials are high in nitrogen.
Usually, double the quantity of browns is to be taken than the greens. The below
image will give an insight on what to include in both brown and green.
Image 7: List of greens and browns to be added in the compost bin
Let’s Assemble:
To start the process, we need to set up the required items for hassle free composting
experience. The below process takes you to the complete process of composting
and its setup:
1. 1. Let’s drill the holes: Around 10-15 small holes need to be drilled on the
compost bin using a driller/screwdriver or nails. Drill a hole at the bottom
center of the bin. This is where leachate will escape the pot.
Image 8: Steps to follow for composting and reference image of the setup
2. Find a place & Setup: For selecting a location for placing the compost
bin, choose a corner of the garden or balcony where it doesn’t hinder your
movement. Keep the bin away from direct sunlight. Place the bin over the
tripod and plastic container below the stand (Refer to the image above)
3. Start layering: Fill the first layer of bin with ample browns say 1/4th bin
shall be filled with browns. Start adding your kitchen waste. With every layer
of kitchen waste, cover it with a thin layer of
browns. The proportions of brown will vary
with the type of brown used in layering. If
leaves are used then, 2 cups of kitchen waste
will require 4 cups of dry leaves. If cocopeat is
used in layering then, 2 cups of kitchen waste
will require 1 cup of cocopeat. Use equal
proportions of brown and kitchen waste when
using soil for layering. The process of layering
(as in the image below) shall be continued till
the bin is full. Make sure to leave some space
at the top of the bin.
Image 9: Cross- section of layered browns and greens (source: growinggreen.com)
4. Fine-tune your pile’s moisture: the pile inside the bin should be neither
too dry nor too wet as both will hamper the decomposition process. Add
browns if you feel the pile has high moisture content. Add some water if you
find the mixture dry. Easy way to identify it is by squeezing the waste in your
palm and if it’s like a wrung-out sponge, it’s good. And I never tried doing it,
rather visualized that it doesn’t give out more than a few drops of water when
squeezed!
5. Turn the pile: Mixing the pile every day helps in aeration. Mix the pile after
introducing the wet waste. Also, cover the pile with the browns so the next
time while opening the lid only brown is visible.
6. Let it compost: Once the compost
bin is full, cover it and keep it aside. Once
in a week check for the moisture content. It
will take 60 -90 days for your pile to turn into
compost. In case, you haven’t got the time to
check the compost bin occasionally, nothing
to be scared of. Either the compost will be
ready or may show some symptoms of dryness
or excess moisture. Repeat step 4 and keep the
compost bin aside for a few more days.
Image 10: Freshly harvested compost. The

compost is not always fine powder. It has bigger chunks of uncomposted food items
e.g. corn cob which takes longer time to decompose. These chunks can be removed
and put back in the compost bin
7. Curing: The final compost derived from the above process needs to be cured
for another 45 to 60 days. For curing compost, transfer it in another bin
which is aerated. The compost shall be kept moist at all times so that further
decomposition happens. After this, the compost is ready to be applied to the
soil.
8. Sieving: Few people like the compost to be fine textured so they sieve the
compost before using. You can do so by simple sieve used for sieving wheat
and other grains. I find the whole process very calming and the aroma of the
compost lightens up my day.
Image 11: The left side of the image has bigger chunks, and the right side has fine
sieved compost.
Add more bins Once the bin is full and
you keep it aside, another bin is required
where you can start adding your waste
again following the same process as
above. You can place the new bin above
the old one (as in the image below). This
will require less space to keep the bins.
Start using the third bin, once the second
bin is full. Meanwhile, check the first bin
for the compost process. Number of bins
required by a household will depend
on the family size and amount of waste
generated. It looks complicated before
starting but the continuity sets in after
initial composting cycles.
Image 12: Compost bins are stacked over one another to save on space
Diagnose your compost
While composting, few problems
might occur. But, not to be
disheartened, it’s better to know how
to tackle these issues if they ever
come up. Here’s a quick diagnosis of
the situations:
Image 13: Issues which are faced during composting and their solutions
For hassle free composting:
Use of Accelerator: Buttermilk acts as a catalyst for decomposition of the compost
pile. Adding some buttermilk every week to the pile will accelerate the process. If
the moisture content is high in the compost pile then add curd instead of buttermilk.
Within 60-90 days, the pile should transform into compost which will be dry, dark
brown, crumbly and smelling of earth.
Items to be added: Composting is a natural process and can’t go wrong but there
are always questions about what goes in the process and what shall be kept out. The
list of items which can be added to the compost bin are enlisted in the Image 7
Beginners can avoid the following items as they might hamper the composting
process. But advanced compost enthusiasts can use their discretion to add the
following materials, which are fine when added in small quantities.
• Meat/fish
• Large amount of oil
• cooked food
• Dairy products
• Diseased plants
There are few things in the kitchen which come as food packaging and can end up
along with food waste unknowingly. They shall not be added to the list. Be cautious
about this list:
• Glossy newspaper print
• Plastic
• Aluminum foils
• vegetable net bags
Always cover your kitchen waste with leaves: If you open your compost bin to
add more waste, what would you like to see? A layer of fungus or maggots digging
in your compost pile? Not many are pleased with this view. So, always keep your
kitchen waste covered with dried leaves or other browns.
Image 14: (Left) A layer of fungus growing on the decaying matter; (right) fresh
organic waste covered with dried matter.
Beautiful brown thing: Identify the compost
A well matured compost is beneficial to the plants and immature compost can
lead to various issues. With the preparation of your own compost, it is imperative
to know when it is fully prepared. To recognize a fully matured compost, look for
the points below .
Colour: At the beginning of the composting process, there will be various colors
of brown or yellow leaves, wilted flowers, green grass clippings, white eggshells,
colourful vegetable and fruit peels, and many more. During the decomposition
process, the colors will be blurred and transition towards brown/black color. The
ready compost will have a uniform brown to black colour.
Texture: It should be dark in color and look like soil. It should be crumbly and
appear like tea leaves after being sieved from tea. If you pick it up, it should fall
easily in crumbs or particles from your hand. If you can still see the individual
elements of the compost, then the compost needs longer to mature. If there are
chunks of vegetables, and fruits then let the compost sit for some more days. Any
larger chunks of wood, corn cobs, and peanut shells will take more time and hence
can be removed and added to another compost pile.
Moisture: A good compost will have moisture content. It gets drier with maturity.
Squeeze a handful of compost in your palms and if it is dripping water then there
is too much moisture. Then let it dry for a few days by ensuring proper drainage or
mixing the compost regularly.
Smell: Taking a good whiff of your compost will help you determine the readiness
of the compost. Usually, compost will not have an offensive smell. If it is too pungent,
then there is something wrong with the compost. The decomposition process
releases nitrogen gas and hence the stinking smell of ammonia. This indicates that
compost has not fixed the nitrogen and will require more time for the compost to
get matured.
Heat: Compost is cool when touched. Any kind of heat emitting from the compost
indicates leaving the compost as it is for further decomposition and maturity.
Use compost for garden
To use the cured compost in potted plants, remove 1 inch of soil from the pot and
put in the compost. If compost is to be applied in the garden then loosen up the soil
and spread the compost over the soil.
Hope this process of composting gives you clarity on preparing your compost
from waste. My whole journey of composting started with an aim to reduce my
waste from the landfill. But as I was reading and experimenting with composting,
I came to know that the kitchen waste being thrown away can be so much more
useful for gardeners like us. While I was taking care of my kitchen waste and garden
waste, I was left with a lot of dry waste. I could easily peek into my dustbin to clearly
identify what is left behind. Most of the objects were segregated easily.
I started segregating my waste thereafter. Plastics were cleaned and stored to be
sent to recyclers and same with glass and broken glass. The whole experience of
composting and waste segregation has led me to think about all my actions and how
they are contributing to the waste scenarios in the country. With one simple step
of composting, I am much more aware of my choice and have adopted appropriate
consumption practices.
Different versions of compost setup:
Image 16: Composting vessels on the window sill and house corners
Image 17: sieved compost and decomposing matter stored in different containers
I hope this inspires you to start your composting journey, and share your
experiences and let the community grow. There is no space or quantity too small
to start!
1. Composting is a natural process where organic matter like (agricultural waste, vegetable and fruit
waste, dry leaves) breaks down into valuable fertilizer which can be used to enrich soil for growing
healthy plants.
2. Compost is the end product of the composting process.
3. With application of compost, acidic and alkaline soil can be neutralized improving pH levels hence
providing better nutrient availability to the plants. Soil enriched with compost is able to hold and
retain water, nutrients and other fertilizers better by preventing runoff. It loosens the soil and pro-
vides a good soil structure with air channels holding up the air, moisture and nutrients. Soil enriched
with compost holds diversity in the form of insects, worms, bacteria, fungi and other organisms that
burrow through soil. In addition to improving the physico-chemical and biological properties of the
soil. It is an excellent source of plant nutrients such as nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P) and potassium
(K). It helps plants develop a healthy root system. Compost provides nutrients to the plants prevent-
ing any nutrient imbalance. This in turn makes the plant resistant to fight any pest and disease attack
as compost retains water, it prevents plants from drying out quickly. A healthier soil is also a carbon
sequester.
4.
5. Castings of earthworms contain higher amounts of nitrogen, potash, and calcium than found in good
topsoil. To know more about vermicomposting read: https://agritech.tnau.ac.in/org_farm/orgfarm_
vermicompost.html
6. https://agritech.tnau.ac.in/org_farm/orgfarm_manure.html
7. https://www.trustbasket.com/blogs/composting/anaerobic-composting
8. The excess moisture is oozed out in the composting process as a brown/black color liquid. It is
known as leachate. Read more about leachate here: http://www.carryoncomposting.com/441149729
Guardians of biodiversity :
a seed saving journey
Diipti Jhangiani
T his chapter features a story on what is perhaps Nature’s most cutting-edge

technology - the seed. The article describes the importance and process of seed
saving as a vital cultural and survival skill for protecting the biodiversity of food
species on earth.
Origin of The Seed Saving Story

Holda seed pod in the palm of your hand. Crush it, squish it or crack it open.
Emerging from a single seed pod, you’ll find the promise of a forest. Countless
plants, just waiting to sprout and flourish. And this remarkable journey starts from
a single seed - the epicenter of one of Nature’s most sophisticated technologies.
Ancient forests and grasslands are prime examples of the role seeds play in
regeneration. They serve as invaluable living laborataries to study and observe the
journey of a seed as it germinates, creates a plant, regenerates itself, and through
this process, ultimately gives birth to a diverse ecosystem.
Living Lab Experiments
Even if you live in a city and do not have access to forests, head over to the nearest
garden, and around the park bench you sit on, you can observe the workings of
little shrubs around your feet. You will witness pioneers (what most of us call
weeds) of green species such as varieties of grass, several varieties of wild edibles
like purslane, dandelion, mustard, stinging nettle and more. And if you extend this
experiment of observation beyond seasons, you’ll notice the unique life-cycle of
these plants – they will germinate into seedlings at the onset of monsoons, reach
their prime and thrive throughout heavy downpours, and put out pretty flowers
to attract pollinators such as bees, ants, spiders, birds and bats. And then, when
winter comes, they’d get happily plump in their old age, holding pods of wisdom.
These pods are full of seeds, imprinted with all the information needed for the next
generation to grow and thrive. Pods that will fall into the same cracks in between
tiles of the garden or be carried by the wind, just to repeat the same cycle over and
over again.
In fact, our forefathers, the early humans, might have conducted the same
observational experiments over time and deciphered how they could cultivate and
consume plants and add them to their diet. And from this living lab emerged what
we know of today as the unique agrobiodiversity of vegetables, fruits, roots and
tubers, grains and pulses and legumes that are such a vital part of the food culture
of our country.
A Few Elephant Tusk Seeds
At the end of 2017, I received a few seeds of a variety of bhindi (okra) called
Elephant Tusk that were sown, grown, and saved at a permaculture farm in
Telangana. I came back home to Mumbai and sowed the seeds in June of the
next year. The seeds that I sowed
in my garden in Mumbai located
in western India in a warm, moist
climate had their ancestry based in
the dry and hot climate of southern
India. I was apprehensive, would they
germinate in this drastically different
environment? Would they flourish
or get stressed and perish? But when
after just 7 days, I witnessed the
seeds germinating and over the next
few months experienced bountiful
harvests, my worries were put to
rest. And today, in the five years that
I have seasonally sowed and saved
elephant tusk seeds, I am mesmerized
as to how a seed is able to not just
survive but also thrive and multiply
in diverse climatic conditions.
Image 2: Varieties of Okra
United Colours of Bhindi
How does a vegetable exist in so many varieties, beyond the singular green okra
or white radish, or orange carrot we are used to seeing in our delivery baskets or in
the markets?
As I write this piece, nearby in my kitchen, I hear the sizzle of candle fire okra, my
favorite variety of okra, in a pan garnished with some freshly desiccated coconut. It
is one of the many varieties of okra I have grown in my urban garden over the years.
It is bright red in colour, has a subtle fragrance, and is not as gooey as the green okra
you see in vegetable markets. Each variety of okra has its unique fragrance, taste and
texture. Take for example, the elephant tusk okra, which, as the name suggests, can
grow beyond 12 inches in length in its tender stage to yield a light-green pod. Then
there is the Clemson spineless variety, which is another shade of green and very
robust in shape with prominent ridges. In fact, in the many cuisines of India, the
variety of vegetable used calls for a unique preparation that showcases its unique
flavour. Different varieties of colocasia leaves for example, are used in different
varieties of cuisine and prepared differently too.The ones shaped like hearts are
used to make aluvadi, a traditional Indian snack made using spiced chickpea flour,
rolled and steamed in the colocasia leaves, whereas the variety that has oval-shaped
leaves must be boiled with a souring agent like tamarind (to neutralise the itchy
oxalate crystals) before
processing further
into a lentil gravy with
tempered seasoning.
These subtleties, a
combination of nature’s
flavor palate and the
rich human culture
around preparing and
eating food, is a treasure
trove worth conserving
and protecting.
Image 2: Saving Okra varieties

Seasons of Seeds
I am a fan of stuffed brinjal (eggplant) in a peanut and chilli-garlic gravy. This
recipe is almost always prepared in the winters as it demands a specific variety of
brinjal - the small, oval type that is only available in the winter season. Some of the
more common varieties of brinjal that we see year round are the white eggplant
(from where it gets the name), the long purple, big purple brinjal, and the round
green variety. Each of these have their unique cycle of life as per different seasons.
In my garden, I’ve closely observed a few varieties - the striped and thorny variety
of brinjal germinates at the peak of summer and gives bountiful harvests during the
monsoon season, whereas the big meaty brinjal that we use to make the traditional
brinjal bharta (roasted eggplant dip), stays dormant in the monsoons and comes
back to producing fruit at the end of the monsoon season.
And if you, like me, are a lover of brinjal, then you’d want some variety or the
other available throughout the year, right? Nature has a plan for us – there’s a
special brinjal or two for each season. The ability of a seed from the same family
to germinate in a season that is ideal for its unique genetic makeup and its ability
to stay dormant or thrive in a specific season is truly nature’s way of giving us the
opportunity of a bountiful and biodiverse harvest all year round.
Saving, Storing, and Celebrating the Seed
Now that we realize many superpowers of seeds - their several varieties, the role
they play in food sovereignty and how they can give birth to a biodiverse forest
– the natural next question is - how do we save seeds? It is really very simple.
Identify a patch of land around you - it could be in the balcony or terrace of your
urban home in containers or a farm patch - and start growing. Start your very
own observational living lab. Choose individual varieties of plants that are easier to
grow – some examples are basil, beans, and tomatoes. Nurture these plants with the
appropriate sunlight, moisture, and compost. Observe the journey of these plants
in a journal: variety of seed, date of sowing, date of germination, first few leaves,
flowers, fruits, pest attacks if any, and so on. And when the plants begin to give you
their first round of harvests, let a couple of the fruits remain on the plant. Let them
plump up, let them dry out and then, only then, harvest them for their seeds. In this
simple living lab observation, you will have witnessed the seed-to-seed journey -
from a single seed sown in your container garden or farm, to a seed pod that’s full
of seeds for you to save for the next season.
Some plants like beans and okra, amaranth and radish have the ability to naturally
dry out their seeds within the seed pods itself, after which the pods burst open to
release the seeds. And then there are other plants like cucumber, tomato, snake
gourd that are full of juices and quite mushy when their seeds have ripened, and
hence we lend a helping hand in the process of seed saving. I’ve experimented with
and successfully managed to save seeds of plants using a method of fermentation
for tomatoes and cucumbers and you can follow the same for various other fruits
and vegetables as well. Here’s how - strain out the flesh and most of the juices of the
vegetable or fruit. Then transfer the seeds (which might still have a light coating
of juice and flesh) to a shallow bowl or plate and add water to the mix. Store this
concoction in an undisturbed space, away from birds or any insects for about 2-3
days. After the first day itself, you will begin to see a thin veil of a white fungus
develop over the liquid. This is a wild fungus from the air or the seeds themselves
that helps to consume the sugars in the solution i.e the layers of flesh and juices
around the seeds. By the second or third day, you can rinse off the fungal layer to
find the hard-shelled seeds, ready for the next stage of seed saving - sun drying.
Transfer the seeds into an open plate or tray and dry the seeds in an area with good
airflow like a balcony ledge or open courtyard. On a sunny day, your seeds should
be all dried out and ready to store within 24 hours or so. If it is a humid or rainy day,
try to dry the seeds indoors under the heat and light of a bulb so as to avoid any of
the outdoor humidity from getting to the seeds. And once the seeds are sun-dried
thoroughly, transfer them to a container (you can reuse a glass or plastic jar from
your kitchen) and store them in a cool, dry and dark place.
Image 3 Stages of saving tomato seeds

Once you’ve witnessed this magical seed to seed journey, the world of seed saving,
communities across the country that have dedicated their lives to seed saving,
will open up to your horizon. Head over to social media communities started by
individuals for seed swaps or visit some of the seed saving collectives of our country.
There are some beautiful communities in India and abroad, working towards
saving the biodiversity of seeds. The HOOGA Seed Keeper’s Collective - a farmer
collective for seed saving, Sahaja Seeds - a women self-help group, Navdhanya -
seed saving initiatives managed by the community farm are just some examples
of the seed-saving communities that have been working for years to save India’s
traditional agro-biodiversity.
Seed swap meets in cities and peri-urban areas are becoming hotspots for hobby
gardeners and urban farmers to exchange seeds, saplings, cuttings of plants, tubers
of flowers and rhizomes of edibles like different varieties of turmeric, ginger yam
and potatoes too. Look out for seed swap meet-ups in your city or head over to
some of the popular seed exchange and plant meet-ups in India such as Oota from
Your Thoota based in Bangalore.
Districts and states across the country host annual seed festivals around the time
of Makar Sankranti in January, where farmers from across the country come to
display with pride the seeds that they have saved over the years. Closer to home in
Maharashtra, the Mahalaxmi Saras Festival is one such celebration of indigenous
seeds, local crafts and folk music. Seeds take the mainstage as we see the journey
of the seeds and their significance to their seasons and cultures displayed in local
paintings and drawings. From different varieties of indigenous rice to unknown
species of yams and gourds to some very rare and medicinal varieties of turmeric -
you’ll see these and more if you venture out to these festivals.
Guardians of The Seed
In indigenous practices, a variety of seeds are saved each season by the custodians
of the land and stored to be able to use again in the next season for growing food
and cash crops. These seeds are stored in containers made using naturally available,
biodegradable, organic materials and also stored in many unique designs, keeping
in mind good airflow for a temperature-controlled environment – typically a dark
and dry space as bright light can cause germination of stored seeds and also to keep
pests at bay.
For seeds that must be saved in large quantities, for example grains of rice and
pulses for large tracts of land, farmers build enclosures made of cow dung, rice
husks and soil with additives of Neem leaves and wood ash so as to keep pests at
bay. Smaller quantities are saved and sealed in bamboo baskets that are pre-lined
and sun dried with a similar concoction. While seed saving is a practised skill that
anyone can develop over time, there are a few things that will help or mar your
journey. I’ve listed out a few below.
Always start with singular varieties of plants in about 10 square feet of space - for
example a single variety of basil instead of two to three different varieties. This is to
ensure that in the process of open pollination, the genetic makeup of two different
varieties of basils don’t mix as far as possible, to give us the same fragrance and
uniqueness of the original seed. This is a crucial step to ensure the uniqueness of
each sub-species in the species of plants we want to save for the next generation.
If you are practising seed saving in your private garden or a space where you have
the freedom to grow what you wish, then you need not worry about any issues other
than spacing the plants out like I’ve mentioned above. But if you are attempting
growing and saving seeds in a community garden, ensure you take steps towards
informing all members of the community about your seed saving experiments, so
as to safeguard from pods being harvested by mistake or thrown away by anyone
not aware of the process.
For rare varieties of seeds, try to add a layer of protection by shielding the plants
from slugs/ snails, birds or rodents, who can easily devour the leaves, fruits, and sap
of the plants. You can use fine mulmul cotton fabric or a nylon net mesh, which will
also protect the plants from getting cross pollinated.
Once you have harvested the seeds from their seed pods, ensure they are thoroughly
dry by exposing them to the sun for a few hours and then, sprinkle a little wood ash
on them (it acts as an antibacterial, antifungal agent that keeps seed borers away)
before packing them in an air-tight glass or plastic container and store in a cool, dry
place like your refrigerator or a dark and dry cabinet.
You can also mix a variety of seeds from different families and save them in a
single container, for example a mix of winged bean, bitter gourd, okra and chilli.
This is a smart way to keep seed borers away who prefer feasting on one variety of
seed over the other. The mix of seed smells and textures confuses them and your
seeds are well protected this way.
Seed Foraging in a City
Trees all around us, be it in urban jungles or in dense forests, are constantly living
the cycle of life - they germinate, grow into robust trees, their flowers bloom to
attract pollinators, they give bountiful harvests. And at the core of each fruit are the
seeds that will give birth to a forest all over again. Animals and birds in a forest will
munch on the fruits for food and throw the seeds to the ground, thereby playing
the role of the perfect seed dispersers that has been fine tuned over millions of years
by Nature. But in an urban jungle, with concrete
grounds all around, even though the seeds have
matured and fallen to the ground, they seldom
get the opportunity to germinate and grow into
their full potential. So it is a good idea to explore
your neighbourhood and observe the seasons
that trees follow. Once you have identified the
season in which the trees around you begin
dropping their seeds, head out on a seed-picking
trip with your friends and family and a tote
bag! In older neighbourhoods that have mature
trees and lesser concrete, you will be pleasantly
surprised to find some rare and unique forest
species of trees too.
Image 4: Varieties of seeds collected during a walk

And then follow the same seed saving process: ensure they are dry, transfer them in
airtight containers with a dash of wood ash, and label them with their known name
and date of saving. Once you’ve prepped and saved your forest trees, connect with
farmers or land custodians around you and encourage them to plant these forest
trees in appropriate spaces on their land. An even more adventurous act is to head
out and look for open/ abandoned spaces in your city and practise some guerilla
gardening - the revolutionary act of greening a space. With seeds, the possibilities
are literally endless - with this cutting edge-technology in your hands, you can sow,
harvest, and save over and over seasons for many generations to come. Tell us what
you will do with your seeds?
Reference Links:
Season Watch https://www.seasonwatch.in/
MAPUCA https://www.facebook.com/groups/mapuca
Googa Seed Keepers Collective https://hoogaseeds.com/
Sahaja Seeds https://www.sahajaseeds.in
Navdanya Seed Bank http://navdanya.org/living-seed/navdanya-seed-banks
Oota From Your Thota https://www.facebook.com/ofyt.org/
Annual Seed Festivals https://grain.org/e/4202
“Small is Beautiful” : Growing
Microgreens in a Concrete Jungle
Berenice da Gama Rose
G etting Started
I started growing microgreens during the pandemic when we were faced
with mobility restrictions which resulted in us not being able to go out much for
fresh vegetables. I had already begun to study permaculture at that point and was
dying to get hands-on experience without a lot of investment, since timelines for
reopening were so uncertain. I first did my research on what veggies could be eaten
as microgreens and realized that there was a whole variety of leafy, cruciferous and
even root vegetables which make for wonderful, nutritious microgreens.
The Wikipedia definition of microgreens is as follows: Microgreens are vegetable
greens harvested just after the cotyledon leaves have developed with one set of
true leaves. They are used as a nutrition supplement, a garnish, and a flavour and
texture enhancement. This is a comprehensive definition and it is incredible how
microgreens really pack the flavour of the vegetable that we are used to eating, all
in the tiny plant bodies (stem and 2 leaves), grown over as short a time as five to
eight days from planting.
Microgreens are usually packed with nutrients because the new shoots are
generally very strong and literally bursting with life. The fresher they are eaten, the
more of this nutrient is derived from consuming these little powerhouses of flavour
and nutrition.
Plants which grow as Microgreens:
Here is a comprehensive list of all the plants which can be grown as microgreens.
1. Amaranthaceae family: Includes amaranth, beets, chard, quinoa, and spinach.
1. Amaryllidaceae family: Includes chives, garlic, leeks, and onions.
1. Apiaceae family: Includes carrot, celery, dill, and fennel.
1. Asteraceae family: Includes chicory, endive, lettuce, and radicchio.
1. Brassicaceae family: Includes arugula, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, radish,
and watercress.
1. Cucurbitaceae family: Includes cucumbers, melons, and squashes.
1. Lamiaceae family: Includes most common herbs like mint, basil, rosemary,
sage, and oregano.
1. Poaceae family: Includes grasses and cereals like barley, corn, rice, oats, and
wheatgrass. As well as legumes including beans, chickpeas, and lentils.
Image 1 Freshly harvested green and red oakleaf
lettuce microgreens
Leaves of the nightshade family are toxic,
so tomatoes, chilies, peppers, aubergines
and potatoes are not suitable to be eaten as
microgreens.
Commercially available seeds which have been
treated with fungicides or pesticides can have
high degrees of pesticide residue when consumed
as microgreens and therefore sourcing the seeds
from the appropriate place is very important. Spice and herb seeds found in organic
stores may also be unsuitable as they may have been irradiated to prevent pests,
resulting in germination being inhibited. The same applies to most of the organic
kitchen seeds that we have in our cupboards at home such as chia seeds, flax seeds,
pumpkin seeds and the like. Most of these
are heat-treated to preserve them for longer
and would not germinate as a result.
One can experiment with microgreens
by eating seedlings of plants which are not
known to be toxic. For instance, as we
ate a lot of papaya at home, I planted the
seeds regularly and we have eaten the tree-
lings ever since, as microgreens, with no ill
effects whatsoever.
Image 2 Papaya treelings can also be eaten as microgreens
Toolkits and Preparation

To start, I got together some ordinary plastic containers (from yoghurt and other
supermarket containers), made
some holes at the bottom with a
hot nail, and then filled them with
ordinary soil from the garden (no
fancy potting mix). Since my garden
soil has a lot of leaf-mulch, I sifted it
a bit to take out the really big leafy
bits so that the soil in the containers
would be even.
Image 3: Yoghurt containers

repurposed as microgreens planters.
I did not fill up the soil till the top so that it would be easy to harvest the
microgreens (without touching any of the soil base/ getting any dirt along with the
greens). I repurposed my mum’s potato masher (she saw the humorous side to it,
luckily!) and levelled the soil in the containers so that the harvesting would be easy
(snipping along the same level) rather than getting different lengths of microgreens
due to uneven soil level.
The last task was to buy seeds (these are ordinary seeds by the way, the only
difference is that they are usually sold in microgreens packs by the hundreds rather
than the ordinary packs, where they come in fewer quantities. I bought 16 packs of
different seeds, so that we could have enough variety and different micro-nutrients
in our diet. It is important to choose a source of seeds that is trusted and definitely
organic, because microgreens are very dependent on the quality of the seed itself,
and any toxin in the seed risks to be consumed in the fresh, new greens.
I very lightly watered the soil with a spray bottle before planting to ensure that
it would not get waterlogged but there would be enough moisture for maximum
germination. Then I made little labels with toothpicks and little bits of card so that
I could identify which microgreens were growing in which container.
The last task was to actually sow the seeds in the soil – to make sure they were
evenly spaced, I used a washed spice container with little perforations at the top, so
that the seeds would spill evenly out on to the soil in the container and not bunch
up in one place or on one side. Wherever there was unwanted bunching, I just
patted the seeds out of a bunch into an even spread with my finger.
It’s important to remember that there are two ways of planting microgreens seeds.
Some people prefer to soak the seeds before planting, especially sunflower seeds
and pea seeds which tend to be bigger and have a harder seed-cover. Soaking makes
it easier for the germinating shoot and root to emerge and reduces the time for
them to germinate by providing the required moisture to kickstart the process
before they are actually planted. However, with most microgreens seeds which are
not heavy with hard covering such as herb seeds and salad greens (spinach, lettuce,
amaranth, etc), it is easier to sow them without soaking as soaking would make
them clump together. Mucilaginous seeds (basil and some other herbs) give off a
mucous coating when they are soaked in water and this makes them clump together
and could even increase the chances of mould, hence soaking before planting is not
really advisable.
A couple of squeezes of the spray bottle just to get the seeds moist, and the seeds
were ready to be covered and left alone for their germination process, usually 2-3
days in a dark environment. To ensure that no sunlight bothered the seeds (they
respond best to a dark, moist environment), I simply covered the containers with
their original covers, but not closing them completely air-tight as the moisture
would lead to development of mould. Instead, I just placed the covers lightly on
top so that there would be a very little aeration but no light bothering the seeds.
Microgreens can also be grown hydroponically or on coconut matting or even
cotton as a substrate. However, I would suggest not to complicate the process by
using substrates which are susceptible to mould
or require high maintenance. Microgreens usually
carry the nutrition which is inherent in the seed,
which is why the substrate that they are grown
on does not particularly matter. However, once
the greens grow slightly bigger, the roots begin to
derive nutrition from the substrate, which is why it
is advisable to grow them in soil.
Image 4: Roots of wheatgrass microgreens grown
hydroponically using a colander in a bucket.
Post-harvest, it is advisable to recycle the soil as it would be depleted of some
nutrients and also would be full of the compacted roots of the harvested microgreens.
It is best to compost this soil in a kitchen composter
or just tip the soil into a big bag of recycled soil
which can be later mixed in 1:2 proportion with
fresh potting mix or revived the same proportion of
vermicompost or kitchen compost. It is advisable to
break down the roots while recycling the soil, even
cutting them into small bits with scissors is fine.
Image 5: Little “water diamonds” appear on dainty

pea microgreens after spraying
Another way of regenerating the post-harvest soil
is to drench it with worm tea or liquid vermicompost
derived from vermiculture. However, this depends on availability of the same, and
unless one has a worm bin or worm farm at home, it is a bit complicated to do this
as it entails ordering quantities of the worm tea, entailing transport and packaging
costs and wastage. Best to keep it simple by mixing with fresh soil.
Monitoring the Process till Harvest
With microgreens, since the planting-growth-harvest process is so short, a total
of 8 days on average, it is necessary to monitor well, right from the second or third
day after planting. Usually, depending on the variety, the germination takes place
by the third day from planting.
The biggest challenge when growing microgreens for the first time is getting the
moisture right. Too much moisture makes the seedlings susceptible to mould and it
is usually difficult for the seedling to recover from a mould attack. So if there is any
sign of mould, make sure that the container is exposed to more aeration, and do
not spray water for a while. The water in the soil before planting is usually enough
to last the seedling for the first 3-4 days without any challenge, especially since
there is no exposure to sunlight.
For watering, make sure to spray very lightly, targeting the soil (at the base) rather
than the tiny shoots from the top, as there is a risk the shoots will keel over with
the weight of the drops of water. Light spraying will also ensure that the moisture
penetrates into the root zone gently rather than draining quickly and leaving the
root zone dry. Do not at any cost water the microgreens with a regular watering can
or hose, the seedlings will just drown and die.
Ensure that after 2-3 days, when the germination is evident, that you remove the
covers from the containers and expose the seedlings to indirect sunlight, so that the
seedlings can develop normally and derive the maximum nutrition from exposure
to sunlight, while they do not risk getting burnt by direct sun rays.
It is very important to ensure that the exposure to sunlight is at the appropriate
time, so that the germination has actually begun in most of the microgreens. If
hurried, the sunlight prevents germination and the process is compromised. If
delayed, the greens grow, but they do not get a green colour, rather they remain
yellow, which makes for an interesting science experiment of sorts. However, this
mistake is easy to correct, just twelve hours exposure to sunlight will result in the
leaves turning green.
Last, but not the least, check regularly that there aren’t ants eating up your seeds!
This happened to me more than once and it was quite heart-breaking to see an army
of ants going after my seeds and ensuring every single one was neatly hollowed out
within hours of planting.
Once the seedlings have produced their true leaves (the first set of leaves after the
shoot-leaves), the microgreens are technically ready to be harvested, although this
is really up to the grower, whether to harvest right away or leave them for a while
longer. The possibility of the microgreens growing really big is limited because of
the limited space in which the seeds are placed in very close proximity. However,
if left to themselves the seedlings will fight each other for space until only a few
survive, or they will remain uniformly stunted until harvested.
To harvest, ensure to use a special scissor which is not used for any other purpose,
so that it is entirely sanitized and there is no source of any contaminant on the
blade. Other than scissors, even a sharp knife or a grass cutter /grass-shears are
fine, if using wide trays where the volume of microgreens to be harvested is large.
The main factor is cleanliness and being able to cut at the same level in a wide
sweep so as to avoid much manual contact with the tops of the microgreens, as
these are very delicate and can get bruised while harvesting.
Make sure to cut at least 1-2 centimetres away
from the soil or substrate so that no dirt comes
up along with the harvested microgreens.
Gently wash the microgreens, preferably in a
colander or strainer, under a gentle spray from
the kitchen tap. Ensure minimal hand contact to
preserve the microgreens from getting bruised,
while effectively removing small bits of dirt and
pollutants.
Image 6: Freshly harvested red and green
amaranth microgreens
Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Mould arising from too much moisture within the container.
• Not exposing the germinated seedlings to the sun soon enough, which leads to
stunting and can also be an enabler for mould.
• Allowing the microgreens to etiolate (getting long and spindly in search of the
sun).
• Forgetting to spray the microgreens resulting in them drying out and dying.
• Harvesting with knife/ scissors used for general purposes (this can lead to the
tips exposed to the cutting implement getting contaminated with any other
substances which the scissors have touched before, and sometimes this can
actually be poisonous as well!)
• Cutting too close to the base of the stem and getting dirt along with the
harvested microgreens.
• Not observing the development of the microgreens quick enough to take
corrective action.
• Investing a lot of equipment such as microgreens trays, special lights and
cutting equipment before experimenting first and getting the knack of growing
microgreens with basic material in the house.
Tips and Tricks

After harvesting the microgreens, they can be eaten straight away, either plain,
or with a bit of dressing, as a salad, or spread over regular foods such as salads,
eggs, etc. as a garnish or flavour enhancer. It is best to add them to the dish when
it is not piping hot so that the crunch and flavour of the microgreens is retained.
Also, because the nutrition is highest when
fresh, not when wilted with the heat of the
dish the microgreens are accompanying.
If you want to store microgreens, they last
2-3 days refrigerated in an airtight Ziploc
packet or airtight container, as long as
they are not crushed while packing. Again,
don’t keep them for very long because the
nutrition is highest when just harvested.
Image 7: Microgreens sandwiches are packed with freshness and flavour
In salads, sandwiches, juices or just

crunched up plain, microgreens carry with
them a powerful pack of nutrition, crunchy
texture and flavour, their varied colour
and appearance are an added plus. With a
minimal expense and effort, microgreens
are easy for urban gardeners to experiment
and grow confidence with, before going
into full-fledged vegetable gardening on
balconies and terraces.
Image 8: Red amaranth microgreens waiting to be harvested.
Once you have grown microgreens over and over again, you can elevate the standard
to larger-scale cultivation for the entire family, or even make a business out of it by
investing in some simple equipment such as microgreens trays, shelves or stacked
system with several trays being placed in racks for simultaneous growth within a
limited space. This scale of cultivation would warrant investing in a high quality potting
mix to use as a base, and good quality seeds with a high rate of germination. There
are also several electronic and hydroponic aids to grow microgreens in a sanitized and
controlled environment where the growth is enhanced by controlled lighting for up to
eighteen hours a day, all maintained electronically so as to avoid human error. However,
such interventions are for those who have taken their microgreens passion to the next
level and want to experiment with high productivity rather than just the enjoyment of
growing for one’s own consumption.
There is honestly nothing as joyful as harvesting something from your own garden
and eating it absolutely fresh, I can rank my joyful journey with microgreens as
quite high on my list of achievements from that perspective alone, not to mention
the amazing health benefits.
Image 9: Cross section of fully grown microgreens, and root zone showing highly
compacted roots.
Reference Sources:
• How to Grow Microgreens from Start to Finish (Complete Guide): Epic
Gardening https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtvuMNVLISo
• https://grocycle.com/types-of-microgreens/
Naomi (Left) and Berenice (Right) with their tiny harvest of Brazilian spinach and
pumpkin flowers.
Understanding the undercover life:
Mulching your way to healthy soils.
Priti Bhosale
Have you ever wondered about feeding the very land that grows food to feed you?
Yes, that is precisely the aim of mulching. Let us understand how mulching can
feed our soil. To mulch is to spread a blanket over the earth. It is very similar to how
we drape a blanket to protect ourselves from cold, mosquitoes, etc., while we sleep.
Mulch is like an edible blanket for the soil!
Now how do we put a blanket on the soil? Have you ever been on forest trails? What
is the difference in the ground of the path you walk on and the off-trail land under
the thick forest canopy? A litter of dry leaves! Some trees shed leaves annually and
some all year round. So the forest land is always covered with leaf litter. And where
there are fewer or no trees, typically an opening in the forest, the land is covered
with numerous small plants, grasses, ground creepers, mosses, etc.
The soil under the leaf litter is usually dark, crumbly, sweet-smelling humus,
which is decomposed organic matter rich in nutrients and microbes. You might see
many critters scrambling to dark corners if you lift the leaves and expose the soil
to bright sunlight. At this point, you might be thinking – “Don’t plants need a lot
of sunlight?”. Well, only the plant leaves require sunlight when they are performing
photosynthesis. The soil, on the other hand, provides nutrients for plants to do
photosynthesis successfully. So, where does the soil get these nutrients from?
To understand the function of soil, let us understand how soil forms. When
rocks weather down due to exposure to the natural forces of wind and water, they
eventually turn into mineral-rich powder. When plant and animal matter die
and fall to the ground, millions of tiny microbes and insects eat it, which we call
decomposition and convert it into microbial/insect dung that is rich in humic acid.
Some examples of animal matter are dung, urine, dead animals, and body parts that
can be shed like hair, nails, feathers etc. When the humic acid and mineral powder
mix due to the constant movement of microbes and insects, it becomes fertile soil.
Plants access the minerals and nutrients through their roots that penetrate the soil
terrain and transport them up to the leaves, branches, and fruits. The cycle of decay
and growth continues when the leaves fall on the ground and are decomposed by
microbes, insects and fungi. Now you may be asking – “Okay, I get this. But what
does mulching have to do with the process?”
The idea of mulching
Most microbes, critters and fungi prefer moist, shade-like conditions that are
favourable to their growth. Their presence in the soil ensures that matter is constantly
decomposed, and the movement of critters keeps the soil from compacting. The
slightly loose structure keeps the soil aerated and allows for vigorous root growth.
Next time, try pushing a finger through soil that is covered with some biomass
and compare it with pushing a finger through the exposed soil you might see near
sidewalks. Taking a cue from forest floors, mulching, therefore, means covering
any portion of exposed soil with dry organic matter, be it in a single pot or acres of
farmland.
Why dry? Because green organic matter (that is rich with water content) slowly
rots in an anaerobic (in the absence of air) fashion. This releases a lot of heat,
moisture and methane gas (yes, biogas). The heat released from the decomposition
process could cause the burning of plant roots and stems or fungal infection while
it stands amidst, or too close to the mulch. So, let’s check out some basic principles
of mulching:
A good thumb rule to live by is that soil should never be left exposed. Mulching
is useful in all seasons. In summer, it protects soil from harsh sunlight and helps
retain soil moisture by reducing the area for evaporation. This reduces the need for
frequent watering as well. During monsoons, a layer of mulch prevents the rain
from eroding the rich topsoil. In winter, mulch provides a layer of warmth and
some ambient temperature for the microbes to survive the cold.
By now, if you are hopefully convinced of the benefits of mulching, here are some
options for mulch:
- Dry biomass: Leaves fallen on the ground in your locality are ideal for mulching.
Leaves from Eucalyptus trees are an exception (although they can be added in small
quantities). Eucalyptus trees are allelopathic[1], and its parts release chemicals that
affect nearby plants adversely. Mulch should ideally include a good diversity of
organic matter. If mulched with freshly cut greens like grass or leaves, it is better
to let the green matter dry out in the sun and then use it. This reduces the chance
of the plant stem or roots getting affected by the heat released by the decomposing
green matter. Dried kitchen waste, chopped into smaller pieces, also form good
mulch material.
- Coconut coir: Depending on the size of the plant, the strength of its stem and
so on, even broken coconut shells, coir and similar kinds of plant fibre can be
used. These can be avoided around plants with delicate stems to prevent the risk of
damaging the stem due to careless placement.
- sugarcane baggase: Vendors selling sugarcane on the road would be happy to
pass you on the fibres that remain after extracting the juice. These can be dried and
used for mulch, as they have a lot of organic matter, but the molasses-like smell
would be there. Gathering and drying bagasse is a good idea if you have a lot of
space (terrace or land).
- Live mulch: Shade-tolerant creepers can be used as a cover crop, and this acts
as a living mulch. Legumes and Herbs can be planted in pots along with the main
plant, and gourd creepers like bottle gourd, cucumber, ash gourd etc can be used
if large areas need to be covered. The obvious additional advantage is getting two
crops for the same amount of soil used! The Iroquois people of North America
traditionally plant Maize, Beans and Squash in the same area, with each plant
growing at different heights and drawing various nutrients from the soil such that
all the crops thrive[2].
- Wood chips and sawdust: Wood chips and sawdust can be obtained from
construction areas or workshops. However, sometimes these may be chemically
treated, and it is better to get untreated wood bits for mulching.
- Plastic mulch: Sometimes, a plastic cover is also used to cover the soil, especially
over larger areas. However, the insulation built due to the material can trap excess
heat and moisture in the soil. Additionally, the plastic itself adds to the waste being
generated.
Mulching idle beds with banana leaves Covering soil with mixed, dry biomass
Saplings mulched with dried
bagasse
How to mulch
Mulching should be done at a short
distance from the plant/ tree trunk.
Avoid any abrasions to the plant
stem or trunk due to decomposing
organic matter. Mulch layers for
mature (above 3 ft) plants and trees
should be a minimum 2 cm to a
maximum 4 inches thick. For small
plants (below 3ft - above 1 ft) should be min 2 cm to max 2 inches thick.
Immediately after seeds have been sown, mulch extremely lightly with lightweight
biomass like tamarind tree leaves, an extremely thin layer of finely cut grass or fine
sawdust, etc. This mulch should ideally last till the seedling has sprouted up. Top up
mulch with the same light material whenever needed (that is, when soil seems exposed
and dry) until the seedling is at least 6 inches high. As the plants grow bigger, the
intensity of mulch can increase and heavier material like bigger dry leaves, cut grasses
and weeds, wood chips etc, can be used.
This brings us to another advantage of mulching. Heavy mulching can help suppress
weed growth. The logic behind it is that the thick layer of decomposing mulch doesn’t
let sunlight seep in and makes it tough for the seed to germinate and shoot up from all
that heavy weight. So, if you heavily mulch your vegetable seeds, they will not germinate.
Timing then becomes an important factor. You should wait for the seedling to grow a
bit, before mulching heavily such that other weeds find it challenging to sprout.
It is also a good practice to keep idle soil
covered in mulch to preserve the microbes in
the soil, and allow the critters to do what they
do best – keep the soil alive!
That’s it! Mulching is the most
straightforward and essential activity in your
balcony, backyard garden/farm to keep your
soil healthy and protected. Happy growing!
Raised beds mulched with hay
[1] See Allelopathy. (2022, July 24). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

Allelopathy. Allelopathy is a biological process involving one plant inhibiting the
growth of a neighboring plant through chemical signalling processes.
[2] See https://www.nal.usda.gov/collections/stories/three-sisters
Don’t go with the flow! Watering
plants the right way
Trupti Kedari
When we talk about urban farming - “farming” which means the act of growing
crops, in “urban” areas, we are mostly dealing with spaces that have negligible
direct access to the ground and soil. This also means that unlike a forest, plants
grown in our balconies of rooftops don’t have access to a natural water reservoir
from where the roots can draw water depending on their need. In urban spaces,
watering becomes a crucial activity as we are guessing the plant’s need (ideally) and
providing water. In that sense, watering plants can be like a Zen practice; Seemingly
easy, yet ridiculously hard to master. Too little can stunt plant growth, and too
much can cause root rot, fungal infections etc.
Why water plants at all?
A simple answer is – because they are alive! A fundamental role of the plant is to
create oxygen and energy in the form of sugar for other beings on the plant. Plants
do it through the process of photosynthesis for which it requires water, sunlight
and carbon dioxide. Water also helps the plant to transport nutrients from the soil
to the plants. When the water pressure of the plant drops down, the plant starts to
wilt. Water pressure of the plants is called the turgor pressure which helps most of
the plant maintain its structure, like the skeleton does to the human body.
Most of us show our love for our plants by watering excessively. Some of the hobby
gardeners on social media also believe in overwatering the plant till the water starts
to drain out. It’s a bad idea to overwater the plants, as most of the soil and nutrients
of the soil gets washed away with the water. This is one reason many societies in
urban areas restrict residents from having plants in their balcony as all the soil gets
washed away with the water and can lead to formation of stains. Excess watering
can also lead to root rotting, as it affects the ability of the roots to access oxygen by
filling up the air pockets in the soil.
The ideal water content in soil
just requires it be moist, like a
nicely wrung sponge.
You can check the moisture of
the soil by simply poking your
finger in the soil, if the soil sticks
to your finger that means it has
moisture and the plant doesn’t
need watering.
That said, it is also important
to make sure to have the right
planter for your plants. If you have a small pot for a big plant or a plant with
heavy foliage then the plants will wilt even if you water it daily due to heavy water
transpiration through leaves.
When is the right time to water?
As we know that plants need water during photosynthesis, it’s better to not put the
plant in stress during its process. Also when you water the plants during noon the
water gets evaporated from the soil surface instead of going to the roots of it.
According to my experience the best time to water the plants is before the sun is
too harsh on the plant, or after. This will help the plant to use the water at its slow
and steady pace.
How to water?
Using a watering can or pipe with shower head at low presure is the best way to
water the plants. This helps the water to penetrate the soil with ease, while giving
the soil time to absorb the water. When we pour water on the soil with force the
water splashes out of the pot disturbing the soil which can result in root exposure.
Generally, roots don’t like to be exposed, and roots exposure can damage the plant
(unless they are aerial roots). Also, when the soil is dry and we water the plant with
pressure, most of the water drains
out without staying in the soil for
long. When we water slowly with
a few pauses we give time to the
soil to get moist and soak in more
water.
For better understanding of this,
you can do a small experiment --
take two pots of same size, same
soil, and same quantity of soil, give
equal amount of water both pots ( take 2 watering containers, one for each pot)
but in pot 1 directly pour water without any break, till water starts to drain, also
collect the drained water. In pot 2, sprinkle water slowly and gently taking a few
pauses of few seconds, stop when the water starts to drain out. Water left in the
watering container will tell you which pot holds more water. The container which
has watered the pot gently and slowly will contain less water than the container
used for pot 1. This simply means pot 1 is holding less water than pot 2.
What can we learn from nature?
Unlike the forestscapes, we are attempting to grow plants on a concrete jungle;
and to succeed in that we need to understand and observe nature, how plants thrive
naturally, and what can we do to create a microclimate for our urban food forest;
the key question is, how do we mimic nature?
When we walk in the forest the soil there is always covered with organic matter
mostly dry leaves, twigs and dead branches. This
dead organic matter covering the soil is called mulch
(see Chapter 4 for a detailed discussion). It covers
the soil and reduces the chances of evaporation,
Also over the period of time the dry leaves will
convert into compost for the plants. All of this
organic matter acts like a sponge in the forest and
holds water. Even after watering your plants in the
right manner, always cover the soil with dry leaves.
When we decide to grow something in pots or other
planters or even in our backyard, it will help us if we
study a bit about the plants that we chose to grow,
especially where it comes from. The knowledge of
a plant’s native habitat gives us a rough idea about
the climatic condition, type of soil, preferred by
the plant to grow well. Each
plant’s needs are different.
And it’s different throughout
the year, depending upon the
season.
This understanding helps
us choose the right plant for
the season, pick the right soil
for the plant, water the plant
according to its need etc.
For eg., if you want to grow
Okra, just look up for basic
information about okra in your search engine, like origin of okra, and cultivated in
which regions,
Gathering this basic information helps us understand that it will be easy to
grow Okra in Mumbai as the climate is favorable. From the second screen shot I
understand that okra will grow well in monsoon, it can tolerate my city’s heat as
well, and can also thrive in the heat if I give it the right soil which holds moisture.
Now if the soil that I am using has less clay and more sand (basically a soil that
doesn’t hold water) I will have to make sure that I water it frequently.
How to use grey water for our garden?
Using grey water for gardening sounds like a great idea but it takes some patience
and perseverance to set up systems that can utilise grey water effectively. Be ready
to fail and experiment multiple times. It can be very messy as well as difficult for
beginners.
It definitely works, what makes it difficult is our urbanised thinking and habits.
You will find it easy to design one for yourself if you observe and understand nature
closely. If you observe areas near rivers and pond, you will see that there are natural
water filters in our wetland in the form of plants. These plants have been filtering
water for us humans and animals. The roots of these plants are loaded with colonies
of bacteria and fungi that can biodegrade most minor pollutants from the water.
There are wide varieties of plant species in the wetland. Wetland flora can be broadly
classified into submerged water plants, floating water plants, emergent water plants
and riparian water plants. For treating the grey water for the garden, a constructed
wetland is ideal. This can be easily designed in your backyard or terrace. For this
kind of treatment system,
we need emergent plants,
floating, and submerged
plants. Emergent water
plants grow above water
with their roots submerged
in marsh localities. Floating
water plants are found in
slow-moving water and
have small roots. They are
a source of food for avian
species. Submerged water
plants are 100 per cent under
water, and provide food source for native fauna and habitat for invertebrates. They
also possess filtration capabilities.
While constructing this wetland, I suggest avoiding waste water from the kitchen
as it will be difficult to deal with the grease that comes along with it. Of course,
water used for washing rice and dal can be directly used for gardening. Besides
this, water from laundry and showers can be filtered easily if eco-friendly washing
materials such as soap-nuts are used. To optimise the effect, make sure there is
maximum contact between wastewater and plants root.
• Few things to consider while making the contributed wetland are:
• Size of the constructed wetland depends on amount of water used and sent out
as grey water
• There shouldn’t be any seepage other than the one designed for out flow
• Building baffles or small barriers can help slow down the flow of water, this
will ensure maximum contact between water and roots
• Divide the constructed wetland in two parts,
a) One for emergent plants where major filtration will happen this tank will be
filled with gravel, brick pieces or pebbles. Make sure the water stays below the
gravel. Emergent plants like colocasia, canna, elephant grass etc. are known well
for this level of filtration.
b) Second where the water will be further filtered by floating and submerged
plants. This is more like a pond in your garden, plants like water lily, water bamboo,
water hyacinth, duck weed etc. can be grown here. Adding guppies in this pond will
ensure this pond is not a breeding ground for mosquitoes.
Note: In a backyard the pond can be avoided and the filtered water can be sent
directly to plants or trees through trenches.
How do you
water the plant
while you are away
for a few days?
I have found that
a bottle dripper
is a cost-efficient
and easy way to
water plants when
travelling.
For this you need:
0ne 2-3 feet stick about an inch think (strong enough to carry 1 ltr. of water bottle)
8’-9” jute rope
2 pet bottles 1.5 ltr., 2ltr.
Scissors
Ties
Steps:
Cut a 2 litre bottle from the center, we will need the upper half of the bottle for this dripper
(without the cap).
Make 4 holes with the tip of the scissors or soldering iron in order to tie the bottle to the stick.
Tie the bottle upside down on the top of the stick. Your holder for the dripper is ready.
Now insert the bottom of the stick in the pot you want to be watered.
Now take the other, smaller pet bottle and make a whole at the bottom and on the cap.
Tie a knot on one end of the jute rope
Insert the rope from the inside of the cap (knots stays in side of the cap)
Fill the smaller bottle with water, cap the bottle.
Place the filled bottle upside down in the holder.
Flow of the water can be controlled by fastening or
loosening the knot.
You can also buy pipes and drippers from local
agrimart and set up drip irrigation systems for
your garden. These things are easily available in
the market. However, it is fun and sustainable
to reduce, reuse and recycle. Hence, I prefer
using pet bottles for watering or paint buckets
or drums for growing plants.
Similar methods of grey water treatment and
drippers are there on YouTube too, find the
one that suits you. Following are a few videos
for reference.
• (Grey Water Treatment Method in Eco home) https://youtu.be/ezSJPrQ5AEM
• (Water Management in Permaculture | Filtering Water with Reed Beds) https://
youtu.be/2glY7HdDxW8
• (Eco-Friendly Domestic Water Treatment System, Bangalore) https://youtu.
be/g7Usr9UCFIY
• (How to make drip irrigation with plastic bottles) https://youtu.be/gGwFr4CE_
U4
• (Automatic Irrigation System for Home Garden) https://youtu.be/
cPV7vLQ9Wiw
• (Install a Automatic Micro Drip Irrigation System For Raised Bed Garden)
https://youtu.be/81tjJQIe
I was also once a beginner, and knew nothing about gardening. These are my
learnings from my mentor and my observation of nature. Even after spending
many years volunteering and teaching people about gardening, every day I learn or
discover something new. All we need to do is get started!
Making planters for a kitchen garden
Julius Rego
There are many options available in the market, but you can be innovative and experiment
with various materials to make planters. Generally, a good planter should allow for
aeration, and drainage of excess water. It should also be made of materials which don’t
leach any harmful chemicals into the soil such as colour pigments from print material.
Smaller plants, such as herbs can be grown in planters of depth 6-10 inches. Plants such
Brinjal, Chilli, Tomatoes, Ladyfinger, and Capsicums require a 10 to 20 L capacity planter.
In general, it is a good idea to plant fruiting crops in larger pots, since the plants will
grow as per the space provided. Depending on the shape and size of the planter, multiple
plants can also be grown together. The following table lists some common planters,
along with its pros and cons. An internet search will provide you many more ideas that
people have used,
ranging from grow
bags, jute bags, old
metal containers,
rubber tyres, plain
cardboard boxes,
bags made out of
old clothes and so
on.
Image1: Planter made from discarded crate, lined with cardboard and topped with
mulch
Type Pros Cons
Clay Pots Easily available; Provides Need regular watering;
natural aeration and Heavy to move around,
drainage; Thick walls and add to the load on
prevent soil from heating terraces etc
up.
Plastic containers Easily available; Light Becomes brittle and
weight; Can be upcyled prone to cracking under
from discarded waste prolonged exposure to
sunlight; Tends to heat
up; contributes to plastic
consumption if buying
new containers.
Wooden containers Aesthetically appealing. Can be difficult to source
Larger containers can (fruit sellers can have
be designed to allow for crates, especially during
mutli-cropping. Mango season), can
leach toxins if the wood
is painted, chemically
treated etc. Can be prone
to termite infestation
Raised Beds (enclosed Don’t need much Can be laborious to
area of soil/compost maintenance once construct initially
that is higher than constructed; Can plant (depends on building
surrounding area). bigger plants together. material).
Variety of materials such Easy to control soil
as bricks, concrete blocks, conditions and look out
wood, bamboo etc can be for pests.
used to make the bed
Trellis/Support can Helps in growth of Can be a little
be made from various creepers and climbers cumbersome to make
materials such as coir such as gourds, plants initially.
ropes, thin strips of with weak stems such as
wood, nylon ropes etc. Tomato, cluster beans etc.
Usually, you might notice that the pots available commercially have holes at the
bottom of the planter to allow for aeration and excess water to seep out. However,
in this design, the excess water also carries away soil nutrients along with it, and
daily watering rituals end up harming the plant. In such cases, nutrients have to be
frequently added to the soil, and is not a sustainable practice.
Alternatively consider what happens if there is no hole at the bottom of the
container. Instead, if we make the holes at about 1/10 th to 1/3rd height from
bottom, excess water will collect at the bottom of the container. Any nutrition
dissolved would also collect at the bottom. This would ensure that the soil does
not leach out nutrients and the plant will be healthy. Any overflow of water will be
released from the holes. Adding mulch to the soil would further ensure minimal
loss of water due to evaporation. Adding regular mulch would also ensure that the
fertility of the soil does not deteriorate.
If one makes a few additional holes at the sides of the container, we can grow small
herbs like basil, palak, brahmi etc. This will ensure that more harvest is got from
the container. These holes will take care of aeration of the soil, thus making it a “
living soil.”
Growing plants this way takes care of several things.
1) minimises usage of water.
2) generates compost
3) avoids loss of nutrients.
4) ensures healthy growth of plants.
5) maximizes harvest.
Depending on the size of the planter one can grow fruit trees like Guava, Lemon,
Pineapple etc.; Vegetables like Spinach, Tomato, Chilli , Brinjal, Cucumber, Bitter
Gourd, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Onions, Garlic,Sweet potato, Corn, etc.; Herbs like
Basil, Corriander, Lettuce, Mint etc. ; Flowering plants like Periwinkle, Marigold,
Rose, etc. One can even
grow trees like Mulberry,
Neem, etc, although they
will not grow to their
normal size.
Image2: Clockwise:
variety of planters and
trellis designs, Julius with
homegrown sunflowers!
A note on soil
Soil is a complex entity consisting of a mind-boggling variety of microbes, inorganic
materials, and other organisms. It is a medium for plant growth, but also plays a vital
role in storing Carbon that is captured by plants (through photosythesis) stored in
its roots, stems etc, and finally decomposing into the soil. The soil organic matter
(SOM) improves its fertility through better absorption of water and nutrients.
SOM also reduces erosion, improves soil structure and contributes to a healthy soil
ecosystem, which in turn provide plants with access to nutrients and minerals.
Ideally, the soil for growing plants should be loose, fertile, have a neutral pH level
(~7; neither acidic not basic), and have good water retention. Ways to improve soil
fertility include adding kitchen compost, making nutrient rich SOM called Amrit-
Mitti, making Bio-char, adding green manure, mulching, and natural fertilisers.
A potting mix recipe used by me is as follows: The mix should be made by mixing
red earth, compost and cowdung 30% each by volume. Remaining 10% can be a
mix of goat dung, neem cake, rock phosphate, wood ash and cow urine ( 2% each).
Add some dry leaves while mixing. This will ensure aeration of the mixture. The
ingredients should be properly mixed. Make it moist and keep it for a week. Stir
daily. The potting mix is ready to use after a week. An internet search may provide
many such home ‘recipes’ to improve soil fertility. It is advisable to test on one plant,
and observe the results. Feel free to experiment and widely share your experiences!
Why is the pest a pest?
Anshuman Das
P ests are often seen as a menace, adversely impacting plants and harvest.
However, eradicating them through the application of synthetic chemicals is
not a sustainable or healthy option. Instead, if one can mimic an ecosystem, pest-
predator relationships and healthy plants can deal with pest attacks without the need
for harmful interventions.
The farms we usually see today consist of monocultures of rice, maize, tomato, or
other grains and vegetables. To get maximum harvest, farmers typically ensure that
the crop is kept clean from weeds and insects by thorough cleaning and by diligent
mechanical and chemical interventions during the growth and fruiting phase. Use
of fertilizers, irrigation, and other inputs are used to ensure a lush, uniform growth
from one end of the field to the other. Other plants are considered undesirable and
out of place. However, the dominating presence of only one kind of plant without
alternate vegetation acts as food source and shelter for pests, accompanied by a
high frequency of mechanical and chemical intervention, creates an environment
prone to disruption and resistance. Pests tend to develop resistance to pesticides
over a period of time, ultimately leading farmers to apply more pesticides, thus
creating a vicious cycle.
The land is a living organism
A piece of land is much more than the visible crop. It is the soil full of minerals,
biomass, microflora and fauna, water and air hiding between the soil particles. It
is also the plants we see growing on the soil or the plants we don’t want to see
– the weeds. It is also the trees, wild plants, bees, and many other insects. It is
also the sunlight falling on a particular piece of land. All this forms a system –
the components and the processes. Processes like recycling energy and nutrients,
photosynthesis, and degradation of biomass usually take the form of dynamic
equilibrium. When this balance is disrupted, the system can experience unwanted
changes manifested in the form of pests or diseases, nutrient deficiency in soil or
yield loss.
Unfortunately, however, our farm can’t exactly be a natural system. We can’t allow
animals and birds to feast on our wonderful harvest. We need to control it and
design it as per our need. The need may be for income or for family nutrition. A
good farm is a farm which follows the principles of the natural system – which tries
to remain just like an ecosystem.
This chapter is built on the obvious contrast between our sustainable approach
of making use of the built-in defences and the dominant treadmill approach of
applying synthetic chemicals. As a matter of fundamental principle, the application
of external corrective actions into a system can be effective only for short-term
relief. Long-term, sustainable solutions can only be achieved by imitating natural
systems. Otherwise, we will always need new and better pesticides to constantly
fight against nature’s forces. A pest management strategy should always start with
the question, ‘Why is the pest a pest?’
When does a creature become a pest?
There cannot be any cultivation without insects – because there cannot be
pollination without them. So are all insects harmful? Herbivorous insects are our
potential competitors as they eat many plants that we consume. Many such insects
have natural predators, such as spiders and birds. If the population of predators
decreases, the number of harmful insects may increase. If the vegetative growth
of a plant is remarkable, which can happen because of an overdose of nitrogen
fertilizer, the insects will come in hoards seeing good food all around. If the plant
is weak, it will have low immunity to protect against diseases - then the insects
may attack. Now, why does a plant become weak? Well, that is like asking why we
fall sick. There are multiple reasons, ranging from seed quality, nutrition available
from soil, sunlight, availability of water and so on. Healthy soils allow plants to
become resilient, and they can recover faster from pest attacks. Conversely, if the
soil is unhealthy, the plant is weak. If the same crop continues to be cultivated
repeatedly, newer generations of plants are more likely to be afflicted by pests.
So, the pest attack on a plant depends on the soil, the crop, the life around and
the health of the plant. But technology says, “If there is X pest, give Y pesticide,
if there is Z bug, here is a different pesticide for that.” This is reductionism – a
very simplistic way of looking at the world. Often, those who are proponents of
organic/natural farming fall into the same trap of technology. Even if it is organic/
natural, it is boiling down to concoctions and prescription of using Brahmastra,
Neemastra, Dasaparni Dawai, Cow urine etc. The more organic technology and
organic ‘medicine’ you know, the bigger expert you are. Even the natural farming
that has gained popularity nowadays puts forward Beejamrita, Jeevamrutha and
Mulching – again falling back on a prescriptive mode of few technologies. There
are also many brands of ‘organic’ hormones, fertilizers and pesticides available in
the market these days. Have we, at all, moved a few steps forward by breaking the
cycle of chemical fertilizers and pesticides – if we have to again fall back on another
kind of technology cycle?
The challenge in urban spaces
Urban gardening proposes some additional challenges for imitating nature.
• Limited space: Urban spaces do not have the liberty of using an ample amount
of space – it is either on the roof, balcony or windowsill. Community-based
gardening is sometimes taken up in common parks or small patches inside
residential complexes. In balconies and other small spaces, pots are used, and
the use of individual planters limits the scope of nutrient recycling and the
natural growth of beneficial organisms in the soil.
• Limited time for taking care: Agriculture needs close observation. Growers in
the urban space are not full-time farmers – they often do out of passion. So,
the need for intricate design and necessary adaptation to imitate nature after
each season or each harvest is not often fulfilled. Long absence of the gardener
is also a concern. These are also true for a school garden in an urban setup.
• Water: When plants are growing in a pot, it is difficult to retain moisture from
the process of breaking down biomass. Regular but need-based watering is
required. Urban gardens, particularly the pots, are often a victim of over-
watering.
• Sunlight: Cloudy days increase the possibilities of pest attacks. In an urban
home garden, as it is mostly in a covered or partially shaded place – getting
sunlight is also an issue.
• Higher cropping intensity: Space in an urban garden is limited, so the number
of plants is quite high per square feet and so is the nutrient uptake from the
soil. As there is also significantly less interaction with the natural ecosystem,
natural soil replenishment does not happen. Available nutrient in the soil for
the plant thus is low, affecting the health of the plant.
All these above aspects affect the pest and disease profile of an urban garden,
which needs to be addressed by design.
Creating and managing an ecosystem in urban spaces
Crop Management
Monocropping is a feast for pests, while mixing crops has many advantages.
Dueto dense planting, the foliage and roots cover a larger area, thus increasing the
sunlight, nutrient and water capture. Mixed cropping also controls weed growth
and lowers the attack of pests that find it difficult to detect specific host plants.
While mixing crops, we need to mix crops of various root depths – so that there
is less competition. Coriander, Amaranthus, Mint, Carrot, Onion, Spinach, and
Cucumber have tiny roots while Bottle gourd, Fenugreek, Beans, Brinjal, and
Pumpkin, have medium-sized roots. Broad beans, Okra, Tomato etc. have longer
roots. It is also better to mix crops from different families in two consecutive
seasons. Tomato, Chili, Brinjal, and Potato are from the same family.
Similarly, Mustard, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Radish, and Turnip are from the same
family, and so do Coriander and Carrot. To understand which plants belong to the
same family, you may try to find out the similarity of structure between leaves and
flowers.
Plants which have a strong smell, like Basil, Turmeric, Onion, can also be used for
repelling pests. So it is good to have a few of them in the garden.
The above crops, however, can be altered and improved further, keeping the
constraint of an urban garden in mind. We can select crops whose management
requirement is low and which produce more food. For example, a bottle gourd in
an urban garden could be preferred over a brinjal because bottle gourd plants can
climb up without taking up much space, and every part of the plant can be eaten.
Gourds also require less maintenance, and they can start producing harvest after
1-2 months. Selection can also be on the basis of your need – so one chilli plant, if
the right variety is selected, is good enough for the entire family. Papaya, Drumstick,
Curry Leaf and Lemon can also be
good choices as the pest attack is
lower.
Allowing birds, especially predator
birds like Drongo, is a good insect
controller. Yellow flowered gourd
family, like bitter gourd, is a good
choice for urban gardens as it attracts
pollinators. Insects are not all bad,
you see!
A raised bed is being used to grow multiple plants. Can you identify all of them?
Marigold is effective in distracting

common pests, and thus protecting the
main crop
Soil Management
Healthy soil is key to a healthy plant
– insects do not prefer a healthy plant.
Healthy soils serve as the foundation
for complex biological communities.
Such communities are more stable
in the face of external perturbations.
Gardening in a pot needs better support of organic inputs. Organic soil amendments
increase populations of soil microorganisms which result in plants receiving
stimuli that trigger their general immune responses to possible pathogens. Various
methods of composting can be adopted, including recycling kitchen waste and
vermicomposting to generate organic manure.
Mulching by covering the soil with dry leaves, straw or green leaves or by cover
crops like sweet potato is another way of soil water conservation which indirectly
helps reduce pest attacks. Reduction in pest populations on mulched plots may be
driven by several mechanisms. First, insect pests may spend more time searching
for suitable hosts when vegetables are hidden in a thick stand of mulch than when
on bare soil – particularly in the case of tuber crops. Additionally, mulch eliminates
the risk of incurring wounds on the crop during cultivation. This may reduce the
occurrence of bacterial diseases that require a break in the outer tissue in order to
infect the plant. Adding Neem cake while preparing the soil can also help address
soil borne pests and diseases.
Seed Management
For an urban gardener, as the main target is growing for family, it might often be
difficult to save seeds. In that case, you have to find out a reliable source for seeds.
A healthy seed results in a strong plant. Before planting, one can treat the seed. One
method is to add cow dung (1 portion), cow urine (2 portions) and vermicompost
(1 portion) into 3 litres of water. Soak the seed, and dry it in the shade before
planting. Another method is to mix 2 litres of water, 500 gm cow dung, 500 ml
cow urine, 5 gm limestone or lime, and 5~10 gm soil – preferably from under a
banyan tree. Keep this solution under shade for 24 hours. Spread seeds on a plastic
sheet, sprinkle the prepared solution on the seeds - sow them in the early mornings
or evenings. Before transplanting any sapling, you can also dip the roots in the
solution for a few seconds.
If you want to keep seeds - keep them dry; always dry them in the shade. You can
keep charcoal in the seed storage, which will absorb moisture. Adding a spoonful
of neem oil or dry neem leaves can be mixed with seed to avoid pest attack. While
collecting seeds, take seeds from fruits which are of medium size, and keep seeds
from fruits from the mid portion of the plant and middle of the season.
Few concoctions
If none of these systemic approach helps in reducing pests in your garden, here are
a few easy concoctions you can prepare to keep the pests away.
Leaf extract - Take 350 grams of any bitter leaf, 350 grams of leaves (can be of any
weed as well) which has a strong smell and 350 grams of leaves which have a milky
substance (eg.Calotrope). Crush all these well. Soak it in 5 litres of water for three
days and then mix it with 5 litres of water and 25 grams of soap. Spray it in t. This
is effective against leaf-eating insects and shoot borers.
Chili-garlic-ginger - Take 100 grams of garlic, crush it well and mix it with 10ML
of kerosene oil. Keep it airtight for one night. Add 50 grams of green chili and 50
grams of Ginger. Make a paste and extract the juice from this mixture. Mix it with
500ML of water and 30 grams of soap. Add 9 litres of water before spraying.
Tobacco leaf solution – 50~100 grams of tobacco leaves need to be chopped well.
Soak these in 2 litres of water overnight. Take the solution, mix it with eight litres of
water and spray during the evening. This is good for fruit and stem borer, whitefly
and other larvae.
Milk-Basil solution - Crush 50 grams of basil leaves, soak it in 1 litre of water
for 12 hours. Take the solution and mix it with 9 litres of water and 500 millilitre
milk add 30 grams of soap and spray. This is good against mosaic virus and fungal
infection.
But please note, if you don’t see any insects in your garden - something is wrong,
for sure! They are markers of a living ecosystem, and no garden can thrive without
the presence of insects and other critters. In most cases, simply observing the
plants regularly can help in identifying if they are being attacked by pests. Early
interventions can be as simple as washing affected parts, removing any leaves, or
pruning stems that look excessively impacted by pests. Plants usually are able to
revive at early stages. In fact, allowing plants to revive from pest attacks on their own
helps the plant become more resilient, just like overcoming diseases helps our body
to improve its immunity. Our real learning lies in understanding the fundamental
connections between a healthy mind, body, environment and the larger ecosystem.
Bountiful joy: Harvesting of vegetables,
herbs and fruits in small urban gardens
Ashwin Paranjpe
Introduction
Harvesting is perhaps the most exciting part of growing food! Although it may seem
like a simple thing to do, harvesting is actually an art, as well as a science. Humans
have been hunter-gatherers for more than 95% of the time they have inhabited this
Earth. Roaming the diverse ecosystems of this planet, they knew exactly at which stage
to harvest a fruit, which plant could be eaten and which one might be toxic, or which
tuber they could dig out and eat without cooking and which one could cause irritation
to the throat. Hunter-gatherers knew all this because their very survival depended on it.
However, modern humans living in cities have lost this knowledge since they no longer
need to forage through forests to obtain their food – they just buy it from the market!
But for those of you who wish to reconnect with nature and grow your own food in
urban spaces, this chapter might offer you some interesting tips!
A new home gardener is often faced with some confounding questions:
• How do I harvest a capsicum (bell pepper) without using a knife or damaging
the branch?
• Can I harvest strawberries before they become red?
• Can I eat the leaves of radish and beetroot?
• Will bananas and papayas ripen if I harvest them when they are still green?
• Can I harvest the same spinach plant multiple times?
• Since potatoes grow below the ground, how do I know when to harvest them?
• What is the correct stage for harvesting ginger?

As it turns out, the harvesting stages and methods for different vegetables, herbs,
flowers and fruits are significantly different and unique. This chapter provides some
basic harvesting tips of a few selected species, and tries to answer some of the most
common questions which we all encounter when we start nurturing a food garden.
Understanding the stages of plant growth
Because humans consume plants at every stage of plant growth – seeds, sprouts,
flowers, tender pods, immature fruit, mature fruit, roots, rhizomes, etc., it is useful
to know what these different stages of growth mean for the plant, and for us!
Birth or germination
It all starts with the seed! When a seed is planted in soil or in any other suitable
substrate, it absorbs water and ‘germinates’ or ‘sprouts’. This signifies the ‘birth’ of
a plant. The root is driven by gravity and grows downward into the soil in search
of moisture and nutrients, while the shoot grows upwards in search of light. Most
crops such as beans, tomato, brinjal, chillies, gourds, etc. are best multiplied by
seeds. However, some crops are different. Their seeds are not able to germinate
easily and they have evolved to multiply by other methods: through cuttings (e.g.
mint), rhizomes (e.g. ginger, turmeric), suckers (e.g. banana, pineapple) or daughter
plants (e.g. strawberry). As mentioned in chapter on microgreens, young shoots or
sprouts of various crops such as alfalfa, fenugreek, mung, radish, mustard, peas,
etc. are used in salads, pickles, smoothies, and for making and garnishing various
dishes.
Growth
After a seed germinates, or a cutting/ rhizome/sucker or daughter plant is separated
from the parent and planted in a new place, growth begins. Plant growth occurs as
a result of three main processes: (1) uptake of water and nutrients from the soil as
well as air and their transportation to different parts of the plant (2) photosynthesis –
wherein the plant leaves use energy from the sun to combine carbon dioxide from the
air with water within the plant cells (in the presence of chlorophyll) and convert them
into sugar and oxygen; and (3) respiration – wherein the sugars produced during
photosynthesis and oxygen from the air are used for expanding and multiplying
the cells within different parts of the plant. In reality, these three processes occur
simultaneously and involve complex biochemical transformations. But generally
speaking, increase in height of the plant, increase in size and number of leaves,
production of branches, flowers, fruits and seeds are all signs of ‘growth’. Green leafy
vegetables such as spinach, coriander, fenugreek, amaranth, etc. are harvested when
maximum growth of leaves has occurred, but before flowering begins.
Flowering, Pollination, and Fruiting
When a plant reaches sexual maturity it produces flowers. Flowers can be male, female, or
bisexual, depending on the type of plant you are growing. Flowers can have very attractive
colours and shapes or can be ordinary looking. They may produce beautiful fragrance
or no fragrance at all. Some may produce sweet nectar while others don’t. Regardless of
their characteristics, the main function of any flower is to attract pollinators such as bees

or butterflies or to harness wind, so that pollination can be achieved and the continuity of
the species can be ensured. Pollination is the second step in reproduction wherein male
anthers are transferred by pollinators (bees, butterflies, wind, etc.) to the stigma and then
to the ovary. Properly fertilized ovules become seeds, and the ovary that houses several
ovules eventually becomes the fruit. Generally speaking, plants of most species produce
flowers. Several flowers are edible, and are harvested before pollination occurs. Flowers
of banana, pumpkin, roselle, hibiscus, moringa, sesbania, etc. are commonly consumed
in various forms. Often, all three stages of reproduction, i.e. flowers, fruits, and seeds of
the same species are edible if you know the correct stage to harvest each one of them. For
example, in case of the pea plant, its flowers, tender pods, immature seeds, and mature
seeds can all be eaten! On the other hand, some plants such as potato, strawberry, ginger,
etc. produce flowers, but they prefer to reproduce through vegetative means (asexual
reproduction) by producing tubers, rhizomes, suckers or daughter plants.
Ripening and senescence
In case of crops that produce fruits (e.g. tomato, chilli, capsicum, brinjal, cucumber,
gourds, okra, etc.), plant growth slows down gradually after it has produced sufficient
fruits that can ensure the survival of the next generation. The stage when rapid plant
growth decelerates and the plant invests most of its energy in nourishing the ovules in the
fruit, the process of ‘ripening’ begins. Once fruits ripen fully, the plant gradually enters
its last stage of life called ‘senescence’. Typically, when bananas start turning yellow, or
tomatoes start becoming pink, it is a sign that they are maturing and entering senescence.
Fruits of crops such as tomatoes, chilli, bell pepper, banana, papaya, etc. can be harvested
when senescence has begun. These are also called climacteric fruits because they are
capable of maturing fully even if they are harvested when they are green but have just
started to show some colour. In commercial farming, most fruits are harvested when
they are still green but have just started to turn colour. However, home gardeners should
ideally harvest fruits when they have developed 80-90% of their colour because this is
the stage when they acquire their full size, accumulate maximum sugars, and develop the
best flavour. For example, pinkish tomatoes are capable of turning fully red after they are
detached from the plant, but the flavour and taste of vine ripened tomatoes is much more
intense than tomatoes that are picked pre-maturely. For making a good tomato soup or
for sun-drying tomatoes, it is better to harvest fully red tomatoes that are vine ripened.
Having said that, since the texture and flavour of various fruits during the immature stage
is very unique, some dishes specifically require raw or immature fruits. For example, raw
papaya salad, green tomato chutney, or raw banana subji.
Which family does your vegetable belong to?
Like us, vegetables also belong to different families. The shape (geometry) of
flowers, growth habits, preferred environmental conditions, and even the type of
pests and diseases that infect crops are ‘family specific’. For example, since chillies
and tomatoes belong to the same family, they both like to grow under warm
conditions, and both get affected by practically the same pests and diseases.
Some of the commonly grown crops and their families are presented below:

Family Crop
Amaranthaceae Spinach, Amaranth (green & red), Beetroot, etc.
Amaryllidaceae Onion, Chives, etc.
Asteraceae Lettuce, Sunflower
Bromeliaceae Pineapple
Caricaceae Papaya
Cruciferaceae Mustard, Radish, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Cabbage, Kholrabi,
etc.
Cucurbitaceae Cucumber, Bitter/Bottle/Snake/Ash Gourd, Pumpkin,
Watermelon, etc.
Fabaceae Methi, Cluster bean (guar), Soybean, Greenpeas, Chickpea,
etc.
Lamiaceae Mint, Basil, Sage, Rosemary, Thyme, Oregano, Marjoram
Malvaceae Okra, Cotton, Cacao
Moraceae Fig, Mulberry
Moringaceae Moringa (drum-stick)
Rosaceae Strawberry, Raspberry, Peach, Pear, Apple
Solanaceae Tomato, Chilli, Capsicum, Brinjal, Potato, etc.
Umbelliferaceae Coriander, Cumin, Fennel, Carrot, Celery, Parsley, Dill,
Anise, etc.
Harvesting tips
Tomato
• There are various types of tomatoes such as large tomatoes, cherry tomatoes,
cluster tomatoes, grape tomatoes, etc.
• Regardless of their type, multiple tomatoes are produced on a single cyme (a
flower-bearing branch that grows from the axil of the branching node, which
is the point between the main stem and the side-branch).
• Tomato plants have weak stems and cannot stand erect on their own. Therefore,
they need to be supported or staked using a stick and twine so that the plant
remains upright. If the plants are not supported/ staked and if the soil remains
moist after watering or rain, the fruits that touch the moist soil may be attached
by fungus and/or bacteria and will rot shortly after that.
• Most tomatoes will require 45-60 days from flower to mature fruit, depending
on the variety and season. Tomatoes mature relatively fast during summer,
very slowly during winter.

• Generally, the tomato fruit closest to the main branch is the oldest and will
mature first.
• The point where the tomato fruit is attached to the cyme is slightly bulged –
this is called the point of abscission. To harvest tomatoes without injuring the
plant or stripping the outer skin of the branch, just put your middle finger on
the layer of abscission, your palm touching the fruit, and bring your thumb
up to move the fruit upward. You will see that the tomato fruit detaches itself
easily and in a clean way exactly at the point of abscission. If tomatoes are
harvested using this method, the exposed area where the tomato was removed
heals very quickly, thus avoiding the entry of pests or diseases.
• If you want to use green tomatoes in your food, you can pick them once they
are full sized but still green. Please note that green tomatoes will not turn red
once they are removed from the plant.
• If you want to use ripe tomatoes but get more shelf-life out of them, then you
can harvest them as soon as they have turned pinkish-red and then store them
at room temperature for a couple of days until they turn completely red.
• If you want to use fully ripe tomatoes in your cooking, you should wait until
the tomatoes become fully red on the plant. Such tomatoes are also called vine-
ripened tomatoes. However, the longer you wait, more is the likelihood that
birds, caterpillars or insects will get to the tomato before you can!
• Tomatoes can be consumed fresh, or they can be sun-dried, blanched, canned,
or made into a chutney, puree or ketchup.
Chilli Peppers and Capsicum
• Chillies or chilli peppers are native to Peru and Central America and were
introduced in India by the Portuguese. Interestingly, there are several varieties
of chillies that have evolved in India as well, especially in the North East.
A cyme is a branch that bears the inflorescence. *Tomato plants have cymose inflorescences
that are determinate, with a note that the inflorescence meristem does not terminate into a
flower, and in fact maintains indeterminacy (Welty et al. 2007).

• Capsicum (bell peppers or Shimla mirch) are also native to central America
and were probably introduced in India by the Portuguese. Morphologically,
chilli peppers and capsicums are almost identical, but they differ greatly in the
amount of capsaicin they contain.
• There are various types of chillies -- the very small and hot Bird’s Eye chilli,
the very very hot Bhoot Jolokia, the not so hot Bedgi and Kashmiri chillies
that are known for the intense red colour they bring to curries, or chillies like
the Bhavnagri or Shimla Mirch which are fried and eaten green. Bell peppers
come in various sizes and colours such as red, yellow, purple, etc.
• In some varieties of chilli peppers, multiple fruits are produced in a bunch on
the sub-branch, while in others, a single chilli is produced on the main branch
itself or on the sub-branch.
• Although most chilli plants are able to stand erect, when they are bearing many
fruits, the plant can droop and even fall to the ground. Therefore, they need
to be supported or staked using a stick or twined so that the plant remains
upright. If the plants are not supported/ staked and if the soil remains moist
after watering or rain, the fruits that touch the soil may be attacked by fungi
and/or bacteria and will rot shortly after that.
• Under sub-tropical conditions, most chillies/ capsicums require 45-60 days
to develop from flower to mature fruit, depending on the variety and season.
Chillies mature relatively fast during summer, but very slowly during winter.
• The point where the chilli/ capsicum fruit is attached to the branch is called the
point of abscission. To harvest chillies or capsicums without injuring the plant
or stripping the outer skin of the branch while detaching them, just put your
middle finger on the point of abscission, your palm touching the fruit, put
your thumb on the blossom-end of the fruit and turn your thumb up to move
the fruit upward. You will see that the chilli/ capsicum detaches itself very
easily and in a clean manner, exactly at the point of abscission. This method is
especially important while harvesting capsicums. If harvesting is done using
this method, the exposed area where the fruit is detached from the branch heals
very quickly, avoiding the entry of pests or diseases. In commercial practice,
most chillies are just pulled from the branch but a home gardener who is not
pressed for time can follow the proper method mentioned earlier.
• Chillies whose seeds have not fully formed are called tender chillies which
are generally not that hot. When the seeds inside the chilli are fully formed,
the chilli bulges at the base and their hotness increases. The hotness of fully
mature red chillies is generally greater and their flavour is significantly different
compared to green chillies of the same variety.
• Interestingly, most varieties of chillies will turn colour after removing them
from the plant as long as the seeds inside the chilli are fully formed. Thus,
green chillies whose seeds are fully formed, will become red, purple, orange or
yellow (depending on the variety) even after they are detached from the plant.

• Once harvested, it is best to keep chillies in a moist cotton cloth in the fridge.
During monsoon and winter season, chillies can remain fresh for 10-12 days
even if they are kept outside the fridge.
• Chillies can be consumed fresh, or they can be stored in brine, dried and used
whole or in powdered form, smoked over wood fire, or fermented.
Lettuce
• Lettuce originated
from Asia Minor or
Middle East. However,
wild races of lettuce
such as Lactucavirosa
(bitter lettuce) are
also found in India.
L. virosais believed
to have sedative and
analgesic (pain relieving) effects.
• There are several varieties of cultivated lettuce such as Romaine, Butter Head,
Iceberg, Batavia, Oak Leaf, etc.
• Lettuce prefers to grow in winter, but most modern varieties are heat tolerant.
Lettuce is a short duration crop (30-45 days) and needs to be harvested before
flowering occurs. After flowering (also called bolting) lettuce leaves develop a bitter
taste and become thicker and smaller. Flowering in lettuce is primarily a response
to hot temperatures coupled with water stress. So when a lettuce plant produces
flowers, it is often a response to environmental stress and the leaves develop a bitter
taste possibly as a defence mechanism to discourage ruminants from eating the
plant in order to ensure that the flowers will mature and produce viable seeds.
• In varieties such as Romaine, Batavia, and Oak Leaf, you can either harvest the
entire head (cluster of leaves after full maturity but before flowering) or harvest
just a couple of leaves at a time and let the remaining ones grow. The latter method
enables a family to obtain 5-6 leaves every week for almost a month, rather than
harvesting the entire lettuce head in one go.
• However, varieties such as Iceberg and Butter Head are generally harvested only
after they develop a full ‘head’.
• Lettuce can be harvested with a knife or with bare hands. It’s a good idea to keep
the harvested lettuce head or leaves in a moist cotton cloth after dipping them in
chilled/ cold water. This increases their shelf life.
Strawberries
• Strawberry is a non-climacteric fruit. This means that the fruit does not mature

or turn red if it is harvested prematurely when it is still green or white.
• Strawberry is technically not a berry, but an ‘aggregate’ where the fleshy part is
not derived from the ovaries but from the receptacle that holds the ovaries. It
is also one of those rare fruits whose seeds are outside the fruit!
• In India, strawberry plants should be ideally planted in the first week of
October. Flowering occurs in response to cooler temperatures in November,
and it takes about 30-45 days from flowering to mature fruit, depending on
climatic conditions.
• Strawberries are attached to the plant by a long green stem called the pedicel
which can vary in length from 2-3 cm to 8-10 cm, depending on the variety.
You can harvest strawberries with the pedicel intact by cutting it about 1-2
cm from its point of attachment with the crown, or you can simply cut the
pedicel closer to the fruit. Premium strawberries are harvested with the pedicel
intact. This also increases the shelf life of strawberries. In both methods, it is
recommended to harvest the strawberries with the calyx (small green leaf-like
parts) since it looks pretty and it also increases the shelf life of strawberries.
• Some of the popular strawberry varieties are Camarosa, Sweet Charlie,
Chandler, Festival, etc.
• Strawberries can be consumed fresh, sliced and cooked in sugar syrup and
served with ice cream, made into a jam, or made into a milk shake. Strawberries
can also be sun-dried for increasing their shelf life.
References
Welty N., Radovich C., Meulia T., E. Van der Knaap (2007). Inflorescence development
in two tomato species.
Happy Harvesting!

Edible weeds: The story of forgotten
greens and knowledge
Shruti Tharayil
I founded an initiative called Forgotten Greens based on my journeys with multitude

of communities, who showed me the fundamental intersections between biodiversity,
caste and food systems. Forgotten Greens has been on a journey of creating platforms for
people to reconnect to their immediate ecosystems, revive the fast disappearing knowledge
around the culture of consuming uncultivated greens as food and in the process unlearn
and redefine the fundamentals of food. Food according to our current system is grown
by a farmer, somewhere out in the village, brought by an invisible third party who makes
it available for us in the shiny supermarkets. Food according to our schooling system is
something that comes from a cultivated farm, grown under intensive labour and chemicals
to make sure they are healthy. These homogenised narratives have always turned a blind
eye towards the rich diversity of our traditional food systems. One of the important aspects
of the traditional food system are the uncultivated greens that are an integral part of our
ecosystem as much as our cultivated plants are. The work of Forgotten Greens has been to
throw light on this aspect of the Food system; to bring back the knowledge system which is
gradually disappearing but very much alive in our collective memories.
The Indian ecosystem is highly bio-diverse however, we are aware and use only a small
portion of it. Most of us have been taught A for Apple – a fruit that doesn’t grow in the tropics,
but Phalsa (Grewia asiatica known as Indian Sherbet Berry),which is a locally growing fruit
during the hot summers in mainland India isn’t known to many. Similarly, most of us know
about the famous cherry blossoms but hardly we know about the beautiful Gliricidia sepium
or the Cassia fistula tree that blooms in all its glory in the subtropics painting the landscape
pink and golden yellow.

What are weeds?
Weeds are described as plants that are not valued where they are growing and are
usually of vigorous growth especially those that tend to overgrow or choke out more
desirable plants. The understanding of the plants as weeds evolved when homo sapiens
moved to agriculture from hunting and gathering .
In today’s context with extreme concretisation around us, intensive monocropping and
lawn-isation of our garden spaces, plants which we are unaware of are often considered
“weeds”. This comes from an understanding that is disconnected and separated from
nature itself and is more commonly used in mainstream, profit-oriented agriculture. If
we look at traditional systems of agriculture, weeds or uncultivated plants are often seen
as part of the ecosystem, often seen in symbiotic relationship with the crops growing.
Every plant has a use. It is our limited knowledge that doesn’t know their uses and
properties in its entirety.
Henceforth, I’ll be referring to weeds as uncultivated greens to highlight the role these
plants play in maintaining balance in our eco-systems, our diet and health.
Forgotten Greens and where to find them?
The resilient uncultivated greens grow in every nook and corner with rigour that
cultivated plants fail to replicate. Traditionally, the uncultivated greens grew in
farmlands alongside cultivated crops, scattered across common land, moist riversides
and lake bunds. In our modern, urban landscapes, uncultivated greens grow on the
roadsides, sewage canals, in between interlocking blocks, concrete cracks and terrace
gardens alongside cultivated plants. Basically, uncultivated greens grow wherever there
is a possibility of wilderness to grow. No matter how well manicured we keep our lawns,
the wild edibles will pop up there too! So next time you step out into a public space or
just your garden space, do keep an eye out for these wild edibles.
Foraging - A way of Life
Our ancestors were primarily foragers and hunters before the advent of settled
agriculture. Even today in communities with less land holding, foraging is one of the
ways in which they procure their food. During my time with the Konda Reddiadivasi
community in the East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, I witnessed foraging
as their main source of collecting food during summer and monsoons, when the
agricultural land is either left fallow or tilled and seeds for the next cycle have been
sowed. During these months they hike up to their forests to forage tubers, wild flowers,
wild leaves, mushrooms, red ants, birds, freshwater crabs to name a few.
During the monsoons season in Kerala called the karkidakamasam according to the
traditional Hindu solar calendar, the traditional month is considered as the darkest
month of the year due to incessant and heavy rain. Karkidakamasam witnesses people
in Kerala foraging uncultivated plants that crop up soon after the first rains to make
different dishes like the path-ilathoran (10 leaves dish) and having it with the mernzhu
“The Origin of Cultivation and Proto-Weeds, Long Before Neolithic Farming”

kanji (medicine porridge). Path -ilathoran as the name suggests is a dish made from 10
different leaves put together. Getting the 10 ingredients from the market is difficult to
prepare this dish and foraging from the immediate environment is the only way. I have
often found women foraging for 10 edible leaves that grow wild in their immediate
backyard. These 10 leaves are never the same and vary depending on the locality and
the accessibility and availability of the wild edibles. Mernzhu Kanji is a rice porridge
made by adding a mixture of wild and cultivated herbs which supports different aspects
of the body’s health like inflammation, back pain, muscle tears etc. Traditionally the
mernzhu mix used to be foraged by people living in biodiverse rice belt which is no
longer the case.
Foraging is one of the ways to reconnect to our immediate ecosystem -- we spend
more time with nature around us, we learn so much more about the world of other
beings with whom we share this space.
Before you step out, a few reminders!
• If you recognize a plant from this book, however, aren’t fully sure and need a
second opinion, ask a local elder or someone who has knowledge about the plants.
• Do not eat anything that you don’t recognize. Do your research!!
• Have a little bit first to check if it works for your system, maybe cook it with other
greens.
• Be sure you forage from ‘clean and safe’ environment. Refrain foraging from sewage
canals, highly polluted concrete patches, places with stagnant water.
• Take your children, your partner along with you, introduce more people to this
world of wilderness.
• Identify the plants with their Botanical names. The local names and common
English names differ according to the region, use, local lore and culture of the
place. It can be very misleading if you try to find out plants based on their common
English name or the local name. It is often safe to identify and learn about a new
plant using its Botanical name.
• Anything in excess is poison. Please make sure you consume the plant in whatever
format in moderation.
• While foraging, refrain from uprooting the plant as uprooting leads to killing the
plant and it won’t regrow the next batch. If you are weeding the space, then feel free
to uproot the plant!
• Always take a moment and connect to the plant while foraging. We often come
from a consumerist approach where we only think about the utility of the plant
and how it will benefit us. The invitation here is to shift from this perspective and
connect to the plants as co-travellers and witness the world of knowledge, health,
and gourmet it opens up for you.
• And eat them too!
Indegenous community that come ----write more

Yes, you can eat uncultivated plants and cook some really delicious recipes with them.
The wild edibles given their resilience to grow in the most difficult terrains, they are the
most nutritious, organic and naturally growing plants you can get your hands on.
• All plants have some use in the ecosystem however not all plants are edible.
• Some plants are edible and medicinal and some plants are just medicinal.
• Some plants are edible however they are not palatable and hence cannot be used
for extensive culinary cooking.
• Some plants are edible with light traces of toxicity in them which will require a
particular process to remove it for example- leaving tubers in flowing water for a
few days, adding tamarind to the dish, soaking in salt water for sometime, eating
it within 2 hours of plucking, cooking with other dominant greens so the toxicity
is diluted with the presence of the other greens. These are few methods I have
personally come across and I am sure there are millions of more such methods, it
is now your turn to find these out.
• Some plants are not entirely edible. Some parts of the plant would be edible and the
rest would be poisonous. The best example for this is Abrusprecatorius commonly
known as the Rosary Pea plant in english. The leaves of the plant are famously
used in Mukhwas(Mouthfreshners) as the leaves give a soothing menthol after
taste. The seeds of the plant are toxic and cannot be consumed.
• Plants foraged from sewage canals and tarred roads should be avoided as the plants
absorb the toxic elements from the ground which is not good for our systems.
• If you are foraging from a lesser polluted area, you can simply rinse the leaves and
use. If you are foraging wild flowers, you can skip the rinsing and use it directly.
However, if you are foraging from a polluted area, especially from roadsides, you
can soak the leaves in salt water (preferably rock salt) and a pinch of turmeric for
an hour or so before cooking it.
Know your Weeds :
1) Common name – Asthma Weed,
Common spurge
Scientific name - Euphorbia hirta
Sanskrit - Dugadhika
Hindi – dudhi
tamil – ammanpaccharisi
Malayalam – Nelapalai
Telugu – Nanabala
Kannada – Hachchedida, Kempunene
Euphorbia hirta grows erect on a central hairy stem that produces abundant white

latex. Elliptical leaves occur in opposite pairs on the stem. Flowers are unisexual,
purplish to greenish in color, dense, axillary, short-stalked clusters
Known Uses : Can remove warts over time. Latex oozing out when plant is cut is
applied to warts externally.
Treats asthma – Traditionally used to treat asthma, hence the
name. Euphorbia hirta brewed tea can be consumed as part of
diet to eventually regulate asthma.
The plant is also high in Iron content, it supports in adding to
the Iron content in the body when consumed. E. hirta is one of
uncultivated plants that does not enjoy being “domesticated”.
It is very difficult to propagate the plant in your garden spaces.
Please note: The plant should only be consumed in small doses.
Large doses may result in nausea and vomiting
2) Common name – Purslane
Scientific name – Portulaca oleracea
Hindi name – Lunia
Sanskrit name – Loni
Tamil – Paruppukeerai
Malayalam – Koluppa
Kannada – Dudagorai
Telugu – Gangavalli
Purslane is a common “weed” in India and grows commonly in the urban concrete
spaces. The succulent leaves grow alternate at stem joints. The flowers are yellow in
colour. The seeds form in tiny pods which opens once the seeds are ready. Purslane
grows as a creeper and grows parallel to the ground mostly. The colour of the stems vary
from light to dark pinkish- green.
Another version of the same plant is Wingpod Purslane or Portulaca, scientific name –
Portulaca Umbraticola. This is more commonly used for ornamental purposes and not
for culinary purposes. The difference between the wild purslane and edible purslane
are the leaves and flowers. The leaves are tiny in ornamental
purslane whereas the wild edible leaves are usually broader and
bigger in size. The flowers in ornamental purslane are of varied
colours and often are big petalled whereas the wild purslane
flowers are usually smaller in size and most commonly yellow
in colour.
Another version of the plant is wild purslane, botanical name
unknown. Wild purslane has tiny leaves and creeps over the
ground. This version of purslane is edible and highly nutritious.
Known Uses : Purslane is very low in calories and contain

more omega-3 fatty acids. It is also an excellent source of Vitamin-A.
The plant can be added to your food in any format – lentils, salads, chutney to name a
few usual recipes.
3) Commelina Benghalensis.
Common name – Bengal Dayflower, Whiskered Commelina, Wandering Jew
Botanical name - Commelinabenghalensis
Sanskrit – Kanchata, Kosapuspi
Hindi – Kena, Kankawa, krishnaghas
Kannda – Gubbachchi, KanneSoppu
Malayalam – Kanavazhai, Vazhaipadathi
Marathi – Kena
Tamil – Kanangkozai, Kananvalai
Telugu – Neerukaassuvu, nirukassuvu
Bengal Dayflower usually grows during the rainy season. However, you will find it
growing in moist regions throughout the year. The leaves are usually ovate with velvet
like hair. The flowers are beautiful blue coloured. The plant spreads like a blanket on the
surface wherever it grows.
Known Uses – The paste of the leaves can be applied on wounds for healing.
The leaves were used traditionally to make fritters/ bhajiyas during monsoons. The
leaves can also be cooked as any other green leafy vegetable. Please note, while foraging
pluck only the top 3/4 tender leaves as the non tender leaves can be difficult for the
system to digest.
The easiest way to propagate Commenlina is by cutting the stem nodes and planting it
in moist soil. It can in ‘domesticated’ garden spaces too.
4) Common name: Green Amaranth, Slender Amaranth
Scientific name – Amranthus Viridis
Hindi – Jungli Chaulayi
Sanskrit – Tanduliya
Kannada – Keresoppu
Malayalam – Kuppcheera
Tamil – Kuppaikeerai
Telugu – ChilikaThotakoora
5) Common Name – Prickly Amaranth, Spiny amaranth
Scientific name – Amaranthus Spinosus
Hindi – Kanta Chaulai

Sanskrit – Tanduliuyah
Tamil – Mullukkerrai
Malayalam – Kattumullencheera
Telugu – Mulltotakura
Kannada – Mulluharuve
Both these amaranth varieties are the less famous wilder cousins of amaranth we get
in the market. Both the varieties are edible, self-seeding and much more nutritious than
the ones we get in the market.
Slender amaranth commonly grows wild in urban India. You
can easily identify this plant with the red tinged stems and broad
leaves. Both the Amaranth varieties host spiky, brownish-green
coloured flowers. Slender Amaranth is known for having high
iron content. As the name suggests, Spiny Amaranth hosts
thorns. Tender thorns when cooked are edible. However, if you
are foraging non-tender thorns make sure you remove the thorns
and then cook them as the non-tender thorns tend to get hard.
6) Common name – Creeping wood sorrel, Creeping oxalis
Scientific name – Oxalis Corniculata
Sanskrit - Amlapatrika, Changeri, Shuklika
Hindi name – Amrul, Changeri, Tinpatiya
Tamil – Puliyarai, Paliakiri
Malayalam – Puliyarila
Telugu - Pulichinta
Kannada – Pullampuriche, Hulihulise, Pullampurachi
This plant grows as a ground cover. The plant branches from the base and has
roots at the nodes with very thin stem on which the leaves and the flower stand.
The leaf and the stem can sometimes be hairy. The plant usually has clusters
of 3 beautiful heart shaped leaves on one stem and delicate tiny yellow flowers.
The plant can be propagated either by collecting tiny seeds from the seed pods and
distributing in your pots or plucking the plant by its root nodes and planting it in
wet soil. Wood sorrel prefers moist soil over dry soil.
Known Uses : Oxalis is rich in iron, calcium, Vitamin B1 and Vitamin C. The leaves
support in hemoglobin levels in the body given the high iron content. The plant
contains Oxalic acid and consuming high doses of Oxalis can be toxic. However,
the amount you end up consuming by foraging would not cross the permitted limit.
The leaves can be a great addition to salads, dals, chutney or you can simply eat a
couple of leaves raw on a daily basis.
Hope your next walk in your neighbourhood allows you to observe in a new light.

Shruti explaining how to rewild a gardener’s backyard

Scaling urban agriculture: need for
supportive policy ecosystem
Anita Pinheiro
Urban agriculture has emerged as a pivotal nature-based solution for transforming

agri-food systems by integrating social, ecological, and technological dimensions.
Yet, it has not received adequate attention from policymakers.
Today, urban areas are commonly regarded as locations for consumption rather
than production. Moreover, the dominant notion of agriculture revolves around
the idea of massive production to ‘feed the masses’, and hence conventional food
production is expected to put pressure on scarce resources such as land and water.
On the other hand, there are ample examples in history when urban agriculture
received considerable government support as a measure of resilience and food
security in times of crisis.
It is encouraging that in India, urban agriculture is increasingly getting traction,
especially as independent initiatives. Nevertheless, government support for urban
agriculture remains primarily concentrated in large cities.
How can we scale up urban agriculture to facilitate sustainable urbanisation? This
chapter explores policy ecosystems that can foster this expansion.
Background
Urban agriculture encompasses a range of practices that vary across different
socio-economic segments of our society. Each practice holds its unique potential,
presenting opportunities for further improvement in order to make them more
sustainable and inclusive.

In many urban and peri-urban areas, farm cultivation is a livelihood option for
people from economically weaker sections, including migrant workers. Although
these farming activities provide economic benefits to the farmers and enable shorter
food supply chains, the lack of recognition of agriculture as an urban activity
hinders its further development to make it socially just and ecologically sound.
In its varied forms and scales, urban home gardening is practiced by different
income groups across the country. It is often an urban re-creation of the memories
of farming and human-nature connectedness. However, there is a vast disparity
in the capacity of different income groups. Mostly middle and uppermiddle-class
people living in metropolitan cities have adequate space, resources, and support
systems for having a well-functioning home garden.
Urban home gardening has enormous potential in creating edible cities and
towns in India. With adequate planning and support systems, urban home gardens
can become sites of integrated production (vegetables, fruits, poultry, and small
livestock). This practice can also reduce urban waste by integrating vegetable
production with household waste management.
Recently, technology-aided, capital-intensive entrepreneurial initiatives such as
hydroponics, vertical farming, and aquaponics have also emerged as new practices
of urban agriculture. However, such enterprises can create shorter urban food
supply chains -- a holistic understanding of their intensive production methods
and degree of dependence on external inputs is to be looked at.
Current policy landscape
In India, urban agriculture is yet to receive national-level policy attention as a
nature-based solution to issues of urban sustainability. At present, there are no
active government programs that promote urban agriculture across the country.
The only initiative that attempted to promote urban agriculture in select cities across
India was Vegetable Initiative for Urban Clusters (VIUC). Recently, some state
governments have shown a growing interest in fostering urban home gardening
using funding from central government schemes.
Vegetable Initiative for Urban Clusters (VIUC)
The VIUC programme was launched in 2011-12 as a subset of Rashtriya Krishi
Vikas Yojana (RKVY). This program for strengthening the urban and peri-urban
vegetable production is no longer operational.
VIUC aimed to strengthen vegetable production and its supply chains in urban
areas, and it was intended to be implemented in all states, either in the state’s capital
city or any other city having a population of one million or above (Department of
Agriculture and Cooperation 2011). Horticulture Missions were assigned with the
implementation of the VIUC scheme.
In most of the states, the VIUC initiatives focused more on commercial agricultural
production, by trying to expand conventional agriculture into urban areas without
attempts to adapt and integrate into the dynamics of the fabric of urban life.(SFAC

n.d.-a, n.d.-b). One exception was Kerala, where rooftop vegetable cultivation in
urban home gardens was promoted instead of commercial farmland cultivation.
State government initiatives
Some of the states that promote urban agriculture, especially urban home gardening
include Bihar, Delhi, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana. The promotion is mainly
through subsidy support, ranging from 50% to 75%, for setting up home gardens
on the rooftops or in the backyards of private residential buildings in urban areas.
Bihar
In Bihar, five cities with large populations (Patna, Muzaffarpur, Gaya, Bhagalpur, and
Biharsharif)have been selected to promote rooftop gardening. Gardening is expected
to provide additional income to people and improve environmental conditions.(Anon
2019). People are provided with 50% subsidy (with a maximum amount of Rs. 25000)
for buying inputs such as plastic sheets, containers, seeds, plants, fertiliser, and irrigation
tools for setting up a home garden in 300 sq. ft area (Singh 2019).
Despite the best intentions, the initiative restricts its benefits only to high income
groups. In order to become a beneficiary, people need to have a minimum of 300 sq.
ft area in their backyard or on their rooftop, and be able to afford Rs. 25000/- after the
subsidy (Anon 2022). Although the initiative tries to incorporate representation from
different social groups (women 30 %, 16 % scheduled castes, 1 % scheduled tribes) in
the Bihar Rooftop Horticulture Scheme 2022(Anon 2022), it will clearly exclude the
economically weaker sections from having a home garden in their homes.
Delhi
In their latest budget for 2022, the Delhi government announced the launch of
‘smart urban farming’ to promote kitchen gardening for self-consumption as well
as an entrepreneurial activity. The program is yet to be launched.
Kerala
Kerala has been promoting urban home gardening across the state as part of the
Vegetable Development Program (VDP) that was launched in 2012. The state has
been allocating nearly 10% of the annual budget support for VDP for ‘promotion of
urban clusters’. This program provides ready-to-garden kits at a rate of Rs. 500 after
a 75 % of subsidy. After a few years, the program also incorporated household solid
and liquid waste management along with vegetable gardening.
However, in the financial year 2022-23, there is no specific attention given to
urban home gardens like before. Instead, container cultivation in urban areas was
included in the working instructions for VDP 2022-23 (Directorate of AD & FW
2022:20) only as one of the three home garden technologies promoted across the
state, with no specific budgetary allocation for urban areas.
Tamil Nadu
In Tamil Nadu, urban home gardening, mainly rooftop gardening is promoted
through an urban horticulture development scheme called ‘do-it-yourself kit’

program in the two large cities, of Chennai and Coimbatore. The kit contains
containers, inputs, and an informative manual. The program aims to motivate
city residents to grow their food, enhance nutritional security, and improve their
environment (Government of Tamil Nadu).
Telangana
Telangana started its promotion of urban home gardening in Hyderabad and has
recently planned to extend it to Secunderabad. The objective of the program is
to provide healthy vegetables to the city residents while increasing their physical
activity as stress-relief measure, and to improve the micro-climate (Anon n.d.).
However, to avail the subsidy benefit, people need to have 50 -200 sq. ft area either
on the rooftops or in the backyard.
Gaps to address
The ongoing state government interventions that promote urban agriculture focus
mainly on home garden vegetable production. While this is important, focus also
needs to be given to incorporate other types of urban agriculture that suit the local
context.
Firstly, except for Kerala, which has a rural-urban continuum, all the other states
do not consider small towns and cities in their interventions to promote urban
agriculture, specifically urban home gardening. Unlike large cities, small urban
areas have the flexibility to integrate urban home gardening into their design and
planning, thereby ensuring sustainable urbanisation.
Secondly, the majority of the programs mentioned above tend to target middle-
class and high-income groups as their primary focus by setting the criteria based
on the available cultivation area to provide subsidies.
Policy ecosystems
A more comprehensive policy approach must be developed to ensure the wide
promotion of urban agriculture practices by being inclusive, holistic, participatory,
and creative, while enhancing sustainability.
Physical infrastructure
Planning edible cities for urban greening: At present, numerous urban greening
initiatives in the country primarily concentrate on cultivating ornamental plants,
which contribute to aesthetic appeal. Instead, it is essential for urban greening
interventions to adopt a nature-based ‘edible’ garden approach, since growing food
plants has many other benefits such as facilitating short food supply chains and
reducing the dependence upon rural areas.
Ongoing greening initiatives can incorporate food production within and on the
existing grey infrastructure with a few additional steps. Ornamental plants can
easily be replaced with suitable edible plants in green walls, spaces under flyovers,
and median strips of major roads and highways. Introducing edible landscaping
in these spaces will bring aesthetic beauty to food production. These edible urban

spaces can stay connected with communities from all socio-economic groups, by
involving them in the planning, implementation, and monitoring of these initiatives.
Appropriate modifications of existing buildings and creative design of new
buildings might be needed to facilitate food gardening on rooftops. This is essential
to avoid leakage and structural damage to the buildings.. The state can provide
incentives to design buildings that integrate food production spaces.
As more urbanisation is expected to take place in small towns and cities, there is a
huge potential for early interventions to incorporate urban agriculture in the policy
and planning to facilitate sustainable urbanisation.
Fiscal infrastructure
Historically, government research institutions and agricultural universities have
predominantly focussed on rural agriculture. It is crucial to promote and encourage
research in urban agriculture as well, as only a few institutions are currently involved
in this.
There are opportunities to create urban-friendly integrated production methods
that combine crop cultivation with aquaculture, poultry, or goat rearing. These
integrated approaches can vary in terms of their inputs, technology, and budget
requirements. To promote inclusive urban agriculture, it is important to prioritize
the development of low-input, technology-light, and budget-friendly methods that
benefit ordinary people.
Include marginalised sections
Without having specific efforts to accommodate people from socio-economically
weaker sections, it is highly likely that urban agriculture initiatives will remain
an activity of the richer economic class. Therefore, emphasis needs to be given to
planning and designing the interventions that can benefit marginalised sections of
the urban population, including low-income groups and migrant workers.
School education
We also need to create awareness among the younger generation regarding the
importance of sustainable actions such as urban food production. This can be
achieved by making urban agriculture part of the curriculum and using educational
spaces for food production. This will also enhance students’ awareness of nutrition
and help them to connect with nature. Some states already have taken initiatives
to promote nutrition gardening in government and aided schools and to link it
with the mid-day meal scheme. With adequate and continued support for tools,
inputs, and irrigation, nutritional gardening can be made a long-term activity in
educational spaces.
Institutional Support
Urban agro-service centers :Setting up urban agro-service centers at government
levels is essential for providing continued support to the farmers. This is particularly
relevant for promoting agroecological cultivation methods and popularizing

small-scale, building-integrated production on rooftops and balconies. Such agro-
service centres can provide inputs for commercial and home-based cultivation,
and technological services for space-saving cultivation in residential buildings. At
present, there are private initiatives that serve this purpose. However, their service
is not affordable for all income groups. Therefore, adequate budget support should
be ensured to set up agro-service centres to promote urban agriculture.
Flexiblel policies for vegetable gardening in urban areas
Accommodative land use policies and lease agreements are required for the
short-term allocation of vacant land and public spaces for vegetable gardening.
Depending upon the context, such allocation can be made to individuals or
communities. Effective lease policies are required for short-term lease of private
lands for vegetable gardening without posing any challenge to land ownership.
Integrate with household waste management
Vegetable gardening in residential buildings needs to be integrated with household-
level waste (kitchen waste) management. Small and affordable composting
technologies need to be promoted so that kitchen waste can be effectively recycled
for gardening purposes.
Collaboration between government agencies
At present, implementing urban agriculture initiatives is mainly the responsibility
of agriculture or horticulture departments of respective states. However, effective
implementation requires collaboration between multiple government departments,
including local governments, environment and climate change departments.
Otherwise, it is highly likely that depending on the priorities of agriculture/
horticulture departments, urban agriculture may not get the adequate attention it
deserves.
Participatory decision-making
Inclusive and participatory decision-making needs to be ensured at all stages of
planning and implementation. The involvement of citizens from all sections of
society is pertinent to design urban agriculture interventions that benefit all urban
populations
Promote grassroots innovations
Especially in urban home gardening, there are many innovative technologies
and practices developed by people for space-saving cultivation, kitchen waste
management, and cost-effective water-saving irrigation methods. Such grassroots
innovations in urban agriculture need to be encouraged, recognised, and promoted.
Field visits organised as part of extension services can be used to introduce these
innovative methods to other people. Furthermore, it would also be encouraging
to incentivize people for the development of space-and resource-saving urban
agriculture methods.
Farmer networks

Collective organisation of urban farmers is important for participatory learning,
co-innovation, sharing or exchange resources and technical support. It also acts as
a platform for collectively addressing challenges and finding options for marketing
the produce.
Shorter urban food supply chains
Integrating urban agriculture with the urban fabric is incomplete without linking
it with the urban short food supply system. Small quantities of urban agriculture
produce may not be a good fit for the existing marketing channels of urban food
supply chains. Therefore, urban agriculture products, might need a separate
marketing channel to link them to the food supply chain. It would be helpful if there
is a platform for organising weekly markets to sell organic home-grown surplus
vegetables that can connect producers directly with customers. This would help
earn additional income from home gardens and other urban agriculture initiatives.
Conclusion
Considering the increase in urban population in India, it is necessary to carefully
plan for wide popularisation of urban agriculture initiatives in the country to ensure
inclusive and sustainable urbanisation. Policy actors have a huge role for making
adequate institutional and infrastructural changes to make urban agriculture an
embedded activity within the urban system.
References
• Anon. 2019. ‘70 People Apply for Roof-Top Farming Project in Gaya’. Hindustan
Times. Retrieved 25 September 2022 (https://www.hindustantimes.com/patna/
gaya-set-for-roof-top-farming-70-apply/story-PUDpS1G96j00gbCX4P0sOL.
html).
• Anon. 2022. ‘(Registration) Bihar Chhat Par Horticulture Scheme 2022:
Online Application, Application Form - PM Modi Yojana 2022’. Retrieved
25 September 2022 (https://pmmodiyojana.enfluencer.in/registration-bihar-
chhat-par-horticulture-scheme-2022-online-application-application-form/).
• Anon. n.d. ‘Urban Farming’. Retrieved 25 September 2022 (https://horticulture.
tg.nic.in/Ufarming/UFarming.html).
• Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, Government of India. 2011.
‘Guidelines for The Vegetable Initiative for Urban Clusters’.
• Directorate of AD & FW, Kerala. 2022. ‘Vegetable Development Programme
2022-23. Working Instructions.’
• Government of Tamil Nadu. n.d. ‘Urban Horticulture Development Scheme
‘Do-It-Yourself Program Operational Manual’.
• SFAC. n.d.-a. . ‘. Impact Study of Vegetable Initiative for Urban Clusters Volume
2. Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Nagaland, Punjab, Uttarakhand’.
• SFAC. n.d.-b. ‘SFAC. Impact Study of Vegetable Initiative for Urban Clusters
Volume 1. Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Manipur, Tamil Nadu.’

• Singh. 2019. ‘Government to Promote Terrace Gardening in Bihar: Prem
Kumar’. The Times of India, June 7.
A community rooftop garden in Mumbai that had to be shut down due to change in
management and infrastructure concerns.

References and Further Reading
Here are a few resources1 that we found interesting, inspiring and creative. Though they
are all related, we have broadly attempted to thematise them under educational, practical
and civic action categories.
Practical guides
• A handy little graphic guide for the amateur and professional gardener in rural and
urban areas by Vanastree
• (URL: https://secureservercdn.net/160.153.138.178/t6v.ab1.myftpupload.com/
wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Grow-a-Garden.pdf)
• Heirloom Rice Recipes from the Malnad

• (URL: https://secureservercdn.net/160.153.138.178/t6v.ab1.myftpupload.com/
wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Rice.pdf), More resources can be accessed here: http://
vanastree.org/more/publications/
• Guide to set up a city farm by Urban Leaves, an initiative of Vidya Varidhi Trust,
Mumbai (URL: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B_dgmMwooSjeMWY1ZmNjN-
TEtNTc5ZC00NDk0LWEzZjEtZmRhNGVlMTYxNzQy/edit?pli=1&hl=en&re-
sourcekey=0-TFPmkLjSoA09gf7_0Cta3Q#)
• Creating a home garden* (URL: https://csa-india.org/product/home-garden-grow-

your-own-food/)
• Leafy Greens in the Food Culture of Puducherry and its Bioregion (URL: https://
www.ifpindia.org/bookstore/keerai/)
• Seasonal Sowing Calendar (URL: https://yarrowayfarm.com/wp-content/up-

loads/2018/11/YarrowayFarm_SowingCalendar.pdf?v=a98eef2a3105)
• Planting guide for terrace farms* (URL: https://organicterrace.in/blog/book-organic-

urban-farming-the-indian-way-out-now/)
• Notes and resources on foraging wild edibles (URL: https://linktr.ee/forgottengreens)
• A practical guide to growing food * (URL: https://www.aurovilleconsulting.com/my-

pumpkin-roof-urban-farming-at-home/)
• General guidance on growing edibles in small spaces (URL: https://urbanthottam.

com/knowledge-base/#general-guidance)
Educational references
• A guide on tending to a schoolyard garden (URL: http://arvindguptatoys.com/arvin-

dgupta/schoolyard-nyla.pdf)

• A land-based environmental curriculum (URL: http://arvindguptatoys.com/arvind-
gupta/ourland-ourlife.pdf)
• A colouring book on edible weeds * (URL: https://auroville.org/page/edi-

ble-weeds-and-naturally-growing-plants-in-auroville)
• A school project based on Ragi cultivation and consumption (URL: https://thera-

giproject.weebly.com/about-us.html)
• A module on food and diversity (URL: https://ithinkbiology.in/book/text/c1-rice.

html)
• Reflections on a school terrace farming project (URL: http://publications.azimprem-

jifoundation.org/2106/)
Civic action and social entrepreneurship
• A platform for enabling natural farming in urban vacant land through crowd-
sourced data (URL: https://urbannaturalfarms.com/)
• Magazine issue on urban agriculture (URL: https://leisaindia.org/urban-agricul-
ture-march-2022-issue-24-1/)
• Practical resource for saving dry leaves through community initiative (URL: https://
brownleaf.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Not-a-single-Dry-Leaf-should-be-
Burnt-in-India-A-Step-by-Step-Guide.pdf)
• Narratives on environmental benefits of urban farming in Indian cities (URL: https://
upagri.netlify.app/exhibition-rooms/environmental-sustainability/rooftop-farming-
to-beat-the-heat/)
• Newsletters on various dimensions of urban agriculture (URL: https://prcindia.in/
category/publications/beejpatra/)
Books (by no means a comprehensive list! Just some recommendations)
• The Green Sprout journey by Satoko Chatterjee

• Mother Earth, Sister Seed: Travels through India’s farmlands by Lathika George
• Genetically Modified Democracy: Transgenic Crops in Contemporary India by Ani-
ket Aga
• Bringing It to the Table: On Farming and Food by Wendell Berry
• Food and Climate Change Without the Hot Air: Change Your Diet: The Easiest Way
to Help Save the Planet by S L Bridle (The e-book is free)
• One-Straw Revolution by Masanobu Fukuoka
• The Essential Agrarian Reader: The Future of Culture, Community, and the Land by
Norman Wirzba
• The Seed Detective by Adam Alexander
• A Small Farm Future by Chris Smaje
• Be My Guest: Reflections on Food, Community and the Meaning of Generosity by
Priya Basil
(Those marked with * are resources that can be bought online)

List of Contributors
Amrita is a faculty at the Indian Institute for Science Education
and Research, Pune. She obtained a Ph.D. at Cornell University
in Chemical biology followed by a postdoctoral stint at the
Department of Plant and Microbial Biology at the University
of California, Berkley. With an abiding interest in food and
nutrition, she co-founded “The Millet Project” (TMP) was
initiated at the height of California’s drought in 2015. The goal
of the project is to investigate how different millet varieties
grow in various microclimates in California and the effect of
Amrita Hazra drought and semi-drought conditions on their yield.
Anita is an interdisciplinary academic trained in biological

and social science research. Her broad area of research is inter-
sections between sceince, society, policy and the environment.
She completed her PhD from the Centre for Studies in Science
Policy, JNU. In her PhD research, she explored the technology
and policy landscape for urban home gardening in Kerala and
its sustainability implications.
Anita Pinheiro
Anjali Choudhary is a compost enthusiast and sustainability

practitioner. She is a development
professional and holds an MBA from the Institute of Rural
Management Anand (IRMA).
Currently, she is associated with Indian Institute of Manage-
ment, Ahmedabad and FarmBridge Social Support Foun-
dation. She promotes sustainable initiatives through her
Instagram handle @sunheri_mitti and the website https://sun-
herimitti.com
Anjali Choudhary
Anshuman Das is a food activist, with 20 years of experience

as a trainer and researcher. He is currently associated with
Welthungerhilfe, and is responsible for managing pro-
grammes in South Asia related to agriculture, environment,
and economic development. Anshuman has travelled to many
countries to conduct training as a guest lecturer and a con-
sultant. He played an instrumental role in designing, moni-
toring, capacity building and methodology development in
BIOFARM programme with DRCSC.
Anshuman Das

Ashwin is the founder director of Gorus farm association.
The organization is involved in organic certification, farmer
training, organic food processing and community supported
agriculture. He has decades of experience as an educator and
researcher in sustainable farming. He holds a Post Graduate
degree in Sustainable Management of Natural Resources and
Nature Conservation from Ecological Society Pune, and a
Masters Degree in Horticultural Sciences from University of
Florida, Gainesville.
Ashwin Paranjpe
Berenice is an alumnus of the Institute of Rural Management

and a microfinance professional for over 17 years. She is based
in Jakarta, Indonesia where she heads Back-office processes
and Risk as the Chief Business Support Officer of a leading
microfinance company. She is also a classical pianist and
a nascent permaculture practitioner, apart from being an
enthusiastic scuba diver and nature lover.
Berenice De Gama Rose
Deborah completed her PhD from the Homi Bhabha Centre

for Science Education, Mumbai. Her research areas span the
field of environmental education and sustainable transitions,
with a focus on community-practice based approaches such
as urban farming. Her work explores community engagement,
socio-technical systems, and sustainable food systems. She is a
member of the South Asian Learning Sciences Collective, and
a 2021-22 fellow of the Education for Sustainable Development
(ESD) Leadership programme hosted by Engagement Global,
Germany.
Deborah Dutta
Diipti’s experience in soil regeneration, kitchen and garden

composting, farm design and management, training and
development spans over 12 years. After working, assisting
and volunteering at several farms and community gardens
across the country, Diipti setup Edible Gardens in 2017, as
a consultancy that specialises in regeneration of degraded
soil, afforestation and setting up of food forests across India.
https://ediblegardens.in/
Diipti Jhangiani

Julius is the co-founder of the Greensouls volunteer group in
Mumbai, and has decades of experience is growing plants based
on the principles of agroecology. The Green Souls team was
based out of Kharghar, New Mumbai, where the organization
ran a farm behind St. Judes Children’s Hospital and supplied
them fresh produce. He has mentored many youth, and guided
well-known organisations to set up urban farming and waste-
treatment initiatives.
Julius Rego
A poet at heart, in 2014 Priti walked out of her profession

in advertising to pursue a sustainable lifestyle and found
mentorship with an urban farming network ‘Greensouls
Volunteer Group’. Since then, she professes to have grown
in the company of people, plants, birds and insects. In 2017,
she pursued Analog Forestry from IAFN (Srilanka, Belipola).
She is currently associated with Earth4Ever Conservation
Foundation, and they set up regenerative food forests with
farmers of Palghar and Aarey forest.
Priti Bhosale
Shruti has a penchant for weaving stories at the intersection of

biodiversity, caste and food systems. Her world-view is shaped
most significantly by her experiences of her journey with a
multitude of communities – indigenous, dalit and pastoral
communities across Southern India, which has strengthened
her narratives and collaborative work. A self-taught herbalist,
Shruti founded Forgotten Greens – an initiative that works
on reviving the fast disappearing traditions of consuming
uncultivated greens. Shruti is invested in thinking about sites of
knowledge through questions of local food systems, traditional
Shruti Tharayil knowledge, decolonisation and biodiversity.
Trupti’s journey with gardening started as a hobby 12 years

back with weekly volunteering for growing food on the rooftops
of a few apartments in Mumbai. She was then introduced
to a group called ‘Green Souls’ and volunteered for most of
their projects in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai. Since then, she
gradually moved from volunteering to vocation, and felt her
passion grow with every project. She has worked with diverse
communities ranging from growing food for cancer patients,
orphans, teaching gardening as green therapy in remand
homes, schools and colleges.
Trupti Kedari

Acknowledgements
T his handbook is the outcome of the kindness, generosity and wisdom of many
people, plants, creatures and soil. The seed for this idea was planted through
our prior experiences of volunteering and participating in community farms, farmer
markets, and interaction with farmers, scientists, activists and civil society groups.
The funding and mentorship provided under Transforming Education for Sustainable
Futures India (TESF), a research network supported by the UK Global Challenges
Research Fund (GCRF) through the Indian hub at the Indian Institute of Human
Settlements (IIHS) allowed us to pursue the idea more formally. We are grateful to
Indian Institute for Science Education and Research (IISER), Pune and the Institute
for Rural Management Anand (IRMA) for supporting the project in formal and
informal ways. The support of Dr C Shambu Prasad, Dr.Harinath Chakrapani, Dr.
Shalini Sharma, and Vivek Kannadi is especially noted. We are thankful to Geetanjali
Gurlhosur and Sagnik Ghosh for their able help in conducting interviews. The
process of developing narratives would not have been possible without the excelled
transcripts prepared by Atreyee Dutta. Online webinars and interactions were made
possible by IISER’s environmental group, PRUTHA. We are thankful to Vikram Iyer
for facilitating the same. The physical workshop developed as a parallel outcome while
writing this book was wonderfully managed by the student volunteers, VrutaGupe,
Nandu T.S., and Shruti Chakravarty. We are also grateful to IISER’s Science Media
Centre for recording the event for wider sharing. We are grateful to all the people
who generously shared with us their experiences and knowledge about growing
plants and sustaining communities, especially VidulaMhsekar, Aditi Deodhar, Samir
Bordoloi, Alina Majumdar, Premila Martis, members of the Sarvodaya Community
farm, Urban Leaves, Karan Patel, Dhanashree and Anirban Hazra amongst others.
The ideas for illustrations were discussed with Biswajit Hajra, who helped us with
initial sketches. The book cover has been brilliantly designed by Ashima Desai, and
the final illustrations and layout saw light through Mahantesh Doddamani’s sincere
efforts. A Hindi version of this book has been possible due to Shubha Khadke’s expert
transplation. While we haven’t been able to include all the individual narratives, the
ideas shared have shaped the book significantly. We are eternally grateful to our
friends and families, especially SulekhaHazra, Rabin Patra, Toomai and Siddharth
Tiwari for supporting our efforts and graciously putting with our absence when the
project took a priority. We are sustained by relationships and care, this book is a
loving reminder of the same.


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Ist Edition

Sustainable Food Systems: An introduction / 6

Part 1 Journeys in growing food

1. Homegrown harvests: Bringing food security to an educational campus /15

Part 2 Growing a green thumb

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Part 3 References and further reading / 124

Part 4 List of contributors / 126

Part 5 Acknowledgements / 129

- Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass

Deborah Dutta and Amrita Hazra

Nurturing a love for nature

M anasaKambanna, 30, a journalist and public policy professional turned

Following her mother’s nostalgia

J Vimalanathan, known as Vimal by his friends and family, is a retired development

Here’s what a few people said, when we asked them “What

M y motivation is basically to give a taste of exotic veggies (that I grew up

Gardening allows me to appreciate at a faster rate this natural law of everlasting

What motivates you to grow a food garden?

- Rebecca Solnit, Orwell’s roses

Image 5: Trustbin is a brand in India which sells

Image 7: List of greens and browns to be added in the compost bin

Image 10: Freshly harvested compost. The

T his chapter features a story on what is perhaps Nature’s most cutting-edge

Origin of The Seed Saving Story

Image 2: Varieties of Okra

Image 2: Saving Okra varieties

Image 3 Stages of saving tomato seeds

Image 4: Varieties of seeds collected during a walk

Berenice da Gama Rose

Toolkits and Preparation

Image 3: Yoghurt containers

Image 5: Little “water diamonds” appear on dainty

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Tips and Tricks

In salads, sandwiches, juices or just

Raised beds mulched with hay

[1] See Allelopathy. (2022, July 24). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

Marigold is effective in distracting

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I founded an initiative called Forgotten Greens based on my journeys with multitude

108 / Cultivating Hope

“The Origin of Cultivation and Proto-Weeds, Long Before Neolithic Farming”

Cultivating Hope / 109

Indegenous community that come ----write more

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