Veggie Delight at Lal Bagh and More in the City

Lal Bagh in Bangalore came alive with an array of colours, flowers, shops and home-grown veggies in the annual Horticultural show from August 7^th-15^th. The Garden CityFarmers and Organic Terrace Gardeners had their very own stall displaying vegetables and fruits of top urban farmers in the city. There were huge brinjals ripening to gorgeous yellow, sweet chillies making your mouth water (making you imagine hot bhajjis’s), beautiful looking squash, strawberries, Israeli oranges, onions, beetroots, and different tomato species. Fresh herbs like oregano, mint and lemongrass and healthy greens of lettuce and bhindi could be seen. 

This is the first time GCF has participated in the annual horticulture show in Bangalore and they wish to reach out to Bangloreans showing them that they grow their kitchen vegetables at home in an organic manner. Tiny labels were seen on all the veggies and fruit plants identifying each one and OTGians were found chatting about organic food and helping the public out with questions.  GCF also encourage people to join them on their facebook group start their own gardens through inspiring work and enjoy the soul-satisfying and healthy experience of growing vegetables and greens at home 

Bangalore is seeing a whole environmental oriented lot who encourage and educate people about the benefits of fresh veggies, hold workshops and help beginners starting out on their green patch. GCF is an NGO which educates people about kitchen gardening and urges urban folk to grow organic gardens in their home spaces which are chemically-free and also reduce the food miles of what they eat.  

Their upcoming event ‘Oota from your Thota’ (food from your garden) is going to be held on the 25^th of August where most of the city's farmers and veggie lovers are going to be along with loads of stalls selling produce, gardening equipment, compost and encouraging people to somewhere. “We hope that people see that growing is an easy and an engaging hobby and resources are ready if they wish to start” said Laxminarayan a top terrace gardener from GCF.  

Quick lessons on growing –

You can use any container that has 6-8 inches of depth for common veggies    
 like beans, beets, lettuce, tomato, onion, chillies. Herbs will do best in window 
 boxes or plant them in between your veggies! 
 For the soil – An equal mix of vermicompost, compost, red soil and sand is ideal 
 Water your plants everyday and spend time checking them, they will return back the time and effort in the form of delicious produce!
Plant your seeds in ample sunlight – Make sure your veggies get at least 8 hours daily
Most used veggies in the city – Chillies, tomatoes, brinjals, spinach and all kinds of sopu (greens)

Veggies that tastes delicious in food:

Drumsticks in sambhar   
All sopu (greens) go well in dals
Tomatoes are best in chutneys  

Mint and lemongrass can be added to tea

For those who wish to start off you can visit The Nurserymen Cooperative Society, Lalbagh, KH Road Telephone (+91 80 26576733) and get started on your garden and join the OTG group on facebook

https://www.facebook.com/groups/OrganicTerraceGardening/  
http://gardencityfarmers.org/

Gardening is Great

The last 6-7 months were a bit crazy with falling sick and recovering, post-recovery rushing back to college in Ahmedabad and finally back to Bangalore. Now in good health and spirits with namma Bangalore ever ready with its heavy dose of awesome weather and good company.

My tray of Basil, Methi and Marigold

The research topic that I chose as part of my study course was 'Kitchen Gardening and its Sustainable Benefits'. And I must say growing your own veggies and plants is super simple. Just sparing a bit of time everyday, some watering and care and voila, you are on the green side. You can have a balcony, terrace, a small ledge or just a couple of pots and yes that is enough to start off.

I found there are a number of gardeners and urban farmers in Bangalore who love their greens and go to lengths to make sure their eating habits are organic and healthy. Inspiring individuals who take time out of their daily routine, relish food straight from their garden and love the healthy way of life. 

One of the first people I met was Dr. Vishwanath Kadur; Bangalore's foremost organic expert who grows almost all vegetables and plants on his terrace. "There is not one fruit or vegetable that you cannot grow, you can grow everything on your terrace! The health benefits are many, not only is gardening an excellent hobby but an active way of understanding how nature works and responsible for growing our food" he says. A pioneer in his field and founder of Organic Terrace Gardeners in Bangalore. I look forward attending his workshop on organic gardening this month which he conducts on a regular basis.

Vani Murthy's compost

Vani Murthy was next in question, and what a person! She is often called the 'compost queen' and said, "I grow what I eat and eat what I grow. Gardening makes me enjoy little things, we formed a team of close friends in the society and do everything together! This is what gardening has done, it also gives me balance of mind". Going through her different compost methods from 'bokashi' to vermi and traditional compost, I can say confidently her plants are happy and healthy!

Nagamani from Malleshwaram gave me some of her bounty; spinach saplings and fresh thyme and I nearly pinched myself with glee!
   Harvesting almost a kilo and a half of her veggies daily from tomatoes
   to brinjals, fresh herbs and all types of greens. "I love experimenting
   with my dals now, their even tastier now" she said happily. What was
   impressive was a save of Rs. 40-45 on a daily basis and ensured tasty
   food for her family. Her terrace also acts as a natural coolant to the
   house. What can I say? Wow.

Pumpkin at Green Thumbs

One of the places which blew me away was Green Thumbs Mini Farms an organic farm off Sarjapur road owned by Anand Maddur. I felt like a kid let loose in a candy shop! With all kinds of veggies like pumpkin, lady finger, chillies, brinjal, spinach to fruits like banana and chickoo, I went a bit berserk. A farm with a unique experience which allows people to grow their vegetables the organic way. "This is the best thing to do on weekends after a hectic work week. it allows me to unwind and relax" said the organic techie. What a weekend getaway!

Me going berserk

Speaking to another garden enthusiast Aparna George who said, "It is important my kids get the right nutrition, which made me question our eating habits". With composting and a garden full of yummy varieties of lemon she sports the 'I care about my city' sticker from Daily Dump (educational portal on composting) 

Some people like Anusuya Sharma who was awarded the Srishti Sanman for organic terrace gardening say, "I don't garden for the purpose of harvesting any fruit, I do it because I enjoy greenery and have grown up amidst plants so it only comes natural for me to have a garden". It was 5 degrees cooler and I almost got lost in her terrace which resembled a mini forest. What an feeling, that too in the heart of a city!
 
Jayram from The Green Path was one of my latest visits and is a busy person with a green business to run, but answered all my questions patiently. A delicious meal of beetroot and ragi roti along with dal and sambhar makes me go back to his green establishment which also grows sugarcane and banana on the terrace. Strange for a non-vegetarian like me to indulge in veggie food, but that is what organic food does to you. I returned home with bagfuls of red, brown rice bought from his store Era Organics.

Vishwanth's water plants

Vishwanth who is nicknamed 'rainman' harvests not only rainwater but has a near zero carbon footprint with electricity running on solar,  compost toilets in his house and uses plants to filter all greywater. "It is so simple, if we are productive we can create the food cycle in our own houses without any waste leaving our house" He also grew rice on his terrace at one point for 3-4 years and harvested 180 kilograms. A person who simply uses sustainability in the right way - saving everything.

I keep looking for interesting people to meet, understanding traditional practices which we need to bring into cities and tracking food miles, from farm to fork. Urban gardening which is so common in some parts of the world only makes sense in present food inflation and water scarcity times.It is an area which can change our attitude for the better and treat the environment with respect.

Looking back at 2012

The 2012 Delhi gang-rape was by-far the most widespread issue which closed down 2012 and shook the streets of the city including rest of India for many weeks. Looking back at what happened it still stuns me to the core of what happened to a student and what's at stake working women like us and the necessary action that needs to be taken against this serious, serious issue.

Being in a country which has gone so far in areas of education, research, science and global thinking what is troubling is that the streets of India are still unsafe for women till this day. Where our nightclubs and restaurants not to mention our netas are constantly supervised by 2-3 policemen who regulate law and order, bringing crime down and ensuring protection of women in a patriarchal male-dominated society in the era of 2013, this one brutal incident an perhaps be the beginning of India Awakening to the issue of violence against women.

The blackout in north India which left over 700 million people without electricity for hours in the summer of 2012 is another picture of electricity and power management in India. Touted as the worst power cut the country has faced resulting in social and economic losses in just a few hours.

Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) one of the largest organisations in the areas of communication, knowledge and resource pool released its book 'Excreta Matters' on a national level talking about the impact of human waste and solutions to India's sewage problem which is getting out of control and polluting our food and water resources, Sunita Narain again shows the country and the world that India is capable of in managing her resources right and well deserved credit to this brave and unique information  

The United Nations (UN) has announced 2013 as the International Year of Water Cooperation, understanding how water is treated in the world, dealing with a growing global population, demand and privatization of this precious commodity is already running into high conflict in our country and her neighbour's. The need for a framework and regulatory body in each state has reached a stage where the country has no choice unless it wants to cope with water wars in the coming future.

There are many issues which I feel are important to address and talk about, educate, and turn into action. As a country we have come a long way in technology and development but when it comes to human development, welfare and environment we are despicably behind and taking up these pressing issues is the only way of moving forward as a truly developing nation.