I first heard of Scythe, the tool, when our friend Nandan in Palghat got it from Scythe Works in Canada to clear grass and bushes in his farm so he can walk. It is a manual tool and if one can get the swing right, the tool is very effective in harvesting and clearning at
Recently, a friend asked me what my mission was with respect to the farm. Had never thought about it in that way. Usually, the “mission statement’ comes up at the start of an endeavor. I had the advantage of being asked this seven years after living on the farm. I mentally looked back at what
Turmeric is a popular crop in our area grown from May to Feb. The rhizome, or underground stem, is harvested after 10 months. The variety we grow is called “Erode Turmeric”, Erode being the name of a district famous for turmeric cultivation and trade. As we set out with the long and thin bladed hoe,
A month back, after harvesting the sun hemp, we proceeded to seed all the raised beds in the 25 cents with a variety of seeds weighing about 10 kgs (22 pounds). Many of the seeds were tiny so we decided against making clay pellets for faster completion of work. Also, we are not very good
Attempting a series on companion planting that has worked well on the farm both accidental and otherwise. I think a successful combination of plants should meet at least three of these criteria.. Reduce pest attacks Increase or maintain combined productivity Reduce human labour especially weed control Increase carbon content of soil Reduce water requirements This
On June 14th this year, with the infectious enthusiasm of 3 kids and 3 ladies, we cleared out a small patch just in front of the house and planted some cow pea and corn. The total area was about 100 sq ft of which the cow pea to corn ratio was 60:40 In 30 days,
With the mercury rising like it’s second summer, I look back with a teeny bit of nostalgia at the flowers, veggies and fruits that delighted us in the last 3 months. Thanks you friends and family for everything from sending us seeds to actually putting them in the soil. Slideshow…
Through our friends from Goa, we came to know of a farmer named Nandeesh, in Karnataka. Inspired by Fukuoka, he has been farming naturally since 2000. His 20 acre farm includes paddy and trees. Nandeesh specializes in green manure and has used over 100 varieties of these for different purposes. He also has this nice
Earlier Updates on the same subject: Update 1, Update2 In Feb 2013, our friends from Tiruppur, Anand, Selvi and their farm-boy son Akshay came to help us with making 9 cents (approx 4000 sq ft ) of land cloes to home ready for growing. 7 years ago, 4 ft of top soil from this area
