The Hindu Business Line : Cultivating ‘profits’ from organic farm

Bangalore, Oct. 26 At a time when there is a perception that farming is not remunerative, this enterprising woman from Gowripura village of Hassan district in Karnataka has not only showed that farming can be as profitable as any other commercial venture, but also inspired several educated women to take up farming.

Ms Hema Ananth, the horticultural farmer who bagged the Dr M.H. Mari Gowda State-level Best Horticultural Farmer Award of the University of Agricultural Sciences-Bangalore, along with another farmer, Mr G. Rudragouda of Kushtagi taluk, manages her 25-acre farm like a corporate professional.

“I earn about Rs. 2,500 a day from my 25-acre farm. This is in addition to the income from various seasonal crops. In all, my annual income touches about Rs 15 lakh,” she told The Hindu after receiving the award in the presence of prominent agricultural scientists of the State.

Innovative thinking

It is her innovative thinking that has helped her to “cultivate” profits though she has not adopted any hi-tech practices. “I often invite veteran farmers from nearby villages to my farm and learn from their best practices,” she says.

She not only does organic farming, but also believes in least interference with nature. She never tills her land. She only removes the weeds and does mulching (putting an organic cover on the soil surface) on her gardens for conserving soil moisture and moderation of soil temperature.

Earthworms supply manures

“I will not use fertilisers inmy fields. But, I rear earthworms on my fields and supply slurry from the gobar gas digester,” she notes. She grows various crops, including roses, coconuts, banana, mango, sapota, coffee, vanilla, jackfruit, turmeric and various vegetables. She also has about 20 cows. She is innovative in marketing and insteadof selling her produce to wholesale markets, she does direct marketing and has identified a large number of household consumers.

Direct marketing

“All my produce would be sold within 10-15 minutes of harvest. It is an advantage for consumers to buy directly from us as they get fresh commodities at lower prices ,” she remarks. She wonders why other farmers cannot take up direct marketing. She has about 2,000 rose plants which fetch a minimum of Rs 2,000 a day. She collects the withered petals, processes them and makes various products, including rose powders and gulkand out of them.

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Cultivating ‘profits’ from organic farm