Veena Annadana
Well-Known Member
Nirmala Govindarajan, TNN, Jun 4, 2011, 11.02pm IST
Eat what you harvest, propounds Dr BN Viswanath, pioneer of terrace gardening in Bangalore. And farming is fast catching on in the city on terraces, in balconies and home gardens, in a growing endeavour by The Garden City Farmers.
Spearheaded by Dr Viswanath, the Garden City Farmers are a growing tribe of people who believe in greening the city by growing organic vegetables and fruits, wherever space permits. The idea is to grow more veggies instead of ornamental plants. Urban farming changes the entire temperature of the city. It combats the bad effects created by the environment. The green cover will help negate the adverse effects of so many concrete structures in Bangalore.
Most importantly, organic vegetables are healthy. Jyothi Nagaraj, Secretary, Garden City Farmers, discovered the importance of consuming organic foods when her father was diagnosed with cancer a few years ago -- she was probing into reasons for his illness despite his healthy lifestyle. "When I discussed it with Dr Viswanath, he explained that the type of food we eat has an impact on our health, and could cause cancer. Then on I started growing my own vegetables, first in small pots," says Jyothi.
Over the years, Jyothi and the other garden city farmers meet like-minded people, many times in Lalbagh where seeds and soil types are available. "Then we went digital.We now have Facebook and Google groups to facilitate discussions and spread awareness on organic farming. The number of cancer patients has increased because of the use of chemicals and pesticides to cultivate veggies. The idea is to spread awareness and highlight the importance of growing organic vegetables," says Jyothi, adding, "We also organised a national level seminar last year here in Bangalore. People turned up in large numbers and we interacted with urban farmers who did unique things like grow trees in gunny sacks on their terraces in Kerala! This year, we are organising a similar seminar in Hubli in July, " says Jyothi, who worked with the IT sector for several years.
Source: Urban farming finds followers in Garden city - Times Of India
Eat what you harvest, propounds Dr BN Viswanath, pioneer of terrace gardening in Bangalore. And farming is fast catching on in the city on terraces, in balconies and home gardens, in a growing endeavour by The Garden City Farmers.
Spearheaded by Dr Viswanath, the Garden City Farmers are a growing tribe of people who believe in greening the city by growing organic vegetables and fruits, wherever space permits. The idea is to grow more veggies instead of ornamental plants. Urban farming changes the entire temperature of the city. It combats the bad effects created by the environment. The green cover will help negate the adverse effects of so many concrete structures in Bangalore.
Most importantly, organic vegetables are healthy. Jyothi Nagaraj, Secretary, Garden City Farmers, discovered the importance of consuming organic foods when her father was diagnosed with cancer a few years ago -- she was probing into reasons for his illness despite his healthy lifestyle. "When I discussed it with Dr Viswanath, he explained that the type of food we eat has an impact on our health, and could cause cancer. Then on I started growing my own vegetables, first in small pots," says Jyothi.
Over the years, Jyothi and the other garden city farmers meet like-minded people, many times in Lalbagh where seeds and soil types are available. "Then we went digital.We now have Facebook and Google groups to facilitate discussions and spread awareness on organic farming. The number of cancer patients has increased because of the use of chemicals and pesticides to cultivate veggies. The idea is to spread awareness and highlight the importance of growing organic vegetables," says Jyothi, adding, "We also organised a national level seminar last year here in Bangalore. People turned up in large numbers and we interacted with urban farmers who did unique things like grow trees in gunny sacks on their terraces in Kerala! This year, we are organising a similar seminar in Hubli in July, " says Jyothi, who worked with the IT sector for several years.
Source: Urban farming finds followers in Garden city - Times Of India