Engg students prepare seedballs

Mangaluru: The Minds, an association of students of the department of information science and engineering and CSE (Data Science) of Sahyadri College of Engineering and Management here, organised a seedball making event, recently. The initiative held for the first time aims to grow saplings for planting at the college campus. More than 150 students and faculties of the department were involved in the preparation of more than thousand seed balls and more than 100 saplings. The organisers said making and distributing seedballs is a quicker and cost-effective method to reclaim lost green cover. “Making seed balls is fun and an easy way to grow trees. The composition of seed ball makes it self-sustainable and favourable for germination in most environments,” they said. Bhandary Foundation trustee Devadas Hegde guided students in preparing seedballs and inaugurated the event by making the first seedball along with Mustafa Basthikodi, professor and head of department of information science and engineering and CSE (Data Science). Hegde motivated students to involve in environment conservation work and added that in 2022 he and his daughter had planted 300 trees. Mustafa said the seed balls are a sustainable way to cultivate plants. A seedball is a seed that has been wrapped in soil, usually a mixture of clay and compost, and then dried. Seedballs have an 80% growth success rate in comparison to regular seedlings.