A Real FarmVille

Pune: About 110 families from Aundh, Baner, Pashan and Wakad do it all from planting seeds to nurturing the crop and harvesting their produce. They participate at a community farming centre located close to Sus Gaon at Royal Agro Farms, near Vibgyor School which has provided them farm-fresh organic produce and taken them close to the basics of farming.

The nine-acre property has been divided into nearly 170 plots admeasuring 1,000 sqft or 1,500 sqft. The plots, according to the owner Ajit Deshmukh, are rented out at a cost of Rs 20,000 and Rs 28,000 respectively, on an annual basis to the families.

“We started organic farming here about two years ago. We would grow organic crops and deliver to households interested in buying the produce. Soon, we realized that people here not only want to eat organic produce but also grow it. That is when we embarked on the idea of a community farm on our plot,” Deshmukh explained.

His partner, Shekhar Shahane, said the weekend mornings are bustling with families who come out to work on the farm. “There are children running around getting their hands dirty while planting the seeds. I have seen them wait eagerly for the seed to turn into a sapling and then finally growing to yield the vegetables,” Sonawane said.

According to Deshmukh, several members visit their farms several times a week. “When a member registers with us, they are allotted a plot and given a list of seeds available. They can select vegetables and start sowing the seeds on the plots which are ready with the mulching sheets. During the week, our farm hands take care of the crops, which include watering, spraying of a mix of cow’s urine and tulsi and de-weeding. They may come down for the harvest or we harvest the crop on their plot and deliver it to their residence once a week,” he stated.

After paddy plantation during a weekend outing with his family, Abhijit Chitnis decided to become a full member at the farms. “My children enjoyed being close to nature and planting crops. We decided to let them be close to nature and learn how the food they eat actually grows,” Chitnis said.

Another member and a resident of Sus Road, Ashwini Patil, said despite the family’s farming background, they couldn’t farm in an apartment infrastructure. “This opportunity allows us to consume organic produce while our kids gather knowledge about the nuances of farming. We have grown tomatoes, green chilli, bottle gourd, beans and much more. We don’t have to go to the market for anything except potatoes and ginger anymore,” she said.

Deepak Bhat, who has seen the concept of community farming in Europe, immediately registered at Royal Agro Farms as he wanted to do something achievable in organic farming. “We had only come to pay a visit but ended up booking on the spot. We also started sowing on the first day. The children feel a sense of ownership for the crops. They no longer think that vegetables come from the market,” he stated.

The advantage of own-grown vegetables over market bought ones won over Bipin Kaushal. “We have had three lots of vegetables from our own patch of the farm so far and there is a distinct advantage as compared to what we get in the market. We are neither affected by rising or falling prices nor the dropping quality and increasing amounts of pesticides.”

Involving his children in farming has produced direct results for Mahendra Bidwai. “My children no longer waste foods as they now understand the time and effort that goes into getting a particular vegetable on their plate. I am a farmer myself and it is not possible to take the children to the village regularly to learn about farming. This came across as a good opportunity and we teach them about farming whenever we visit. Their respect for food has increased manifold,” he explained.

Prashant Agrawal said his son has learnt the theory of farming and how vegetables grow in school, the visit to their patch at Royal Agro Farms gave him the practical exposure. “My son is six-years-old and already speaks in depth about farming and how food is produced. Many of us grown-ups don’t know how farm produce comes to us. Moreover, an association with Nature and farming is essential,” he said.

At the farms, many more families are waiting to join up. Deshmukh said they are planning an expansion. “We are on-boarding about 30 more families this week that will start planting. We have 170 plots ready and are working on another 98. We currently have nine acres but plan to make it 20 acres so that more and more people can connect with nature and consume chemical-free vegetables,” he explained.