“Every year, spring arrives. We plan such crops every year and try again. Every. Single. Year.”
Farmers work 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to produce. Agriculture has benefited from modern machinery and technology. Many farmers currently do not practice traditional farming methods. Instead, they do farming in modern ways.
One of the aforesaid farmers is Tukaram Gunjal, who lives in Nimaj in Maharashtra’s Sangamner taluka.
When he first started farming, he followed the traditional methods, which resulted in little advancement in farming, revenue, or lifestyle. Tukaram claims that his condition annoyed him, therefore he moved to a contemporary agricultural style. He was able to save water and manpower by using mulching paper to grow marigold flowers and other plants.
As a result, he has increased his Marigold flower production, and the farm is now known as Mauli farm. He earns 2 lakh 50 thousand rupees per year by selling Marigold flowers. He has 16 acres of land for farming, with 8 acres dedicated to marigold flower planting.
“I ploughed the farm and prepped the land with six practices of cow dung and floor e-waste as the field is ready for roughly 8,000 Marigold plants to grow from the first week of June onwards,” Tukaram explains.
He poked 1.5-foot-distance holes in the mulching paper after it was laid down on the soil. He then returned from the nursery with the plants, which he placed in the holes. He employs drip irrigation to conserve water while also reduces manpower. He saves 40% of the water he needs to produce plants because he utilizes mulching paper. This led to a reduction in manpower and a 30 percent boost in plant production.
He plants Ridge Gourd after 70 per cent of Marigold blooms have been gathered. He pokes holes in the mulching paper from a distance of 3 feet and places the Ridge Gourd plant within. The tomato is the following crop after the Marigold flower and Ridge Gourd are entirely harvested in August and September.
It requires more attention than the other plants because it must be kept in a 2-inch hole and placed in the centre. The mulching paper keeps the soil moist, which is beneficial for plant culture.
He built a farm pond and two wells in 2010, with a storage capacity of one crore litres. These ponds and wells assist him in irrigating his plants during the summer. The plantation of Ridge gourd luffa begins once the tomato harvest has reached 75%.
He estimates that manure will cost 20000 rupees, and insecticides will cost 17000 rupees. The earnings from the first session are 3 lakhs to 50 thousand rupees, while the cost of plant cultivation is 1.5 lakh rupees. By inviting farmers to visit his farm, he gives them free advice on how to use contemporary farming methods.
Many farmers visit him for help and to learn about the techniques he employs by staying with him for a few days.
Some farmers with 200 acres of land come to him for guidance, he claims, which humbles him. He also recommends that every farmer construct ponds and wells near their land so that they do not have any irrigation issues throughout the summer.
Agriculture is the wisest investment we can make because it will bring us the greatest actual money, good morals, and happiness in the end.
Written By: Chaitri Chinchode