Vegetable farming period of Hartola is now over as Mr Frost takes over the landscape and we await the first flakes of snow. I must say this year was certainly bountiful. The effort put in during the early months of the year bore fruit and we had the opportunity to experience the thrill of seeing on our plates and of course tasting the veggies from our own farm, almost all year long.
For long we have been too preoccupied with the chores of the house to really concentrate on the areas around the house which were infested with bichhu buti (stinging nettle).
Thankfully, to our rescue came Amit, our caretaker’s young son who joined our team in March. He has a good knowledge of farming and most importantly, the eagerness and enthusiasm.
So, both of us started first on weeding out the bichu buti plants, carefully keeping a couple of terraces untouched for the occasional urge to have the delicious bichhu buti saag with madua rotis.
After trying my hand at growing french beans, we expanded our farming to matar (peas), muli (radish), sarson (mustard), palak (spinach), lai saag (lettuce), band gobi (cabbage), phul gobi (cauliflower) and dhania (coriander).
Even in my absence when I had to come down to Noida for a while, I must say Amit took good care of the farm.
In a nutshell, it was very gratifying to see the veggies’ journey from your own farm to your plate. The peas in particular, were so sweet that the ones we get in the plains pale in comparison.
And luckily, there was enough we were able to distribute some amongst our friends too.
With the new year just round the corner, in 2024 we plan to keep our farm greener, organic and well utilised keeping in line with the eco-system of Hartola.
