| More
Information |
|
|
| Name |
Devdootbhai Prabodhbhai Patel, |
|
|
| District |
Baroda |
|
|
| State |
Gujarat |
|
|
| Category |
Practice |
|
|
| Title |
Devdootbhai Prabodhbhai Patel, B.Sc Computer Science, 35 years |
|
|
| Details |
Devdoot, a student of Computer Science, became a farmer some six years back. He says, “I had a passion for agriculture even when I was young. I don’t exactly recall how my love for agriculture really started.” He became a full fledged farmer in 2007. It was tough in the beginning. Nobody taught him how to farm. He ran from pillar to post to find people who could help him in organic farming. Now he possesses a vast knowledge in this area from his experience.
He has never used synthetic fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides on his about one ha farm out of total 16 ha. Like many others, Devdoot too once practiced chemical farming. It was only later, when he realized the after effects of chemical farming that he partially changed to organic farming. He used only farm yard manure. Everyone in the village made fun of him and warned him that the output will be low and he will be financially ruined. In spite of all this, he went ahead. When the season got over, he realized that the output has reduced drastically. But, he neither used a single grain of fertilizer nor a single drop of chemical. He calculated the cost benefit and then realized that the actual loss was very less, in fact, ignorable. Last year, his production per ha was the maximum in the entire village.
His farm yields a good wheat crop, which he sells from his own shop, in the village. The surplus is sold to an organic shop in Baroda and to other organic farmers who have their own outlets. There is no certification. He markets it in his own name and earns good income out of it.
He is also making and using vermicompost. He proudly claims that his' is the best organic wheat in the whole world. The villagers also agree that his wheat is priced three times more than their chemical input based wheat. He combines three liters honey, twenty five kg cow dung, three kg jaggery in 200 liters water. After the wheat crop is one and a half months old this is sprayed every twenty days for three months.
In the next two years, he is planning to do organic farming in the entire 16 ha of his land. He also wants to experiment by intercropping wheat and Cajanus cajun (L.) He hopes that if he is able to inspire or create even one more organic entrepreneur, he will feel happy. |
|
|
| Volume No. |
Honey bee 21(2), 9, 2010 |
|
|
| Call Number |
20204 |
