Farmers are gradually getting the experience of subsistence farming as it does not cost much to grow traditional crops. On the other hand, due to the determination to get more and more income while ending this decade of agriculture, nowadays especially young farmers are seen implementing new experiments in agriculture like Colorful Cauliflower.
It is a picture of the struggles of these young farmers who are facing various difficulties in the net, and it is definitely inspiring to other farmers in the current depressing environment. Mahendra Nikam, a young farmer from Dabhadi in Nashik district, has made a name for himself by cultivating cauliflower in two colors, yellow and purple.
This new variety of colorful cauliflower, which was planted on an experimental basis for the first time in Maharashtra, has attracted a great deal of attention from the farmers, and it is hoped that this will provide them with a better alternative to the cash crop.
Mahendra was born into a poor farming family with traditional crops. Due to poverty, Mahendra had to drop out of school. After his dream of getting a college education was shattered, it was his turn to prune the pomegranate orchards of other farmers in the village to provide financial support to his family.
While doing this, he came to know a lot about pomegranate crop management. His dream of planting a pomegranate orchard on his ancestral farm came true and he earned a good living. With this income, the Nikam family bought 10 acres of agricultural land in Belgaum Shivara near Dabhadi.
Over time, pomegranate orchards were destroyed due to oil and pest diseases, which hampered the farming business. But Mahendra did not give up and looked for different alternatives to grow new crops. This helped them to overcome adversity and get better yields from the field. In the meantime, he set up a ‘Student’ on a four-acre area to produce quality vegetables in a protected manner.
To date, they have produced a record production of red, yellow, black, purple, and green chilies from Student. Innovative farming experiments by Nikam in Shednet and Open Farm have always been noteworthy. Earlier, he had given a lesson on how to earn good money from agriculture by cultivating ‘Hatke’ crops like Zucchini, Iceberg, Australian Green Berry, Papaya, Basil.
Although he was educated up to the 12th standard, Nikam’s desire to acquire up-to-date knowledge of world-class information in crop methods as well as his desire to innovate in the field of agriculture is ingrained in him. It was out of curiosity that Nikam came to know that Cigenta, a multinational seed company, would offer a variety of Colorful cauliflower for experimental cultivation in India.
He then approached the company himself to get the varieties in person. Convinced that Nikam could After successfully cultivating this variety on an experimental basis, the company also provided seeds to them. Accordingly, in an area of ​​30 gunthas, a total of 20,000 saplings were planted at the rate of 10,000 yellow and purple.
On this total Rs. 60,000 Rs. 3 per plant. Varieties of this company are already being cultivated in European countries. However, despite this being the first experiment in India, the courage shown by Nikam in cultivating this variety of Tractor with hard work, smart technology, and flexible confidence is truly commendable.
It took 25 days to prepare seedlings in the nursery. After the actual planting of seedlings last December, it took a period of 65 days to produce colorful cauliflower. For this crop, Nikam emphasized using organic fertilizers and sprays instead of chemicals. The entire cost of farming, seedlings, fertilizers, medicines, labor, packing, transportation, and harvesting went to the house of two lakhs.
The yellow and purple colorful cauliflower is so attractive that it is a must-have, for any Affiliate, promoting any program. In addition, coloful cauliflower contains more nutrients, as well as vitamins A and B, than broccoli or white cauliflower. Therefore, these colorful cauliflowers are in great demand in five-star hotels in big cities. According to this demand, Nikam sent these colorful cauliflowers for sale in Mumbai, Pune, Nashik.
He got Rs 50 per kg. Expenditure of Rs 2 lakh from the sale of nearly four tonnes of goods were recovered, but the above revenue was not recovered. However, Nikam did not feel any pain. According to him, due to a little planning, at least 10 to 11 tons of goods could not be removed on time. Therefore, due to the expiration date of the crop, the size of the colorful cauliflower bale became larger than reasonable and the effect of the sun’s clicking also resulted in spoilage of the goods. He said that if the goods could have been removed on time, a total of around 15 tonnes of goods could have been sold out of 30 gunthas.
Nikam claims that if some mistakes had not been made due to lack of previous experience in this crop, he would have easily got an income of Rs 3 to 4 lakh after deducting expenses from 30 gunthas in just two and a quarter months. By avoiding the mistakes made now and planning the sale of goods on time, the future will come from this new variety
Focus on innovative farming Like Colorful Cauliflower
Agriculture can definitely benefit from the implementation of innovative concepts in agriculture.
At a time when the highly educated are marking ‘Metro Life’, a young man with an MBA quits a well-paying job and devotes himself directly to farming in his village. He says, ‘Agriculture should be seen as an industry. Agriculture can definitely benefit from the implementation of innovative concepts in agriculture.
Vivek Prakash Bodde. Originally from Amravati. MBA from Delhi University. Four years job in private companies. But, the inner desire to do business rather than a job. Not much knowledge of agriculture. But, once a friend’s sentence turns out to be life-changing. Vivek Bodde says, ‘When I came to the village to help my father in setting up a poultry farm, he was going to the farm.
I was just watching the construction from a distance. At that time he had to talk to a friend living in Punjab. He cultivates wheat in 30 acres of land. He was also helping his family on the farm. He said, “You have a farm, but you just sit there all day.” Why not pay attention to agriculture. This sentence of my friend came to my mind. Decided with the mind and decided to focus on agriculture.
The farm has irrigation facilities, but till last year water was supplied from the floodplain. It was observed that water is being wasted. Immediately decided to install drip irrigation sets. Received father’s guidance. The study is going on how to get maximum income from mixed farming. Prakash Sundarkar, Sales Manager, Mahafid Fertilizers is providing time to time guidance. From drip irrigation to various uses in agriculture, we learned online.
Know the experiences of nearby farmers. See market conditions. The first year was satisfactory. It definitely boosted my confidence. Now it has been decided to focus completely on agriculture. Prakash Bodde has a farm in Pimpri Gawande-Bodde in Nandgaon Khandeshwar taluka. He could not concentrate on agriculture because of his job. He was willing to give agricultural land for cultivation.
But now they are also focusing on full-time farming. Prakash Bodde says, “There are advantages to farming in a technical way. Watermelon was planted on 2.5 acres in the first year. 60 tonnes of watermelon was produced. Two lakhs in three months. After that mixed crops like melon and watermelon were grown. There was no financial benefit, but the cost was covered. Mulching was used for watermelon, it was used for cotton in this Kharif season. Sowing cotton on 5th June. Now the flowers have come on the leaves.
The harvest is going well. This is expected to produce 20 quintals per acre. Black pepper is planted in the second part. It was the first break. Still getting good rates. Chili cultivation is estimated to produce 200 quintals. Even if we get the price of Rs 10 per kg, there will be an income of Rs 2 lakh. There are other types of Thai lemons planted in one area. Next door is Sheva. These plants can be used naturally to keep poultry cool. Other areas have jowar and green gram. Turmeric is also cultivated. Drip irrigation is available on 15 acres.
Experimentation in farming always brings new experiences. He used mulching last year to grow watermelon. He used the same for cotton this year. Last year was also a traditional crop. But he wanted to do something different. Apart from agriculture, he started the poultry industry. Due to this, their financial income is also getting. Prakash Bodde’s farm is in a drought-prone area. However, they managed to irrigate the fields.
According to him, agriculture can be very lucrative, but it requires experimentation. Short-duration crops should be taken. It is fine to use in two to four acres. They tell us about their experiences. It is not advisable to depend on a single crop. Farmers use it according to their capacity. In a fairly small way. One can learn from experiences only. Agricultural reform is a long-term process. Earlier there was no road to reach our farm.
It was found that if the primary work of paved roads is done with public participation, then the road can be constructed by the government. We had eight to ten farmers who built a dirt road. Waiting for government help. But, the road was not paved. Eventually, we took a loan and built a pucca road to the farm. This has benefited the farmers of the area. Farming is necessary according to modern times. A poultry farm has been established on the farm. Now I want to set up a goat farm. The land has been purchased for the establishment of the Dal mill. Both my highly educated children Sankalp and Vivek are contributing to the development of agriculture.
On the one hand, while the cry of lack of benefits of agriculture has started, the youth who have done vocational courses are also facing the challenges of agriculture. They are ready to innovate. He is now inspiring others.
