Here it is from the August Issue of Rotary News.
"Fertile Ground," a Canadian NGO, has worked in partnership with a dedicated group of Rotarians in Upper Assam, RC Digboi, RI District 3240, to establish "Adarsh Seuj Prakalpa," a two-acre demonstration garden and training centre. Tea growers in Assam rely on a regular regime of pesticides and fertilisers to increase production and reduce crop losses due to insect pests. The Rotarians of RC Digboi, RI District 3240, with unstinting support from a Canadian NGO, "Fertile Ground," raised awareness about the health risks associated with pesticide use. Supported by RI and Canadian volunteers like Ms. Peggy Carswell along with funds raised by Fertile Ground, they started work on "Adarsh Seuj Prakalpa," a community demonstration garden. The garden was created to provide information and encouragement to farmers, tea growers, students and consumers about eco-friendly alternatives to chemical fertilisers and pesticides.
Fertile Ground, established in 2003, carries out activities in Canada and in Assam to promote sustainable and organic farming practices. Situated on two acres of land on one of the main roads in town, the site on which Adarsh Seuj Prakalpa is now situated had previously been living quarters for workers from the local oil refinery owned by Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. Ms. Carswell spent her first six weeks with three labourers and a small but enthusiastic group of local Rotarians and neighbourhood volunteers, creating a mountain of broken bricks, rocks, old shoes, glass and disintegrating plastic bags that had to be removed from the site.
Once the soil could be tilled, a series of raised beds were created. The beds were planted with a mixture of wheat, field peas and channa. The young plants were later incorporated into the soil to increase organic matter and nitrogen. Thereafter five more Canadian volunteers arrived, including Erin Harper, a young organic farmer from Salt Spring Island. Erin explained how to layer straw, cow manure, cardboard, rice husks and water hyacinth (an invasive plant that is rapidly taking over local wetlands) in long piles, 3' wide, 4' high and 16' in length. The materials decompose quickly in Assam's warm climate and by keeping the piles moist and turning them regularly, she soon had a large supply of finished compost to add to the soil.
According to Rtn. Urmila Baruah, RC Digboi, RI District 3240, "Traditionally, Assamese farmers have always prepared compost. But when science meets tradition new knowledge is gleaned. The Canadian volunteers brought the knowledge that for effective compost there has to be a balance of carbon and nitrogen in the compost materials. They also explained that the traditional method of preparing compost in a pit deprives the compost of oxygen and so it should be prepared above ground. This knowledge, when shared with the farmers, has been highly appreciated and they have been inspired to try the process."
With members of RC Digboi acting as translators, Fertile Ground's volunteers met with farmers and tea growers from a number of nearby villages. They heard from the farmers that local crops are being attacked by increasing numbers of insect pests since fertiliser and pesticide use has become more widespread and that growers have little or no access to information about sustainable or organic farming practices.
Many farmers in Assam have lost confidence in the traditional practices used to control insect pests and improve soil fertility. Most of the resource materials Fertile Ground has collected and translated into the Assamese language draw on the wisdom of indigenous cultures. They encourage growers to make compost and to use low-cost, locally available materials like garlic, chilli, haldi and leaves of the local neem tree to make preparations that reduce insect damage but don't harm beneficial bugs such as lacewings and praying mantis. Other useful practices that have fallen out of practice include placing perches made from lengths of bamboo in rice fields, or leaving strips of uncultivated land between fields to help attract birds and other insect predators.
Colourful containers to encourage people to separate materials like paper and food scraps from other waste materials was designed by the Canadian volunteer Laura Colquoun. At Adarsh Seuj Prakalpa, these materials are added to the compost piles to produce top quality organic fertilisers. This approach was welcomed by Rotarians of RC Digboi who have recently embarked on an awareness campaign to help improve the town's waste management practices.
A contribution made by the RC Cumberland Centennial, RI District 5020, Canada, helped Fertile Ground begin construction of a classroom and resource centre at the site and funding from a Vancouver-based organisation, Canada India Village Aid, a Canadian NGO, helped furnish the classroom and launch a new training and work experience programme for women in Digboi and nearby villages.
In Digboi, Rotarians have become enthusiastic spokespersons for the project. Some, like Rtn. Urmila Baruah, have started brewing compost tea for use in their own gardens and are making compost. Vegetables grown without chemical pesticides or fertilisers are regularly harvested from the new beds at the site, and are sold at weekly meetings of their Rotary Club. Flower and vegetable seedlings are also grown in a new poly-house erected this year at the site, and the sale of these materials as well as vermicompost provide a small source of income for the project.
The project currently provides full-time employment for three people from Digboi, who participate in training sessions conducted at the site and in nearby villages. A new production unit for preparation of formulas was recently completed, and plans are underway to construct a small "Green Shop" where organic vegetables, vermicompost and other products will be sold.
More information about the project, including helpful information about how to grow crops organically in both English and Assamese languages, is available at www.fertile-ground.org.
