The hunt for an ideal piece of land

Land acquisition is a major challenge in general. Acquiring farm land, more so. It was time for some strategy formulation. First, I had to list down the common problems that newbie farmers like me could face.

Lack of knowledge of real estate prices, absence of benchmarks to gauge land prices, total ignorance of the ideal factors to look for in a farm were some of the initial challenges. Ignorance of farming practices, challenges in marketing whatever little produce I might come up with, labor problems (including a caretaker for the farm) were the subsequent challenges.

Location would be crucial. Ideally, I should have gone for land within 2-3 hours drive from Bangalore city, but that would pose numerous problems. The biggest was price. Anything above INR 250,000 an acre would be too much. Land around Bangalore costs many multiples of that. Second, there was definitely a chance that Bangalore would grow over the next one or two decades to gobble up my farm land. I didn't want to convert my farm land into residential sites a few years down the line.

The second best option was to look for land in Tirthahalli taluk (Shimoga district). The reasons are listed below:

1. It's in the heart of western ghats, receives plenty of rain and is green throughout the year
2. It's just 2-3 hours from my native village, I could fall back on a few relatives for help and guidance
3. One of my uncles owned a small hotel in Tirthahalli and it would be a ready made market for my farm produce. This establishment needs about 150 liters of milk a day, thousands of coconuts and tons of vegetables a year

With that, the location of my farm was decided! I put out a word to all the agents in Tirthahalli that I was on the look out for some farm land. The following were my criteria:

1. At least 10 acres in one compound (10 acres would give me enough land to experiment with agroforestry, vegetables, areca and coconut)
2. Perfectly legal land with proper records (no encroachments)
3. Water source throughout the year
4. Didn't care much for the current yield and crops as long as the land was legal

 Within a week, a list of 3-4 properties was ready and I set out for inspection. None of them impressed me as they did not qualify for the four points I had set out for myself. Finally, one dry afternoon in May 2010, we were returning from one of these properties and my agent suddenly remembered about one property close by. He said it's very badly maintained and he really didn't want to show it to me. I wanted to take a look and we went over.

It was definitely badly maintained! The owner was a plumber and did good business. He really didn't depend on this farm for income. We saw weeds everywhere and lemongrass had literally covered the entire farm. Grass 7 feet tall prevented us from stepping even a few feet away from the designated walkways through the property. As I stood there, I got a good feeling about the place. Maybe it was an ideal place for natural farming as it was maintained in a natural state anyway!

(Areca plantation covered with weeds)

(Unfortunately, most of the 100 coconut trees look like this, impoverished! They are rain fed, that might be the major cause)

(Weeds covered every available space)

In spite of logic telling me to walk away, my heart told me that this was the place! What I specially liked about this place was a stream that ran along the southern border of the farm. I paid the advance then and there and booked the place.

After a long and tiring wait, the farm was finally registered in Nov 2010, a good 6 months after I paid the initial advance. Such is the beauty of our agricultural land acquisition process.

What pushed me towards farming

I visited my village on a few occasions in the past decade. During these visits, I observed the dark side of an Indian farmer's life. The typical Indian farmer is caught in a vicious circle of debt, labour problems, price fluctuations and vagaries of climate. Quite a few of my relatives are stuck in this quicksand.

As a naturally curious person, I tried to delve deep into their problems and searched for solutions on the web. That is when I came across the lifechanging 'One Straw Revolution' by Fukuoka-san and Zero Budget Natural Farming by Subhash Palekar. When I suggested these techniques to my relatives, I was met with cynicism and a resistance to change. Someone said "What do city bred engineers who earn in lakhs know about agriculture?" and that is when it struck me, I have to be a successful farmer before I dole out advices to people.

Being an engineer by profession, I had to execute a quick Proof of Concept to see if I really had a 'green thumb'. My terrace at home in Bangalore was the chosen location and I started off with potted plants. Within 3 months, I had almost 50 plants - roses, hibiscus, mango, lemon, guava, vegetables and greens growing on my terrace garden.

I have tried to keep it organic, with the exception of a couple of sprays of pesticide when the mealy bug menace went out of control. It was definitely a good experiment. I observed all the beneficial insects that Fukuoka-san mentioned - spiders, mantis, bees, wasps, butterflies -flock to my terrace garden. I don't know where they came from, but they did come as if by magic!

My terrace garden proved to me beyond doubt that I had a knack with plants. The plants didn't exactly thrive, but I didn't kill anyof them either. This small garden also taught me a few lessons in life. I remember this incident with a jasmine plant clearly. There was this variety of jasmine that never flowered under my care. I pampered it with vermicompost, water, different positions for ample sunlight. Nothing seemed to work. Then, one day, I lost my patience and I uprooted the plant and left it on the terrace. A couple of days later, I saw the first buds! In an uprooted plant! I planted it back in the pot and the plant has regularly flowered since. A few days later, I was reading about Steve Jobs where he said 'A man performs to his potential only when he accepts his mortality' and I could immediately relate it to this plant! :)

With the successful execution of the PoC, I wanted to purchase some land to continue my experiments on natural farming. It was a big step and there was a little bit of hesitation. Then, as if by chance, I happened to visit a family friend in Varadapura in Sagar Taluk, Shimoga District. He is a retired bank employee who has bought a nice 18 acre farm for himself. Looking at his efforts, I was convinced that I could do it as well. The decision was made!

Relatives who inspired me

I am a second generation urban dweller. My dad and mom migrated to the city for education and preferred to settle down here. I was born and bred in the city. However, I am thankful to my parents for letting me spend all my vacations at my grandparents' in the village.

Swimming with buffaloes in the village pond, grazing cows, picking wild mangoes and cashew - these are my favourite memories from childhood. The attachment developed towards animals, birds and trees took root firmly over the years. I am also thankful to my mom for instilling the love of nature (especially animals) in me.

My maternal uncle, late Shankarnarayana Bhat (a noted environmentalist, popularly known as Shampa Daithota) played a key role in introducing me to the world of farming. I observed the implementation of vermiculture and drip irrigation back in the 80's and 90's when these were a novelty. Unfortunately, I was too young to fully understand what was happening then and I regret not spending more time with my uncle while I could. Nevertheless, I did learn a little about plants and animals. He instilled in me an interest for sustainable agricultural practices and tolerance towards animals that are generally considered pests (insects, reptiles, monkeys, boars).

My second maternal uncle, Venkatram Daithota has always amazed me with the breadth of his knowledge. His knowledge of herbs simply amazes me. I am also thankful to him for instilling in me a respect for plants and their amazing healing abilities.

If there's one person who has influenced my life the most, it's my aunt Dr.Savithri Daithota. Her zest for life and passion for excellence are infectious. She convinced me that ANYTHING is possible and within reach. Her inspiration, guidance and help was instrumental in converting my farming ideas into action.

Hasiru Honnu goes online!

My blogging efforts started in 2006 with 'Cynic View'. It was more of a stress buster; an effort to laugh off daily frustrations and my disappointment with humans in general. My entries dwindled over a period of time. I was either becoming less cynical or 'becoming one of them'.

The second innings has started in 2012. This blog narrates my transformation from a Technocrat to an Agriculturist. Although the initiation happened in late 2010, I was too lazy to document my work online till date.

This blog and the general change in attitude can be attributed to two reasons:

1. Whatever I have learnt so far is thanks to the documentation available online. A handful of diligent agriculturists have put together sites/ blogs and forums which help rookies like me immensely. If someone else can learn from my journey, so be it. Technology has made it so easy to share knowledge, it's criminal not to share.
2. My chance discovery of the website http://www.vanashree.in/ put together by Shrikant, a fellow engineer turned farmer. His beautifully knit website inspired me to blog about my own baby steps.

In the next few entries, we will be doing a little flashback. We should get back to th present in no more than 2-3 entries. A warm welcome to whoever is reading this story - my story!