We at Farmizen believe in building an enriched farming community, where farming enthusiasts meet and share ideas to and support us in building a greener and healthier ecosystem.
And that’s exactly why we at Farmizen have come up with the volunteering program. Through this, you can come visit the farm at your convenience and meet fellow growers. You also will get the first-hand experience on all the techniques of organic farming. You can also interact with real farmers on the farm, learn things from them, and better the farmer in you.
We are starting a blog series called Farmizen Volunteers which is dedicated to all our volunteers who invest in farming and help us in becoming better.
This is the first blog post from the series 🙂 We interviewed Venkat Narsimha Reddy for this, who has been a part of our volunteering program for quite some time.
He has been utterly dedicated to his passion for farming and has learnt a lot of new things in a short span of time.
Interview With Venkat
Venkat introduces himself and says,
“I work for a company called Unisys India Pvt Ltd as a System Analyst. I am a techie by profession but a farmer at heart. My wish is to stay connected to my roots.”
He further talks about his inclination towards organic farming and eating,
“There are a host of health problems that exist nowadays because of the way our food system is. What we eat today is not “real”, though it is made to look real, with added chemicals and preservatives. And, these chemicals play a major role in degrading our health and life. These poisonous chemicals also damage soil, pollute water & impede the lives of birds and animals.
Growing our own food is the only way out, as organic farming ensures that our ecosystem is “green” and healthy.
About his connection with Farmizen,
“I came across the concept of Farmizen on Facebook. I really like the concept, because it allows us to grow our own vegetables, have farmers manage our plot, and get our veggies home-delivered.
The best part about Farmizen is it connects urban people with the real farming community and helps people identify the need for healthy food and lifestyle. The team knows the gaps in our food system and is trying to fix those.”
His reason for signing up for the volunteering program,
“My family has a background in agriculture, and my parents practice chemical farming, where most of the cost goes to fertilizers, pesticides and labour.
Added to these issues are the costs of selling these vegetables, where the farmers end up getting an unfair price.
Also, I truly believe in healthy eating and living, and also care for the environment that I live in.
I want to implement the concepts that I learn through volunteering program at the farm in my hometown. This will help the farmers farm better, and will also help us in eating healthy.
People who live in metro cities like Bangalore should take part in this program, as tall buildings are what dominate the cities and not greenery.
About the farming practices that he learnt,
“I have learnt many things here such as soil health management, mulching, raised beds, intercropping, natural pest control that include marigold plants and neem oil. I also learnt how to use power weeder, that can help in reduction of labour cost. And a large part of my learning was also about efficient water management through drip irrigation and micro sprinklers.”
Things that he does in his free time,
“I improve my knowledge on natural or organic farming in my free time. And, I love playing with my children, Aadhya and Siri.”
Ending the interview with the most important question,
His viewpoint on having a sustainable ecosystem
We have a very beautiful ecosystem, and the connection between plants and animals is unique. It is important that we preserve this ecosystem. So, we need to invest time in educating ourselves about waste management, plantation techniques, and interdependency between living and nonliving things.
We agree with Venkat, and we truly had a great time in interviewing him. We heartily thank him for taking out time to answer our questions and would hope that he learns more with each passing day.
You can also have a look at the video made by Venkat that describes himself 🙂
If you also wish to be a part of the Farmizen volunteering program, then you can mail us at [email protected].
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