Monsooncare for those green babies
The Hindu
Premila Balaji tells why last month’s unexpected rainfall was a damp squib for those maintaining a backyard of plants and what care needs to be taken during such times
November was a washout for Premila Balaji. The garden enthusiast, who has been nurturing her backyard with a variety of flowers, vegetables and fruits, did not predict the rains to be so heavy that it would knock down the precious tomatoes and marigolds.
“I could save only 50 percent of my plants and I cannot say they are doing great,” says Premila. The cauliflower that she has been caring for from the seed stage was badly damaged. “This was disappointing as it does not generally happen during winters. Last year, my cauliflowers were a hit and even my neighbours got a share of them,” says the senior citizen who is a member of Chennai Organic Terrace Gardeners.
The papaya tree also met with a similar fate. Due to too much water, she suspects the roots suffered a fungal infection.
Leaders and legislators hailing from Ballari, which is part of the Kalyana Karnataka region, seem to be a source of much political upheaval in Karnataka, going by recent history. This has been the case since the time illegal mining hit national and international headlines in the 2000s and the place gained reputation as “Republic of Ballari”.
The former BJP MLA of Udupi K. Raghupathi Bhat claimed on Saturday that he contesting the Legislative Council elections from South West Graduates’ Constituency as rebel candidate made the saffron party field its party leader C. T. Ravi in the biennial elections to the Legislative Council from the Legislative Assembly.