Onam 2024: Flowers and vegetables from Vattiyoorkavu set an example

Onam 2024: Vattiyoorkavu junction transformed into garden with flowers and vegetables grown by residents

A burst of colours greets commuters on the dusty, busy, and congested Vattiyoorkavu junction in Thiruvananthapuram. Yellow, orange, and white marigolds and scarlet blossoms of Bachelor’s button dance in the breeze, giving a splash of colour to the bushes and creepers laden with vegetables. Onam arrived early in this corner of the capital city thanks to an initiative of VK Prasanth, Member of Legislative Assembly, and Thushara Chandran, Agricultural Officer at Krishi Bhavan, Vattiyoorkavu.

Prasanth had discussed the possibility of Krishi Bhavan coming up with a plan to grow pesticide-free flowers and vegetables that could be used for Onam. Since vacant land is at a premium, Thushara decided to focus on terrace farming and encourage residents to devote at least 10 flower pots to grow one kind of vegetable. She contacted resident associations to seek the help of those who might be interested in vegetable cultivation.

To encourage residents to grow vegetables, Thushara came up with a plan to involve at least 10 residents from each of the nine wards under the Krishi Bhavan. “Instead of one family growing different kinds of vegetables, we requested them to grow one variety in at least 10 flowerpots. In that way, we could cultivate a range of vegetables for Onam. Residents could engage in terrace farming, in their gardens or, if they had space, in their yards,” explains Thushara.

Many residents enthusiastically joined the programme. That is when Prasanth suggested that they could use a vacant plot of about two acres right at the junction that had been acquired for the development of the Vattiyoorkavu Junction Development Project.

The plot has been earmarked for rehabilitation of traders, a space for residents and so on. “Since the process is still underway, the MLA did not want the land to remain vacant. After securing permission from Thiruvananthapuram Development Authority, the plot was used for cultivating flowers and vegetables under a project called ‘Our Onam, our vegetables and flowers’,” says a staff member in the MLA’s office.

Instead of only flowers, it was decided to cultivate both flowers and vegetables on one acre.

With the help of a farming group of 12 residents, the scheme took root on June 29. The aim was to grow flowers and vegetables that could be harvested for Onam.