Kids as farmers

This weekend, help your children reconnect with Nature in their own small way. If weekend breaks meant more TV time and gadget contests with friends, here’s your chance to wean them towards something greener and more productive.
Children have always been picky with eating vegetables, but will they spurn vegetables they have raised themselves, asks D. Chitra of Asiann Organics, Coimbatore. This thought prompted her to come up with a basic children’s gardening kit that allows them to raise palak out of a grow bag. The kit, priced at Rs. 100, contains a grow bag, organic fertilized coco peat block, organic seaweed fertilizers and seeds.

“We’ve kept the cost reasonable because the idea is to encourage children, not to make a profit. Also, such unusual gifts must be affordably priced; else, how will the idea catch on?” she asks.
These bags can be given as birthday gifts, return gifts, or even as thamboolam in weddings. “Children receive infinite number of pencils and pens as gifts. This one’s different and will set them on a different path,” says Chitra. So far, she’s received quite a few orders for gifting these in weddings and some schools have evinced interest.

“More than anything else, I would like children to experience a life that our generation did — where spending time with plants and flowers was commonplace. Once children get used to raising a crop, they will get addicted and want to do more. This one kit can yield palak for four months. And, it does not require too much space,” she says.
World over, studies have indicated that being amid plants and greenery helps enhance one’s mood and acts as a calming agent. In today’s frenetic world, where everyone runs on deadlines, such interactions with plants are vital. And more so for children, because they go through punishing academic schedules and severe competition to stay on top of the game.

So, give them a little spot on your terrace, and see them fall in love with plants and everything nice.
For details, call 97897-74662 or 94433-74662 or visit [email protected] and
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