We started construction of compost toilet in May 2019 and completed in August, the same year. The compost toilet foundation and the chamber walls, the chamber ceiling were constructed with stones, hollow bricks, cement, sand and concrete. The walls were built with self-manufactured sun-dried adobe bricks made with farm sub-soil. The roof was a madras…
Tag: regenerative agriculture
COP26: Are India’s commitments enough?
The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, more commonly referred to as COP26, was the 26th annual conference, held in Glasgow, Scotland, in November 2021. Around 197 countries attended. The representatives were either the country’s leaders or delegates. Here is a summary of what India what has agreed to in COP26. There are only 7…
Raising chickens: our experience over the last six months
Chickens, we wanted to raise for quite some time but never took the first step. When we shifted from hybrid cows to native cows, we realized it was time to buy native chickens. And it was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. Chickens and cows share a symbiotic relationship – cows poop attract…
Up in the hills, In a forest clearing: Prayogshala
While searching for farm land, we had explored several parts of Tamil Nadu. Kodaikanal was one of them. It got dropped off the list because of difficulty of access and doubt of my family’s tolerance to colder climate for prolonged periods of time. But, no other place in Tamil Nadu came close to the beauty…
Why organic food is costlier?
It seems counter-intuitive but the current sense of the word ‘Culture’ seems to have been derived from the word ‘Agriculture’ and not the other way around. And it is ironic that there is almost no culture left in mainstream agriculture anymore. What we are now seeing is not synthesis, which is what agriculture needs, but…
How do we deal with our shit? Like, literally…
In human history and specifically India’s history, there is a plenty of stigma associated with handling human faeces / shit / poop; whatever you like to call it. I think poop sounds cute. So, I will stick with poop, for the rest of the blog. And pee, for urine. If handled incorrectly, poop and pee…
A snapshot of happenings at our farm
We are building a food forest and kitchen garden for ourselves at Papanasam, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu, India since July 2018. We have been focusing on adding a lot of carbon / organic material to the soil. That’s why you will see photos covered with neem, mexican sunflower and glyricidia. We have let the old neem…
Vivasayee's Life 