![]() You May Also Like: No Soil, No Pesticides: Meet the Self-Taught Punekar Who Grows Veggies in PET Bottles! If this story inspired you, get in touch with Rahul on 89395 49895 or visit Acqua Farms’ Facebook page here. He has received a government grant of Rs 50,000 for the same.Īt a time when our states are fighting over water bodies due to the acute scarcity of water, Rahul signs off saying–hydroponics could be “a very effective way” of growing crops. He will soon be travelling to the village of Vembedu in Tamil Nadu for a three-day camp where he will train the villagers to generate an income by growing fodder using hydroponics. If you get good produce, then it’s time to scale it up.” Understand the technique and learn through trial-and-error. So I suggest that you start on a small scale like a 10-planter system. To aspiring hydroponic farmers, he says, “Often, while researching hydroponic farming, people land up spending a lot of time on gathering information rather than doing anything practical. He emphasises its water-efficiency saying, “Regular soil-based farming with 1,500 plants would require about 200 litres of water a day, but with hydroponics, only 20 litres of water is enough.”Īpart from growing Italian basil and mint, Rahul has also started growing stevia to replace processed sugar. He explains this with an example, saying, “If lettuce grown conventionally in soil requires 60 days, lettuce grown using hydroponics yields double the produce in 28-30 days.” Since it is water-based, it has macro and micronutrients directly fed to the plant, and the plants grow 50 per cent faster as well as have a better yield.” Highlighting the advantages of hydroponic farming, Rahul adds, “It requires 90 per cent less water than conventional soil-based farming. Using the technique, they can easily grow 100 plants and harvest three kinds of fresh vegetables every day,” he beams.Īlso Read: Bengaluru Man Uses Hydroponics To Grow Vertical Gardens & Fodder Machines! Hydroponic makes farming possible for a family of three living in constrained spaces with even a three-feet terrace. Compared to other players in the market, our systems are 60 per cent cheaper. “Our idea is to make hydroponic farming affordable. They also have a subscription-based service to those who have no knowledge of hydroponics, where, against a monthly amount, they assign the user an agronomist who takes care of their plants and monitors it once a week. In the first month, he was able to cater to over 450 families in Chennai.Īpart from the starter kit, Acqua Farms also provides setups for larger systems with 24, 48, 72, 96 going up to 1,000-planter systems, based on the requirement of the user. “These are like miniature versions of a large hydroponics setup, to help people understand how plants grow without soil, how to use the right amount of nutrients for plant growth etc.,” explains Rahul. The internet and YouTube became his teachers, and his journey into hydroponic farming began. Soon, he started looking up the concept online. It started as a hobby because vertical farming in a limited space piqued my curiosity,” shares Rahul, in an interview with The Better India. “It was only two years ago that the concept of hydroponics caught my eye. He established Green Rush Organics to cater to retail stores in India five years ago. In India, on the other hand, this market was less explored. ![]() Having lived in the UK, he knew that organic food was in vogue. When he realised that he wanted to do more than his 9-to-5 desk job, the youngster decided to return to India in 2010 and start his own business. He worked for a brief period for pharma company Ranbaxy. Rahul, who grew up in Chennai, graduated in industrial biotechnology from Anna University and later moved to the UK to complete his PhD from the University of Warwick. In the 80s though, they branched out to different spheres ranging from real-estate to automobile finance. Rahul’s family originally hails from Rajasthan, where his ancestors practised agriculture. From the exotic Italian basil to carom ( ajwain), mint, spinach, lettuce, kale and a host of leafy greens and herbs, he grows them all using planters made of PVC pipes.
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