Flowers, fruits expo, honey fair draw crowd to Kadri Park

68.7 per cent of cultivated land in district has horticulture crops, says ZP CEO

A visit to Kadri Park, this weekend will prove to be a treat to ones eyes as well as taste buds. The park has been decorated like a bride with colourful flowers, fruits and vegetables as a part of the Flower-Fruit exhibition 2013 and honey fair that kicked off here on Thursday.

The expo was jointly organised by District Administration, Zilla Panchayat, Department of Horticulture and Siri Thotagarikay Sangha.

Marigolds, periwinkles, hibiscus, button roses, dutch roses, Xenia, dahlia, zinnia, chrysanthemums, orchids and many other rare varieties of flowers drew large crowds to the park.

Many were posing for pictures, having the beautiful flowers as their backdrop. The centre piece of the expo brought smiles on people's faces. Vegetable carving artistes created an orchestra of ladies by carving pumpkins into faces with different expressions. Gandhiji's three monkeys were also carved using ash gourd and bottle gourd.

Farmers from various parts of the district, displayed the fruit of their labour. Varieties of vegetables grown with organic manure, different varieties of paddy, cashews, bananas, arecanuts were put on display.

Different departments under the Zilla Panchayat had also put up their stalls, introducing the departmental activities. The watershed department had put up posters of the various work implemented under the department.

The Department of Veterinary Sciences and Animal Husbandary created awareness on different diseases and also explained methods of safeguarding cattle and livestock from them.

Many private companies had put up stalls introducing farmers to the latest farming equipment, fertilisers and technologies used in farming.

Home made products such as pickles, pappads, squashes, short eats, clothes were also sold at the expo. Attractive jute bags were also sold by West Bengal Jute Handicraft stall.

Many farmers were also selling seeds of different vegetables grown in their garden. Speaking to Deccan Herald, Billampadavu Narayana Bhat, a farmer from Vittla said that he has been selling 35 varieties of seeds.

 "I have a 35 cent land and I have managed to grow 35 varieties of vegetables using only organic manure," he said.

Godrej Agrowet Ltd who has allied with Zilla Panchayat with regard to growing oil palms in the region, was explaining farmers the benefits of growing oil palm.

Godrej Agrowet Ltd OPP Manager Pallavi told Deccan Herald, that most of the farmers whose crop is hit with yellow leaf disease have turned towards cultivating oil palm as an alternative crop. In DK District, oil palm is grown on 62 hectares of land, she explained.

Honey fair

The bee rearing cooperative society of the district displayed more than seven varieties of honey.

Shennappa, from the cooperative society said that the society purchases more than 60,000 kilos of honey and exports it to different parts of the country. DK district contributes 15,000 kilos of honey, he said.

DK ZP CEO Dr K N Vijayprakash who has keen interest in apiculture, also displayed the beehives, looked after by him.

Inauguration

The exhibition was inaugurated by Alva's Educational Institutions Chairman Dr M Mohan Alva.

Fruits and flowers are not just symbols of beauty. They play an integral role in the life of man as they connect with him spiritually. They play a key role in our culture and has been mentioned in holy scriptures and literature, he said.

The honey fair was inaugurated by Deputy Commissioner N Prakash.

Presiding over the programme, ZP CEO Dr K N Vijayprakash said that 68.7 per cent of the cultivated land in district has horticulture crops. Under the horticulture mission, the department has started integrated horticulture clinics to revive disappearing fruits, he said.

Siri Thotagarikay Department Vice President Lakshmi Rao Aroor stressed on the importance of terrace gardening. "One can grow fresh vegetables on the terrace of their houses, even if they live in middle of the city," she said.

Seminars on topics such as 'Importance of Apiculture,' 'Opportunities in apiculture and  help extended by cooperative societies,' 'Pesticide management in bee keeping,' 'Opportunities of growing Malaysian fruits in DK district' and 'Personal experiences in apiculture.' Interactive sessions were also held.