Fodder grass grows quite fast, and I was thinking that will generate lots of mulch and should be good. But it grows tall around 3 feet and very dense and after cutting, after 15-20 days, grows back to the same height, especially in rainy season. Also wild pigs nest in between, so it has become a threat.
So thought of managing them bit differently. Just kept rows of grass 10 feet apart and all in between grass were uprooted. In the rows added, mexican sunflower and glyricidea also.
Myself and Palani was clearing one area for vegetable. After lunch, I came back a bit late and Palani was looking in between grass very keenly and said, it is a Viper snake. He started hitting it, I just said stop and just looked at it and to my surprise it was a python. Not big one, medium sized, never expected a python. Couple of years back, I had sighted one while cutting grass using Scythe and with a help of one person caught it and handed over to Kollengode forest office.
This time I just let it free, even though it was hit twice, it just crawled further to grass and disappeared. If it is sighted once again, may catch and hand it over to forest office.
I just confirmed it with a friend, he checked in chatgpt and it said it is Indian Rock Python and he sent it to a person working in forest and confirmed it is a Python. Felt happy that I could correctly identify it.
Gondharaj lemon fruiting for the first time...There are 7 lemons and some more flowers, very eager to taste it. It is supposed to be very fragrant variety and used widly in Bengali Cuisine.I had planted many, lots of them didn't survive the summer and also were overgrown by weeds. I have 3 plants totally.
I have a small patch where I cultivate happy hill rice in every rainy season. This time made it bit lower and raised buds so that water stagnates and never leaves it. Earlier I had used bricks instead of buds, but water used to leake and topsoil was lost.
The patch was growing green gram for 2 months,cut that and mulched it. Yesterday it rained nicely and hence had a feel that monsoon is starting and put some seeds in water. Plan is to soak them for 24 hours and sow. Today there was no rain, if rain recedes again, seeds may be lost, but have enough seeds in the refrigerator.
Mixed soaked rice seeds with cowdung and added little water so that it mixes well. This is just to try, mixing with cowdung and sowing, how it germinates and prevents from insect and bird attack. Earlier once when I sowed rice seeds, ants picked most of them.
24-June-2026
Small channels were made using a sharp tool and then seeds mixed with cowdung was put
09-July-26
Germination was OK, few places couldn't see the saplings and hence transplanted. Applied cowdung slurry once also composted cowdung was spread.
Some rice plants were toppled on heavy rain,right now rains have picked. Surface germination without mulch can cause this. In this plot, either I should surface seed with heavy mulch or should put seed inside the soil,reasonably deep.
Today I went with family to a temple called Kachamkurichi in Kollengode,Palakkad and on the way back to a view point where a good view of the mountain and paddy fields at the base is seen. Even at June 21st, there is no monsoon rain established in this part of Kerala while other districts are receiving reasonably good rain. Paddy fields are waiting for the rain, and some people have sown paddy and it is growing.
When we got down at the view point, was surprised to see a familiar plant and that looks to be Stylosanthes Hamata. I was not sure how it came there, but it is not there on the road side or some other nearby area.
It has established well, and was a beautiful sight to see..
I had posted these photos in two WhatsApp groups, just to see if anyone recognizes that. To my surprise two people responded, saying they know Stylo grass,is a good cattle feed and nitrogen fixer and prevent erosion. Those responses in Malayalam is given here...
By Binojkumar of Jaivasamrakshnasamithi
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I have been planning to grow glyricidea and other native tree saplings in the farm just to bring more and more shade. I can see that without shade, grown crops find it difficult to manage in summer. Now a days, in this area summer is harsh and rain has been reduced.
I bought some glyricidea seeds from amazon and also collected some seeds from farm and from road side and has been growing them. When rain pickup it will be planted in the farm. Glyricidea saplings from seeds has been doing good so far, they are drought tolerant and fights summer nicely. I have been growing them in plastic cups which costs around 6-7/ indian rupees, and this can be used for at least 4-5 years.
I should be growing them from February onwards so that they can be transplanted at the start of rainy season.
