Organic Farming, Certification and

Marketing of organic produce

individual & group certification process
 Organic agriculture
• Organic agriculture is a production system that sustains the
health of soils, ecosystems and humanbeing.

• Organic agriculture relies on ecological

processes, biodiversity and cycles adapted to local conditions,
rather than the use of inputs with adverse effects.

• Organic agriculture combines tradition, innovation and

science to benefit the shared environment and promote fair
relationships and a good quality of life for all involved.

• Organic agriculture is a farming method that involves

growing and nurturing crops without the use of synthetic
based fertilizers and pesticides.
History-Organic agriculture
 Organic agriculture
• Need of organic farming
• With the increase in population our compulsion would be not only
to stabilize agricultural production but to increase it further in
sustainable manner.
• The ‘Green Revolution’ with high input use has reached a plateau
and is now sustained with diminishing return of falling dividends.
• Natural balance needs to be maintained at all cost for existence of
life and property. The obvious choice for that would be more
relevant in the present era, when these agrochemicals which are
produced from fossil fuel and are not renewable and are
diminishing in availability. It may also cost heavily on our foreign
exchange in future.
Principles of Organic Farming

No chemical fertilizer
No use of herbicide
No use of pesticides
Maintenance of healthy soil
Concepts of organic farming
Organic agriculture
 Organic agriculture statistics (2017-18)
• Organic agriculture land 3.56 Mha (1.78 Mha cultivated area &
1.78 Mha wild harvest area)
• India ranks 9th in Organic agriculture land
• Organic agriculture production 1.7 Mtons
• India ranks 1st in no. of organic producers
• Organic area: MP (34%), Maharashtra (13%), Rajasthan (12%),
Odisha (6%) and Karnataka (5%)
• Organic production: MP (34%), Maharashtra (23%), Karnataka
(9%), UP (7%) and Rajasthan (6%)
• Crop-wise share: Oilseeds (32%), Sugar crop (19%), Cereals &
millets (17%), Fiber crops (15%) and pulses (4%),
 Exports share of organic produce in terms of value
(2017-18)
Export value in 2017-18
was INR 3453 crore

Major destinations for Indian organic produce exports are USA, EU, Switzerland,
Canada, Australia, Israel, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea Etc.
 Economic viability of organic farming
Conventional v/s Organic

Conventional
Use of chemical fertilizers &
pesticides
Wholesale & retail prices
Higher yields (irrigated)
No gestational period
Ill effects: human health &
Environment
High cost of sprayings
High social cost
Policy & extension support
Organic
Use of organic manures and
chemical free IPDM methods
Price premium
Initial low yields (high in dry areas)
Gestation period
Healthy, nutritional, safe and
environment friendly
Input Cost saving; high labour cost
High social benefit
Lack of proper R&D support
 Marketing channels
• Direct Marketing

• MNCs/retail outlets

• Online marketing

• Tele Marketing

• Organic food restaurants and Cafe’s

• Exports through APEDA

 Challenges in organic produce marketing

 Lack of awareness
 Differentiation b/w conventional & organic products
 At most care and caution
 Lack of financial support
 Lower yields
 Inability to meet the demand
 Challenges at policy, commercial and infrastructural levels
 National/international organizations in organic agriculture

International organizations
FiBL: Research Institute of Organic Agriculture, Switzerland (1973),
Germany (2004), Austria (2004), France (2017), Europe (2017)
IFOAM: International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements
1972, Germany
ISOFAR: International Society of Organic Agricultural Research
2003, Germany
ICCOA: International Competence Centre for Organic Agriculture
India, 2004

National organizations
NPOP: National Programme for Organic Production (2002), India
NPOF: National Project on Organic Farming (2004), India
OFAI: The Organic Farming Association of India (2002)
 Organic certification
• Organic certification is a certification process for
producers of organic food and other
organic agricultural products.
• The National Programme for Organic Production
(NPOP) provides for Standards for organic production,
systems, criteria and procedure for accreditation of
Certification Bodies, the National (India Organic) Logo
and the regulations governing its use.
• The standards and procedures have been formulated in
harmony with other International Standards regulating
import and export of organic products.
 Organic certification process

• Accreditation: Authoritative body that defines policies &

standards to a certification system
• Standards: Defining production methods and not the
product quality, it deals with minimum requirements and
not the best practices
• Inspection: Evaluation and verification of operations
with specific standards. (on site visit)
• Certification: Assurance from producer to consumer
that a product/process is in compliance with certain
standards.
Certification process in India
Receipt of The certification body Agreement
application by any provides standards between the
accredited organic and operational farmers & the
certification body documents to the authorized body
farmers

Organic certification process

Compliance
verification Regular Demand for fees
through monitoring and by the recognized
inspection and documentation body & document
audit audit
Guiding principles of certification standards of NPOP

1. Conversion of land for organic farming

2. Natural farm inputs
3. No genetically modified inputs or irradiation technology
4. Integrity of all processes must be maintained at all times
5. No contamination from nearby farms
6. Sustainable practices in the farm
Regulatory framework
 Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development
Authority (APEDA) for implementing the National Programme on
Organic Production (NPOP)

 National Centre for Organic Farming (NCOF) for implementing the

Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) in India.
Promotion of Organic Farming through low cost certification system
known as “Participatory Guarantee System”.

 Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) for regulation of

food safety standards of organic packaged food and beverages
products
 Individual v/s Group certification process
Individual Group Certification
Certification

Third party PGS certification through IQS

Certification

External audit Internal audit with external

supervision

International market Local/domestic market

Higher transaction Low transaction costs

costs
Logo for certified organic products

India’s organic certification

process under NPOP has
been granted equivalence
with European Union,
Switzerland and has been
recognized by USDA.

 Land is not certified as organic , only produce from it is certified

 Organic certificate for any produce is valid for 3 years only and
it must be renewed after expiry of 3 years
 Government initiates and schemes for
promoting organic farming
1. NMSA : National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture
2. PKVY: Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana
3. RKVY: Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana
4. MIDH: Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture
5. NMOOP: National Mission on Oilseeds & Oil Palm
6. ICAR: Indian Council of Agricultural Research
7. NPMSH&F: National Project on Management of Soil Health and Fertility
8. HMNEH: Horticulture Mission for North East and Himalayan States
9. MOVCDNER: Mission for Organic Value Chain Development for North
East Regions
 Top organic companies in India

1. Organic India
2. 24 mantra
3. Morarka “down to earth”
4. Conscious foods
5. Ecofarms
6. Nature Basket
7. Navdanya
8. Fab India
Approximate time period for organic certification in India

Type of Agricultural Unit Time period (Approx.) for

organic certification
Farm 24 months
Fruit Orchards 36 months
Animal husbandry 12 months
Food processing 1 day
Produce grown on Unused lands Same as Farm & fruit orchards,
but land in remote areas can
be relaxed by 12 months
 Certification for exports

1. Direct certification: Western certifier & inspector

2. Co-certification: Western certifier & local inspector

3. Local certification: Local certifier & inspector

Wild Harvest Organic Certification
 No conversion period for wild lands
 Only the products & not the forest is certified
 Applies to natural forests only
 Collection not to exceed sustainable yield and not be a threat to
local ecosystem
 Around 40% produce should be left in the forest itself
 The produce must be derived from a stable and sustainable
growing environment
 Produce collection activities should positively contribute to
maintenance of natural heritage
Practice for Organic Farming:
Fertilizer management
Bulky organic manures
 Concentrated organic manures
• Oil cakes: After oil extarction from oil seeds
the remaining hard portion is dried and called
as oil cake and used as manure
• Compost: farm compost and town compost
• Biofertilizers
Bio fertilizers
 Nitrogen fixing bio fertilizers
1. Symbiotic N-fixation: These are Rhizobium culture of various
strains which multiply in roots of suitable legumes and fix nitrogen
symbiotically. Almost 50% demands of N are met by these
microorganisms in legumes.
Rhizobium: It is the most widely used biofertilizers, which
colonizes the roots of specific legumes to form tumours like
growths called rot nodules. It is these nodules that act as factories
of ammonia production. The Rhizobium legume association can fix
upto 100-300 kg N/ha in one crop season
 Asymbiotic N-fixation:
This includes Azotobacter, Azospirillium, BGA, Azolla and Mycorrhizae, which also fixes atmospheric N in suitable
soil medium. They grow on decomposing soil organic matter and produce nitrogen compounds for their own
growth and development, besides that they leave behind a significant amount of N in surroundings.
• Azotobacter: Application of Azotobactor has been found to increase the yields of wheat, rice, maize, pearl
millet and sorghum by 0-30% over control. The beneficial effect of Azotobactor biofertilizers on cereals,
millets, vegetables, cotton and sugarcane under both irrigated and rainfed field
• Azospirillium: It is an important bacterium, which colonize the root zones and fix nitrogen in loose association
with plants. The crops which response to Azospirillum is maize, barley, oats, sorghum, pearl millet and forage
crop. Azospirillum applications increase gain productivity of cereals by 5-20%, of millets by 30% and of fodder
by over 50%.
• Blue Green Algae: The utilization of blue-green algae as biofertilizers for rice is very promising
• Azolla: A small floating fern, Azolla is commonly seen in low land fields and in shallow fresh water bodies. This
fern harbours blue-green algae, anabaena azollae. The Azolla anabaena association is a live floating nitrogen
factory using energy from photosynthesis to fix atmospheric nitrogen amounting to 100-150 kg N/ha/year
from about 40-64 tones of biomass.
• Mycorrhizae: Mycorrhizae are the symbiotic association of fungi with roots of Vascular plants. The main
advantage of Mycorrhizae to the host plants lies in the extension of the penetration zone of the root fungus
system in the soil, facilitating an increased phosphorous uptake. In many cases the Mycorrhizae have been
shown to markedly improve the growth of plants. In India, the beneficial effects of Vascular-arbuscular
Mycorrhizae (V AM) have been observed in fruit crops like citrus, papaya and litchi. Recent studies showed
the possibility of domesticating Mycorrhizae in agricultural system (Hayman, 1982; Tilak, 1987).
 Vermi compost preparation
Materials for preparation of
Vermicompost

•manures

•Crop residues
•
Weed biomass
Vermi bed: Width: 3ft
•Vegetable waste African Ht: 2-3ft
•Leaf litter
earthworm:Eudrillus
euginiae
•Hotel refuse What Worms Need
The Five Essentials
•Waste from agro-industries Compost worms need five basic things:
An hospitable living environment, usually called “bedding”
•Biodegradable portion of urban and A food source
rural wastes Adequate moisture (greater than 50% water content by
weight)
Adequate aeration
Protection from temperature extremes
These five essentials are discussed in more detail below.
Jeevamrutham
 Panchakavya
Panchagavya ingredients and
Panchagavya, an organic product has the potential to
play the role of promoting growth and providing
immunity in plant system. Panchagavya consists of
nine products viz. cow dung, cow urine, milk, curd,
jaggery, ghee, banana, Tender coconut and water.
When suitably mixed and used, these have miraculous
effects.
Cow dung - 7 kg
Cow ghee - 1 kg
Mix the above two ingredients thoroughly both in
morning and evening hours and keep it for 3 days
Cow Urine - 10 liters
Water - 10 liters
After 3 days mix cow urine and water and keep it for
15 days with regular mixing both in morning and
evening hours. After 15 days mix the following and
panchagavya will be ready after 30 days.
Cow milk - 3 liters
Cow curd - 2 liters
Tender coconut water - 3 liters
Jaggery - 3 kg
Well ripened poovan banana – 12 nos.
 Foliar fertilization
• Compost extracts/ Manure tea: supplies
soluble nutrients
• Compost tea: Tea brewed with microbial food
and catalyst
• Herbal tea:
- stinging neetle, clover, marigold, neem, etc.
- supplies soluble nutrients and bioactive
plant compounds
- microbial food sources such as molasses and
fish powder and microbial catalysts e.g. rock
dust, humic acid.
Components of Compost Tea

Soluble nutrients
Humic substances
Bacteria
Fungi
Protozoa
Microbial metabolites
Goal = maximum diversity of good guys.
Benefits of Compost Teas
Inoculate rhizosphere = soil drench
Inoculate phyllosphere = foliar spray
Occupy plant surface with beneficial organisms =
colonization
Beneficials use exudates & microbial food sources =
competition
Biocontrol = antagonism, induced resistance
Soluble nutrients, growth-promoting substances,
metabolites
 Compost Tea Application
• Foliar
70% leaf coverage

• Seed Treatments
Mist or soak seeds prior to planting
• Soil Drench
-Apply at transplant and
seedling stages
-Apply to base of full-
grown plants
 Vermi-wash
100-150 adult earthworms
Bottom layer- 20-25d old cow dung followed by
organic wastes and again cow dung
Normally 15-20d for collection
but at lower temp. the period
may extend
1:10 ratio for foliar spray
Rich in micro nutrients, vitamins (B12), Hormones
(gibberellins)
 NCOF waste decomposer
• National Centre of Organic Farming (NCOF) has
developed a waste decomposer culture which is used
for quick composting from organic waste, soil health
improvement and as plant protection agent. It is a
consortium of micro organism extracted from desi cow
dung.
• The waste decomposer is sold in a bottle of 30 gms
costing Rs. 20/- per bottle directly through NCOF and
Regional Organic Farming Centres (RCOF) to farmers.
The waste decomposer is also validated by ICAR.
 How to prepare waste decomposer solution
from the started culture?
• Take 2 kg jaggery and mixed it in a plastic drum containing 200 liters
water.
• Now take 1 bottle of waste decomposer and pour all its contents in a
plastic drum containing jaggery solution. Avoid direct contact of contents
with hands.
• Mix it properly with a wooden stick for uniform distribution of waste
decomposer in a drum.
• Cover the drum with a paper or cardboard and stir it every day once or
twice.
• After 5 days the solution of drum turns creamy.
• Farmers could prepare the waste decomposer solution again and again
from the above formed solution. For this, 20 liter of waste decomposer
solution is added to a drum with 2 kg of jaggery and 20 liter water is
added. Farmers can prepare continuously this solution from this waste
decomposer for lifetime.
Composting Machines
Composting Machine
Vermi Compost- Nutrient status at IIVR
Different stages of composting
Vermi beds under tree shade
Different stages of composting with cow pea as raw
material
Vermi wash collection
Vermi composting in trays
 Weed management in organic farming

• Prevention
• Cultural
• Mechanical
• Biological
• Chemical(organically approved)
Cultural pracices
intercropping
Crop rotation
Drip irrigation
Mulching for weed control
Mechanical weed control
Soil solarization
Bio herbicides
 Basic IPM
• Pest Identification
• Monitoring or Scouting
• Threshold and Action Levels
• Tactics: Cultural, Mechanical, Physical,
Biological, and Chemical
• Evaluation
 Scouting Equipment

Hand Optivisor
Lens

Sticky yellow trap cards Scouting

records
Trap Cards as Scouting Tools
• Yellow cards trap
winged aphids,
whiteflies, thrips,
fungus gnats, and shore
flies.
• One card/250 – 1000ft2
• Horizontal is better for
trapping fungus gnats.
• They may snag natural
enemies too.
Thrips in Greenhouse Crops - Biology,
Thrips on capsicum-leaves1

Thrip damage on fruit Thrips on leaf

IPM Tactic: 1. Cultural Control

Weeds outside the greenhouse

Weeds inside the greenhouse

Cultivar Selection
Sanitation
 Pest and disease management
1. Select disease / Pest resistant varieties
2. Seed treatment
3. Grow trap crops viz. Marigold / Mustard and barrier crops viz., Maize/
Sorghum.
4. Release Trichogramma egg parasitoids @ 20,000 per acre.
5. Seed treatment with Trichoderma @ 4g / Kg seed.
6. Spray bt @ 1g/lit.
7. Apply neem cake @ 250 kg /acre
8. Spary bramhastra against sucking pests
9. Spray agniastra against fruit borers.
10. Apply bio fungicides for soil born wilt problem .
Follow crop rotation – Maize, Okra, Radish.
11. Remove and destroy the affected fruits, plants, or plant parts follow, field
sanitation.
12. Follow crop rotation with Marigold / Garlic/ Beetroot where nematode
is a problem.
13. Arrange bird perches @ 20 per acre
14. Arrange pheromone traps @ 4 per acre
15. Spray NPV @ 250 LE/ acre in 200 lit of water.
16. Poison baiting – with Methomyl
Pheromone Traps
White flies
IPM Tactic: 2. Mechanical Control
• Using physical objects
or devices to control
pests.
• Insect screening on
intake vents, exhaust
fans, and entrances.
• 215-300 microns
• Restricts air flow.
• Electric Bug Zappers.
• Insect Vacuums.
 IPM Tactic: 4. Biological Control
• Definition: Biological
control is any activity of
one species that reduces
the adverse effects of
other species.
Types of Natural Enemies

Predation Parasitism

Herbivory Competition
Biological control for sap sucking insects

• Beauveria bassiana & Verticillium leccani. Both are

effective for sucking complex. These are available in
both powder and liquid form.life of liquid form is
more (Dosage: 5 gm or 5 ml per lit).
• These two have synergistic effect with neem oil @ 2
ml per lit. (not for BT)
• Sources: Agri life, PCI, T stans
• Entemo pathogenic bio agent for mites: Hirsutella
thampsonii.
• Release of biological control agents to new new
place should go for local lab and observe the
adoptability of the agent
 How to Prepare Agniastra – Organic Pest-
Control Techniques
The following ingredients will get
you 2 liters of Agniastra solution.
Ingredients Agniastra :
Tobacco – 50 gm
Green chillies – 50 gm
Garlic – 50 gm
Neem leaf – 500 gm
Cow urine – 1500 ml

Grind all the ingredients into fine paste and mix

with cow urine. Boil this for four times. Leave it
for 48 hrs, filter it and mix some water and
sprinkle over the plants. You can save and use
for 3 months.
Spray this medicine Agniastra on the pest like
Leaf Roller, Stem Borer, Fruit borer, Pod borer.
 PESTS OF TOMATO

Leaf miner Fruit borer

White fly
 BRAMHASTRA
INGREDIENTS
20 Liter Cow Urine
Usage
2 Kg Neem Leaves and Stems After 48 hours ready for usage.
2 Kg Castor Leaves and Stems Quality / Shelf Life
2 Kg Mango Leaves and Stems
Maximum 6 months
2 Kg Indian Beech Leaves and Stems
Preparation
200 Liter Water with 6 Liter
Time to Preparation Brahmastra Liquid.
Morning / Evening
Pest Control
How to Prepare Brahmastra Control Bigger
Make Paste of Individual Leaves and Stems Caterpillar and Bigger Pests.
Keep it separately
Put all these in a Big Vessel
Mix all the components. Stir clockwise.
Keep this Big Vessel for Cooking
Four (4) Full Boiling
Leave it for cooling for 48 hours
Shaded Place. Not expose to Sunlight / Rain.
Cover with Cloth
Filter with Cloth and Put In a Bottle or Can
Neemastra
 Mealybug predator
N.I.P.H.M

Cryptolaemus montrouzieri
Aphids on bush bean
Marigold as a trap crop
MUSTARD AS TRAP CROP
Zero energy drip irrigation
Groundnut bud necrosis virus – TOSPO virus IN
TOMATO

GBNV
 Successful Nematode
Management Strategies
Rotation

Fallow Sanitation

Successful
Nematode
INM management
Resistance
Chemicals

Solarization
 Biointensive Approaches

S.No Method of management Specific practice

Biosecurity Plant quarantine
1
Selection of healthy Nematode free seed / seedlings
2 planting material /field
Cultural practices Fallowing, Flooding, Summer ploughing, , Green
manuring, Trap crops, , Crop rotation. Soil amendments
, field sanitation
Bio-fumigation plants, . Antagonistic crops
Nematode suppressive Cover crops,Trap crops
3 crops
4 Physical Methods Soil solarisation, Steam sterilastion ,Hot water treatment
Biological Methods Nematode trapping fungi, endoparasitic fungi, obligate
parasitic fungi ,PGPR
5
6 Botanicals Neem based products
Resistant cultivars Resistant varieties, Tolerant crops/varieties, Genetic
7 Engineering.
Nematicides Carbofuran
8
 INM
Next crop
• Raise nursery in nematode free sites or fumigated or
solarized
Impart soil solarization in nursery
Select a variety resistant/tolerant to major ` disease/nematode
• Select healthy seeds/seedlings
• Treat the seed/planting material with recommended
biopesticides
• Nutrient management especially organic manures and
biofertilizers based on the soil test results.
• Application of decomposed poultry manure @ 200
g/sq. m.
• Incorporating neemcake @ 250 kg/ha soil two weeks before
sowing/planting
 INM
Next crop
• Raise nursery in nematode free sites or fumigated or
solarized
Impart soil solarization in nursery
Select a variety resistant/tolerant to major ` disease/nematode
• Select healthy seeds/seedlings
• Treat the seed/planting material with recommended
biopesticides
• Nutrient management especially organic manures and
biofertilizers based on the soil test results.
• Application of decomposed poultry manure @ 200
g/sq. m.
• Incorporating neemcake @ 250 kg/ha soil two weeks before
sowing/planting
 Soil Solarization
● Top 6 inches soil will heat up to 52- 60 °
C
● 4 weeks during hot summer months
● Enhance soil temp by 5-10 ° C
● Clear plastic film of 100 gauge (25 um)
followed by application of neem cake
@ 200 g/ m2 or poultry manure @ 100
g/ m2
● Nematodes, die when soil temperature
exceeds 125°F for 30 minutes or 130°F
for 5 minutes.
Successful stories
Ditylenchus dipsci, Globodera
rostochiensis, Heterodera
spp.and Meloidogyne spp.
Terrace organic vegetable
farming
 Industrialization

Increasing
Population Urbanization

By 2050, 55% of Indians will

be living in urban areas.

Agricultural land capacity

can increase by 2% only.
Any solution?
• an estimated 16,000 square kilometres of
unused rooftop space in India.
• If we can turn 10 per cent into farms, there’s
a big opportunity.
• If 50% of area is converted into roof top
gardens most of the health disorders can be
overcome.
 Benefits of terrace organic vegetable production

• The joy of consuming the vegetables grown with the own hands
givens immense satisfaction and satiety.
• The producer gets fresh, pesticides residual free vegetables for
consumption.
• The producer gets fresh vegetables at cheaper rates.
• Tasty, highly nutritious, superior quality vegetables.
• Eco-friendly, pollution free environment.
• Physical exercise to the city dwellers.
• By growing greens an ambient temperatures will be maintained
in surroundings.
• Home gardening increases the availability of oxygen.
• Homestead gardening modifies micro climate and thus reduces
global warming.
 Start-ups
• They sell farming kits for
terraces and balconies.
• You can grow vegetables
in your home without
using pesticides.
• They also help you
maintain the plants.
 Challenges in terrace farming
• The biggest challenge for terrace and balcony
gardens is seepage. Over time, water stagnation
tends to weaken building structures and by the
time this visible through signs such as dripping
ceilings, the damage is already done.
• using suitable containers, roof water proffing,
drip irrigation can avoid this problem.
precautions to be taken to ensure that water
doesn’t stagnate on roofs or balconies.
 How to proceed?
Before starting to set up a terrace garden, you should
be aware of what you are growing organically?
According to that, you should make a preparation of the
garden.

You can grow plants on the terrace in raised beds and

containers or pots. You should select a space on the terrace
as per your convenience and where you can expect good
sunlight. The size of the garden depends on your plan and
available space on the terrace.

Depending on the space available on the terrace you

should purchase enough containers or pots to set up
organic terrace gardening.

When growing plants on the terrace, there should be

good water facility. Providing an overhead water tank
is recommended for easy watering. If the area is a little
big, you can adopt a small drip system as well.
While growing vegetables on the terrace, keep in mind
that some of the prefer bright sun light and some not.
To protect the plants from heat stress in summer, you
can provide shade nets on the terrace.

Providing shade nets are beneficial during rainy

seasons as well. It will prevent over-watering,
which can cause root rot diseases.

You must secure all required tools or items to maintain

your organic terrace garden. You can get gardening
,kits/tool boxes in stores. You need these tools for regular
activities of pruning, trimming or pinching off the leaves
and stems.
Containers or big pots are main inputs to your terrace
garden. There are many varieties of containers available in
the market. Choosing the right container is very
important. It is better to select lightweight plastic
containers for easy movement.
Select a container size based on what your growing. Brinjal,
Okra (Lady's finger), Tomatoes, Chillies, Cluster beans require
medium size containers and any leafy vegetables like spinach,
mint, coriander require small size containers whereas creepers
require large sized containers.
Avoid choosing bright/black color containers as the
heat absorption may impact the plant growth. Make
sure the containers have holes on the bottom for water
drainage and aeration.

The soil plays a major role in overall organic terrace

gardening. Don't use the soil dug from your
surroundings. The soil must have good organic matter
to use in the roof garden.

The best gardening soils are available in local nurseries

and in any garden stores. You can supplement Organic
Compost , coco peat into your soil tor more nutrients.

In case you are planning to grow plants on raised

beds, convenient beds should be prepared for
planting your vegetables.

You can grow seedlings in seed trays and

transplant them into containers. You can grow
seedlings in places like small cardboard boxes if
you are not able to afford for seed trays.
How to begin?
 Soil should be well mixed with other organic fertilizers before placing the
soil in containers.

After filling the garden soil in containers leave them for overnight.

If you are planning to direct seeding, plant 2 to 3 seeds in the middle of the
containers. You go 2 to 3 cm deep for planting seeds.

Leave the containers for overnight with sown seeds. Next day morning
water the containers without disturbing the soil. You should water the
containers or raised beds regularly until the seeds start germinating.
 Avoid overwatering which can cause the seed rotting. The
germination of seeds depends on plants that you are growing.

It is required to protect newly erupted seedlings from

predators like birds. Provide any shade net for the purpose.
This can also prevent extreme sunlight on young seedlings.

If the soil hardens up, light raking the soil to loosen around
the pant should be carried without damaging roots.
 Depending on the variety, vigor, the plants starts growing within weeks after
sowing. You can thin the plants by keeping only one healthy plant in the container
(remember: we have sown 2 to 3 seeds).

For preventing soil moisture from the container: you can use any mulch material like dry
leaves. This can also prevent any weeds growing in container apart from conserving the
soil moisture. Later on it decomposes and works as excellent organic compost.

Add organic compost for every 10 days to provide more nutrients for
healthy growth.

Never allow the soil to dry up completely. Watering should be done based
on soil moisture.

Remove any dead leaves, stems and prune them accordingly.

Building second floor
On 6th floor polyhouse with drip
irrigation-2600sft
Dome shaped polyhouse
Shadenet house
Shallow bed method
Fruit crops
Cement pots
Commercial urban farming
Half cut plastic drums
Pests in Organic Terrace Gardening

• Monitor container plants for following pests

in organic terrace gardening.
– Spider mites.
– Aphids.
– Thrips.
– Scale.
– Whiteflies.
Vegetable Grafting
 Brinjal root stocks being used for
vegetable grafting

• Brinjal root stocks used for

vegetable grafting are
Solanum tarvum for heat
resistance (late germination)
• Brinjal Root stocks being using
at IIVR are
• IC 111056
For resistance
• IC 354557 against water
• Solanum laciniatum logging
conditions
• Solanum macrocarpan
• Surya- Resistant to wilt
Thank You.