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Old 3rd January 2012, 11:04   #61
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

I am looking for a hand held atomized weed trimmer similar to the one in the picture below. Would appreciate it if anyone who has used a similar device can share some feedback on the same and how much you paid for it ?

I enquired in 2 places, and they quoted 17 - 22k INR for it. Wondering if I might find a cheaper variant maybe < 8k.

Currently have a large area and trimming the wild grass takes up most of the time. Instead want to get some easier way of getting rid of the grass.
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Old 18th June 2012, 14:40   #62
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Wow now this is a most fantastic thread, I am truly surprised to see such a thread on Team Bhp again reaffirms my faith that this forum is truly an encyclopedia.

I come from a family which once owned over 4000 acres of land in Himachal Pradesh, we owned half of the present city of Dharamshala but due to neglect and personal ambitions of Grand father and his brothers only around 400 acres remain now.

Mostly it is tea gardens and paddy and is given on Theka to other farmers. We do not practice farming any more but are actively involved in the Agri Inputs industry.

Most of my hobby farming is done on our kitchen garden in Gurgaon and other land we have in Himachal. Since our company manufactures and sells various products to farmers, I keep on trying them on my own land first. It is more satisfying to check the results of your products on your own before selling them to others.

Machinery wise I own an Aspee Spraying machine and it is quite a sight when I wear this contraption and walk around the street in Gurgaon sparaying our Mango and Litchi trees with some thing or the other. Why just the other day, I ordered a 10 kg bag of Phosphorous, tied it around my shoulder and was walking around applying Phos in the field.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Fillmore View Post
I am looking for a hand held atomized weed trimmer similar to the one in the picture below. Would appreciate it if anyone who has used a similar device can share some feedback on the same and how much you paid for it ?

I enquired in 2 places, and they quoted 17 - 22k INR for it. Wondering if I might find a cheaper variant maybe < 8k.

Currently have a large area and trimming the wild grass takes up most of the time. Instead want to get some easier way of getting rid of the grass.
Why dont you try Herbicides, if you want to get rid of the grass completely. Glyphosate or similar should do. Do remember that Glyphosate is not selective, it will completely get rid of all the grass. It should work much much cheaper too.

Last edited by Eddy : 18th June 2012 at 14:48. Reason: Please use the edit / multiquote option instead of posting back to back posts within 30 mins on the same thread. Thanks.
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Old 18th June 2012, 15:29   #63
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

We have about 30 acres and all of it is rain fed. The lakes used for irrigation before are now blocked and we get no water from them (good in way since it improves ground water for drinking and for animals).

Mostly its corn now a days since its relatively easier and with the use of mechanized extractors, the labour is not that highly used now a days. We also have coconut/sapota and areca nut. We have a Mahindra Sarpanch and no cows/ox.
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Old 18th June 2012, 16:51   #64
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

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Originally Posted by eq24 View Post
Why dont you try Herbicides, if you want to get rid of the grass completely. Glyphosate or similar should do. Do remember that Glyphosate is not selective, it will completely get rid of all the grass. It should work much much cheaper too.
Thanks for your response. For now the weeds are under control.
Let me see how bad it is after this rain.

One question if you use Glyphosate, will the trees / saplings which are like 1ft away from it get affected too ?

Also would be great if you can post a pic of your Lychee trees. How long does it take for a Lychee plant to start giving fruit ?
I just planted a small one for ornamental purpose its still almost a sapling about 3ft in height.

Thanks
Fillmore
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Old 19th June 2012, 12:04   #65
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

Does anyone have any suggestions of good flowering trees to be planted in ones garden for show purpose. Gulmohar is nice but is there some other tree one would suggest? People usually have gardens with plants but the trees can add more style to the same.

Also this thread would help anyone looking for a MUV tractor with a Backhoe.
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/commer...-b-2420-a.html
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Old 19th June 2012, 13:27   #66
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Fillmore View Post
Thanks for your response. For now the weeds are under control.
Let me see how bad it is after this rain.

One question if you use Glyphosate, will the trees / saplings which are like 1ft away from it get affected too ?

Also would be great if you can post a pic of your Lychee trees. How long does it take for a Lychee plant to start giving fruit ?
I just planted a small one for ornamental purpose its still almost a sapling about 3ft in height.

Thanks
Fillmore
Glyphosate should be used with care least it affects nearby saplings. The trick to do this is to use a hood on the spray nozzle so that the mist does not travel to the required plants.

Another option is to leave a row of weeds nearing the saplings say 1 foot wide alone and spray the rest with glyphosate.

If you do go to buy Glyphosate, a helpful trick is that the dealer might force Monsanto's Round up brand on you, which is quite expensive. You can buy any brand they all work the same and are much cheaper too.

Whatever you do take some local help and get a clearer idea on application.

Regarding litchi, mine have yet to bear fruit, Girdling the trees does help and hastens the fruiting but it should be done with great care, least you damage the tree.

Let me know if you need any further help.
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Old 17th November 2012, 00:01   #67
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

Dear members,

My father has a 6-acre, irrigated land which he is asking me to look after. Currently, nothing is cultivated there.

I work in the city and don't have much time to spare for farming. Hence, I am thinking of going for a long-term plantation crop.

The farm land is situated in northern parts of Tamil Nadu (Vellore district). I am interested in putting up a teak plantation there. I would like to get advice and feedback from anyone who has experience in teak estate. I have gleaned preliminary info regarding this and plan to plant the saplings next year. I would especially like to know:
-What is the ideal month to plant the saplings?
-What is the current rate for a unit at first thinning and at the end of life cycle?
-Ideally where should I buy saplings?
-How much irrigation is needed in the initial years?
-What is estimated first year investment per acre?

Any guidance is highly appreciated.

Thanks in advance.
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Old 18th November 2012, 11:39   #68
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

I am very keen on getting into farming (strategic - addressing long term needs with plantation trees and try and experiment & learn with near term & mid term crops like horticulture with organic farming, composite farming etc about which I read up now & then) along side my current work. Depending on the progress, would like to improve it to go & stay there as well by building a house etc and pursue community farming if feasible.

My grand parents owned lands but nothing remains now after losing it because of the govt rule in the 70's(?). I remember those days in the 80's with my grandfather whom I used to accompany long back.

Coming to the point,
I want to buy some land - around 5 acres? (empty/uncultivated land is fine, as long as there is a water source + power) around 100+ kms from Bangalore at a relatively lower price (1 - 3 lakhs/acre) and explore my ambition. Open to buy a bigger plot jointly with like minded people here as well. 100km range is mainly from logistics perspective for commute as well as the market approachability. Open for other options depending on the scope.

Any recommendations / pointers on land availability? Pl. PM me if you have references or suggestions so that we can discuss

Thanks in advance.
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Old 19th December 2012, 23:08   #69
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Quote:
Originally Posted by murillo
I work in the city and don't have much time to spare for farming. Hence, I am thinking of going for a long-term plantation crop.
murillo,
There may be options you could consider other than teak. Firewood is in good demand in most places, and trees that coppice well would also give you consistent income.
When considering the fact that your patch is not being cultivated at all now, and that you do not have too much time to spare, it may help to have a tree crop that gives income in a shorter period than would a teak tree, which may ask for at least 30 years for a decent girth.
I have a some books with me, sent to my father by the National Academy of Sciences in Washington.
My father was a serious planter and environmentalist, and had connections with real thinkers in many countries.
The NAS publishes reports on many problems faced by farmers and growers in tropics and sub tropics too.
I saw your post and remembered the two volumes on Firewood Crops that they published.
A Google search gave me this link. It is a 101 MB pdf file, and I hope it contains thevsame text as in my books.
You may also find some useful information in this.
Other wise, look for 'Firewood Crops, Shrub and Tree Species for Energy Production'

http://www.google.co.in/url?url=http...ZW3EvRt5NdoxOA
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Old 19th December 2012, 23:12   #70
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

Melia Dubia(malai vembu in tamil) is the most common tree grown in non-irrigated areas. Fetches decent returns too.
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Old 8th January 2013, 22:36   #71
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

@tomthump and @ramzsys: thank you for your replies and apologies for the delayed response.

Coming to think about it, it makes sense to go in for firewood-type trees that are remunerative sooner. As ramzsys suggested, Melia Dubia looks to be a good option. One of my relative has planted this and I will get in touch with him to get a first-hand information about this. Thank you tomthump for the materials.

We at Tamil Nadu are facing a dry summer with acute power shortage this year. Hoping for a better rainy season later on and that will be the right time for planting the saplings.

Let me see how it goes and thanks again.
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Old 9th January 2013, 13:12   #72
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

Amazing thread and don't know how I missed this all this while.

Though - we have lands to the tune of 40+ acres but they are in small pockets. I will be venturing into this shortly and in the process of buying land of 10+ acres in one parcel. Looking at closer to my village in Thiruvallur District or even in border towns of andhra (tada to srikalahasti or satyavedu to srikalahasti route). If anyone has any contacts - let me know.

Will keep you posted and until them - will be hooked on to this thread!

Meanwhile - came across this portal from TNAU very useful. Hope this helps. http://agritech.tnau.ac.in/

Last edited by maheshramaling : 9th January 2013 at 13:16. Reason: Addition
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Old 10th January 2013, 11:18   #73
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

Well for folks who want more info you should check out the channel by kissankerala. The language may be a prob but do watch it.
http://www.youtube.com/user/kissankerala
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Old 10th January 2013, 17:27   #74
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Re: Calling all Team-BHP Farmers : The Farming Thread!

Quote:
Originally Posted by null View Post
Any recommendations / pointers on land availability? Pl. PM me if you have references or suggestions so that we can discuss

Thanks in advance.
If you have received any info on this then please let me know.
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Old 11th January 2013, 22:10   #75
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Quote:
Originally Posted by murillo
it makes sense to go in for firewood-type trees that are remunerative sooner.
@maheshramaling, @murillo,
Bamboo is also an option you could consider. Requires more water because they grow rapidly, and fast growth means greater speed = which I'd assume, transalates into greater evapo-transpiration rates calling for greater soil moisture, or efficient atmosphere cooling systems.
( We used to offer atmosphere cooling in Cardamom in the late 90's and the results were unbelievable!)
A friend offered me tissue cultured hybrid bamboo, that allegedly reaches harvest stage in three years, and then continues giving harvestable stems every year after. His 'promised' yield is 30 tonnes per acre the third year and 40 tonnes per year from the fourth year onwards.

I am sceptical, but as I also have lands available, I bought 50 plants from him and planted in a corner plot near a paddy field with running water. This was one year ago and the bamboo has grown well. I'll post pics next year after the plants are two years old.

But do read up on Bamboo too.
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