Publish Date: | Sun, 27 Feb 2022 07:37 AM (IST)
Sandeep Tiwari, Raipur (New Zealand). During the Corona period, the demand for Ashwagandha, which is rich in medicinal properties, has increased across the country. Kishore Kumar Rajput, a young and progressive farmer of Nawagarh, Nagar Panchayat of Bemetara, has got orders for five tonnes from Lucknow-based company, 10 tonnes from Bangalore and three tonnes of Ashwagandha from Prayagraj company. Kishor had taken 35 acres of land on lease and planted Ashwagandha crop in December, which is now flourishing.
Root, stem and leaves are all sold
The root, leaf, stem, seed of Ashwagandha are all sold at different prices. Making powder of its root and selling it also gives good income. Ashwagandha root is currently selling between Rs 250 to 500 per kg. At the same time, its stem and leaves are being sold at Rs 70 to 120 and seeds at the rate of Rs 150 to 200 per kg. It is used in making potent medicine. It is considered to be a powerful, invigorating, memory enhancer, anti-stress, anti-cancer drug. Before the corona virus, Kishor used to cultivate only one acre of land at a cost of 10 thousand, so he used to earn up to Rs. On the rest of the land, along with other medicinal crops, crops of paddy, wheat, gram, mustard, pea, tivara were taken.
cultivating in the traditional way
Kishore Rajput says that the land becomes poisonous due to chemical fertilizers, so Ashwagandha is also being cultivated in a traditional way. He is engaged in producing manure from cow dung, cow urine etc. For the cultivation of Ashwagandha, sandy, loamy soil or light red soil is suitable, which has a pH value of 7.5 to eight. For nursery, 5 kg per hectare and for spraying 9 to 10 kg seed is required per acre. The best time for sowing the seeds of Ashwagandha is from July to December. Ashwagandha is ready in 150 to 170 days after sowing the crop in the field.
completely safe from animals
Medicinal agriculture expert Anjan Kumar Joshi says that Ashwagandha with the scent of horse is completely safe from animals. Animals do not eat it. Hence this crop is completely safe. Kishor is now also working to motivate the farmers around him and his acquaintances to take up the cultivation of Ashwagandha.
Posted By: Sanjay Srivastava