Here in the mid-hills of Nepal, in the district of Kavre, in
a little village called Patlekhet, is a farm called Hasera. The name Hasera
comes from three colors: Hariyo (green) Setho (white) Ratho (red). Hariyo is for
fruits and veggies, white is for dairy products, and red is for meat products.
Ha Se Ra.
But Hasera is not really a production farm. Hasera is
primarily a training and research farm. It was started some twenty years ago by
Govinda Sharma and his wife Mithu. After studying agriculture in the
Netherlands, Govinda started the farm using the principles of permaculture and
his own traditional Nepali farming background. Govinda and Mithu conduct many
different trainings, from three-day organic farming courses for local farmers
to a fourteen-day comprehensive International Permaculture Design Course (which
has so far had members from seventy-four different countries).
Besides the trainings, Govinda conducts research on the farm
and in the surrounding area. Studying which varieties of crops give the best
yields in this area, testing different methods of irrigation, and documenting
the use of chemicals and their effects in the village farms, this research is
done to benefit the farming communities in Patlekhet and the surrounding areas.
Govinda also has a quite extensive seed bank of local varieties of crops, and
encourages the farmers in the area to avoid hybrid and GMO seeds, in addition
to raising awareness about the effect of chemical pesticides and fertilizers on
the land and people.
Hasera also has many volunteers, foreign and Nepali (or in
my case foreign and Nepali) come through to learn, help out, and exchange
ideas. I will be here for about three or four weeks, hopefully to get a taste
of the practice of permaculture.
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The front of the farm with the nursery below |
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Waste not! Compost toilets mean all our human waste is used in the garden |
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Different varieties of local barley |
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View from the top of the farm, with the valley below |
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Water collection pond behind the animal shed |
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Building a terrace |
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Finished product |
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The front patio (AKA Zone 0) |
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