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| Mulloor Joseph, Pasukkadavu Malayorath, near Kuttiyadi, Kozhikkode Ph:0496- 2666335 |
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Though he was fond of growing medicinal plants since his younger days, Mulloor Joseph of Pasukkadavu Malayorath, near Kuttiyadi, Kozhikkode turned his full attention to its cultivation 5 years ago. And a pleasant byproduct of his labour was the improvement in his own health.
Earlier he was troubled by back ache and neck pain and had to consume tablets worth Rs.30 daily. But as a result of moving among medicinal plants day in and day out, these pains have gone for good and he has stopped taking tablets since the last 2 years. His family too enjoys the shield of good health and no insects or mosquitoes dare to disturb their life.
Joseph’s farm is a trove of more than 600 varieties of medicinal plants. Of these, more than 200 are rare or even extremely scarce. He had to make lot of efforts and travels to get some of these, which include the traditional repertoire of adivasi healers.
He sells his produce to few Ayurveda shops in Kozhikkode, Thrissur and Vatakara. In fact, he says that the demand always exceeds whatever he can supply.
The only manure given to the plants is biogas slurry – in summer a diluted version and in monsoon as such. In order to prevent top soil erosion, he avoids applying spade to the soil. The weeds are plucked but the soil is kept undisturbed.
“Neelachembu”, used in post natal care of women, “Jeevavamsini” that is supposed to raise a man from his deathbed, “Analivegam” that banishes snakes from the neighbourhood are some of the exotic varieties found in his farm.
According to him, there are some disciplines for plucking the produce: some should be plucked only at 4o’clock in the morning, some only during daylight hours and still some which should not be touched by women.
Courtesy: P.C.Rajan, Karshakashree, February 2005
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