The Monsoon Color Blast

 

Sourly Young ‘Appe Midis’, Culinary ‘Magekay’ Melons, enough ‘Jack Papads’ to savor in the coming monsoons is what ‘Havyaka Women’ of ‘Uttara Kannada’ desires the most. Heavy rains in olden days, almost difficult to travel, might have tied them indoors, prompting them to engage in other activities like experimenting with cooking, tending home gardens, handcrafting. Their quest for seeds and plant cuttings is constant, be it a casual visit or gatherings at neighbors, friends and relatives.

Blooms Bring Joy

Chrysanthemum, Hibiscus, Balsams, and specially Dahlias! Havyaka women enjoy raising these flowering plants to the fullest. “Chrysanthemums are very delicate to grow, hibiscus face mealy bug infestations, balsams are fragile to watering, But Dahlias, I love them! They are easy to care, add good amount of biomass, they grow lush green, flower at once, creating a rainbow of flowers soothing the eyes and the mind”, says Netra Bhat of ‘Kalgar Vaddu’ village, Sirsi, who maintains a personal collection of 50+ varieties of Dahlias, all by her own.

Dahlias are propagated from tubers and cuttings. Stem cuttings planted will develop tubers for next season. At the end of rainy season, after the plants dry out, tubers are given enough time to loose moisture, dug out, stored in dry sand until next season. Now-a-days, they are left as it is in the nursery bags/pots.

 “As the black clouds appear in the sky, signaling the first drop of rain, we bring out the grow bags containing dormant tubers from the last season, piled in a shady corner of cow shed. The Dahlia tubers will already be sprouting as if they have sensed the season. The grow bags will be arranged side by side outdoor, topped up with new soil and a layer of areca husk. On receiving good rain, they flush out new shoots, stems growing longer, we then provide staking. In a month, flower buds appear, and blasts into joy, in an unmatchable beauty”, speaks Sucheta Hegde who is a mother to hundreds of Dahlia babies. “This year, monsoons failed, Dahlias struggled to grow, even though I watered them twice a day with hose pipe. I couldn’t participate in this year’s ‘Dere Mela’, a yearly fair that showcases varieties of Dahlias grown by local women, available for buy and sell, in June, as the plants were not ready by the time” She adds.

Floral Delight

Named after Swedish Botanist Dr.Andreas Dahl, these beauties are originally from Mexico and Central America. There are at least 27 species of Dahlia worldwide. They were introduced to India in 1857, and prospered as if they are native. Now they are naturalized our land with diverse colors, hues, patterns, shapes, forms and sizes.

“A tuber from solid white flowering mother plant can surprisingly give rise to pink speckled white flowered offspring the next season. This can be attributed to the highly pronounced genetic instability in Dahlias. Chromosomal aberrations leading to bud sports (natural mutation in simpler terms), possession of transposons or jumping genes, effect of location and weather on genetic makeup, might all be the factors influencing the heterogeneity” says Dr.Harshavardhan, Assistant professor of floriculture and Landscape Architecture, College of Horticulture, Sirsi.

So, if you ever happen to visit Malenadu in mid monsoons don’t miss this breath taking view of blooming Dahlias, gracing every household.