During our time in Gurgaon, it was common for Manisha or Agam to drive up to the farm over weekends and holidays. Sometimes it meant starting really early while it was still dark and there were many adventures on these driving trips. Sometimes, we were accompanied by the children or the parents, but at times we have even carted pets, honey bees and once 75 hens on this 5 hours ride! . . . . . . For more information on permaculture, visit www.aanandaa.com. You can contact us at [email protected] and +91 62838 99456. To take courses on permaculture visit www.permaculture.co.in Follow us on our social media handles FB: https://www.facebook.com/farmaanandaa/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/farmaanandaa/ YT: https://www.youtube.com/@farmaanandaa LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aanandaapermacultureproject/

The first social interaction we had in the village was attending the wedding of our nightwatchman and first employee Sunil. We had known Sunil from the time he first joined us, and seen him mature into a responsible householder over the last 7 years. The wedding was replete with old world rituals, little children running around, a shy bride & groom, a traditional baraat and festivities. We were welcomed into this gathering with open arms & warmth which is hard to find in urban families today. . . . For more information on permaculture, visit www.aanandaa.com. You can contact us at [email protected] and +91 62838 99456. To take courses on permaculture visit www.permaculture.co.in Follow us on our social media handles FB: https://www.facebook.com/farmaanandaa/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/farmaanandaa/ YT: https://www.youtube.com/@farmaanandaa LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aanandaapermacultureproject/

The dog and cat population on your land can quickly spiral out of control leading to uncared for dogs, accidents and incidents with stray dogs. While we enjoyed having small puppies and kittens to play with we realised over time that 'joy' was not a management strategy. We needed to keep only as many dogs and cats as we could care for and feed well. We started spaying and neutering all of them, and turned to local NGOs working in animal welfare whenever our stocking rates fell below optimal levels.  . . . For more information on permaculture, visit www.aanandaa.com. You can contact us at [email protected] and +91 62838 99456. To take courses on permaculture visit www.permaculture.co.in Follow us on our social media handles FB: https://www.facebook.com/farmaanandaa/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/farmaanandaa/ YT: https://www.youtube.com/@farmaanandaa LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aanandaapermacultureproject/

Raising hens or chicken was challenging for us. Desi/ native hens would often lay eggs but not sit on them to hatch into chicks. And day old chicks available commercially would have very high mortality on the farm. We were keen to integrate hens into the farm at a moderate scale to get a steady supply of eggs. But, we did not meet with much success. A visit to Kegg Farms in Gurgaon taught us a thing or two about the chicken & egg business. . . . For more information on permaculture, visit www.aanandaa.com. You can contact us at [email protected] and +91 62838 99456. To take courses on permaculture visit www.permaculture.co.in Follow us on our social media handles FB: https://www.facebook.com/farmaanandaa/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/farmaanandaa/ YT: https://www.youtube.com/@farmaanandaa LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aanandaapermacultureproject/

When we first began harvesting significant quantities of fruits and vegetables from our farm, we faced an unexpected challenge: we had more produce than we could consume, and no easy market to sell it. Living in Gurgaon at the time, we needed a way to ensure that the harvest did not go to waste. That journey led us into the world of traditional food preservation—pickles, jams, chutneys and preserves. In this episode, I talk about how our surplus produce became a valuable lesson in seasonality, self-sufficiency, reducing waste, and adding value to what the land provides. We discuss traditional preservation methods, the joy of sharing homemade products with friends and family, and why every farm should learn to celebrate abundance rather than fear it. A conversation about food, gratitude, and making the most of nature's generosity. . . . For more information on permaculture, visit www.aanandaa.com. You can contact us at [email protected] and +91 62838 99456. To take courses on permaculture visit www.permaculture.co.in Follow us on our social media handles FB: https://www.facebook.com/farmaanandaa/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/farmaanandaa/ YT: https://www.youtube.com/@farmaanandaa LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aanandaapermacultureproject/

While planting an orchard of fruit trees, one has to keep many factors in mind. The quality and variety of the sapling really matters, as does the care one takes of the graft as the tree grows. Many trees need special pruning or trimming seasonally, and one must have skilled people to manage that. I made a lot of mistakes with my fruit trees and learned the hard way! I wish someone had guided me better, but I was caught between monoculture orchard managers, and unskilled labour! . . . For more information on permaculture, visit www.aanandaa.com. You can contact us at [email protected] and +91 62838 99456. To take courses on permaculture visit www.permaculture.co.in Follow us on our social media handles FB: https://www.facebook.com/farmaanandaa/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/farmaanandaa/ YT: https://www.youtube.com/@farmaanandaa LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aanandaapermacultureproject/

First year of being around the mangoes - so many varieties - so much fruit! We were taking basket fulls back to Gurgaon and could eat a couple of quintals just by ourselves! We had planted a wide variety of mangoes at the start of Aanandaa, but lost track of which is which. We had to re aquaint ourselves with all the trees, and discovered that many were just the root stock and the scion stock had been cut off somewhere along the way! . . . For more information on permaculture, visit www.aanandaa.com. You can contact us at [email protected] and +91 62838 99456. To take courses on permaculture visit www.permaculture.co.in Follow us on our social media handles FB: https://www.facebook.com/farmaanandaa/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/farmaanandaa/ YT: https://www.youtube.com/@farmaanandaa LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aanandaapermacultureproject/

A Vegan get together resulted in a farm tour at Aanandaa. For the first time I took a group of visitors around the farm explaining to them the permaculture design principles in action. I learnt to articulate concepts and show them in motion. I had never planned to be a permaculture teacher or influencer - it is not something you can plan for. You can only practice to be one on every opportunity you get. And then one day people may want to listen to you and learn from you. . . . For more information on permaculture, visit www.aanandaa.com. You can contact us at [email protected] and +91 62838 99456. To take courses on permaculture visit www.permaculture.co.in Follow us on our social media handles FB: https://www.facebook.com/farmaanandaa/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/farmaanandaa/ YT: https://www.youtube.com/@farmaanandaa LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aanandaapermacultureproject/

When I look back at photos of 2016 onwards, I see a lot of animals at the farm. Cows were especially kept for cow manure and cow urine which was used to make jeevamrut. It was my belief back then that organic farming runs on these two ingredients. Over the years, I have had a change of heart. A permaculture farm does not run on cow manure - it runs on biomass. That is what makes the farm regenerative, and food highly nutritious. . . . For more information on permaculture, visit www.aanandaa.com. You can contact us at [email protected] and +91 62838 99456. To take courses on permaculture visit www.permaculture.co.in Follow us on our social media handles FB: https://www.facebook.com/farmaanandaa/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/farmaanandaa/ YT: https://www.youtube.com/@farmaanandaa LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aanandaapermacultureproject/

In May 2016, we decided to make a website for the farm. It was a project for our 13 year old who was showing interest in coding and software. We needed a URL, a logo, and a website hosting platform. It proved to be trickier than expected, but the children learnt some useful skills about branding, logos, web design and hosting! . . . For more information on permaculture, visit www.aanandaa.com. You can contact us at [email protected] and +91 62838 99456. To take courses on permaculture visit www.permaculture.co.in Follow us on our social media handles FB: https://www.facebook.com/farmaanandaa/ IG: https://www.instagram.com/farmaanandaa/ YT: https://www.youtube.com/@farmaanandaa LI: https://www.linkedin.com/company/aanandaapermacultureproject/