: MBA Grad Turns Experiments With Soil-Less Gardening Into a Business #IndiaNEWS #Agriculture One of the hardest things I faced while trying to set up a balcony garden in my Bengaluru home was sourcing

MBA Grad Turns Experiments With Soil-Less Gardening Into a Business #IndiaNEWS #Agriculture
One of the hardest things I faced while trying to set up a balcony garden in my Bengaluru home was sourcing good soil. No matter how much effort I put into taking care of the plants, they would die in about three weeks time. After consulting with my ‘green-thumbed’ friends I realised that the villain was the potting soil I used.
But as a saviour for several urban gardeners like myself, Anas Nasser of Aluva, Kerala has come up with a ‘soil-less’ potting mix using coco-peat and several other organic materials that replace soil completely.
“I grew up in a home with a garden and the entire gardening process fascinated me. And I learnt gardening tips from my parents who are expert gardeners. The varieties, its immense possibilities and the interest people have for it always made me feel that there was a lot to explore in this particular field,??? says 28-year-old Anas Nasser.
Despite his interest in gardening, Anas Nasser worked with an IT startup after graduating with an MBA in 2014 but continued to experiment to find new possibilities for gardening. After several attempts at finding eco-friendly and cost-effective gardening solutions, in 2017 Anas came up with ‘Organure’, a soil-less potting mix.
Gardening Without Soil?

Space and the availability of soil have always been a problem for gardeners living in urban homes like apartments.
“During all my experiments, I kept this problem in mind and that’s how I came up with the Organure potting mix. The mix is completely soil-free and is made from treated coco peat, the pulp extracted from the stem of banana, sugarcane extract and elements of water hyacinth that has been subject to bio-reaction,??? he explains.
“These raw materials are cleaned, treated and are then mixed in the required proportion. After this process, we also include natural fertilisers like seaweed to increase the mineral value of the soil,??? adds Anas.
The proportion of the components included in the mix is customised according to the plants to be potted, depending on whether they are medicinal, herbal, flowering plants or succulents.
Anas Nasser
“Succulents are often overlooked but they also have requirements that need to be met. These plants need more heat at the bottom, whereas the soil for herbs or fruits would require something more fertile. This is something that can be made possible by altering the proportions in our potting mix and sometimes even including more elements to the mix,??? he explains.
From his college days, Anas has been researching for alternate and eco-friendly ways of cultivation, especially for indoor spaces. In fact, he has been cultivating several varieties of plants in his own home with a kitchen garden that gives him a harvest of tomatoes, spinach, broccoli along with several ornamental and medicinal plants.

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