Some paper-work related to the irritating task of making insurance payments took me to Mapusa. Since I woke unusually early (7.30 am) the day seemed longer, and I thought of taking up some other form of 'insurance' too -- buying some planting material for this monsoon.
"Pick up a mangium from Vikas Nursery, near Ticlo's Petrol Pump (on the Mapusa-Guirim road)," my friend and Goanetter Miguel Braganza had told me some days ago. Acacia mangium [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acacia_mangium] is a perennial tree native to Australia and Asia. Common names for it include Black Wattle, Hickory Wattle and Mangium. Its uses include environmental management and wood. Acacia mangium grows up to 30m tall, often with a straight trunk. Acacia mangium has about 142,000 seeds/kg. This, I educated myself about via the Wikipedia. Basically, I wanted some shade tree, to shelter from the eastern summer sun ... In addition to the mangium, a helpful young lady at Vikas Nursery Farms and Research Centre (promising "quality planting material") sold me two jackfruit eight inch grafts for Rs 50 each, two bimbli eight inch plants at Rs 30 each, and one jamb eight inch plant at Rs 40. For an investment of Rs 220 in all, one had a bagful of planting material, which Aren (a few days short of 5) found an interesting game to plant. He was thrilled with the idea that, if the plants' roots caught and they grew, he would one day be eating some tasty jack-fruits and more. Vikas is just one of the nurseries along the Mapusa-Guirim road. There are others in the region -- at Parra, Saligao -- and other parts of the state. Plant something if you can. This is the right time of the year. At Vikas, I ran into Mr and Mrs Pinto from Candolim, who came for a lookaround, and took one of those Laxmi Taru plants, now being promoted by priests like Father Inacio Almeida [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1dtkd_Rhtg] Contacts for Vikas are as follows: HO Dhargal, Pernem Taluka, Goa 403513. Branches; Kalne, Porvorim and Margao. Phone +91-832-6522088 or +91-9225900994 Email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Mobile +91-9225900992 or 9225900993 Interestingly, the firm gets some of its plans created and grafted (if I understood right) in nearby Maharashtra. It also converted a small field patch into its place for storing and selling planting material. Which only goes to show... it makes sense to depend on others (states, people, whatever) or even convert a small agriculture field, if the net gain benefits Goa and her greenery in this case. FN PS: On the receipt was a line which said, "Plants once sold will not be taken back." Hence my choice of title. -- FN * Independent Journalist http://fn.goa-india.org Ph +91-832-2409490 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal:Goa http://www.linkedin.com/in/fredericknoronha