IRMT: THE ORCHARD

Colonel Rennick, one of the biggest landlords in the Valley, and the first owner of the Hall Estate, was also a pioneer in planting apple trees around the valley, as well as other varieties of fruits. During his life in Naggar, his ‘Hall Estate Orchard’ was the most well-known in the whole region. He grew different sorts of apples, plums, cherries, pears, apricots, walnuts, almonds and so on.

When Roerich family bought the Estate from the Raja of Mandi, they continued in further cultivation of the orchard, yielding great crops which heped them to survive during hard years when financing of the Urusvati Himalayan Research Institute was stopped by American trustees of the Roerich Museum in New York.

Unfortunately, after Roerichs left from the valley, orchard was rather neglected for many years. Trees grew old, and in the absence of proper care, became infected with various diseases, and consequently it resulted in very poor crops. Moreover, the biggest problem farmers are being challenged with in this valley – attacks of monkeys, have almost finished the fruit trees.

Nowadays, IRMT is trying to revive what is possible. We can’t boost with great results yet, because lack of money results in insufficient workers force which can be thrown in for saving the orchard. Nevertheless, this year we have removed many old, basically dead trees, and planted new fruit trees.

One chowkidar is working round the year in the orchard, chasing monkeys, thus saving the crop from the animals, and sometimes human encroachers to the orchard.

We made a step forward the bio organic farming, planning in the future to fully abandon application of any chemical fertilizers and use only natural fertilizers. Construction was made according to proper rules and special worms were purchased. They are ‘in work’ for almost one year and doing really well, showing great appetite! The manure produced by them will be used for the best fruit trees that yield good crop.

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