Have you ever seen Red Okras which are vibrant in colour and a treasure for health? Green okra are flooded in the markets but red okra is a rare sight for sure. Compared to normal okra that we easily get, red ones are rich in nutrients and their consumption is beneficial in order to deal with several health issues. Red okra is now cultivated in many parts of the Villupuram district in Tamil Nadu. These red okras are more expensive than the green lady finger due to the properties present in it. Thus, these have a lot of demand in the market and farmers too are now showing interest in cultivating this crop.
Pandiyan, one of the farmers who cultivate this crop said ” I will not sell these okras, I will just save them for seeds. I need to revive this vegetable as it almost faded from farming. People are turning to organic products now and people are also aware of the health benefits of many other vegetables. There are even more than 100 varieties of rare vegetables like black okras and blue brinjals. Now I just planted this to save the seeds. Next time I will cultivate more and sell these okras at a fair price.”
He further added, “The properties present in red ladyfinger are very beneficial for the body. It contains a sufficient amount of protein, which is very beneficial in the development of muscles in the body and works to keep the metabolism right. Compared to normal okra, red okra is rich in many nutrients and its consumption is beneficial for many problems in the body. Nutrients like iron, potassium, protein, calcium and dietary fibre are found in sufficient quantities in red okra. It is also equally good for pregnant women as it helps in the development of the fetus.”
Another Famer Mr.Marimuthu said “These veggies grow well during the monsoon season and during summer the leaves will shrink a little bit and become yellow. Farmers in Coimbatore and Tirupur are already cultivating these red okras more now only we people have started cultivating this crop. These okras are selling at a price of 100-150/ Kilogram in the markets and farmers can get a yield of up to 2 months whereas the green okras only give yielding for just 45 days. This variety of plants produces okras for longer periods when compared with green okras.”
I request the farmers to revive our traditional crops like this and share them with the next generation. Reviving the faded crops is one of our prime responsibilities that we should do to the next generation” said the farmer.
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