Contextual Research

Field study & Interactions

Locations : Sector 21, Sector 7, Kudasan ( Shukan heights apartment, Anand nursery, Umia nursery ), Gymkhana, Chiloda

AIM :

• To understand the clientele mentality, their settlements ( both infrastructure & the society ), their lifestyle.
• To observe the behavioural pattern of the kids and their activities.
• To test the relevance of our ideas through interactions with the experts and the parents.
• To map the existing resources available for gardening & farming and their suppliers.
• To select the possible areas of operation.

Interacting with the farmers and nursery owners about agricultural issues and other relevant requirements.

Meeting parents & children, visting their houses for better insights on their needs, knowledge & lifestyle

OBSERVATION & INFERENCES:

ABOUT THE PEOPLE

· Children of age 3 – 5 yrs were found to be more proactive, curious, narrative and interactive than the elder kids ( above 5 yrs age ) who were more reserved and conscious about their actions.

· Some of the children were reported by their parents to be more interested in the activity of watering, plucking flowers, fruits and vegetables rather than taking care the plants in a daily routine.

· The kids were found to have a good knowledge in identifying most of the ingredients used in the dishes as per their age.

· A majority of the kids were attentive and displayed their curiosity during their conversation and pictorial display organized by our team.

· The children with whom we interacted were found to have a good memory about the things that they seen related to plants, trees and animals.

· Television shows like Dora the explorer, chota bheem, Discovery, Animal planet and daily soaps based on village were reported to be the source of information about farming.

· Visits to vegetable & fruit markets, Ancestral houses were also the another source of information.

· A very few students approached solo for the interactive picture display, most of them came with their parents and playmates.

· The subjects and hands on activities introduced to the preschool kids were found to be very thoughtful in forming their knowledge base.

· Summer camps and school exhibitions have been described by the kids & parents as the platforms of live demonstration of the text book information. They include activities like painting, recitations, plays & short skits, planting saplings and demonstration of germination process.

· Most of the parents in the urban area were supportive of the idea of educating and sensitizing their kids about their surroundings as they are of tender age.

· The parents also stated they involve their kids in basic household tasks to make them aware of how the things function in real life situations.

· Some of the parents believe that experience is very essential in the process of learning because it is found to set an imprint on the kids minds.

· A majority of the families were found to be living in rented apartments because of the basis of their job transfer and better opportunities in lifestyle. This was a reason for them to not involve oneself in owning plants or pets.

· Time schedule and job was stated as another hindrance while owning plants which needs care on a daily basis.

· The interests and work of the parents have been found to be very influential in the types of activities the kids are associated in their daily routine.

ABOUT THE LOCALITY, INFRASTRUCTURE & GARDENING PRACTICES

§ The balconies, steps, parapet walls and terraces were found to be the most favoured spots for the planting, gardening and other purposes.

§ Most of the spaces where the plants were kept didn’t have any protective net or shade. A very few individuals have taken care of it in their spaces.

§ The city of Gandhinagar has a lot of vertical housing structures which has also curtailed the provision of owning a suitable space for gardening and other purposes.

§ The plants grown or found in most of the houses were ornamental in nature and few were in the edible group.

§ The dirt and water drippping were two important issues while having a plant at home.

§ Insects were reported by the owners only in very few cases because none of the houses had extensive plots or spaces containing plants.

§ The reuse of kitchen water in gardening was reported by a few parents.

§ The use of vegetable and fruit wastes were also mentioned for increasing the fertility of the soil of plants that the families were growing.

§ The local nurseries, flower shows ( Ahmedabad ) and online websites ( nurserylive.com, plantsguru.com) were some of the sources for procuring the plants and the other garden assortments as stated by the families. These organisations were the probable contenders in our planned operational zone.

§ DIY planters, wooden bases, plates, bottles, buckets, concrete blocks were the things that were seen in the houses which had plants.

§ As stated by the owners the objective of having plants at home was for mainly aesthetics, religious, medicinal purpose and very few for edible needs. The edible need plants which were seen in the apartments were small in size like coriander, mint, onion, potato, wheat grass.