Ragi Masterclass
Ragi is not merely a millet; it contains within itself a story of resilience, nourishment, and the kind of farming that can carry us into a climate-uncertain future. At the Good Food Movement, we’re setting out to grow ragi (finger millet) on a 2-acre plot in Tiptur, Karnataka, using traditional, organic methods—and we’re inviting you to follow every step with us. The land is divided into four half-acre plots, each a small experiment in what sustainable, mindful cultivation can look like. Over the next few months, we’ll take you through the full journey: sowing cover crops, choosing the right seeds, planting, tending, harvesting, and everything we learn along the way. Think of this live blog as a diary from the fields that you can walk through at any time. Whether you’re a farmer, student, policymaker, or simply someone who cares about good food and a healthier planet, this series is a chance to reconnect with one of India’s oldest, most important grains, right when its wisdom feels most urgent. Alongside this blog, we’re also documenting the entire process in our Masterclass videos and explainers on our website (from ragi vs. rice to how this millet has long thrived in intercropped systems), so you can go deeper whenever you like. Come grow with us.
<span class="time-wrap">April 23, 2025</span>
Germination Check
A week after broadcasting the cover crop mix, the first field check showed a healthy 80% germination rate. The legumes, especially horse gram and cowpea, were the quickest to emerge, their sturdy cotyledons pushing through the warming soil. Sunhemp followed closely, creating the early scaffolding for biomass. Foxtail millet appeared in fine, even streaks, signalling good soil–seed contact from the light rotavator pass.
An 80% germination rate is ideal for this stage: dense enough to form a protective canopy, but still airy enough to prevent overcrowding as temperatures rise toward May. Over the next few weeks, this green cover will help shield the soil, conserve moisture, and begin the slow work of improving structure ahead of the ragi season.
<span class="time-wrap">April 15, 2025</span>
Cover Crop Sowing
Cover crops are a class of crops with a short growing phase, which are sown between the harvests of main crops to protect and rebuild the soil. They naturally fix nitrogen, improve moisture retention and keep the soil active and covered through the dryer months, protecting it from the harsh sun. Once they grow, they are mixed back into the soil, adding plenty of natural biomass and organic matter, eliminating the need for chemical fertilisers.
In rain-fed agriculture, like how GFM is growing ragi, this ‘living mulch’ phase is crucial for carrying the field into the monsoon. Today’s work in our field in Tiptur centred on establishing this cover layer. We mixed a diverse seed blend: horse gram (huruli) for nitrogen fixation, cowpea (alasande) for rapid ground cover, sunhemp for biomass and soil aeration, foxtail millet for quick sprouting, and small amounts of cluster beans and greengram to balance the mix. The seeds were hand-broadcast evenly across the field.
Traditionally, farmers always began with hand broadcasting: scattering a mix of seeds across the land before the first monsoon showers. You walk along the rows in the field and swing your hand from right to left, scattering seeds in a gentle motion. Then, retrace your steps backwards to ensure an evenness to the sowing. Sometimes, you may step on a seed, but this actually pushes it into the soil rather than destroying it. Ragi, a hardy monocot that needs oxygen-rich, well-aerated soil, benefits from this minimal disturbance.
Today, we tried to reconnect with this native art of sowing. A light trot with the rotavator followed, incorporating the seeds into the topsoil just enough to ensure contact with the earth, and conserving moisture as the pre-monsoon build-up begins.