PATTA BANK

 PATTA BANK

 

LT COL NOEL ELLIS

11/VI/2024

 

It gives us great pleasure to announce that we have been blessed with ‘thirty’ babies. Surprised! We are feeling so happy to welcome them to our fold.

Let me cut the mystery short. A few days back, I had started a project of planting Moringa/Drumstick seeds. Seed pods were available next doors and were beckoning to be taken home.

To plant them, we had enough nursery bags. Every time we pick up seasonal flowers, bags hang around. We do not tear/shear them, but save them. I reused 50 of them for this project.

Two empty coconut shells were also used as improvised pots to germinate seeds. Their roots shall stay protected and hydrated naturally.

We also have started our own ‘Patta Bank’. Sounds funny. It is the oldest bank on earth.

The interest it gives on deposits is mind blowing. No bank, share or mutual fund can give such overwhelming returns. This bank charges no fee but gives you super compounded interest.

There are no employees, no vaults, no counters, or forms to be filled. It just takes a little space to start this institution. There are no queues, no jostling, no tellers, and no managers required to operate it. You just have to visit it once a month.

The processes in this bank appear slow. For the deposit to mature it takes at least 90 days. Money looks contracted, shrivelled, discoloured and starts disappearing slowly. Notes when deposited could be green or brown but are returned as ‘gold’.

Even if you withdraw prematurely, this bank does not penalise you. You can deposit any amount with no surcharge, tax issues or ED sleuths breathing over you.

This ‘leaf bank’ turns every organic material and garden waste into manure. A little moisture and some churning from time-to-time starts giving returns within days. One just has to invest and forget about it.

So, we withdrew some gold from our ‘Patta Bank’ and mixed it up with garden soil to be filled in those bags. This mixture has acted as a boon. In ten days, the saplings are already six inches tall. By the time the monsoons would set in, plants would be mature enough to sustain themselves. If they last one season with a little care, their benefits would be enjoyed by many.

We wanted to thank the owner of the mother Sahjan plant. Fortunately, we met the couple this morning. The lady requested us to share ‘Chilli Pepper’ plants. We had two to spare. Without wasting any time, we presented them and brought smiles.

My last article on Moringa got me so many messages. Many friends have asked for seeds. My apologies, as it is too hot to venture out to courier them. Once the weather is tolerable, they shall be dispatched.

It is a morning well begun. We shall soon give away our babies to people who will look after them.

A suggestion to all plant lovers, who even live in flats. A pot, an old pitcher or even a garbage bag can be used as a ‘Patta Bank’. It is a multivitamin tonic for plants for zero investments.

I know manure is readily available off the shelf. Let me put to rest the myth that the contents of the Patta Bank emanate a bad smell, they don’t. Will garden lovers try it? I wonder!!!!!!

 

JAI HIND

© ® NOEL ELLIS