Thenmala: Visitors are flocking to the small farmer village of Churanda here near the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border to witness the breath taking view of sunflower fields in full bloom.
The rush that starts from 8 in the morning to explore the farms and to enjoy a peaceful day continues till night.
A 15 km journey from Sengottai will take you to the beautiful village of Churanda. A faraway picturesque view of yellow and green welcomes you here. Roads are built through the centre of the farms giving exceptional view to the travellers.
The soft breeze, greenery and the flowers attract travellers to spend hours and hours on the fields clicking pictures and selfies.
Sunflowers are farmed as an intermediate crop before paddy cultivation. Sunflowers can be cultivated on drought lands with less amount of water. Also, it can be harvested within 90 days. Matured flowers are kept on the 5.5-foot-high plants for almost a month for seed formation and maturation.
When the florets close to seeds start to shed, harvest will begin, said farmers.
Even though there are huge crowds visiting the area, farmers are still in crisis. Sunflowers are priced at Rs 35 per kilo.
This year, cotton is also cultivated on farmlands here in Churanda. Apart from cotton, lady’s finger, cucumber, corn etc are also cultivated here.
The vegetables cultivated here are sold at markets in Punaloor, Pathanapuram, Anchal and Kottarakkara.
