Durga’s Organic Farm turns hillside earmarked for housing into chemical-free food production

What was lined up to be carved into housing lots in 2003 is now Durga’s Organic Farm, where the operator says she saw cropland on the slope instead of subdivisions. From 2003 through 2008 she studied and experimented; the garden took clearer shape in 2008 once she had assistance. She describes herself as still learning farming technique yet reliably supplying food—first for household and friends, with surplus shared more widely.

Her approach treats soil as the foundation: compost made on site, mulch of leaves and other plant matter to hold moisture, rainwater collection paired with drip irrigation, and water-saving choices extending to sanitation. The property uses a dry, waterless composting toilet with two linked chambers—one housing the seat, the other outside—so material moves along a slope for natural breakdown into humus.

Vermicomposting relies on California red wiggler worms she breeds and trades; castings appear as small dark granules she calls especially rich. Alongside that sits familiar turned compost with an open, structured texture she says lets microbes, air and water move freely. She also runs a Johnson-Su-style static pile: vertical pipes with perforations form “chimneys” through the heap for aeration so the pile need not be turned—moisture is managed with rain, tarps or watering as conditions demand.

Mulching, mound-style beds and intercropping mix greens, lettuce, tomatoes, pumpkins and herbs with livestock, reflecting a belief that monoculture is unnatural and that diversity can baffle pests and steady the soil. On whether yields are possible without synthetic fertiliser, she answers yes, arguing chemicals can lift output quickly but undermine long-term soil health; home-grown inputs can cut cost, and she cites health, flavour and personal satisfaction as reasons she wanted food grown without “poison” on it.

Viewers interested in starting organic production are pointed toward the Jamaica Organic Agriculture Movement as a place to meet other growers.