Nilgiri Mountain Vegetable Cultivation of Ooty Tamil Nadu

Ooty (Udhagamandalam) and the Nilgiri plateau in Tamil Nadu are a major production centre for temperate vegetables — carrots, beans, cabbage, peas, potatoes, and beetroot — that cannot be grown in the hot Indian plains. The cool climate (4-17 degrees Celsius) and rich red laterite soil of the Nilgiris produce vegetables of exceptional quality and flavour. Small-scale farmers on terraced hill slopes supply Ooty vegetable markets and distribute to urban centres across South India. The Badaga community are the traditional farmers of the Nilgiri plateau. Nilgiri organic vegetables are certified under cooperative schemes. The carrot and potato varieties grown at Nilgiri altitude command premium price at Chennai and Bengaluru markets. Climate change is threatening the cool Nilgiri microclimate with rising temperatures. Tourism-related floriculture has displaced some vegetable cultivation, raising food security concerns.