FASHION IN DUBAI

Dubai: A three-star hotel in Dubai is serving customers with produce grown in its own backyard.
From herbs to vegetables, the Arabian Park Hotel of the Wafi retail group caters to a significant part of its cuisine requirements for five to six months of the year with fresh, home-grown produce from its organic garden, Girish Babu, Chef de Cuisine of the hotel, said.
Money wise
Babu said that between October 2008 and May 2009, the garden generated 80kg of parsley, 100kg tomatoes, 40kg bell peppers, 100kg Italian Rocca, 120kg local Rocca, 50kg lettuce oak leaves, 40kg mixed basil, 20kg eggplant, 15kg pakchoy and 15kg dill leaves.
The produce generated, which also includes pumpkin, mint, rosemary, thyme, cucumber and hash melons, resulted in a cost savings of over Dh6,000 during the period, he said, adding that: "This year, we expect the figure to double."
Mark Lee, General Manager of the hotel, said: "It's not so much about cost savings as it is about the whole idea of the organic experiment with the involvement of the hotel staff as a team." He said ever since the garden started operating, the hotel has been organising a Garden Day every month, when staff from different divisions converge on the backyard to help Babu and his gardener Raju with designated tasks. "It's fun and educative," he added.
Babu said the idea of cultivating the organic garden began with a modest project, with Rocca leaves on a patch of five square metres in 2007. Today, the garden covers 370 square metres with rare herbs and vegetables. For example, the basil grown includes five strains — lemon, cinnamon, purple, Thai and Italian, just as tomatoes are of the purple, red cherry (round and long) and yellow cherry (round and long) varieties.
Babu said the area had been specially treated with red sand, which has less salt and lime to make it fit for cultivation. The use of potting soil with micro-nutrients and other natural products has preserved the organic nature of the garden, he said, pointing at how garlic juice is sprayed on the plants as a pesticide. "If it doesn't work, we remove the plant itself," he added.