GAMA Karshakasree 2025 – The Ultimate Gardening Challenge
Do you love to cultivate in your backyard, front yard, apartment patio or kitchen countertop?
Whether you are an avid gardener or a hobbyist, it’s time for you to challenge yourself and
take it to the next level! Greater Austin Malayalee Association (GAMA) invites all Greater
Austin residents to register for the “GAMA Karshakasree 2025” Gardening Challenge.
Objective:
The objective of the GAMA Karshakasree 2025 is to promote gardening and sustainable
agriculture practices among GAMA community members and to encourage them to
showcase their gardening skills.
Contestants:
The contest is open to all Greater Austin Malayali Residents who have a passion for
gardening and sustainability.
Age Group:
No age restrictions.
There are no restrictions on the number of participants in a group.
Categories:
1. Home Vegetable Gardeners
2. Apartment Patio/Balcony/Counter top- Vegetable/Flower/Microgreens/Mixed
3. Home Flower/Landscaping Gardeners
Competition Format:
The competition will be divided into three rounds:
Registration
Register your name and contact details for the challenge. Registration Start date : June 5th,
2025. Please use the same email id for all submissions.
Round 1: Email Submission of proposal
Participants are required to submit an Email Document describing their gardening project.
The application form should include the following details:
●A brief description of the gardening project
●Type of garden (vegetable, flower, apartment patio/balcony garden, etc.)
●Size of the garden
●Types of plants planned to be grown
●Sustainability practices planned
●Challenges anticipated
●Photos and/or videos of the garden space you have chosen for this project.
Judging Criteria for Round 1:
●Creativity and originality of the gardening project
●Use of sustainable practices
●Quality of the application form and supporting materials (photos, videos, etc.)
Email submission to : Karshakasree@gama.ngo
Round 2: Monthly update on progress of the project
Please update on the progress of this project with:
●Photo/video of sprouts/growth/harvest in the initially identified space.
●Any challenges encountered each month
●How the challenges were addressed.
Share this details every month till challenge ends
Email Progress to : Karshakasree@gama.ngo
Round 2 will be evaluated with contents submitted and top 5 finalists will be
identified. Submission date will be announced soon.
Round 3: On-Site Visit
The top 5 participants from Round 2 will be invited for an on-site visit by the judges to
evaluate the garden project. The on-site visit will include a detailed inspection of the initially
identified garden space, interaction with the participant, and a Q&A session.
Judging Criteria for Round 3:
●Alignment with the initial plan that was submitted.
●Overall garden design and aesthetics
●Health and growth of the plants
●Use of sustainable practices
●Innovation in gardening techniques
●Effectiveness in addressing challenges faced
Timeline:
●Registration/initial write-up deadline: June 20, 2025
●Round 1 – Picture/Video Submission: June 30, 2025
●Round 2 – Picture/Video Submission: July 15, 2025
●Round 3 – Picture/Video Submission: July 30, 2025
●On-site visit and judging for Round 3: August 15, 2025
●Announcement of winners: August 20, 2025
●Prizes -Trophies will be distributed during GAMA Onam.
Guidelines:
●Garden Design: Layout of the garden, the visual appearance, arrangement of plants,
overall landscape, and creativity.
●Diversity: Growing and producing with distinct vegetables, herbs/spices used for
Kerala style cooking. Fruits from the new plants can also be considered for the
vegetable gardeners category.
●Resource Utilization: Organic/Non-GMO (Optional),use of non-genetically modified
seeds, natural fertilizers, and biological pest controls , water consumption etc.
●Garden Tour: Providing a video tour about the garden, farming methods, cultivation
experience, which can be a competitive consideration and an inspiration for the
community who want to start vegetable gardening.
●Quality of Produce: This includes external factors as appearance (size, shape, color,
gloss)
●Flower Garden: A flower Garden is any garden where flowers are grown and
displayed. Growing and producing flowers with distinct colours that provide a sense
of calm and visual unity. Suggestion to include Texas Native varieties for better water
utilization as well as sustenance.
Seeds/Plants Distribution:
Notes: Participants need to use their own seeds. GAMA may facilitate seed exchange
programs. However, GAMA may not be responsible for the quality of seeds.
Registration and Submission Process:
Online Registration Form
o Name of the participant
o Type of Garden (Backyard, Patio/Counter top, Flower Garden)
o Phone number
o Email
o Address
Email Submissions
Videos and or pictures of the following will be considered for judging
●Planting (optional for those who have grown up plants)
●Plant growth (Lifecycle) and maintenance
●Produce on the plants before harvesting
●Produce after harvesting
The Documents, videos and or pictures must be emailed to KarshakaSree@gama.ngo by
the deadlines for each round.
A Whatsapp group may be created to communicate and share details, share seeds etc
between participants to make sure to update on gardening skills. This will be valid till the
announcement of winners.
Maximum Ten (10) number of Documents, videos and or pictures are allowed.
Maximum allowed duration of the Videos – 4 minutes.
Maximum allowed size of the files – 25 MB.
File name format:
●Document should be in pdf format
●ParticpantnameXX.mp4
●ParticipantnameXX_plantname(s).jpeg
●XX stands for numbers.
GAMA reserves the right to ask for more pictures and or and videos if deemed necessary.
Disclaimer/Waiver:
Award winners, along with the garden/harvest pictures and videos will be published through
GAMA Social media communications.
Judging:
●The initial round of judging occurs via the submitted videos and or pictures
●After reviewing the pictures and videos, the GAMA member may request video calls
with the participants.
●GAMA team may visit the backyard garden/Patio if deemed necessary (in-person
Judgement) for the final decisions.
Conclusion:
The GAMA Karshakasree 2025 gardening contest is a unique opportunity facilitated by
Greater Austin Malayalee Association for the Greater Austin Residents to showcase their
gardening skills and promote sustainable agriculture practices. We hope to see enthusiastic
participation from the community and look forward to a successful event.
Questions? KarshakaSree@gama.ngo