Farming in kenya

I watched a very interesting programme this evening on BBC2, Jimmy’s Global Harvest. I hadn’t seen the previous episodes and this was the last one, and it focused on Kenya.

First stop was in Luanda where he visited two shambas growing maize. The first showed a poor crop which did not provide enough food to feed the farmer’s family. The second, smaller farm was not only growing enough to feed his family of 8, but had a surplus for sale.

The first farm was blighted with stem boring moth larvae, which eat the fibre of the maize plant, killing it. It also had striga weed growing among the maize plants. This weed is parasitical, seeking out the root of the maize plant and tapping it for nutrients.

So what did farmer 2 do that farmer 1 didn’t?

He used a low technology solution to combat the stem boring moth. He planted desmodium amongst his maize plants. Desmodium lets off a chemical that repels the stem borer moth. He also planted napier grass (or Uganda grass, elephant grass) which attracts and traps the moth.

Desmodium has a second use inasmuch as its roots give off a chemical that actually kills the roots of the striga weed.

So farmer 2 was producing far more maize than his neighbour.

The next stop was a banana research unit in Thika, run by Dr. Florence Wambugu.

The problem for banana growers is that to produce a new tree, farmers traditionally dig up a sucker from a main tree and transplant it. Unfortunately, he will also transplant any sickness and disease in the plant and in the soil.

Dr. Wambugu has developed a laboratory process that not only produces disease free plants, but also, she can produce 1,000 new trees from a single sucker plant. this technology is certainly NOT low tech, but it is not so complex that it could not be set up regionally.

Third stop was in Naivasha, where the control of red spider mite was the problem in the massive hot houses growing cut flowers for export. They have cut their pesticide spray by 50% by introducing a bug called phytoseiulus, which eats red spider mites, then themselves, leaving the plants virtually bug-free.

The programme continued with a visit to the north-east where camels are farmed for their milk and finally to Selengei were it was found that the Maasai red sheep has built up an immunity to wire worm, neither of which were relevant to our River Cottage plot in Kisii, or to farming in Nyanza in general.

But, we know farmers in our area who grow maize and have a problem with stem borers, and others with diseased banana trees, so a bit more research by KCIS, then an educational trip is called for, I guess.

Also posted on Tool-using Thing-maker

That's a Rash Idea

My imagination has been running away with me - again!

OK, so the idea is this - I don't remember suffering a fever at the time ...

On our plot in Kisii, Kenya, there is a two-room hut, not a cottage, not a bungalow, a hut, made of sticks, stones and mud. At least the roof is corrugated steel. There are proper windows and doors, with security grilles.

There is a corridor running front to back between the two rooms with doors to the outside at both ends.

As the hut is built on the side of a hill, the back faces a small cliff and there is an open passageway running between the hut and this cliff. There is also a small appendage which could be used as a "kitchen".

So, my idea is ... to live there for a while ~ no electricity, no running water.

But, while I am there, I want to carry out some minor improvements.

First off, I will install water, with a tank on the cliff behind the hut, to give a head. This will supply an outside shower and maybe running water to the kitchen.

Second, a home-made portaloo. I want to use the waste to collect the methane, which will eventually power a generator and a water pump (there is a river at the bottom of the plot).

Then there is the land itself. On top of the cliff, the land is a lot flatter than in front of the hut. It is very fertile and I reckon, from memory, there is enough to grow crops to feed all the kids on the orphanage register, with some left over to sell.

A by-product of the methane production is fertiliser. This together with composting will keep the soil rich, which will be necessary as I want two or three crops a year - it rains all year round in Kisii.

Linking into these improvements, I will be experimenting with using the sun to warm water for washing, and water filtration and purification. I also seem to remember building a food cooler when I was at school - but that was in 19 - yes well, it was a long time ago.

To finish off the place, I will make a BBQ out of ½ an oil barrel, so that the kids can sample the delights of a burger or hot dog (you know the type, burnt on the outside, raw in the middle).

What I had forgotten when dreaming up all this is that I am approaching 60, I am not the fittest person in the world, and I am mildly disabled. Further, Kisii is at 5,700 feet and oxygen is a bit thin.

Still, it will be an experience and it will allow me to tinker with the project designs and get them to work to their best effect.

Wish me luck!