Smart farms

: 27 September 2017; Hits: 15140

Ex-Mukurweini sweet potato variety is good for food and fodder

Farmers growing Ex-Mukurweini potato variety stand high chance of benefiting from its multipurpose nature and double their income from selling the potato storage roots which are used as food by human beings and the vines as fodder for livestock.

Ex-Mukurweini has short maturity period compared to other potato varieties and their hardiness and resistance to diseases makes it one of the favorites to most farmers. Their high starch content also makes them a valuable source of energy for human beings and livestock, according to Kenya Agricultural Research Institute Report (KARI) 2005-2006.

“Ex-Mukurweini are highly vegetative sweet potato varieties with both high dry matter and crude protein content that are used as fodder supplement for dairy animals,” said Ephraim Mukisira, Director KARI adding that its high protein content foliage makes it a cheap source of protein for livestock feeding.

READ ALSO: Sweet potato vines and roots silage offers livestock more proteins
The potato grows best with a well-distributed annual rainfall of 600-1600 mm during the growing season. Dry weather favours the formation and development of storage roots which are later harvested for food.

Experts advise that if there is no critical dry season, Ex-Mukurweini sweet potato can be planted at any time. In regions with a critical dry season, planting early in the rainy season is the best. It is usually planted towards the end of the rainy season if this is long and very wet.

Planting an acre of sweet potatoes, one needs an average of 20 bags of vines. Cost of vines per bag is Sh1500 while 20 bags cost Sh30, 000. This is the cost of the vines whether for planting or fodder use. Ex-Mukurweini can produce between 20-30 tons per acre per year.

In case of the sweet potato storage roots consumption, a farmer should harvest within 4 months to prevent weevil damage using implements such as a stick, spade or hoe is to avoid any unnecessary post-harvest losses. Today, a 50 kg bag of sweet potatoes goes for between 2000 and 2500 in Nairobi.

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: 27 September 2017; Hits: 22216

Crops to grow for Export to reap maximum returns

A variety of horticultural crops which can be grown for export by smallholder farmers to earn maximum returns.

Smallholder farmers intending to reap maximum profits from their horticultural farms can grow a variety of crops that earn maximum profits in the outside market. According to the Export Promotion Council (EPC), Cut flowers, vegetables, fresh fruits, herbs and spices form the majority of horticultural exports from Kenya to other countries.

Cut Flowers

Cut flowers are flowers or flower buds that have been cut from the plant bearing it. According to the Kenya Flower Council, Kenya is the third largest exporter of cut flowers in the world, accounting for 38% of all sales in the European Union. Cut flowers from Kenya are famed for their long lasting nature and also popular in the United States and Russia and sixty other countries.

More than 500,000 smallholder farmers in the country depend on the trade according to the Kenya Flower Council (KFC). The main production areas are around Lake Naivasha, Mt. Kenya, Nairobi, Thika, Kiambu, Athi River, Kitale, Nakuru, Kericho, Nyandarua, Trans Nzoia, Uasin Gishu and Eastern Kenya.

The main cut flowers grown in Kenya are roses, carnations, and Alstromeria. Other flowers cultivated include, Gypsophilla, Lilies Eryngiums, arabicum, hypericum, Statice, a range of summer flowers amongst many others. On the global front, a growth of 5% is anticipated every year over the next five years thus farmers venturing into growing of flowers are sure of ready market for their produce.

Vegetables

This is the second most important product group within the horticultural industry, which by volume contributes to about 35% of total fresh produce exports majority of which comes from smallholder farmers. The main product is the French (green) beans, sugar snaps, snow peas and runner beans. Other vegetables for gaining popularity are Asian vegetables such as Okra, Karela, dudhi, chilli and aurbergine.

Fruits

Major fruit export products include avocadoes, mangoes, pineapples, passion fruits, bananas, and strawberry. According to EPC, fruit exports have been growing slowly but steadily.

Herbs and Spices

Due to increased health awareness by consumers’ worldwide, consumption of herbs and spices has increased. Kenya has been exporting herbs and spices for decades and the demand for these products is bound to increase. The types of herbs exported from Kenya include lemon grass, basil, dill, sweet Marjaram, oregano, parsley, rosemary, thyme, sage, chamomile, tarragon, etc. On the other hand, exports of spices include garlic, ginger, coriander, chillies, paprika, turmeric and cumin.

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: 26 September 2017; Hits: 20753

You may not rear pigs but make their feeds and earn too

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Piglets eating from sweet potato vines. Pig feeds are expensive, taking up to 80 per cent of a farmer’s production costs.

With pig farming becoming popular due to increased pork consumption in most of Kenya’s urban areas agriprenuers can earn even more by making pig feeds given a bag of pig feed today costs not less than Sh3,000 in the market and the fact that feeds take up to 80 per cent of pig production costs. What they (agriprenuers) need is to know the rations of mixing the different ingredients.

Some farmers apart from rearing pigs also consider pig feeds business to diversify their farming activities and take advantage of the good market prices.

READ ALSO: Ugandan pigs gain 0.5 kgs daily from locally made feeds
“I have been rearing pigs for two years but because of the feeds challenge I always witnessed, I decided to make my own feeds for my pigs and most of the time sell surplus to other farmers,” said Simon Moabe, Kuria West farmer, Migori County.

To begin with, farmers can use available crop feeds like potato vines, cassava leave, yams among others to make the feeds. This method is known as silage preparation and preservation fronted by scientists from International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI)

READ ALSO: Exclusive commercial feeding helps farmer deliver pigs on time
-Sweet potato vines for example are very nutritious pig feed if well prepared and preserved. To help reduce production costs of pigs and pig products here is how one can prepare them:

-Cut 60-100kg of sweet potato vines and spread them dry in the sun for about 30 minutes.
-Chop the vines into tiny pieces and mix them with 10 kg of maize germ or pig growers mash.
-Sprinkle ½ kg of mineral salt and mix thoroughly.
-Put the mixture into an airtight 250-litre plastic tank. Compress the vines firmly to remove any air spaces as you do when preparing silage.
-Add some little EM1 solution to improve the quality of the silage.
-Cover the tank airtight. Let it stay for 14 days (two weeks).
-Open the tank to check if the silage is ready- if the silage has a sweet smell and has turned yellow in colour, then it is ready feeding.
-You can feed the sweet potato silage to pigs from four months age which are sows, gilts and boars at any time before or after feeding their usual daily rations.

READ ALSO: Town garbage feeds farmer's pigs
Pig feed is sold in different forms described as pellets, pencils, rolls, cakes, nuts and so on. They are just but descriptions of how the mix has been shaped, and nothing to do with the nutrient content.

Sukumawiki (kales), vegetables, cabbages, lucerne, amaranth (terere), avocadoes, pawpaws or even bananas can also be used as supplementary feeds and can also be prepared the same way.

Agro experts advice that pig feeds should be of high quality to ensure the pigs grow to the desired weight for the market.

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Wednesday, 25 November 2020 Am thrilled thanks am out to try it.