Smart farms

: 25 July 2017; Hits: 15274

Murang’a farmers riding on Charentais Melon

Charentais melon. They are rich in beta-carotene, folic acid, potassium, vitamin C and dietary fiber. Photo: Harvest to Table.

With heavy debts and regular stealing of beans costing coffee farmers more losses, the growing of the new zebra water melon in breathing a fresh lifeline into Murang’a County as the demand for healthy foods rises.

Charentais melon, better known as zebra melon or French Cantaloupes, is selling at Sh300 per kilo and the appetite for the fruit in town like Thika is unquenchable.

Zebra melon is not new to Kenya, but this variety, which was introduced to Kenya less than a year ago, is becoming popular with Kiharu, Makuyu, among other areas in the county because of its small size, but highly nutrition content.

According to ATTRA Sustainable Agriculture, a program of the National Centre for Appreciate Technology, this small zebra is a good source of beta-carotene, folic acid, potassium, vitamin C and highly sought after dietary fiber. Its smaller size as compared for example with watermelon makes it easy to transport and storage hence preferred by the farmers.

Typically Charentais Melon take 70-90 days to mature. You will identify a mature melon by its yellowish hue at maturity.

Experts recommend farmers to allow three melons to grow on each vine to get the best fruit. Once a mature fruit is picked, the vines will produce more. Mature fruits should also be picked to avoid over ripping and injuries in case it drops.

Kiharu farmer, Pamella Ngatia says: “I started growing zebra melon with just a handful seeds I got from a friend, but now I have one and half acres of the melon.”

Kinoti Wang’ombe, who is a broker in the fruit’s business in Thika town, says he always run out of stock given the high market demand.

James Njagi from Makuyu says he jokingly planted his first Charentais seeds unaware of the outcome. He got Sh10, 000 from 50 fruits he harvested out of a piece of plot size of a kitchen garden. He sold them at Sh200 each.

“I am planning to set aside an acre or so for zebra melon in the coming seasons because I have seen it can bring me more money within a short time,” said Njagi.

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: 10 July 2017; Hits: 9489

Stick harvesting cuts potato losses

Irish potato harvesting Patrick Njenga Kiambu By Laban Robert.JPG

Patrick Njenga harvests Irish potatoes by free hand or sticks to reduce injuries that lead to spoilage. Photo by Laban Robert.

With reports showing that one in every five kilos of food produced in Africa goes to waste during and after harvest, Kiambu County farmer has resorted to sticks in harvesting Irish potatoes to reduce reducing injuries.

Harvesting tuber and root crops with hoes and other sharp objects not only reduces their shelf-life but also slashes the marketability in half.

“Cut Irish potatoes fetch half the price. Farmers do not want stay with them for long because by the fourth day after harvesting, they start depreciating in quality; and with a jembe or hoe, about one in three out of 10 potatoes may be scratched or cut. That is why I started using sticks in harvesting,” Patrick Njenga said.

International Institute of Tropical Agriculture post-harvest Researcher Adebayo Abass recently said Tanzania that inappropriate technologies for harvesting, transportation, storage and processing lead to spoilage of food.

When, for example a root tuber is cut, the flesh is exposed to pests and other germs, which initiate and accelerate the rate of spoilage.

If a two-kilogramme tin costs Sh80 at Kimende, near Njenga’s home, spoilt pieces in the same container may fetch between Sh30 and Sh40 when sold to hotels and other immediate consumers.

This is devaluation by more than half, yet the product has consumed factors of production for more than three months, the farmer said.

Going by the overall research, at least eight 110kg bags will be spoilt out of the total 40 harvested, marking the start of losses from an acre. Currently, a 110kg bag sells at Sh3,000 in Nairobi. The loss translates to Sh12,000 for the eight sacks instead of Sh24,000.

“Potatoes are grown on ridges. Demolishing them by hand is easy because the raised soil is still loose. A stick helps in case the tubers have got past the normal soil level, which happens less often,” he said.

While Irish and sweet potatoes may be edible within the first five days after harvest even with the cuts, cassava is more vulnerable. It starts to spoil within 48 hours if harvested with cuts.

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: 06 July 2017; Hits: 19911

Human urine best fishpond fertiliser, research says

Fishpond officer Fredck Misoi at Kakamega ASK SHow.JPG

Kakamega Prison Officer Fredrick Misoi at an integrated fishpond site. Human urine has been identified as the fastest generator of of food for fish. Photo by Laban Robert.

Ponds fed with human urine generate food for fish faster by four days, while saving farmers at least 24kg of commercial fertiliser required after every two weeks, a new research has revealed.

At least 24kg of commercial nitrogenous fertiliser is applied per acre every two weeks, according to the global agency, Food and Agriculture Organisation.

But a research by the University of Kalyani, India, says half a litre of human urine is required for every 4,500 litres of water to trigger multiplication of zooplankton in four days. Plankton are colonies of green microscopic organisms that are major sources of food for fish.

The research compared half a kilo of human urine with cowdung, vermicompost, chicken drippings and cow urine.

In the various setups, Moina micrura plankton grew four days earlier in the human urine than the others.

The research, which was published in the Ecological Engineering journal, said that the readiness to release the rich nitrogen and other ions in the human urine quickened the propagation process of the plankton.

A 50kg bag of CAN fertiliser costs between Sh2,500 and Sh3,000 in Kenya. A farmer using human urine in fish production can save this amount every month given that the application is twice in the same period.

Jared Mokaya, a Kenya Prisons Officer in charge of agriculture in Nakuru correction facility, said high populations of plankton also help in purifying the pond water.

“The green micro-organisms collectively produce the highest amount of oxygen in the world. In the process of food manufacturing, they absorb carbon dioxide, which is released by the fish during respiration,” Mokaya said in an earlier interview with www.farmbiz.glorycarefoundation.org.

The officer has established and helps farmers come up with integrated fish ponds where rabbits and chicken houses are constructed over fish ponds to release their waste into the water. The urine and droppings promotes growth of the plankton in the pond. Vegetables are grown over the chicken and rabbit house to be the food for these animals.

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