July 2, 2009
Agriculture, Tigithi Secondary School and Drip Irrigation
Today the research team went to a model farm that displayed three different farming techniques and there outcomes. We then went to Tigithi Secondary School where we were able to interview several teachers and children about their knowledge of Ol Pejeta conservancy and how it has contributed to their school. Finally we went to a drip irrigation farm that has been sponsored by Ol Pejeta.
At the model farm we were able to view the three different techniques used for farming in this particular area of Kenya. The oldest way of farming is known as traditional where the farmer will dig into the ground using a tool similar to a rake and then plant and bury the seeds at about 6 inches below the surface. The second method of farming is ripping, which happens to be the most labor intensive method. In ripping the farmer will dig about 9 inches deep into the ground, into the wetter soil, and plant and bury the seeds at this depth. The final method, conservative, is the newest method and least labor intensive. This method has been introduced by Ol Pejeta and is becoming quite popular among famers. In this method the farmer will use a scraping type tool where they will only scrape off the top layer of soil, approximately the top inch of soil and will then plant the seeds right on top of the soil and only slightly bury the seeds. In addition they will cover the soil with debris, such as dead grass, to help hold in moister and keep the soil from drying out. With conservative farming the farmers will also rotate their crops every year. They may have maize one year and the next sorghum and go back and forth between the two crops in order to limit soil erosion, and replenish nutrients within the soil from year to year. After speaking with several farmers this method was by far the most popular among the three and has created the greatest amount of crops during the recent drought. One farmer that I spoke to claims that using this method of conservative, has allowed him to not only provide food for his family of 4, but to also sell crops in the market and make a profit. Since this method does not require anywhere near the amount of labor as the previous methods he has been able to hire more land to be farmed, thus further increasing his profits. Also, even during this most recent drought he has harvested more crops on the same amount of land with only limited rain water. This method is not only better for the soil but also for the farmer and the community. The farmers in the community that have learned this new technique of conservative farming have learned it though the use of this model farm and having the agricultural representative of Ol Pejeta to educate them on the use of this new technique. These farmers that now understand and use this technique are able and willing to teach other farmers and younger generations on how to farm in a conservative manner.
After the model farm we went to Tigithi Secondary School which is also a boarding school. We interviewed one of the teachers and several children between the ages of 14 and 18 years. When interviewing the children about their knowledge of Ol Pejeta we came to find that the children were quite educated on conservation, agriculture and animals within Ol Pejeta. Although conservation is not taught as a particular subject, many of the teachers incorporate it into their daily lessons. Ol Pejeta is supporting this school through sponsoring a few individual students to go there by paying for their yearly fees including books, uniforms, boarding, etc. In addition to sponsoring needy students they have also funded the building of a few of the blocks within the school. The students are all grateful for the work and funding that they have received from Ol Pejeta.
Last we went to another farm with a drip irrigation system that has been put in place by Ol Pejeta. They local family showed us how the drip irrigation system works. The drip irrigation has allowed their crops to thrive during the drought on only a small amount of water that is released slowly throughout the day through rows of water dripping tubes that are attached to a larger tank on water. The water that is used in this process is fetched from a nearby well that reaches a depth of 172 feet.
