Farmers suffering from increasingly poor rains who shift from local and old bean varieties to growing drought tolerant fast maturing beans are increasing their yields by up to 75 per cent during the current short rains farming season.
Growers of drought-tolerant beans consistently get 18 — 66.7 per cent more bean harvests during times of drought compared to those growing standard beans.
According to the President’s Food Security Advisor Dr. Dominic Menjo the country currently already has a bean production shortage of four million bags due to low local supplies and high demand. Droughts which have increased from once every five to 10 years to every two years are the leading cause of poor bean production in Kenya. Poor rains during the short rainy season reduce production by up to 58 per cent and 40 per cent in long rain seasons.
In June of this year, Otieno Alando, a farmer in Homabay harvested 19 bags of the drought-tolerant Nyota bean from his four acres despite getting just one day of rain in May.
“When I grow Nyota beans I am assured to get something even when the rains are poor. This is because they will give you a harvest with a single day of rain as they take just 65 days to fully mature,” Otieno explained.
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The much-loved Nyota bean which is high in zinc and iron matures in just two months with little rainfall. This is 20 days earlier than old or ruling bean varieties such as Mwitemania, Canadian Wonder, and Red Haricot, which also cannot tolerate drought.
Developed by KALRO and the Pan Africa Bean Research Alliance (PABRA) the bean which yields eight to nine 90-kilo bags an acre and can earn farmers Sh72,000 per acre is sold across all KALRO Mkulima Shops in Kenya.
Many farmers are reporting that they have abandoned growing beans this short rains season and those growing are unlikely to see their crops fully mature because rains are expected to be 45 to 75 percent lower than usual.
Nkirote, a mixed farmer in Meru County abandoned planting beans on her farm headed into the short rains season, and for good reason. ”The bean varieties we grow take up to 120 days to mature and the rains hadn’t started by mid-October. Now that they are here they are extremely patchy and unreliable, they cannot sustain any long-term crops through to harvest,” she explained.
However, Ken Wavinya, a farmer in Makueni County– a region of the country that received even less water– has just finished harvesting drought-resistant Katram Beans. “I got seven bags– a two-bag increase from the four I harvested last year growing yellow beans,” he said.
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KATRAM beans come in various varieties. These include the highly drought-resistant and early maturing Kenya Mali or KAT SW-12 which grows in just 60 days. It is high yielding giving 600 kilograms an acre and is grown with 25kg of certified seed purchased for Sh2,250. Kenya Mali can be bought from KALRO Katumani.
Another Katram bean variant is KAT-SW-13 which is drought tolerant and matures in two and a half months and can be bought from KALRO Katumani. The bean which is recommended for Central Kenya, Muranga, Kirinyaga, as well as Embu and Meru, and Homabay, Kisumu, and Siaya in Nyanza yields 6.7 bags to nine 90Kg bags per acre. It is also highly resistant to bean rust and Bean Common Mosaic Virus.
According to the 2024 National Crop Variety List, there are six other bean varieties approved for cultivation by Kephis that are both either drought tolerant and/or mature quickly. These include:
AGRYB402 or Zebra distributed by Agrosoy Seed Company is drought tolerant and matures in just two and a half months yielding seven to eight bags per acre.
It is made for the medium to high altitudes of Nakuru, Narok, Baringo, Bomet, Kisii, Elgeyo
Marakwet, Siaya, Nandi, West Pokot, Nyeri, and Laikipia.
KK ROSECOCO194 and KK RED BEAN-16 sold by KALRO Kakamega also matures in two and a half months. It gives eight to nine 90Kg bags per acre of beans after harvest and is resistant to bean root rot and angular leaf spot.
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Waithera or KSR13 released this year by KALRO is also drought tolerant and takes two to three months to mature and gives 6.3 to 12.6 bags/acre. It is rich in iron and zinc and is suited to Embu, Kitui, Katumani, Kampi ya Mawe, and Thika and is distributed by KALRO Katumani.
Other drought-tolerant varieties are Mwitemani and Mwezi Moja available from KALRO Katumani which mature in two to three months. They both yield five to seven bags.
Katheka or Kat/Bean 1 is not drought tolerant but matures in two and a half months and yields 5.4 to 6.7 bags of 90 kg per acre. It is distributed by the KALRO Katumani Dryland Research Centre.
Photo Credit: ©2015CIAT/GeorginaSmith