Planning for last year’s short-season weather saw farmer Michael Mumia fly free of the 25 per cent losses suffered by almost all his neighbours, in a single smart move to maize that coped with excessive rains, and a double win by interfropping too.
After reading FarmBizAfrica’s piece on August 31, 2023 (El Nino a 99% certainty over October-December rain season warns Kenya Met) Michael shifted from growing maize meant for the short-rains to maize that was meant for long-rains. This decision saw him harvest a record 19½ bags of maize from his acre shamba in Mumias East– 6 1/2 more bags than he had ever gotten during any short rains growing season. Up to half of the farmers around him– many of whom he tried to warn to switch to the maize grown during the March-May long rain season– saw their maize fail to mature or were knocked down by the 2023 El Nino rains which began in October and went on until early 2024.
On top of maize, Mumia also harvested 3½ bags of groundnuts which he had intercropped with the maize. A kilogram of peanuts cost a minimum of Sh200 a kilogram at the farmgate and earned him an extra Sh6,000 a bag compared to almost all of his neighbours who had expected the usual short and sparse December rains and grew the much faster-maturing beans. To further take advantage of the expected heavy rains, the savvy farmer leased a 50*50 plot from which he got 3,000 kilograms of arrowroots.
According to ReliefWeb International, El Nino flooding destroyed 17,000 acres of farmland and killed 13,400 livestock. As with many other parts of the country, farmers in Mumias East Sub-County were hit with floods and mudslides resulting from the heavy rains. In mid-October of that year, FAO conducted a specialised Media Training Workshop on El Niño preparedness to raise awareness of El Nino among the public and give farmers an early warning to better prepare for the heavy rains. FarmBizAfrica’s reportage did just that for Mumia.
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“Before I read FarmBizAfrica’s piece on August 31, 2023 (El Nino a 99% certainty over October-December rain season warns Kenya Met), I was planning on growing the usual fast-maturing yellow maize varieties such as SC Duma 441 which are ideal for the October to December short rains as they are ready for harvest in just 90 days,” he said.
During the short rains, Kenyan farmers typically grow short-term crops that do not require a lot of rain to mature like beans, green grams, and vegetables, which are harvested in December, and fast-maturing maize varieties, which are harvested in early January before the rains secede.
Once he read that the long rains were certain to come he instead bought DK 777, a variety that could give him double the yields but requires a lot of water and took a much longer four months to come in.
Also, instead of growing beans– the usual companion crop to his maize during the short rains season as it is also fast maturing taking 60-90 days he opted for the much slower-growing peanuts which take 90-120 days.
“I shared the article with many of my neighbours and those who did not heed the warning and still grew ‘short rain season’ maize saw up to a quarter of their maize fail to mature,” Michael informs.
This is because the maturity of fast-growing maize varieties is slowed down by excess water. This leads to farms having lush green maize farms but the maize kernel does not fill up with seeds.
Most late-maturing varieties also have a strong stem and stand that anchor the plant even during storms and heavy rains or winds. This is often not a characteristic bred in short-term maize varieties, which are made for calmer weather and are at a higher risk of lodging (falling over) under these conditions.
To protect his maize crop from the heavy rains and potential flooding he also built furrows around them which drove excess water away from his farm.
Well aware that the rains would be more than adequate, Mumia who is based in Kilifi, also rented out a 50*50 plot to grow arrowroots– a famously water-loving crop.
Arrowroots require a constant supply of water to thrive and are often grown by Kenyan farmers in wetlands or on riverbanks which makes them well-adapted to prolonged rain periods. Unlike most other crops they also do not easily get affected by root rot or nutrient leaching under excessive rainfall.
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“The ndomas matured between three to four months and because most other farmers had not grown them as they expected the rains to be limited I was able to sell them at a premium price of Sh150 a kilo in Kilifi,” he said.
From his 50*50 plot, he filled two 150-kilogram bags with each tuber weighing one to one and a half kilograms. This was despite not using any fertiliser or manure on them.
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