A solar-powered pump has helped a Homa Bay County farmer to continuously push water into two upstream ponds where he is rearing at least 1,000 tilapia fish. Michael Olalo bought the SF1 solar pump from Futurepump to cut the fuel costs he was incurring while using a fossil fuel generator to push water from River …
Homa Bay farmer pushes water into upstream ponds with solar-powered pump Read More »
Farmers in Highlands West of the Rift Valley, Lake Victoria Basin, Central, and South Rift Valley areas should take advantage of the dry spells expected within August to harvest their produce to reduce post-harvest losses. According to the Kenya Meteorological Department, relatively reduced rainfall (near to below average) is expected in these regions over the …
Farmers Advised to Harvest Produce Over Coming Dry Month to Avoid Losses Read More »
Mwingi farmer Charles Kalili has tripled his livestock herd from 20 to 63 goats, and sheep from 20 to 52 after building a water pan to harvest water for his animals. In February 2017, the farmer bought the animals from the International Livestock Research Institute at a cost of Sh200,000 only to find out that …
Mwingi Farmer Triples Livestock Herd With Water Pan Read More »
Better access to irrigation for farmers is key for climate change adaptation. Until recently, irrigation had never taken off in Africa for multiple reasons from poor maintenance planning to lack of inputs and market access. Many donor and government-funded large and small-scale irrigation schemes lay dry after a few years of exploitation. Water experts estimate …
The Key Role of Improved Irrigation for Climate Change Adaptation Read More »
According to breakthrough field research, the use of ultra-low-energy drip irrigation is capable of saving 22–31 per cent in the capital cost of pumps and emitters. In turn, this would make drip irrigation systems more accessible to smallholder farmers. Drip Irrigation: Effective but costly for smallholders Drip Irrigation is the most efficient irrigation method achieving …
Ultra-low-energy drip irrigation saves farmers up to 31% in capital costs Read More »
Over 50,000 smallholder farmers in Eastern and Central Kenya are recording a more than doubling of yields and reduced soil erosion after embracing a soil conservation scheme that involves digging trenches in hillsides to trap runaway water and soil. The scheme christened Fanya Juu which is practiced in areas with low or high rainfall involves …
Fanya Juu terraces guard soil erosion, double farmer yields Read More »
Small-scale potato farmers using furrow irrigation can make use of little water to bring more acreage under cultivation by applying the partial irrigation method. The partial Root-Zone Drying method, which can save between 30 per cent and 50 per cent of the total water used in an acre, relies on the alternate supply of the …
Partial Root-Zone Drying irrigation enables potato farmers halve water usage Read More »
Farmers are constructing water pans to harvest water ensuring they have year round supply at a time when vagaries of weather have disrupted planting and harvesting seasons, taking a toll on yield and fanning the hunger cycle in Kenya. Kenya is one of the countries in the African continent identified by the UN Educational, Scientific …
By George Munene Kenya Commercial Bank (KCB) has announced a plan to invest Sh5M into the Upper Tana Nairobi Water Fund (UTNWF). The partnership will help finance small-scale farmers to acquire 50 drip irrigation kits, 500 water pans, and 20 biodigesters. 50,000 farmers will also be supported in carrying out conservation agriculture on their farms. …
Charles Oloo, a vegetable farmer in Nyamira County earns Sh7500 a week up from Sh3000 from harvesting five bags of cabbage, a factor he attributes to the double dug drip irrigation. “Double dug drip irrigation involves digging trenches to conserve water, adding manure, maize straws, wheat straws, finger straws and banana leaves, as vegetables require …
Double digging irrigation multiplies vegetable yield Read More »
