Rift Valley community commits to sustainable farming

Kenyan villagers smile because we have bought land to create organic demonstration gardens. We are excited about the future working with nature to enrich the land and the community.

Our village elders, including our chief, witness the purchase of our land where we will establish our community demonstration gardens.

We count the money and sign the papers.

Here the surveyors measure the land where we will work to transform it into lush organic gardens.

Already, we we are fencing the land, setting up the beds and starting to make beautiful compost!

Poem: Sustainable Agriculture

As the sun shines and the wind blows,
Flowers open and insects beckon closer
To the sweet and irresistible smell,
They come singing and visiting the organic garden.

Did you see the worms crawling?
Waggling all around,
Touching this, touching that, in the soil so dark, so black and mysterious,
Amongst the roots of sturdy green and healthy plants.

The water drips in everyday,
Just enough to quench the thirst of a well-spaced plant,
Top dressed with composted animal droppings,
That is healthy to plant and environment.

The healthy harvest gonna be bumper.
Taste irresistible in all the tongue.
In all tables they ask "a little more please" and then they gonna ask "where did it came from?"
It came from organic farming!

BY : PHILIP ODHIAMBO MUNYASIA, Coordinator, Organic technology extension and promotion of initiatives centre

Rain, planting seeds, buying land

It is raining now, and it’s the best time for women and men in the communities to put the seed in the ground and to nurture it till it matures so that we can have a bumper harvest.

I have been visiting students in several schools and they have formed the Youth CREW (Cultivating Respect for the Environment and the World). I believe that our youth bring people down to earth because they are interested in learning the old, sustainable ways of living used by our grandparents so that our nation and civilization can be built upon a strong foundation.

The good news is that we managed to get 1200 dollars donated from a friend so we purchased land for fully operating mini farms for education, development and research. Because the land cost 3000 dollars, we will need to raise more funding, but in the meantime, we are fencing the land, setting up the beds and starting to make beautiful compost!

Let's pray for each other in all our endeavors. May your harvest be rich and fertile. . .