Agriculture
Farmers in Busia County are being encouraged to adopt short-maturing crops as a method of addressing climate change.
Speaking during agricultural stakeholders’ workshop to formulate farmers’ communication plan in Busia, Linet Navangi from KALRO asked farmers to ensure they use certified seeds which are resistant to disease.
“We are urging farmers to use seeds that have been certified by KALRO and are resistant to diseases and take a short time to mature,” she said. Navangi added that farmers have to do soil analysis to be able to understand the type of crops that can do well in their farms.
“Many farmers in this county have been using organic fertilizer which has resulted in their soil not being able to support some crops. Thus, we are encouraging them to do soil analysis to understand which type of crops to plant. They will also be able to understand which type of fertilizer to use,” she said.
The Outreach Manager of BioVision Africa Trust, Christopher Rwanda, said farmers will benefit from the communication plan as it will help them to understand agro ecology farming.
“The plan contains all the needs of the farmers. The plan will also help farmers on how to adapt to agroecology farming,” he said, adding that ‘agro ecology farming helps in conserving the environment, human, plant, and animal health. This farming also enables farmers to get high yield without exhausting resources that are available in our soil.’
Vincent Ekapolon, a farmer, said the training has enabled him to understand conservation agriculture, which will help him to get more yield from his land.
“As a farmer I have learned that when I use the soil, I must ensure it is healthy. We have been informed on the importance of understanding our soil and using certified seeds which are tolerant to different sessions,” he said.