Look Through and Catagories Garden Traning Material
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Over the last months Tanja and I have gathered a good pool of links, pdf, videos, and bookmarks of information concerning small-scale farming and gardening practices. We really need someone to weed through this jungle of information and make sense of it all. This would entail looking at the sites and media information and categorizing and writing up a reference of this information. Or, equally, working with a bookmarking plattform (e.g. diigo), but actually tagging the information more sensibly than I have done.
This work would be of great assistance to us; for we need to use the information for training and to publish on our website.
Thanks.
Hi,it seems that it is very good to know these information.
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YEH YU WEN
Yeh Yu, it would be very good to know it and be able to pass it on. But, in order to be able to do this, someone has to organise it. If you know someone who might be interested in doing this, please let me know.
Thank you.
Lia
Hi,
Can you please provide me the collected information that needs to be organized.
Thanks,
Arthi.
Arthi,
Could you please write me at my email address and I will send you the numerous bookmarks and links and how we are thinking of organising the information: cbsmkenya at gmail dot com.
We would be thrilled if you could come up with some training manuals for our gardening initiative.
Thanks.
bye, lia
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lilalia
Lia,
Sent a mail to cbsmkenya@gmail.com last Tuesday(2010/02/16).Did you get it?
Arthi,
Oh, please accept my apologies. I did get your email and your response has been in my draft folder ever since, because I want to get Rev. Wasike and Wilfred (our supervisor in Kimilili in our garden project) to work together with you so that you can make sense of all the bookmarks in relation to the community needs. I promise to get back to you in the next day or two.
I am so thrilled you wrote and hope you can help us in a way that will help the community.
Thank you.
all the best,
Lia
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lilalia
GARDENS/MINI-FARMS NETWORK
Wrokshops: USA - TX, MS, FL, CA, AR, NM; Mexico, Rep. Dominicana, Côté d’Ivoire,Nigeria, Nicaragua, Honduras, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Haiti, England, India, Uzbekistan
Workshops in organic, no-till, permanent bed gardening, mini-farming and mini-ranching,using bucket drip irrigation, worldwide, in English & Español
Organic, No-till Gardening
The solution to world hunger is teaching the farmers to farm profitably and sell locally. There is a grassroots movement, around the world, for families and groups to produce their own food due to cost, flavor and chemical contamination. "There's this belief that in order to stop poverty, we have to find ways to get people to stop being farmers. What we need to do is find ways to stop them from being poor farmers." Amy Smith, MIT
These are based on the internet, US & international agriculture magazines, experiences teaching agriculture in many countries, research data and farmer experiences in those countries and a demonstration garden. They are ecologically sustainable, environmentally responsible, socially just and economically viable. There is unlimited, documented proof. There are 90,000,000 no-till hectares worldwide.
Fukaoka Farm, Japan, has been no-till [rice, small grains, vegetables] for 70 years. At the time of my visits, an Indian farmer has been no-till [vegetables] for 5 years, a Malawi farmer has been no-till [vegetables] on permanent beds for 25 years and a Honduras farmer has been no-till [vegetables & fruit] on permanent beds on the contour (73° slope] for 8 years. Ruth Stout [USA] had a no-till garden for 30 years and 7,000 people visited her garden. No water runoff, few weeds, high yields, little labor, etc. Free DVD available.
No technique yet devised by man has been anywhere near as effective at halting soil erosion and making food production truly sustainable as 0-tillage (Baker)
1. Restore the soil to its natural health. Contamination: inorganic pesticides, insecticides & fertilizers
2. Maintain the healthy soil. Healthy soil produces healthy crops with highest yields and prevents most disease, pest, weed and erosion problems.
3. Increase the soil’s organic matter every year.
4. Little or no external inputs [It is not necessary to buy anything, from anybody.]
5. Leave crop residue on top of soil. No burning. You are burning up fertilizer. Do not plow it into the soil.
6. Plant green manure/cover crops to increase the soil organic matter. Seeds are available in every country.
7. Plant the new crop in the crop residue by opening up a row or a place for the seed.
8. Plant every field every year [no fallow land]
9. 0-tillage: no plowing, no digging, no cultivating. No hard physical labor required so children and the elderly can farm easily. After two or three years the yields can double while reducing the labor by half compared to traditional farming. Farmers farm ten acres alone using hand tools only [Honduras]
10. Tree crops: fruit, nuts, coffee [shade-grown], etc. Use perennial cover crops
11. Permanent paths [walking]
12. Permanent beds. They were used 2000 BC in Guatemala, Mexico and many other countries. 15-25% of the land is in paths and that saves 15-25% of the seed, water and labor but yields will be higher.
13. Hand tools: machete, weed cutter, seeding hoe. Local blacksmith should make them.
14. Soil always covered.
15. No compost making. Use the organic matter for mulch. If there is an excess, pile it up and use later.
16. Vermiculture: Not necessary; too much labor. Worms will be in the beds.
17. SRI - system of rice intensification. Double yields, reduces water requirements by 50% and reduces labor.
18. SRI for other crops: sugar cane, finger millet, cotton, wheat, mustard.
19. Bucket drip irrigation should be used during the dry season and in areas of low rainfall: Imported bucket drip kits are US$15. A bucket drip line can be made locally from poly tubing [US$3, Nicaragua]. One will irrigate a row of crops 33 meters long using only 20 liters of water per day. A dripline can be moved to irrigate several rows per day. Water can be from a stream, pond or well. A drip kit returns $20 per month to the farmer [FAO study].
Ken Hargesheimer minifarms@gmail.com
Dear Ken,
Thank you for sending this very important information. We are trying very hard to convince the members of Kimilili garden vocational training program to adopt such methods. But, to be honest, it is not very easy to do. Their very existence depends on the produce they harvest and there is often a fear to experiment with known methods. As well, the drip irrigation kits in Kenya cost 125 USD for a family garden. We did buy a kit and set it up on a plot of one of our members only to discover that the plot has to be walled off or gated not to let livestock make it kaputt. Nevertheless, we are heading hopefully in the direction you indicate and we feel very thankful for your help.
best regards,
Lia
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lilalia
I cannot beleive such ripoff. I can tell you how to make a DIY drip line. Buy 100 feet of black poly plastic tubing, 1/2 inch diameter, and I will tell you how to put drip outlets in it using wood screws.
Use any plastic tubing if the above is not available. I made one in Nicaragua for US$3.
Beds are not a must but best. The key to increasing yields is INCREASE THE ORGANIC MATTER IN THE SOIL. Drip allows them to farm during the dry season.
The livestock will have to be controlled. The best fence is one using a certain tree. I have seen many of them. Just plant the cuttings. Of course they have to have time to grow but are fast.
Farmers have a mind-set against no-till but when they see how they can double their yields and reduce their labor at least 50%, hopefully some will do it. If not, I have come to the conclusion to walk away and let them starve. That is cold but reality. Use our time to work with families who are willing to change.
As one farmer told me in a workshop in Nigeria, my grandfather plowed, my father plows and I plow. I told him to go home and plow but if he wants to increase his income, follow what I am going to teach.
Ken
Ken, I will be sure to pass on your estimate that the kits they bought in Nairobi were far too expensive. Perhaps there will be a better more inexpensive local variety they can make.
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lilalia
GARDENS/MINI-FARMS NETWORK
USA, México, Rep Dominicana, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Haití,
Honduras, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, England, Nicaragua, India, Uzbekistan
Workshops [urban & rural] in organic, no-till, permanent-bed, gardening, mini-farming, mini-ranching,
with bucket drip irrigation, worldwide, in English & Español
Bucket Drip Irrigation
The bucket must be suspended at least l meter above the ground. A tube is connected to the dripline and the other end is placed in the bucket to siphon the water out. Assuming the bucket is 20 liters, fill it twice for each row of vegetables. The dripline can be moved to another row for irrigating. Each row of vegetables is irrigated every other day. Plant a row of vegetables on each side of the dripline and use 40 liters of water.
Bucket Kits
The key to the simple drip irrigation system that we use is the gravity fed "bucket kit". The bucket kit consists of four 8m lines [or two of 50 ft or one of 100’] of drip tape connected to a bucket suspended 1m above the vegetable bed. Water is poured into the bucket and is evenly distributed to 100 watering points. By filling the bucket twice a day, a small kitchen garden can be watered. Studies in Kenya have shown that two of these kits can provide the water needed to produce enough vegetables to feed a family of seven during the dry season. These bucket kits are available in most countries (US$25), save water, save labor, and are easy to use. Go to Chapinlivingwaters.org.
Using sleeves
Farmers in Honduras invented a VERY cheap drip irrigation system. They buy the regular black poly hose. Then they punch holes in it where they want them with a nail or ice pick. A hot nail is best. Then take short sections [5 inches] of the same hose, cut it lengthwise to form a sleeve, and place a sleeve over each hole. This sleeve applies pressure to the hole, only letting a little water out, like a drip. This technology is quite cheap, VERY simple to do. Maintenance is also simple, because if a hole plugs up, you can often unplug it merely by taking the sleeve off and then replacing it.
Using screws
Farmers in Nicaragua are using cheap round tubing and wood screws. We tried it with great success. The screw is inserted completely into the tubing, every 12 inches, so that it protrudes through the opposite side. It is then backed off to allow water to drip through that side. The flow is set by screwing it in or out as needed. This even allows for variations in pressure due to terrain.
Pin holes for drip
I am wondering if a dripline could be made by using a hot pin or very small hot nail, etc. to punch holes in the poly tubing. I mean really tiny holes.
Irrigating one plant
Drill one hole in the bottom side of a bucket. It should be the same size as a short hose which is then inserted into the hole. Place the end of the hose at the base of a plant. Even better is to use a short piece of hose with several holes and circle the plant.
DIY drip kit:
Roger Pigott [San Diego workshop] decided to use two bucket drip systems on a bed in the garden but he did not want to siphon the water. Kits from Echonet.org are $25 each. He went to the hardware store and purchased: 100' of ½" black poly tubing; a post to hang buckets on; a faucet rosette washer and nut; ¾" ring washers; ¾" swivel tubing adapter; union - ¾" pipe threads and garden hose threads. One for each bucket. He drilled a 3/4 inch hole in the bottom of the buckets and installed the fittings. He then connected the tubing from the buckets to a header. He has five driplines connected to the header using tees and ells. He used wood screws for the drip outlets. There is about 60' of dripline. He planted seed in the five rows and laid the dripline over the seed. Very original thinking!
Buy enough hose to connect the drip line to the top of the bucket to siphon out the water. It takes about 1-2 hours for the bucket to empty. The dripline can be moved to another row of vegetables or plant a row of vegetables on each side of the dripline. Use more water. If one is willing to carry the water, one line will irrigate several rows during the day.
Plant green manure/cover crops to cut and leave on top of the soil to improve the soil. This is a MUST. Also, can be intercropped with the food crop.
Ken Hargesheimer
minifarms@gmail.com
Dear Ken,
Thank you so much for the information. I'll pass it right on to Rev. Wasike. I am sure the garden co-ops will be able to use this information.
All the best,
Lia
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lilalia
Hi everyone,
Glad to have joined your discussions. It would be a great input on my part.
Jeremy Ecle
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..the world will make a way for a man know where he is going..
Jeremy,
Thanks for all your help.
bye, lia
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lilalia
Every village needs to know about www.cd3wd.com It has information on just about everything any village is doing. I wanted to download it on to a DVD. After 18 hours with hi speed, I quit. It is 4 DVDs full.