permaculture advocate in Zimbabwe - too little/too much rain

Yes l have heard about the three sisters, it's what inspired me. Thanks for elaborating on when exactly to put each seed down l wasn't so sure about this.

Poverty eradication, especially starting with healthy food availability/ accessibility has been of great interest to me. I got to read about a number of organizations that would encourage subsistence farmers to move from conventional farming, to try out alternative ways, that include mixed cropping and to lean towards growing of small grains and indigenous crops so as to improve on yield and resilience.
But it seems like, no matter how convincing the facts are and how much word is passed around, changing farming methods is not gaining much traction as it should. Who doesn't want more yield, resilience and diversity, because clearly conventional means have failed in my own opinion (at least at subsistence level).

The experiment l am doing has so far revealed that there's more to it than meets the eye when introducing change. Apart from just the technique, all supporting skills should be acquired, e.g planning, patience, willingness to learn and keep improving...e.t.c. Especially when the change has few existing successes that are common.

The other thing also is that the system we are measured against is well established, with so many mistakes  and experiments being done in labs behind closed doors. And when they implement the improved ways it's usually done in ideal conditions, all elements like water, labour, pesticides..., will be available. Automatically there will be a close to perfect yield and because enough examples ( in commercial farms) exist, it is easy to convince anyone that it's the way to go. For a smallholder farmer, they hold on to such examples, whether they succeed personally or not, or whether it's expensive or not, they become blinded.

It's blazing hot, it's unbelievable. If it were October it would have been understandable. We are continuing with planting vegetables and covering with maize stalks and it seems to be working well. We work early in the morning now and we have stopped working in the afternoons. Then Ngoni has started watering late in the day and into the evening we did not even have to talk about this, so l appreciate this so much. February is almost over and we did not get any rains, we would hear about it raining around our area but we did not receive any rain. The onions germinated nicely. I opened them for two days and had to cover them again because the sun was just too much and we would water them twice but it was not enough.

We are done with selling green mealies and we got an equivalent of 10 bags.!!!, there is a whole section we did not grow anything, the sandy area. This time, instead of having bags of maize we have liquid cash so it works for us in the present moment as we expand the vegetable beds and there is no shelling which gives us time to focus on other things. We also had a taste of what it means to grow something of more value, the maize was the first product we sold that gave us what  I call sensible revenue.

It's great that you have done so well with selling the green mealies. I guess we would call them sweet corn. The disadvantage is they have a short shelf life, so you do need to sell them fresh, so it's great you've been able to do that, especially if you're getting a better price! I suppose another advantage is that you harvest slightly earlier. Are you able to plant something elsewhere the maize was to make the most of the space? It must save a few weeks growing time. I can't remember, do you save your seed for replanting, or buy it in?

For most part of the maize field we are not planting anything yet, though our long term plan is to grow things all year round on this space. We need to manage both the space we have already been growing through out the year + the additional space (sandy part) we have turned into vegetable beds, using the same labor and pumps. We will assess our capability and hopefully grow fast. What we are going to try, on a small space in the field is planting tomatoes. We will use some maize stalks for creating a wall around the tomatoes as it will be winter soon, we will also plant them close to the well that way we will use water from the well. This is solely for what we could get out of tomatoes if we succeed to grow them in this period.

As for seed, we have been buying. This year though I have been thinking a lot about using our own grain from the field and I did leave some. I had a conversation with a friend and she mentioned that there are some varieties, which when planted, using harvested grain they produce smaller grain. She suggested heirloom seeds. So I don't know yet what I will use for the coming growing season.

As for beans, I have already started storing seeds aside which I will definitely use. Already there were things starting to bore holes on the bean seed, so I thought of putting them in ash, I hope it works. But I think if anyone happens to open cupboards and see my seed containers, one thing that will come to their minds first is vudu stuff, which at this point I am not too bothered by, as long as it works.

Good work Rufaro!

For the beans, are the rains over? In Chad we spread the beans out on rooftops with the shells still on them. The heat from the sun keeps the bugs from getting them.

If you're just thinking about seed saving then I'd really like to encourage you. I'm really keen on starting with landraces - these are crops with mixed characteristics that can interbreed and adapt to changing conditions. Heirlooms are breed to suit a particular location and have stable genes. Commercial sources are bred for large scale agriculture with high inputs of fertiliser, water, low weed competition etc. (this is just my simplified summary!) The main thing is that you can do it yourself! that is how all our food crops were developed - by illiterate farmers just doing what came naturally, it is not something to be afraid of, and can also be done as a trial to start with.
Here's a few Permies threads for you and one of Joseph's articles in an online magazine. There are many more on similar subjects there, and I also highly recommend his book, which is not particularly expensive, he also has an online course available.

Saving seed experiences: https://permies.com/t/57646/Saving-seed
A discussion with Joseph Lofthouse: https://permies.com/t/137741/Thoughts-Seed-Saving-Joseph-Lofthouse
One of Joseph Lofthouse's articles on Landraces: https://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/saving-landrace-seeds-zbcz1307/
What is a landrace: https://permies.com/t/168715/landrace
A link to Joseph Lofthouse's introductory video: https://permies.com/t/173814/Landrace-Gardening
Some questions: https://permies.com/t/162854/Starting-landrace
heirloom and landraces: https://permies.com/t/162811/Landrace-Heirlooms
best book on seed saving? https://permies.com/wiki/162247/Landrace-Gardening-Joseph-Lofthouse
other seed saving discussions: https://permies.com/t/175353/Seed-Saving

Have a browse through the seeds and breeding forum: https://permies.com/f/234/seed

Looking at that reading list I'm sorry it got so big! I'm just really excited about seed saving myself at the moment!

Thanks Nancy I will take a look at the links.

The vegetables are looking nice already, we have put mulch in some selected beds, the other beday still have tiny suckers that we wouldn't want to cover with mulch. We will collect the mulch still and we are now cutting grass just outside our yard.

We added rape in some beds, it takes less time for us to start harvesting the leaves. The onions are growing well but are still under the shade of the stalks.

We harvested the first choumollier leaves planted when most plant had drowned in water. The plants are still few but vegetables were all bought during the weekend and are now finished. They are on demand and are selling very fast.

I was looking at the photo that has onion seedlings and l noticed how much we need to work  on the soil. I took a pic of what the soil in the choumollier beds looks like, it's so different, l look forward to seeing some transformation as time passes by and as we build the soil. It's still very hot and the maize in other fields, that was planted when the rain started is no longer recoverable.

Today l have seen a number of insects that look like locusts munching on our vegetables. I would like some biodiversity, but at the moment, anything that attacks our plants is an  enemy (or to put it lightly, it's not a welcome friend).

One of our neighbors gave me some chicken manure and there is a possibility of me cleaning her chicken run in exchange for her chicken manure, so l am excited about this.

We bought about 3 bags of chicken manure for $3 last month and this month we already have a bag.

Do you have any children around who would catch those pests and give them to the chickens, in exchange for sweets or small change?

It never crossed my mind at all that l could feed this to our poultry.

We are done with mulching the big beds, though we put a thin mulch to the beds with suckers that are still small.

One of my concerns of taking up what is more than we can chew is now affecting us. The beautifully germinated onions are fast turning into a failed project. As we have been busy racing with mulching the other beds, we seem to not have been paying that much attention to the onion seedlings. We have a can that we use when watering seedlings that has holes, which helps us regulate the water quantities and force that hits the seedlings as we water. There are some moments when due to pressure we would water straight from the hose and try to regulate from there and l do not think this has helped us. Also the area that we nursed the seedlings on seems to lack enough feed for the seedling because they are growing and are so "thin" and some are dying, the heat also is just too much. We have started feeding the soil but at the back of my mind l know l have to make a decision as there are two options either to buy already grown seedlings or to try again growing my own. I have to weigh the pros and cons. The other activity l am making of top priority is to look at what's around us that l can use to improve our watering system, the heat is merciless, it is making things difficult to manage and if l do not address this fast it will seem like we cannot manage the area we are working on.

I had intended to talk about how trust is important between Ngoni and myself as a general talk, but l chickened out. I could feel muscles in my head tense up and l could not find the right timing to fit in this talk, l will keep trying.

I did some thinking on what could be more beneficial profit wise, either buying seedlings ready for transplanting or nursing my own and l ended up chosing to nurse my own. The advantages of buying seedlings would have been l would be guaranteed of an available plant to put in the ground and in the present moment i.e (giving me some lead time advantage). But nursing my own seeds, though it will cost me a little bit of time which in my position does not have that much significance, and is risky in terms of having something to plant, if done right it might get me around double the amount of seedlings that I would get if l were to buy seedlings instead. So l divided l will change most things that l feel affected our first nusery. I am nursing the seedlings myself at home and l am using dug out kitchen compost we dug last year ( it transformed into beautiful soil). I think if I give the nursery enough attention we might win.

I am now aware of things that l never even used to consider or think about. When l opened the onion seeds packet l couldn't help but laugh to myself. The amount of seed was almost about 2 tablespoons at most or even something just over 1 spoon. Now that l know there is not much that goes in making onion seeds, l honestly think humans are their own monsters. The process of making the packet and probably packing could be what's making things so expensive and those are the two things we can find our way around. It now seems so many things considered normal and important are a joke and life could be so much simpler if we ourselves uncomplicated our ways.

Rufaro Makamure wrote:I did some thinking on what could be more beneficial profit wise, either buying seedlings ready for transplanting or nursing my own and l ended up chosing to nurse my own. The advantages of buying seedlings would have been l would be guaranteed of an available plant to put in the ground and in the present moment i.e (giving me some lead time advantage). But nursing my own seeds, though it will cost me a little bit of time which in my position does not have that much significance, and is risky in terms of having something to plant, if done right it might get me around double the amount of seedlings that I would get if l were to buy seedlings instead. So l divided l will change most things that l feel affected our first nusery. I am nursing the seedlings myself at home and l am using dug out kitchen compost we dug last year ( it transformed into beautiful soil). I think if I give the nursery enough attention we might win.

I am now aware of things that l never even used to consider or think about. When l opened the onion seeds packet l couldn't help but laugh to myself. The amount of seed was almost about 2 tablespoons at most or even something just over 1 spoon. Now that l know there is not much that goes in making onion seeds, l honestly think humans are their own monsters. The process of making the packet and probably packing could be what's making things so expensive and those are the two things we can find our way around. It now seems so many things considered normal and important are a joke and life could be so much simpler if we ourselves uncomplicated our ways.

When you know how to harvest your own seeds, indeed you can be glad and laugh!

Rufaro Makamure wrote:I did some thinking on what could be more beneficial profit wise, either buying seedlings ready for transplanting or nursing my own and l ended up chosing to nurse my own. The advantages of buying seedlings would have been l would be guaranteed of an available plant to put in the ground and in the present moment i.e (giving me some lead time advantage). But nursing my own seeds, though it will cost me a little bit of time which in my position does not have that much significance, and is risky in terms of having something to plant, if done right it might get me around double the amount of seedlings that I would get if l were to buy seedlings instead. So l divided l will change most things that l feel affected our first nusery. I am nursing the seedlings myself at home and l am using dug out kitchen compost we dug last year ( it transformed into beautiful soil). I think if I give the nursery enough attention we might win.

I am now aware of things that l never even used to consider or think about. When l opened the onion seeds packet l couldn't help but laugh to myself. The amount of seed was almost about 2 tablespoons at most or even something just over 1 spoon. Now that l know there is not much that goes in making onion seeds, l honestly think humans are their own monsters. The process of making the packet and probably packing could be what's making things so expensive and those are the two things we can find our way around. It now seems so many things considered normal and important are a joke and life could be so much simpler if we ourselves uncomplicated our ways.

Why Seed Saving is so Important.

A grower's first, priority is to be able to have seed for the next two seasons.

Let me explain how the Seed Industry works –

The seed company gets either other growers or themselves to grow a crop for the sole purpose of obtaining seed to sell.

Once the seed is harvested it is sorted-sieved by the largest down to the smallest seed.

The large seeds go back to the seed growers and the next size down goes the larger buyers.

What remains is all the small seeds that ends up in seed packets and are sold to gardeners.

So from the start as a gardener/ small grower, you are at a disadvantage as you have inferior seed.

How to fix this problem, Is to save your own seed.

When you are growing a crop try and identify the best-strongest plants and leave them to go to seed, this will become the seed for next year's crop.

The advantages are that you have seeds that have adapted to your growing conditions and next year's seed will be free if stored correctly.
Let seed dry completely and keep seeds in a glass jar with a secure lid. Mark the date and year on the jar and keep them in a cool spot or refrigerator.

In practice, if done year after year and choosing the best seed from your current crop,  your seed will improve year on year.

Cheers
Anthony

We opened our vegetables for selling, a day and a half ago and they are finished. Most were bought yesterday by customers we had secured beforehand. Pests are the problem and are a risk to the vegetables. After finishing with the sales, I decided not to waste anytime so l went to buy some pesticide (not my ideal option but it is the most practical one at the moment), so that we spray as fast as possible and get to harvest soon. Well when l got into town, l did buy the spray and I decided to do some window shopping, in a supermarket, just checking on some chocolate that l have been craving for (not one of my wisest ideas). I spent some time walking up and down aisles and happened to see a bar going  for just over a $1 and l convinced myself l deserved this, after today's success. The time l got out of the supermarket, l had forgotten all about the real reason that made me go into town, l completely forgort the pesticide in the parcel counter and l have to go back for it. The cost of the chocolate in this case, more than doubled and l think l did not think things through properly. But l guess I am not in a perfect world, the best l can do in my situation is to enjoy the chocolate like it's a $3 dollar bar.