After retrenchment, I found my mojo in the farm

Kirinyaga, Kenya: Retrenchment is a life changing episode. When it comes some bury their sorrows in alcohol, others in depression and the brave ones do something constructive. Fleciah Wambui Kinyua, 52, is among the brave.

After being retrenched by the Ministry of Health in 2000, Ms Kinyua, went into farming. The transition was not as bumpy because she and her husband were practising farming on their five-acre farm in Karinga area, Kirinyaga Central sub-county.

“We had been growing maize, beans, coffee and bananas on a small scale. When I was retrenched, I also tried tomatoes, French beans and cabbages,” says the mother of three.

When she realised the crops did not generate much returns, Kinyua turned into commercial banana farming in 2005. That was the turning point. They thrived and she and her husband were able to take care of their family needs and make extra money.

Today, with over 1,140 banana stools each holding between four and five stems, the couple is reaping generously from the venture.

In October last year, Ms Kinyua emerged the best women farmer in agriculture category at the Nairobi International Trade Fair and received a trophy from President Uhuru Kenyatta.

Her farm which also acts as a demonstration farm is ever busy as new and experienced farmers visit to learn about mixed farming, crop rotation, furrowing, disease and pest control.

The Ministry of Agriculture and research institutes always send trainees to her farm while local and international media also visit for insights.

When Smart Harvest team visited the farm, her husband Geoffrey Kinyua was supervising work at the dairy section while Ms Kinyua was taking two banana farmers on an educational tour of the farm.

She was explaining the value of bananas compared to coffee.

“With banana you are assured of the market and you get cash once your produce changes hands, unlike coffee which first has to go to factory and then you wait for money at an unknown rate,” she says.

Her secret to growing thriving bananas?

Ms Kinyua advises farmers keen on growing banana for commercial purposes to seek services of agricultural extension officers.

She also advises farmers to cut the banana inflorescence (male flower) once it has produced all bananas fingers and started curving upwards, since if left there it continues feeding on the plants nutrients and could harboUr diseases. Kinyua observes a spacing of 9X9ft from one stool to another and allows between four and five stems per stool.

 

That way, she notes one acre of banana would hold 540 stools which is similar to population of coffee in a similar piece of land.

She grows tissue culture bananas of grand nine, fia and Williams varieties, which mature in nine to ten months and she harvests a banana from each stool every three months.

For a bumper harvest, she also advises a farmer to apply adequate manure and water to their bananas.

If a farmer puts this into practice they are able to harvest a bunch weighing 40kgs.

“If well tendered, bananas can produce more. My bananas on average attain between 70kg and 80kgs. Cost of production averages between Sh300 and Sh350, leaving one a huge profit margin that not many crops give,” she says.

Best varieties

She sources seedlings from Jomo Kenyatta University of Science and Technology, Aberdare farms and certified nurseries at Sh120. She focuses on Grand nine and Williams type of banana.

She says Grand nine is famed for being firm therefore does not require supporting while Williams attains more weight of up to 80 and 100kgs.

Ms Kinyua warns farmers against using banana offshoots from other farmers as seedlings since they end up transferring diseases to their farms.

Luckily, marketing has not been a challenge to her and other farmers since they have formed a group, which is registered under Banana Growers Association of Kenya (BGAK).

Ms Kinyua who is the sub-county BGAK chairperson says through the group, they are able to source for markets and negotiate for better prices.

“As a group we empasise on quality and advise farmers to cut bananas carefully so that the produce can meet international standards,” she says.

She advises farmers to remove and destroy excess tubers to prevent the stems from competing for nutrients.

She says each banana stem if well taken care of can last for up to 10 years, but warns that during the first year, the farmer has to prepare adequately for the initial capital.

She is also piloting a new farming method where a piece of firm polythene paper is inserted on a finger of banana to shield from direct sunlight and keep diseases away.

“The method is working and the bananas have grown at a faster rate attaining maturity at 92 days while the fingers produce more. We plan to roll it out soon,” she says.