New seedlings as county seeks crop variation

Nakuru farmers recieve pyrethrum seedlings among others like coffee and macadamia.

Nakuru County government has given farmers coffee, macadamia, avocado and pyrethrum seedlings as part of a major agriculture revival anchored on diversification to caution farmers from price and weather changes.

Top leaders in the County have advised that it is time farmers moved away from the traditional subsistence agricultural practices to agri-business.

 Deputy Governor Dr Erick Korir said the growth in the sector is key in achieving food security as enshrined in the agricultural pillar of the Big Four Agenda.

 “It’s time we shift focus on perennial crops that promise good income and are non-labour intensive,” said Dr Korir.

The Deputy Governor was speaking when he led the distribution of free macadamia and avocado seedlings to farmers at Kiptangwany, Elementaita in Gilgil.

The farmers, in the first phase, received 4, 000 Hass avocado and 2, 000 macadamia seedlings. A well-managed acre holds 40 macadamia trees.

 The County Government of Nakuru hopes to distribute 14, 000 macadamia seedlings in seven sub-Counties.

He said the County is committed to empowering farmers through extension services and marketing to reap considerable income from their toil.

A grafted macadamia tree starts bearing fruits after two years, producing over 100 kilograms of nuts per season depending on ecological zones.

A kilogram of the nuts sells at Sh180. Official data from the Nuts and Oil Crops Directorate states that macadamia exports earned Kenya Sh5.1bn in 2017 and has grown steadily in the last two years.

County Agriculture Minister Dr Immaculate Maina noted that the macadamia is on high demand with over 30 dealers competing for quality nuts.

“We are working with crop regulatory bodies on sanitary and phytosanitary matters to ensure that our harvest meets market standards to fetch better prices,” Dr Maina stated.

She advised that farmers can intercrop the macadamia trees with other food crops, “Researchers have found a ‘perfect marriage’ by intercropping macadamia with coffee trees.”

The two perennial trees share the same ecological zones.

The agriculture department has also distributed 62,420 coffee seedlings to cooperative societies in coffee growing areas. Dr Maina advised farmers to be consumers of their products and building trust with the local market.

“Coffee returns when sold locally are higher than when exported,” she stated citing logistical costs that diminish profit margins.

County Assembly of Nakuru’s Agriculture Committee vice chair Mr Wilson Mwangi said more emphasis should be on extension services to help farmers manage their crops. He added that the Assembly will progressively allocate funds towards the introduction of perennial crops.

 “We are sensitizing our fellow Assembly members on the need to push for more allocation in the agriculture sector,” stated Mr Mwangi.

The County is seeking to expand the Nakuru Farmers Call Centre to better complement the work of agricultural extension officers in the area. Earlier, farmers in Kinungi, Naivasha Sub County were given 3.3 million pyrethrum seedlings. Agricultural CECM Dr Immaculate Maina said she was optimistic the sector will soon be back on its feet following the measures undertaken by the county government.