Train Primary Teachers in Conservation Agriculture

Foundations for Farming (FtF) successfully trained a variety of groups during the last quarter, including pastors, widows, university students, boys, girls and the elderly. In addition to learning about effective farming methods, participants were also taught financial management, family stewardship and leadership. Overall, FfF staff were successful in managing to share the vision of the organisation with the participants, that of seeking to alleviate poverty in Zimbabwe and Africa as a whole.

More specifically, the participants were taught how to dig planting stations and apply lime, fertilizers, thinning and plant seed in the correct way. It is common for farmers in communal areas to just plant seed without consideration of the importance of spacing and soil condition. This was a very important part of their lessons as it taught the participants how to carry out their farming activities to a required standard in order to achieve the good yields. Theoretical presentations were accompanied by practical demonstrations highlighting the negative effects of ploughing compared with using mulch to cover the bare soil. Participants were particuarly intrigued by the demonstration of how soil erosion takes place on ploughed land after the rain falls.

Composting also featured heavily in the training, with participants taking part in building a compost pile, which they then monitored for the anticipated heat effects predicted by the theory they had learned in the classroom. The participants were truly amazed at how costly compound fertilizers may be easily and effectively substituted with readily available organic materials piled together to make a compost pile.

Overall, the training was a revelation in shedding light on why farmers of all types had achieved low yields in the past and how a natural and affordable solution exists within the reach of all farmers.

Thank you for all your continued support!