Climate change: Farmers must reinvent
December 9, 2012 in Environment, Opinion
No longer can farmers employ the same agricultural techniques they used a
decade ago and expect to reap as much as they might have back then.
Column by Chipo Masara
Farmers in Zimbabwe have not been spared from the effects of changes, mostly
climatic, that have over the past few years persistently hard-hit especially
the agriculture sector. The climatic changes have been credited to that
much-talked-about phenomenon called climate change, currently a hot topic in
Zimbabwe and the world over.
Whether or not the changes are really owing to climate change, what everyone
in Zimbabwe would not have failed to observe is that there indeed have been
a lot of changes, most of which have transformed the face of agriculture in
the country in a major way.
Where people used to know exactly when to plant their crops and the measures
to apply to ensure they reaped maximum yields, erratic rainfall patterns
that are currently being experienced are making it hard to timely plant
crops.
In most cases, people plant way too early (having been misled by the early
rains), only for their crops to be ravaged by long dry spells and the
unbearable heat that normally characterises such periods. Before long, most
crops planted too early would have been wiped out, making replanting
necessary. This has had a negative bearing on most farmers’ pockets as money
keeps getting wasted. If farmers had irrigation facilities, the situation
would not be so bad. Unfortunately, the bulk of them have to rely completely
on rainfall.
Many farmers that are in the country’s remote areas do not have or have
limited access to reports from the country’s meteorological department; thus
they normally do not have a clue on the weather patterns. And then, there
are still many more that have never heard of climatic change, with many
having decided to blame the persistent droughts on God’s anger over people’s
misdeeds.
In the meantime, scientists assert the warmer atmospheric temperatures that
have been experienced over the past decade, characteristic of climate
change, have resulted in more vigorous hydrological cycles, leading to
intensified soil erosion and the resultant soil degradation.
Many farmers are evidently battling with soils that have become too tired
and barren to produce much. In an effort to increase their yields, most tend
to scale up on fertiliser and other yield-enhancing chemicals.
Unfortunately, in most instances, the overdependence on chemicals has only
served to tire the soils even further.
Sadly, it is not only commercial farming that has been adversely affected by
the changing climatic conditions; it has been a thorn in the flesh even at
household levels, rendering most households food insecure, leaving them in
dire need of assistance. Millions of people in Zimbabwe currently face
starvation and require food handouts.
However, it is not all farmers in Zimbabwe that are at wits’ end over how to
continue farming in the face of the climatic changes.
Some have chosen to adapt and have embraced new ways of doing things, to
minimise the impact of the devastating climatic changes.
Tamuka Matambo of Mvuma peri-urban plots is one such farmer that has decided
to open up to new ways of doing things, and it has worked wonders for him.
Retired from civil service, Matambo now spends the bulk of his time working
on his piece of land, which besides being considerably small, produces
enough to guarantee his family food security, leaving him with surplus
produce to sell.
With support from Forestry Commission, Matambo has successfully ventured
into Alley Cropping — a method of planting in which rows of a crop are sown
between rows or hedges of nitrogen-fixing plants, the roots of which enrich
the soil.
This method, which Matambo said was not labour-intensive, greatly reduces
the need to use fertiliser, helping the soil regain its fertility. The
accumulating mulch from the hedges helps prevent weed growth.
In spite of the intense heat that had ravaged most vegetation in the area,
Matambo’s plot is evergreen and looks healthy. This, he explained, was
because the hedges helped to trap in rain water, controlling water wastage
through run off.
He kept residue from last year’s harvest in the field, which he said served
as manure, further reducing the need for fertiliser.
Agric sector must embrace new methods
It is farmers like Matambo, who have taken up conservative methods of
farming, who can look forward to a bright future in the business.
Those that choose to do things the same old way are bound to continue
wasting resources while reaping very little, if anything.
It is time players in the agriculture sector took cognisance of the climatic
changes and harnessed all the knowledge they need to make the new conditions
work for the country.