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Growing boma rhodes hay
Hay is a type of grass that is grown to feed livestock. It is usually a type of grass that grows tall and is usually cut, let to dry and then kept in storage. This can usually be bound with some type of tying material like string by hand or by machine.
Boma rhodes
We decided to grow hay so as to have feed for the cows during the dry season. The most common hay grown in Kenya is boma rhodes. It grows relatively well and can be quite tall when it receives adequate rainfall and fertilizer. It can also be cut at least twice a year in ideal conditions. I believe the other reason it is popular with farmers locally is also because it is palatable to the cows and nutritious especially when cut at the right stage.
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Macadamia Farming
My farming journey into macadamia nut growing began with my mother. She thought it would be a good idea for us to broaden our income source. Once we agreed, we got the tree seedlings from our agricultural research institute KARI(Kenya Agricultural Research Institute) then but now known as KALRO(Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization). It is while we were here that we were told that they have two varieties of macadamia tree. one One produces smooth nuts while the other rough. We decided to try each. We bought half and half. We got 70 seedlings.
A macadamia tree
Growing the macadamia trees from nuts is possible, but it takes at least 8 years for the tree to start producing any fruit. Also the yield may be little as it inherently passes on the genes that affect production(heterozygous). Grafting is the preferred method of propagation as you can select the best qualities.
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Avocado Farming
Avocado is a versatile fruit that can be eaten as a savoury, sweet or even plain. Either way they always taste good. Avocados are also healthy as they are a source of fat especially the mono-unsaturated fat. They also offer a good dose of other vitamins and minerals like vitamin E, C and K. They also contain magnesium and potassium.
Avocados are also thought to be healthy as they are offer benefits with weight loss, diabetes management, reducing cardiovascular problems and are also thought to reduce risk of cancer.
An Avocado tree
There are several varieties of avocado like hass, fuerte and the kienyeji/local. The first two despite being smaller in size than the kienyeji one usually taste better due to the higher fat content. The kienyeji one also is usually a purple hue when ripe.
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Potato Farming
Who doesn't love potatoes? Mashed, boiled, fried baked, name it! Having a love for the tuber, I decided to try my hand at growing them.
Potatoes are usually grown from tubers. When exposed to sunlight the potatoes start to change to a greenish colour and the eyes of the potatoes begin to grow shoots. Planting usually stars with land preparation. This involves ploughing the land then breaking up the soil slumps to a fine tilth.
Harvested Potatoes
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