The garden is located at Ngangaini village, Gatanga sub-county, Murang’a county. It was started by a youth group of 15 people (10 males, 5 females) between the ages of 17 and 28 years old. They are involved in different activities such music, motivational talks to other young people, table banking and gardening. They have a ¼ acre lot where they have been practicing sustainable agriculture since mid 2015 after visiting the leader of Slow Food Gatunyu convivium garden. They were introduced to sustainable agriculture and the importance of biodiversity. They grow different crops including carrots, coriander, Irish potatoes, kale, cabbages, amaranth, Russian comfrey, bell peppers, cow peas, pigeons, spinaches, thorny melons, cassava, pumpkins, onions, peppers and sweet potatoes. They have fruits that include tree tomatoes, mountain paw paws, oranges, sugarcane and bananas. They also keep poultry and goats. Animal manure from these animals is used to nourish the soil. The group sent their representative to attend the Slow Food 10000 gardens in Africa training where he was trained on soil fertility management and pests and diseases management to ensure production of good, clean and fair food. Among the sustainable techniques to control pest learnt there are preparing plant extracts (with chili peppers, garlic, aloe vera, Mexican marigold and ashes), using sticky cards, doing crop rotation, intercropping crops together with pest-repelling plants. Crops grown are mainly rain fed without any supplemental irrigation during dry season due to inadequate availability of water. The group cooks together part of the harvest, a portion is handed out to the church as offering, some is stored as seeds, and surplus is sold to generate some income.
Area
Ngangaini Village, Kandara sub-county, Murang’a county
Coordinator
Martin Mwangi Mwaura
