The secrets of farming groundnuts few share

About 3km off Kehancha-Taranganya Road in Migori County sits Kemakoba village, whose mainstay is farming.

The area’s farms are dotted with small patches of maize, cassava, beans, sorghum and millet. But Pauline Mwita’s 60-acre farm is different because it hosts groundnuts, pigeon peas and green grams. I find Pauline, who had arrived few days earlier from India where she resides with her family, busy tending to her pigeon peas crop.

She had planted another crop after harvesting last season’s, which she safely stored in a huge granary in her compound.

To begin with, the granary hosts 200 100kg bags of groundnuts that she harvested from 15 acres.

“I sell my produce in Nairobi’s Wakulima and Muthurwa markets. A bag of groundnuts goes from Sh15,000 to Sh20,000,” she says, displaying how the crop that she transports to the city fetches a fortune.

The other season, she harvested 197 bags of groundnuts from the same acres, earning over Sh2 million after deducting her expenses.

According to her, groundnuts are among the most profitable pulses because the price per bag has not dropped to below Sh15,000 for several years.
To grow the crops, she prepares the farm and sows the seeds directly in the ground.

“I put the seeds 2 inches deep into the soil and 6 inches apart in well-drained and loose soil mixed with DAP and NPK fertiliser,” says Pauline, who grows the Man Peta variety seeds, which are early maturing and offer high yields.

Ecological requirements for growing nuts

Groundnuts require a long warm growing season with a well-distributed rainfall during the growing season.

The plant grows best when the temperature is from 21-26.5°C and with a dry weather of about a month before harvesting. For good yields, the soil pH should be between 6.0-6.5.

Away from groundnuts, Pauline’s store too hosts 25 bags of pigeon peas she harvested from five acres.

She sells the 90kg bag of pigeon peas at Sh14,500. “This season my target is to get over Sh300,000 from pigeon peas. Last season I had 20 bags. I have now planted another six acres of pigeon peas that will be ready in two months.”

According to the farmer, planting the crop is an easy task. “I plant 1 to 2 inches deep in the ground and maintain a distance of 3 to 4 inches between them. The crop is drought and pest resistant,” says Pauline who grows the Mbaazi 1 variety that matures in three to four months.

One should watch out for aphids, one of the biggest enemies of the crop.  “Infested crop is characterised by holes in the leaves and dry wounds on the grains,” she offers, adding use of certified seeds eliminates some of the diseases.

The farmer too gets good returns from green grams. She grows the improved K26 variety, which is also resistant to drought and takes 45-60 days to mature.

“This season I harvested 20 bags of green grams from five acres. A 90kg bag goes for up to Sh13,000 in Nairobi where I sell my produce.”
So, how did she get to know about these highly profitable pulses?

“I was advised by officers at the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute in Kisii in 2003 that the area had acidic soil, thus, the legumes were most suitable.”

Before she started farming, she took soil samples for testing at the station.

“The results showed the soil had a pH of 3.52 thus I could not plant maize, the common crop in this region,” says Pauline, who went into farming in 1998 while still working as an assistant branch manager at KCB in Nairobi.

She started farming in Lukenya by growing tomatoes which she would sell at Gikomba market.

“I would drive to Lukenya every evening to harvest my crops, pack them and drive back to Nairobi  before going to work,” says Pauline, who later diversified to other crops like onions and carrots.

“After doing this for five years, I decided to quit my job and concentrate fully on farming.”

She, thereafter, relocated to her home in Kemakoba, Kuria, where she established her agribusiness.

She started with maize and sorghum, investing Sh1 million in the venture, with the money going to clearing the bushy family land and reclaiming a bigger portion that was swampy.

“I did this by digging trenches and furrows to drain excesswater from the farm,” she says, noting she planted maize before seeking advice from Kalro, Kisii.

Her husband Mwita Gitwekere, who works with The World Bank in India, supports her.

Farming is a risky affair

Her agribusiness has grown in leaps and bounds. She is currently putting up a bigger and modern granary on the farm.

“People have never realised that groundnuts and pigeon peas do well in this area. The crops are also easy to grow because they do not require a lot of attention apart from weed control and occasional spraying to keep pests at bay.”

But it is not all a smooth ride. Last year, she grew watermelons on 15 acres, investing over Sh100,000 in the crop. However, she harvested losses as her crop was destroyed by the October-December rains. However, she has not given up on the fruit yet as she has just prepared another six acres to grow it.

“Farming is a risky affair, thus, one must be strong. Sometimes crops fail but that, though devastating, should not discourage one from soldiering on.”

She has 13 workers and engages over 10 casuals when need arises. She has, however, learnt how to cut the costs by investing in herbicides that kill the weeds keeping her farm clean.

She hires tractors for cultivation and owns a shelling machine that shells her grains. “I bought this machine from South Africa and it has made my work easier. I take ready produce to the market. I am now saving for my own tractor.”

Pauline shuttles between Kenya and India, where her husband works, and, thus, she has to spend most of the time there.

“I do most of the farming on the phone. I talk to my workers every evening when I am in India and visit the farm once every two months to inspect progress and to market the produce. Though tough, I have managed to strike a healthy balance between my family and my farming,” says the mother of four, who reaps handsomely from farming.

Currently, she is building with her husband Kemakoba Catholic Church on a piece of land they donated.

“The church is a way of giving back to the community. Part of my proceeds from farming goes into this project. Our next plan is to come up with a youth polytechnic to equip the youth of this area withskills such farming.”

Thomas Marwa, Kuria East sub-county agricultural officer said the legumes do well inthe region due to a good climate.

“An alternating weather pattern in which the rainy season paves way for a dry spell supports the crops. The legumes are advantageous because they supply a lot of nitrogen into the soil boosting the growth of other crops.”

Diseases affecting groundnuts

Botrytis blight, a fungal disease, characterised by numerous spots on upper surface of leaflets; entire plant or discrete parts may wilt and die; pods and stems become covered in fungal sclerotia .

The deadly rossete virus also affects her crop. Application of appropriate foliar fungicides particularly benomy

they produce.

Though tough, I have managed to strike a healthy balance between my family and my farming,” says the mother of four, who reaps handsomely from farming. Currently, with her husband they are building Kemakoba Catholic Church on a piece of land they donated.

“The church as a way of giving back to the community. Part of my proceeds from farming goes into this project. Our next plan is to come up with a youth polytechnic to equip the youth of this area with skills such farming.”