Weatherman tells farmers why they should not till their land
Motorist drive in Nyeri town on January 15, 2017 over the weekend as rains poured giving farmers hope of tilling their land in preparation of planting season. PHOTO | GRACE GITAU | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- The rains that poured on Saturday and Sunday afternoon elicited excitement among residents who started preparing their farms in anticipation of more rains for planting.
- On Saturday afternoon only Nyeri town experienced the rains for about 15 minutes. Karatina, Othaya and other neighbouring towns experienced light showers.
- Social media platforms were awash with posts on the rains which surprised many owing to predictions by the weatherman of no rains until March.
A senior meteorological officer has warned farmers in Mount Kenya region against preparing their farms for the planting season.
This is after the region experienced light showers for two days giving farmers a glimmer of hope after months of scorching sun.
“The rains were not unusual as people want to put it. When the full moon is out light showers are common phenomenon,” Aberdare region meteorology director, Francis Nguatah said.
The weatherman said that the rains were not suitable for planting as they are unreliable and inconsistent.
Mr Nguatah noted that during the day, temperatures were rising to a high of 27 degrees and at night the temperatures drop to seven degrees.
The rains that poured on Saturday and Sunday afternoon elicited excitement among residents who started preparing their farms in anticipation of more rains for planting.
On Saturday afternoon only Nyeri town experienced the rains for about 15 minutes. Karatina, Othaya and other neighbouring towns experienced light showers.
Social media platforms were awash with posts on the rains which surprised many owing to predictions by the weatherman of no rains until March.
One of the social media users, Moses Kuria, on his Facebook page said: “Proving the weather man wrong, Nyeri raining cats and dogs nani kama Mungu (Who is like God).”
A forecast for the month of January indicates that most parts of the country will remain sunny and dry.
But a few areas in Western Kenya, especially those to the south of the Lake Victoria basin are going to experience occasional light to moderate rainfall.
A farmer in Kieni termed the rains a blessing hoping that they continue to reduce the effect of crop failure currently being witnessed.
“Our crops are almost drying up. We hope that it will continue raining and yield us harvest,” he said.
The county had warned that over 24,000 are in dire need of relief food due to drought.
A resident of Nyeri town said it was a sign from God that the drought would not persist as feared.
“We have seen in the news that millions are facing hunger. But this is an indication that it will rain soon and we will not suffer,” said Ms Milkah Muthoni.
