Like other sub-Saharan countries, land and water resources in Kenya are becoming even scarcer and arable land is decreasing. The high population growth, real estate pressure have contributed to this decline but it is evident that agricultural production has also kept pace perhaps because it was based on intensification policies, which are no longer feasible.
Coupled with lack of appropriate technologies, this decline in per capita arable land is the main cause of declining food security and increasing poverty, which the country has been experiencing for years now. The main constraints to irrigation development are water availability and poor water management. While there are several efficient water use irrigation systems, those used in Kenya are mainly traditional furrow and overhead sprinkler systems, which tend to use too much of the limited water unlike drip irrigation.
The advantages of drip irrigation are well documented, but many smallholder farmers still have not adopted the technology. If you’re one of those farmers, maybe it’s time to take another look.
It’s a year now since Peter Kimani installed a Sun Culture drip irrigation kit on his three quarter acre piece of land, the returns have been great and he is not looking back. Being adaptable to many agricultural and landscape situations, the irrigation kit has been designed in a way that water can easily be applied to any planting shape, size and topography.
Due to his love for agriculture, Kimani a middle aged smallholder farmer in Ngecha Location Kiambu County opted for the irrigation kit to enable him irrigate his farm. “Since I installed the Sun Culture irrigation kit in 2013, my farming has been smooth and profitable. I can irrigate my farm and make money all year round despite the scarcity of water caused by unprecedented vagaries of weather , a thing that never was,” Kimani said.
Invented by an agro-input company Sun Culture, the kit, popularly known as Sun Culture Agro solar Irrigation Kit, denotes its ability to combine solar water pumping technology with high efficiency drip irrigation that includes all that a farmer needs to grow more while spending less. “Drastic climate changes ranging from drought to downpour led me to acquiring this kit. I used to grow crops on my farm and many at times dried up due to insufficient rains or got damaged by torrential rains hence making high losses,” Kimani told PanAAC’s Outlook team when they paid him a courtesy call.
According to Elijah Mutula, the Sun Culture irrigation kit is pocket friendly and can be designed depending on the size of the farm a farmer has. “We usually focus on the farm size and the amount of water to be pumped when designing our irrigation kit. We don’t have a fixed price for our kits as not all farmers have the same size of farm,” the Sun Culture project Manager said.
The sun culture irrigation kit has solar panels and an automatic charge controller which enables the farmer to pump water from either a well or river to the reservoir and then to the farm. The smallest pump has the potential of pumping up to 12,000 litres of water daily, enough to irrigate two acres and uses an average of three solar panels which produce 100 watts each. “The pump has a sensor that puts it on or off especially when the tank is full or empty. Water leaves the reservoir via a filter avoid blockage of the drip holes on the pipes,” Elijah said.
“The Sun Culture irrigation kit ensures that majority of small holder farmers like me who do not sufficient water can irrigate their small pieces of land by utilizing the little water they have. It also comes with high quality accessories, fully equipped with a 12mm drip line that is made of resistant materials for easy application of even soluble fertilizers,” Peter said.
The drip pipes are spaced 50cm from each other allowing for complete water absorption by the plant. Farmers have already adopted the kit especially in Machakos, Meru, Nyanza, Coast and in the Rift Valley. “The sun culture drip irrigation kits are affordable and have the right capacity for different farmers especially small holder farmers like me. The thing with the Sun Culture kit is that it allows us to get water faster to our small farming plots and their affordable price is another plus,” says Peter.
According to Elijah, farmers who purchase the kit get free demonstration of its use, installation and support from the Sun Culture’s agronomists. “Its thin pipes allow the water to drip specifically to individual plants reducing water runoff, which hampers growth of weeds and eliminates wetting of the foliage thus minimizing fungal diseases associated with dampness on plants, he explains.”
The adoption of the kit comes in the wake of a report that identified small-scale irrigation as key to a near tripling of sub-Saharan Africa’s yields. The report by The International Water Management Institute (IWMI), uncovered a revolution in the ways in which smallholders are driving low-cost farm and community water management.
Dubbed Water for wealth and food security: Supporting farmer-driven investments in agricultural water management, the report unearthed the scale to which enterprising smallholders are driving the irrigation revolution by using their own resources innovatively rather than waiting for water to be delivered.
Kimani is now realizing over Sh30, 000 a month from his three quarter acre and expects to reap bigger profits in the near future if he can manage to rehabilitate his well by increasing its depth from the current 35 to 50 meters to guarantee a continuous flow of water.
According to Kimani, if you’re still a doubter or on the fence about drip irrigation, perhaps you need to change your mind because even if drip irrigation will not be perfect for all situations, it does have several advantages in those situations where it can be used. “Increased yield is a must especially if you combine the irrigation with Good Agricultural Practices especially by switching from bare ground production with overhead irrigation to drip-irrigated beds,” he says.
Drip irrigation Kimani says, not only saves water but also ensures that each crop gets the right amount of water it requires for healthy growth. “Drip irrigation waters only the area where plants are growing using up to 50 to 70 percent less water than if the same area were overhead irrigated. Irrigation can also occur during the heat of the day when plants most need water and this is when a significant portion of overhead irrigation would be lost to evaporation,” he adds.
According to Elijah, drip systems operate with lower pressures unlike overhead systems. “Sun Culture irrigation kit doesn’t need the significantly higher volumes of water required for overhead. Limited volume systems can simply be zoned off so smaller portions can be watered separately,” he says.
According to Kimani, being able to achieve higher yields off fewer acres makes fertilizer, pesticide, labor and other inputs more efficient. “I can do plant maintenance activities, like pruning, staking, spraying or harvesting while irrigation is taking place. This is the beauty of using a Sun Culture drip kit,” he adds.
“Drip irrigation makes it is easier to maintain uniform soil moisture leading to more consistent uptake of nutrients needed for good growth,” Elijah says. This is important for reducing physiological disorders such as blossom end rot in tomatoes, peppers and other susceptible crops. The system is easily automated and any size system can be set up so it can be turned on and off using sensers,” he says.
The kit also improves fertilizer application since plants can be fed on an “as needed” basis, from the fertigator hence increasing nutrient use efficiency, plant and fruit quality and yield increase. Slow application rate and the ability to regulate flow and time decreases potential for runoff and leaching hence making it environmentally friendly. “Overall, the Sun Culture drip irrigation System can be installed, maintained and operated generally at lower costs than other systems,” Elijah says.
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