Across much of Africa people are going to bed hungry!
This is especially so in SSA countries where subsistence farmers have exhausted their soil. In the past they could leave some fields fallow to allow the soil to slowly recover but, with the increasing population, available land has shrunk so crops are often grown every year on small fields without fertiliser.
One way of overcoming this problem is to use the Conservation Agriculture (CA) technique keeping the soil both protected and fed by the last harvest crop debris. However there are two problems that often prevent this! Either wandering animals consume the crop debris or there is no local NGO to teach CA! In South America another solution has been found - Jack beans! It has been shown that this legume has exceptional properties including the ability to re-fertilise depleted soil. It grows wild in much of Africa but is little cultivated! In recent months this bean has been supplied to thousands of small farmers in Uganda and some are already harvesting their first crop. This can be resown or sold.
When a farmers gets some JB seeds he/she also gets a leaflet like this;
Fertilising Your Soil
This leaflet is for anyone, farmer/gardener who has been growing food in depleted soil It is especially intended for those who are about to sow Jack beans. Many people are finding that their harvests are getting smaller even when there has been enough rain. Even using chemical fertiliser often does not help much. The usual way to replenish the soil is to keep it covered with crop debris but this can be difficult. In many parts of SSA countries animals are able to wander into fields and consume the vegetation. Ploughing should avoided whenever possible! One alternative is to grow legumes which fertilise the soil with nitrogen from their roots. The best legume found so far is the Jack bean (Canavalia Ensensiformis) This bean will grow almost anywhere – even in metal-polluted soil – but, even more important; 1. It will fertilise your soil and, given time, will make it so fertile that it will hold water right through most droughts! 2. It will deter animals from wandering into your fields due to its rough leaves. 3. Weeds are prevented by the poison in the roots. 4. After 3 months the young pods can be eaten raw or cooked. 5. When the beans are mature they can be cooked or sold but if to be eaten need careful treatment to deal with toxins. Ask for information or go to https://www.echocommunity.org/en/resources/fa9ad234-b4e8-4b96-89fe-20a08dcca81c There are two types of Jack bean. It grows as a vine or a bush but this is not normally important. Finding Jack bean in some SSA countries can be difficult although it seems to grow wild in all!
Cooking Cooking may be a problem for some as mature beans need extra heating. Many wood stoves are inefficient and produce smoke. This can be overcome if a rocket type stove is used with its hot flames. A simple one can be made with 16 bricks. As always, dry wood is essential! Email [email protected] for details.
Other Plants Although Jack beans are the first choice other beans also fertilise the soil and are better eating and need less cooking. Among others are chickpeas, lima beans, lablab, groundnuts, etc. Other plants, especially wild edible plants, can be intercropped but this will obviously slow down soil re-fertilisation.
Next Stage When the soil has been fertilised with JB (or other legumes) one can consider other crops and trees. More later.
Agroecology What must be kept in mind is the need to always keep the soil as undisturbed as possible! This means little or no ploughing and sowing seeds with a jabber.