Thriving organic kitchen garden in the backyard

Esther Ngari delights in keeping busy at her kitchen garden, where she farms organic vegetables. Among the crops she grows are tomatoes, cabbages, spinach, sweet pepper, onions, coriander and an assortment of indigenous vegetables including kunde and amaranth.

With these, the 61-year-old mother of five says she has enough to feed her family and a lot left over to sell to her random customers.

Grandchildren

“Even when my 12 grandchildren gather here, the produce from the garden is still in surplus,” jokes Esther who quit her meat-selling business in Lang’ata in 2006 to run her organic garden.

The garden sits at the backyard of her one-acre plot in the sparsely populated Waithaka in Dagoretti area of Nairobi, near Lenana School. Prior to venturing into growing organic crops, Esther had a plantation of bananas sitting on the land, which she did not accord as much attention as she does her vegetables.

“I uprooted most of the banana trees to make room for the veggies and I have since stuck strictly to organic crops using manure which I collect from my cows,” she says.

Manure

Her secret for a bountiful harvest, she divulges, is in using well-dried manure, guarding the crops against harsh weather and using drip irrigation to give them enough water all year round.

She explains that a desire to lead a healthy life and love for staying active were her driving force for going fully organic. Last November, she introduced greenhouse technology in her gardening to boost productivity. To repel pests, Esther has grown onions around the structure where she has tomatoes.

She hints at plans to install another greenhouse which will have sweet pepper since these cannot be grown in the same structure as tomatoes. Growing tomatoes and sweet pepper together makes the crops susceptible to bacteria wilt, characterised by shrivelling and drying leaves.

While it cost her Sh150,000 to install the greenhouse, Esther is fast to add that it was a good investment as she is able to harvest at least a crate of tomatoes in a week.

The six-by-12 metres green house was supplied by a company keen on catering for those interested in running successful kitchen gardens. This is unlike the huge commercial greenhouses used by large-scale farmers.

Mr Oliver Ndegwa of Agrotunnel International Limited explains that a five-by-five metres greenhouse can accommodate at least 150 tomato plants. He says that compared to other farming methods, the model enables farmers to manipulate temperature and humidity, thus it suits any climate.

“Besides, because of the drip irrigation method, crops grow faster without reliance on rainfall hence more output all year round,” says Ndegwa.

Organic vegetable gardening has gained popularity in recent years with home gardeners striving to grow crops that are not only healthy but eco-friendly.

Greenhouse

Esther warmed up to the idea of running a greenhouse kitchen garden after seeing one thrive in her son’s backyard, whose homestead sits a stone’s throw away.

“On noting his bountiful harvest, I knew this was the smart way to go as far as living healthy is concerned. I do not regret my decision,” she concludes.

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