Agricultural experts in Embu County have cautioned farmers against planting during in the ongoing rains that commenced to avoid crop failure.
They said the rains will be short-lived as per the forecast by the Kenya Meteorological Department and thus farmers should not rush to put their seeds to the ground.
County Director for Agriculture Patrick Njeru said these preliminary showers may easily lead to premature germination that may leave their crops to die once they subside in the few days to come as predicted by the weatherman.
“We are asking our farmers not to treat the ongoing rains as the onset of the long rains,” Njeru said, while asking them to instead use the rains to continue preparing their farms.
Speaking from his office today, Njeru reported that the weather forecast for Embu indicates that long rains will begin in mid-March in Manyatta and Runjenyes Constituencies that form the upper parts of the county.
He said the lower parts of Mbeere North and South Constituencies that are classified as arid will start receiving rains a week later.
Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) Extension Officer Catherine Muriithi echoed his sentiments asking farmers to avoid incurring losses that may be associated with premature sowing in terms of seeds and fertilizer.
“We do not want our farmers to incur double cost for the inputs and that is why we are asking them to heed to the advisory by the weatherman,” she said.
Meanwhile, Director Njeru said their extension officers were on the ground training farmers on how to prepare their farmlands for planting using modern techniques including minimum tillage and conservation agriculture aimed at maximising yields while conserving soil health.
He said they want to take advantage of the upcoming long rains that have been predicted to be normal or above normal and well distributed in space and time to maximise yield, especially for maize and beans that are the main staple crops in the county.
by Samuel Waititu
