Chronicle Editor
Sukulwenkosi Dube-Matutu – [email protected]
MEMBERS of the Mosenthals Irrigation Scheme in Insiza District have appealed for assistance to upgrade their operations to incorporate climate-smart agricultural practices.
The farmers completed harvesting their winter wheat crop where they planted 12 hectares and had to trash the harvest by hand as they lacked equipment.
The process takes long and requires a lot of labour and is compounded by the use of an old watering system that relies on syphons fed by a canal system. The method is labour-consuming and does not conserve water.
The scheme also relies on a small water pump that cannot meet the demand thereby affecting the viability of the project and limiting the potential of the 63 members.
The irrigation scheme was established in 2012 and became fully operational in 2020 with a land area of 20ha.
Chairperson, Mr Jealous Ndlovu, said they were desperate for support to upgrade their scheme and improve production.
“We are doing well in our production and farmers are hands-on. We have recorded another successful wheat production season and now, we are moving on to maize for the summer cropping season,” he said.
“While we are doing well, there is a lot we desire for our scheme such as upgrading to incorporate climate-smart agricultural methods.
“As it is, we were thrashing our wheat by hand. This is time-consuming and requires a lot of labour. There are now modern ways of harvesting wheat using mechanised thrashers and combine harvesters. We are in a business and using these time-consuming methods is costly,” he said.
Ms Mesuli Sibanda said they wished for urgent upgrading to incorporate modern watering methods such as centre pivots and drip irrigation systems.
“We wake up around 4am to water our crops. Our water comes through canals and then we pump it using syphons. We spend hours watering our crops and we can’t leave the syphons unattended as they need to be moved,” she said. “The syphons are heavy and moving them requires a lot of labour.
“We desire to have methods like the centre pivot where we can just set the system and then we can do other chores. We have a reliable source of water for our crops, which is Mayfair Dam and all we need is an improved watering system. Our water pump engine is also small, which makes it difficult to perform as expected.”
Another farmer at the irrigation scheme, Ms Sophie Moyo, said the irrigation scheme has helped them to sustain their families. She said they also produce various horticulture crops, sugar beans and butternut.
She said the Government through Agritex has also come with training and technical advice to enhance their production.
Ms Moyo said as farmers they were eager to ensure successful production. Ward 16 Agritex extension officer, Mr Doubt Sibanda, said upgrading was critical to meet current climate-smart agriculture methods being promoted by the Government.
He said while the crops are doing well under the current watering system, they could perform even better with improved water supply. Mr Sibanda said farmers were missing out on some of the watering schedules because of the problem with their water pump. He said this was causing moisture stress on crops.
Ward 16 councillor who is also Insiza Rural District Council chairperson, Luke Dube, said the development of the irrigation scheme is crucial for their area, which is located in Region Five. He said each year households that are part of irrigation schemes in his areas are guaranteed food supply regardless of rainfall patterns. Clr
Dube said it is important for the scheme to be upgraded for enhanced production.
“The farmers from this irrigation scheme have been doing very well and imagine what more they could do if their scheme is upgraded.
“Our area is in Region Five and in five years we can get one good rainfall season. This means there is no way that people can survive outside irrigation farming,” he said. — @DubeMatutu
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