Impact of lockdown and gardening

Ngqwele Dube, Sunday News Correspondent
WHILE growing food for consumption is a culture for many urban dwellers in Zimbabwe, the implementation of a lockdown by Government as part of efforts to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic reportedly saw a rise in the number of people taking to gardening.

While most businesses have shut down with income dwindling, a seedlings grower in Makokoba, Bulawayo, Mr Spring Peter Nkomo revealed business has been booming for him. He said he was delighted that people sought ways to keep themselves occupied during the lockdown.

“I grow seedlings in my small garden here at home. I did not know there were so many people interested in doing gardening in the city. I guess it is because they wanted to keep themselves busy during this period when they are confined to their homes. The number of seedlings that I have been growing were bought in a way that I would not have imagined and it all started when the lockdown was declared,” said Mr Nkomo.

He said during normal times he rarely runs out of seedlings. Nkomo sells a variety of seedlings from his home garden which include rape, chomolia, tsunga, cabbage, tomatoes, beetroot, covo, onion and herbs. Seedlings that have been in demand include spinach, rape, covo and tsunga, which Mr Nkomo said take an average of five weeks to mature.

Prices for the seedlings have also gone up with a bunch of about 20 seedlings having been priced at $20 before lockdown now going for $25.

While Sunday News visited Mr Nkomo, three clients came to look for seedlings.

One of the clients, who declined to be identified said he was hoping to have ready relish at home instead of having to buy from the market all the time.

“With more people always at home food consumption is going up so I had to look for alternative ways of reducing the food bill. I have been gardening but it has been on a small space and now I have planted almost three times the area I used to work on before the lockdown,” he said.

Apart from gardening, some residents have taken to social media to share their videos while doing physical exercises to keep themselves fit.