Recent graduates venture into fertiliser manufacturing

DRIVEN by a passion for farming, two youths from Bulawayo who recently graduated from the National University of Science and Technology (Nust) and Lupane State University (LSU) have embarked on a thriving drip irrigation farming and organic fertilizer-making project.

The project also helps mitigate the effects of climate change.

Mr Mthokozisi Moyo (28), a civil and water engineering graduate from Nust who runs Ulwazi Technologies, partnered with Ms Cinderella Ndlovu (24), an environmental scientist graduate from LSU has established a backyard irrigation project at his home in Hillside suburb.

They planted spinach, tomatoes, garlic, rape and prickle peas. They also planted bana grass which they use to feed their rabbits.

Ms Ndlovu, a founder of the Green Hut Initiative Trust, a non-profit organisation that aims to protect the environment and combat climate change, produces organic fertilizer made up of banana peels and egg shells.

Organically derived fertilizers stimulate beneficial soil microorganisms and improve the structure of the soil. Soil microbes play a key role in converting organic fertilizers into soluble nutrients that can be absorbed by plants.

Organic fertilisers often provide the secondary and micronutrients plants need, usually absent in synthetic fertilizers.

In an interview, Mr Moyo said they water their garden measuring 20 x 15 metres using drip irrigation. Water is stored in a 210-litre tank with a capacity to water the entire field for a minimum of five days.

The bana grass is watered using reclaimed bathing water which they purify using an innovative but affordable water purifier invented by Mr Moyo.

“The purifier is just a simple thing where I took an old bathing dish, filled it with river sand and planted vetiver grass, which grows on river banks. Instead of wasting that dirty water, we pour it onto the dish and as it sips down, the impurities are absorbed by the vetiver grass roots and purified water comes out from the opening below the dish,” said Mr Moyo.

He said what triggered him to come up with mitigatory projects against climate change was the death of all their cattle due to drought in 2019.

“Climate change is real, but there is little that we can do to completely stop it. What we can do is adapt and come up with ways of mitigating the effects,” said Mr Moyo.

He said he came up with an effective irrigation system that uses little water but with the same effects in terms of the yields.

“While this is just a small-scale irrigation garden, the long-term plan is for people to have a buy-in into the system which will eventually lead to water conservation and also contribute to national food security,” said Mr Moyo.

He said he is also planning to go commercial on their project by selling some of the produce to supplement his income. “The project is mainly for domestic consumption and free handouts to friends and relatives but noting how effective it is, I am planning to go commercial and boost my revenue sources,” he said.

Ms Ndlovu said due to the effects of climate change, there is a need to come up with innovative ways of both livestock and crop farming.