Flower Photos

Flowers for an icy day 

MOOF Africa

Located in Nanyuki, Kenya MOOF AFRICA is an NGO working with sustainable development where eco-village concepts are used to address challenges by offering local solutions to the community making an overall global impact. Making information on ecological technologies available to farmers and international communities where this information is appropriate to meet the basic needs of humanity to enable us to conserve our mother Earth.  

https://moofafrica.com/

The SLOPES GREENS ORGANIC VEGETABLES “KIKAPU” ENTERPRISE

Used with Permission.

INTRODUCTION

MOOF-Africa is located in the outskirts South of cosmopolitan  Nanyuki town approximately 3.5 Kms. MOOF is a professional Social Enterprise  Agricultural Non –Governmental Organization, NGO, working with smallholder farmers on sustainable food security, nutrition, income generation and environmental conservation for  rural development. Regenerative Permaculture and Agro-ecological concepts are used to address food insecurity and malnutrition challenges by offering local solutions to the community making an overall  well fed and wealthy communities in Kenya. Making information on Agro-ecological Technologies and Regenerative Permaculture available to farmers, students and international communities where this information is appropriate to meet the basic needs of humanity to enable us achieve a more balanced food source with high nutrition grown   without hazardous pesticides.

Food consumers desires for fresh nutritious food information on the following:

Transparency and Traceability of food: Customers desires to know:

-Where food comes from- from MOOF farm grown through organic technology.

-When food was produced – dated

-How good is the food? - Fresh and packaged by well trained and healthy food handlers with medical certificates from government hospitals. .

- Impacts to the environment – Organic foods taking care of the environment and workers health –no pesticides used.

-Packaging of food – locally made and biodegradable baskets made of materials from swamps.

OBJECTIVES

1. Produce Organic high value crops (Herbs, vegetables, Leafy range veggies and fruits) through Permaculture and agro ecological technologies.

2. Uniquely package (“Kikapu”) Basket, and distribute the organically produced harvest to high niche end customers in their homes door steps within Nanyuki town and environs.

3. Market the organic produce targeting high niche customer base including; British army (BATUK- Brattish Army Training Unit in Kenya) families, residential white westerners and supermarkets, hotels, Lodge and Eco-Camps in the wildlife conservancies and middle-class locals’ sensitive of healthy eating habits in Nanyuki town.

4. Establish a sustainable water management system so as to efficiently use the scarce water resource for vegetable production.

5. Permaculture Designs Training:  Actively engage Permaculture and Organic growing in MOOF-Africa farm as a demonstration and training centre for organic production to young girls, (e.g. Baraka Academy and girls from other academies in Nanyuki region), women and youth in Laikipia County.

For more information please visit     
                                               
Website: www.moofafrica.com

                    Facebook page: https://web.facebook.com/MOOFAfrica/

Excerpt from Book

I am working on a novel. This is an excerpt.

"

At the family dinner, the following Sunday, Ellie recounted the discussion she and Jake had shared while watching Madmen.

“Since that night, I’ve been rolling this thought around in the back of my mind.” Ellie began.

“Now, listen before reacting, ok?” She added.

“OK.” The three replied simultaneously.

“What if, just what if, human evolution has been stalled because we spend much of our time surrounded by images, videos, songs and so on, that portray a reality, one we have all bought into, but a reality that isn’t real?” She spoke quietly.

The looks on her family’s faces gave her pause. Jake began to slowly nod his head but the siblings seemed a bit, maybe not doubtful, but wary.

Cathy spoke first. “Mom, I see what you are saying. But it sounds like the beginnings of a fascinating conspiracy story, intriguing but impossible.”

Nate added. “The coordination it would take to achieve this would be massive. How could it be done?”

“Well, that I don’t know, but feel it is worth giving some deeper thought to this.” Ellie said."

Comments?

Glass Gem Corn

While the cobs are smaller than I would have liked, I plant to grow again, next year, probably only three plants along with grex beans, not pumpkins though.

Tar Spot; What it is.

"Tar spot is a fungal disease that doesn't require a fancy microscope for diagnosis. As you might guess, the disease is characterized by raised, black spots on leaves. Tar spot occurs primarily on silver maple." source

Winter is Coming: Time for New Projects

While the cosmos is still in bloom alongside the house, the gardening season has come to an end. The small garden has been put to bed and I am moving onto new projects, although both are connected to food and growing.

November is NaNoWriMo month. You sign up to write 50,000 words within the month of November. I have started on a novel entitled. "Enough is Enough."

The second project is to grow this blog, the Inquisitive Gardener. A book is in the work, one feature of this book will be a section on "invasive plants." I'll release more details as the days pass.

What are you up to in the offseason?

Start a School Garden

What is a school garden?

Simply put a school garden is a garden on the school property. It may be a flower garden or a vegetable garden or both. The choice is up to the people who plant and tend the garden; the students with guidance and advice from teachers and parents.

A school garden is an excellent way for the parents to become involved in the school that their child(ren) attends. The garden can be a container garden, raised bed or planted directly into the ground, once again the choice belongs to the gardeners taking into consideration the available resources, such as the amount of land available and the type of land as well as the amount of time that can be dedicated to gardening.

The school garden can complement the learning experience as there are many lessons that can be based upon the garden. For one thing, students can learn how to work together to plan, plant and care for the garden.

How to get started?

The impetus for the garden may come from a teacher, a parent or a student. For the garden to work all must be involved. Regardless of who initiates the project, the school principal must be involved and the principal’s permission is essential.

If a teacher starts the project and gets the principal on board then the next step is to rally other teachers and plan a public meeting.

The students’ parents are invited to that meeting in order to inform them about the project and get them interested. Have them bring their children as well so all the concerned parties are in the room.

You will need to give them information such as the size of the garden and were on the school grounds it will be located. Having a clear purpose for the garden may help; for example, will it be an edible plant garden, that can provide fresh food for the cafeteria; or will it be a native plant garden designed to introduce native plants into the area and encourage birds and butterflies.

The meeting begins with a quick overview of the project which includes the benefits that the students will receive from being involved. Then a question and answer period followed.

Be sure to have a sign-up sheet handy for any parents who want to help with the garden, their assistance will be invaluable over the summer months.

If a student or group of students are eager to start a garden on the school grounds, the first step is to talk with a teacher and get his or her support; once that is done then the process becomes the same as the above for the teacher-initiated garden.

If a parent or parents are interested in starting the garden, then the first step is to contact the school principal and any teachers you may know and arrange a meeting to discuss the project. A parent initiated garden may not need to hold a community meeting, as parents are already in the loop.

Once you have the principal’s permission and have students, teachers and parents o board, the final gardening decisions can be made. Decisions such as organic or not; what to plant can be worked out by the gardeners.

A school garden can provide an outdoor classroom, a source of healthy food or habitat for local wildlife or the best, all three. There are enough examples of successful school gardens around to know that it is a win-win situation for your child’s education.

Gardening can help build a child’s confidence, engage their imagination, make new friends and enhance the school property.

Native Plants: Resources

Canadian Wildlife Federation: http://cwf-fcf.org/en/resources/encyclopedias/native-plant-encyclopedia/

The US- Audubon https://www.audubon.org/native-plants

NWF: https://www.nwf.org/Garden-for-Wildlife/about/native-plants

Wildflowers (US) https://www.wildflower.org/

Canada: https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/native-plants-of-canada.html

The Native Plant Garden, Benefits

a native plant garden will:

• increase biodiversity;
• provide habitat for a wide variety of creatures such as birds and butterflies;
• provide a home for many native plants that are becoming increasingly rare in the wild;
• conserve water;
• and eliminate the need for chemical inputs such as pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers.

The other important reasons for using native plants are the practical and aesthetic benefits of native plant gardening: less work and lots of beauty!

Permaculture: Ethics: Earthcare 2

A wise gardener grows soil. Growing and nurturing soil is part of Earthcare and one of the most important actions we can undertake.

"According to 2017 study by the University of Basel, the European Commission -- Joint Research Centre and the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH, UK), almost 36 billion tons of soil is lost every year due to water, and deforestation and other changes in land use make the problem worse..."  source

A little reading.

No space to grow, then take an inventory of your food habits. How much food do you toss away? 

"Consumers also squander huge amounts. As much as 37% of animal products and potentially a fifth of fruit and vegetables may be wasted after being purchased, according to the FAO. Rich nations have higher levels of waste due to limited shelf life or poor consumer planning, while poorer countries typically grapple with climate and infrastructure issues."  source

Ecosystem restoration may well be the most effective method we have for combating climate change and for practising Earthcare. The next post will go into some detail on the why and how.

World Food Day

Today October 16, 2019, is World Food Day.  

No one should be hungry. We can end hunger through cooperative and regenerative actions.

Photo: Late Season Visitor

Stepped out on my deck today and spotted this guy visiting sunflower