THE NIPE TUMAINI FARM
Sustainable Agriculture
About one third of our four-hectare site is used for agriculture. The agricultural operation covers a large part of the food needs of the children's home. Surplus crops can be sold at the local market. The farm also serves as a demonstration project for the local community. It is connected to an irrigation system that carries water from the slopes of the valley to the plain.
Different sized reservoirs ensure the water supply even in dry seasons and our drip irrigation system ensures that the precious water is used as efficiently as possible.
"Land is limited in Kenya. Through our water pipeline from the slopes of the Rift Valley we can use previously undeveloped land."
What do we cultivate?
During each of the two rainy seasons, our land is usually flooded on a large scale and turns into a temporalily lakeland. But after only a few days the ground has swallowed all the water and the sun has dried up even the last puddles. Now it is time to plant corn and beans. If we are lucky, it will rain a few more times and the harvest of the staple food will enable us to be self-sufficient all year round. If the rain stops or it stops too early, this basis fails, which happens quite often, since our farm is located in a semi-desert.
Then the water pipe, which supplies us with fresh drinking water from the slopes of the Rift Valley all year round, helps us. This not only provides us with drinking and process water for the orphanage, but also for our drip irrigation system. This enables us to plant all kinds of vegetables and fruit all year round. Papayas, bananas, oranges, melons and even grapes are among our fruits. White cabbage, spinach, onions, pumpkins and all kinds of other vegetables grow in the fields. Furthermore, we are always trying out new things.
Our Livestock
For the supply of milk, eggs and occasionally meat, we keep several dairy cows, some goats and chickens and rabbits. For the cows we make our own silage and the goats are our natural lawnmowers and during the day they are "in action" everywhere on the property.
The older children help with the care of the animals and learn to take responsibility. Feeding chickens, mucking out rabbit hutches or taking care of the dog are part of their regular tasks.
With our farm we lay the foundation for a healthy and fresh nutrition for our children. Our goal is to be completely self-sufficient and if we want to have something more exotic to eat, we want to finance it through the proceeds of sales.