Perzia Sitoe | October 25, 2021
News Brief
It's five in the morning and Adelaide Tomás Luís is preparing to go to the field. Mrs. Luis is a farmer in Sofala province, in Nhamatanda district, administrative post of Namenco. She is also a mid-level technician in agro-livestock, specializing in agriculture, and has been providing assistance to farmers in her area. Mrs. Luis says it is important that farmers are knowledgeable about the climate. As a solution to the changing weather, she intercrops legumes around pigeon pea to serve as a windbreak. She also heaps up soil at the base of the plant, and rotates beans and maize to improve the fertility of the soil. Mrs. Luis says that a pigeon pea variety called Ceap 0557 is resilient to climate change because of its vigour. According to Mrs. Luis, the challenges in pigeon pea production include rot losses, the lack of pesticides, difficulties in accessing airtight storage, a lack of access to improved seeds, and lack of information on the consumer’s part of the nutritional benefits of the crop.
It’s five in the morning and Adelaide Tomás Luís is preparing to go to the field. Mrs. Luis is a farmer in Sofala province, in Nhamatanda district, administrative post of Namenco. She is also a mid-level technician in agro-livestock, specializing in agriculture, and has been providing assistance to farmers in her area.
Mrs. Luis says it is important that farmers are knowledgeable about the climate. She says that meteorological information is provided by the National Institute of Meteorology, Ide Moçambique, and World Vision, and farmers can access it by phone.
Agricultural technicians such as Mrs. Luis provide information to farmers on the risks of climate change and recommend good agricultural practices such as when to prepare land and plant improved, certified seeds.
She says: “As a solution to the changing weather, I intercrop legumes around pigeon pea to serve as a windbreak. I also heap up soil at the base of the plant, and rotate beans and maize to improve the fertility of the soil. In case of pest infestation, I use pesticides that are suitable for combating the pests.”
Mrs. Luis says that a pigeon pea variety called Ceap 0557 is resilient to climate change because of its vigour. She says she can get good pigeon pea yields with Ceap 0557 and that it’s the most popular variety in the area.
According to Mrs. Luis, the challenges in pigeon pea production include rot losses, the lack of pesticides, difficulties in accessing airtight storage, a lack of access to improved seeds, and lack of information on the consumer’s part of the nutritional benefits of the crop.
Osvaldo Soares is the technical director of Luteari, a distributor of agricultural supplies and services. Mr. Soares says the biggest challenge for pigeon pea farmers is the high price of pigeon peas, which can cost up to 60 meticals ($0.90 US) per kilogram. Consumers may hesitate to purchase because of the cost, with obvious impacts on farmers. He adds, “Placing this legume on the market is also difficult, but for that purpose we contract companies to export to countries with the highest consumption of beans.”
Because of the impacts of climate change, crop rotation is recommended to avoid soil erosion and degradation. Other recommended strategies to address the changing climate include intercropping, using improved varieties, careful management of the soil, and planting seeds 50 cm apart in rows 75 cm apart.
Mr. Soares adds: “There is also the earthing up technique, where the farmer piles grass and soil at the base of the crop so that, in case of strong winds and rain, the plant is not broken. Channels can be dug to drain water from the field, and we must also prevent deforestation and burning the field.”
All these practices, he explains, protect the crops against extreme weather, including heavy rain and cyclones.
Leopoldino Lubrino is an agricultural technician and manager of monitoring and evaluation programs in Nhamatanda district. He says that pigeon pea is easiest to grow in the dry season, as it is does not tolerate excess water well.
Mr. Lubrino says: “Right now, I’m exploring the 0557 pigeon pea variety, which is very tolerant to drought and rain, but fragile in winds above 70 kilometres per hour.” He explains that while the variety is tolerant of moderate winds, it does not grow well in areas with high temperatures, as the moisture level in the soil is too low.
Zefanias Benjamim Luís is a crop and poultry farmer in Natipoa, Sofala province who has supported his family with farming for more than six years.
The young farmer says that in order to plant pigeon pea, farmers must take into account soil type and extreme weather events such as cyclones and heavy rain.
He says: “In rainy weather, I mulch between the flowerbeds to defend against erosion caused by the rain. I also make a small opening on the edges of the field so that all the water flows to the ends of the fields.” He explains that he grows pigeon pea in two different ways: sometimes, he intercrops maize and pigeon peas in the same field, and at other times, he waits until the beans are harvested and then rotates his field to maize.
With intercropping and crop rotation, he hopes to get a good harvest. And with proper drying and storage techniques, he hopes to save his harvest to feed his family and earn a good income.
This resource was supported with the aid of a grant from The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH (GIZ) implementing the Green Innovation Centre project.
Photo: A farmer in lower Nyando, Kenya holds pigeon peas in his hand. Credit: K. Trautmann, 2013.