The ‘long rains’ came late this year, and sadly not in the quantity or for the duration we (farm not beach) might have hoped. Currently we are still getting sporadic showers and the little rain that we have had has helped us to grow a lot of produce for the Sands.
This year we have had the benefit of having ‘built’ our soil for four years (part of regenerative agriculture) and learnt from our experiences. All things considered with the challenges of high Chloride ground water and a Nematode invasion (which lead to war with no chemical pesticides) we have done really well.
In the photo above is the latest addition to the Nomad farm team, born last night and in times of plenty this little Fat-Tailed sheep is going to join the rest of the small herd on the farm in controlling the grasses and such in our ‘future’ pasture area. Over the years the sheep help to fertilise the soil, break the soil crust for seeds to enter, and cut back grasses and bushes to allow light to reach the earth and new germinating grasses. The new grass grows, colonising open ground… so, over the years increasing grass cover and grazing. It’s also nice to have a source of manure for adding to our compost making.
It has been Mango season over the past months and the Mango trees on the farm have not let us down. The photos above show Apple Mangos along with other daily produce, These Mangoes are considered one of the sweetest. For the past six weeks we have been delivering these to the Juice Bar at the Nomad Beach Bar and restaurant. Fresh Mango Juice anyone?
Getting good (non-hybridized) seeds is always a challenge for us in Kenya. Plus seeds are expensive here. Where possible, we will allow some of our crops to come to seed so that we can replant rather than buy seeds. With the number of infertile seeds sold commercially we have found it to be hit-or-miss at finding fertile seeds. But as with anything, the more you try the greater the chance of success, and success we have had, with two varieties of soft lettuces. Hopefully more to come.
Tomatoes. A fruit that we as humans eat a lot of whether it is cooked or raw. Tomatoes are one of those plants that are very susceptible to pests and diseases.. and their fruits are full of water. One always has to hope Tomatoes are grown without chemical fertilisers and pesticides otherwise it begs the question ‘what is in the Tomatoes?’ Our organic Cherry Tomatoes head directly to the restaurant daily.
Adding some variety and colour to the farm (and spice to our menu) this year we have added more varieties of chillies. Some you can see above left but we have others on the way. One we have been told is up there with the Habanero family flavour-wise. Let’s see if it grows.
