What another wet quarter! We’ve been blessed with more rain, our dams are full, the crops are thriving and the livestock have masses of grazing.
A wet quarter on the farm!
Crops
We planted another crop of beans for the short rains, this includes KAT B1, KK8 and Chelelang. This is critical to replacing our stocks as bean seed sales in the south rift (Mulot, Bomet area) were strong this quarter, with smallholder farmers making the most of the extra El Nino rain we received this year.
Beans growing after a Boma rhodes grass crop.
The rain was a mixed blessing though, as there is plenty of forage across the country (especially since livestock numbers haven’t quite recovered since the last drought) so hay sales were very poor.
This quarter we also harvested grass seed from our Boma rhodes fields.
Stooks of Boma rhodes grass seeds.
Livestock
Our Jerseys have settled in nicely and are producing great milk, we are in the process of setting up systems to professionalize the dairy, for now we are selling milk through our local Ol Rongai Milk Cooperative.
One of the first new Jersey calves born on the farm
Despite vaccinating all of our cows, we had quite a bad bout of foot and mouth that, unusually for us, especially affected the cattle’s feet. Ordinarily we experience most foot and mouth symptoms in the mouth, which we are accustomed to treating. We nursed the affected livestock back to health as quickly as possible, though the rain and muddy conditions were an added challenge.
This quarter we sent a lorry of lambs to Choice Meats, we’re proud that all of our lambs received the premium grade. The sheep are all grass fed as part of our rotation, this comes through in the high quality of meat!
Life on the farm
We’ve been investing further in water infrastructure, this will be key to the farm’s resilience in future especially during drought years and will reduce our reliance on trucking water on the farm.
Meeting a cow for the first time!
Our latest additions are some ridgeback puppies, who aren’t too sure about cows yet, but we know they’ll be getting along in no time!
This year we’ve been off to a busy start, following the droughts in 2022 and 2023, we’ve been relieved to have had only a modest dry season, with a total of 150mm of rain in the first three months of the year.
Patchy rain kept us reasonable green through the dry season.
We’ve now transitioned to using our borehole water for livestock and general operations, however as it’s not fit for human consumption we’re still using rainwater for all our drinking needs. In 2024 we aim to pipe the borehole water to all the main usage points, especially cattle troughs.
Crops
We’ve had an exciting time with our beans this quarter, harvesting, dressing and packing seeds crops, with more in the field. We’re especially proud that our seeds produced outstanding germination results from KEPHIS: KK8 99%, KAT B1 97%, Chelelang 98%.
Our amazing Leldet beans!
These first class seeds are being introduced to new markets, through a field day in March in Timau where we reached farmers from as far afield as Meru and Maralal. We’ve introduced new packaging, including a new 1kg packet, to meet the demand of cash strapped farmers as we all adapt to the challenging economic conditions. Our sales throughout Mulot and Bomet remain strong.
Leldet at the Timau Field Day, introducing our quality seeds to new farmers.
We’ve also been harvesting grass seed from our Boma Rhodes grass crops, and making hay. However, the light dry season has suppressed the hay market, which is a challenge for cash flow going into the pre-planting field preparation season.
Boma Rhodes grass, cut for baling.
Field preparation has been going on in the lead up to Easter, and the expected long rains. We have bean and sorghum crops to harvest, and then we’ll be aerating fields that are going to be planted coming out of the grass phase in our rotation.
Livestock
Our cows and sheep have come through the dry season well, we’ve been topping up their grazing with silage in their bomas in the evening. The AI program has been ongoing, and we’ve welcomed our first AI Jersey calf.
Our first Jersey AI Calf
Other work has included livestock chipping, in order to improve our records for better breeding and tracking for more productive and healthy herds. We’ve been keeping up with our consistent provision of beef cattle to choice meats, and our cows continue to rank at the highest quality.
Our cows making it through the dry season in great condition!
We have faced some disease challenges this quarter, in large part due to the influx of cattle from a wide area onto a neighbouring farm, resulting in increased disease and pest – especially tic – load, and unfortunately some casualties. We’re continuing to build capacity within the team to recognize, diagnose and treat issues as soon as possible to maximise the welfare of the livestock.
Life on the Farm
Loloto the elephant is back from his Christmas holidays, as ever, we’re pleased to have him back, but a little less thrilled to be dealing with the constant fence, tree and crop damage. We’ve had challenges this quarter keeping the farm safe for the wildlife we share the space with, especially from poachers who continue to set snares catching birds, hares and small antelopes, and cut down trees for charcoal production.
Hares caught by poachers using snares on the farm.
We’ve been planting more trees, trying to make use of the borehole water to establish some fruit trees and other indigenous varieties.
New fruit trees planted on the farm!
Lastly, we’ve slowly been building our workshop, so that onsite maintenance can be optimised. So much of our time is spent fixing tractors, planters, sprayers and other equipment, we want to ensure this can be done as seamlessly as possible.
All in all, we’re looking forward to a productive 2024, mindful of the increasingly challenging economic conditions we’re facing alongside our team, neighbours, suppliers and customers.
Rajwera Farm 