Kiponzelo-Gustavus Adolphus, CVP Report Feb 7-2011

2010 CVP
Companion Village Project
Visit Report
4rd Visit 1st Year
February 7, 2011

Village Kiponzelo
Pastor Jezbeli Ndendya
Companion Gustavas Adolphus, St. Paul
Attendees Male 11 Female 0 ( There was a funeral today and that’s why only men attended)
Weather Sunny
Reporters Nafeti, Roger and Pongolani

Purpose of the visit
• To give instructions on how to apply fertilizer on the corn plant
• To give instruction on pesticide application
• To go through the 4th visit handouts

Greetings
Greetings were delivered from the St. Paul Area Synod and the Iringa Diocese by Roger Blomquist. Roger also gave a summary of what we are instructing them to do on our demonstration plot and the importance of utilizing the techniques on their own farms.

Review of the handouts
• 4rd Visit Instruction with sufficient information on the important of regular weeding, bean planting, fertilizer placement and pesticide application.
• Delivery: We delivered the following materials a week before we made this visit and given instruction to the Pastor on how to apply fertilizer and bean planting.

Type/Variety Amount
Bean seeds Uyole 98 27kg
Fertilizers NPK 2 bags
CAN 2 bags
Pesticides Thionex ½ Litre
Sprayer pump Knapsack Capacity: 5 litres

Corn;
They have already made the second application of fertilizer to the plot. The corn on the plot looks good and if they can get more rain they will have good yield.

Beans;
Beans are planted and they are starting to come up.






Questions

1. Is it possible to practice minimum tillage on new land?
It will depend on the situation of the farm but in case of a forest the land can be cleared and plowed. Remove the roots and the following years go on with minimum tillage.

2. Some people are mixing fertilizer such as CAN and UREA is it recommended?
CAN and UREA both add Nitrogen to the soil and it is OK to use either of them according to soil analysis results, but use the right amount required per unit area.

3. Does the use of commercial fertilizer destroy the soil?
Inorganic /commercial fertilizer does not destroy soil if you use the right kind of fertilizer and apply the recommended amount per unit area. What destroys the soil is using the wrong fertilizer or applying more than the optimal amount.

4. How does fertilizer work on plants?
For fertilizer to be used by plants it must first be in solution form which can easily be absorbed by plant roots. I cannot describe the Chemistry behind the absorbance of nutrients into the plant.

5. Soil sampling was done only in one village, will the results be used even by neighbor villages
The recommendation can also be used even in the surrounding area as we took samples at 6 inch deep and from 6-12 inch deep. The characteristics of the soil in the depth of 6 to 12 inch can be the same for a wide area.

Conclusion
Pastor Jezbeli Ndendya reminded the congregation on the importance of active participation on our training.