Kilolo CVP Visit Report - Apr 23-2013

2008 CVP Companion Village Project 2nd Visit of Extension Network Program April 23, 2013 Village Kilolo Pastor Yona Kinganga Companion King of Kings, Woodbury Attendees 13 Weather for the past month Dry Ag institute staff Gabriel and Microfinance staff (Itiweni, Peter and Magreth) On this visit, we were accompanied by Micro-finance institute staff. The meeting was organized with the aim of conducting two trainings; Agricultural training and Micro-finance (SACCOS) training. The trainings were conducted in the church. Purpose of the visit • Extension education: Plant diseases Topic • Review of the handout We went through the extension network handout about plant diseases • Discussion We discussed about plant diseases on both corn and beans. The discussion focused on the causes of plant diseases, disease symptoms and plant disease control. Common plant diseases found in Iringa region were addressed. Farmers were advised on how to control these diseases using resistant varieties, chemical control and agronomic practices Questions/Comments  There are problems that improved seeds from other countries are not performing eg seeds from Kenya. What should we do? Most of the improved seeds are certified by the government before being distributed to farmers. Sometimes, some unfaithful people will produce face seeds and pack in the bags and sell to farmers. You might have bought one of those bags hence experience poor performance. I would like to advise you to buy seeds from reliable dealers  Is it true that local seeds are not performing? This is not true. Local varieties are good varieties; they have good characteristics that suit the given areas. Improved varieties have been developed from local varieties where by some new additional characteristics are added. If you do not have enough money to buy improved seeds, select good corn years from a local variety of the previous season and plant in your shamba  The problem of maize virus in Kenya what precaution measure should we take in Tanzania? The disease is called Maize lethal necrosis and Maize chlorotic mottle – a combination of two viruses. It Kills the plants and there is no control at this point. The symptoms are twisting and discoloration of leaves. Plants frequently die before tasseling- no grain production. The disease presents up to 2100 meters altitude, especially in areas where maize was grown continuously in one region. The disease is like an outbreak where by the virus spreads very fast. The government has taken precautions to protect the farmers here by prohibiting the maize seeds and maize crops from entering into the country from Kenya. However farmers are advised to immediately report to the extension agents once they see the symptoms of the diseases in their farms.  What is the vision of the institute in the future? Is it only research or seeds productions and fertilizer productions? Our vision is to be the leading research and extension institutions in southern highland of Tanzania. The aim of the institute is to increase agricultural production in the region through research and extension. Currently, we do not have plans to enter into seed production or fertilizer manufacturing business Conclusion This has been a good village with very well managed plots for all four years. The extension program adds addition knowledge and skills to the farmers. We told them that the next extension meeting will be in August/September.

Kilolo Parish - CVP Visit Report - Jan 21-2013

2008 Companion Village Project 4th Visit, Year Five January 21, 2013 Village Kilolo Parish Pastor Yona Kinganga Companion Yara Fertilizer Company Attendees 10 Weather for the past month Cloudy and Moist Reporters Ibrahim , Mang’ulisa, Roger and Venance Introduction Upon arrival, we were received by the Pastor and nine members of the church waiting outside the pastor’s house. We all gathered around the newly completed parish mud silo to see it. The pastor said seven bags of corn were in the silo after removing the other seven for sale. He confirmed that the silo was working well. Purpose of the visit: • To deliver NPK cereal fertilizer for 2nd application & Tracel BZ in corn and the pesticide • Demonstrating second fertilizer application and insecticide application Topics covered • Review of the handouts - 3rd Visit Instruction - Plant population and Fertilizer applications • Demonstrations: 2nd Fertilizer application; The attendees were given an opportunity to demonstrate on how to apply fertilizers which they did precisely. They were instructed on how to apply the Tracel BZ fertilizer on the leaves of the plants after proper dilution. • Corn plants, beans and pyrethrum Corn plants were knee high tall; they looked well spaced, weeded and fertilized and in good shape; however, we noticed some stunted plants with yellowish color in a small area of the plot. We also saw some plants with drying margins with unusual coloration on evangelist’s corn plot which was near the demonstration plot. We thought the plants were facing some nutritional disorder but were not certain of the deficient minerals. We provided the parish with 2kg of Tracel BZ fertilizer in a powder form. This fertilizer is for the remedy of trace elements deficiency. The beans were not yet planted, the parishioners said they would plant beans later in the season. The pyrethrum was cut back and was flowering again vigorously. Comments/Questions The parishioners asked questions on the Tracel BZ fertilizer and the nutritional deficiency seen on the evangelist’s plot and we answered them. We advised them to apply the Tracel BZ fertilizer on the plant leaves and observe for the changes. Conclusion: We are confident with the pastor of this parish because he likes to try things which eventually end up making good performance. He is an example for others to follow. The parishioners are hard workers too.

Kilolo - CVP Visit Report Nov 8-2012

2012 Companion Village Project Extension Program, 5th Year 1st Visit November 08, 2012 Village Kilolo Parish Pastor/Evangelist Yona Kinganga Companion King of Kings Lutheran Church Attendees 04 Weather for the past month Dry Reporters Fred, Pongolan, and Venance Upon arrival, we met only 04 members of the church waiting to begin the discussion; many were gone to their personal fields. We made introductions; Fred conveyed greetings from King of Kings Lutheran Church and the Advisory Committee in US to the people of Kilolo. He gave a brief explanation on the evolution of extension education and its purpose. After the introductions, we invited the attendees to participate in the discussion on the fertilizers and seed topics which they were all familiar of. Purpose of the visit • To introduce extension program and share ideas about the topics to be taught. • To deliver fertilizers provided by Yara Fertilizer Company and corn seeds provided by the CVP Topics covered • To explain fertilizer details and answer FAQ’s about fertilizers • To explain seed details and answer FAQ’s about seeds The details about fertilizers and seeds were covered through discussion involving them/participatory method whereby reporter’s role was to lead, provoke them by asking questions and let participants explain and ask questions too. Some important issues covered on fertilizers included:  types of fertilizers locally available, when to apply them, pros and cons of each type  clarification on the myth that “fertilizers are poisonous” to the soil and hence to the consumers of fertilized crops  fertilizer application frequencies and its side effects  simple ways of detecting nutrient deficiencies in the field without necessarily taking the soil to the lab for analysis  effect of excessive fertilization in the field  differences between CAN and Urea fertilizers in terms of its functions  How best can one integrate the use of manures and industrial fertilizers  Other methods besides fertilization that can be used to improve soil fertility in Iringa region Some important issues covered on seeds included:  Good quality seed is the foundation for the yield expected  Hybrid seeds productivity decrease with number of replanting  The importance of using the best quality seed in order to maximize the expected crop yields The attendees showed a great interest on the discussion and posed some questions/issues of concern. Finally they suggested the topics they would like to be taught in the next extension lesson. The following questions/ views were asked or given by the attendees:- Attendees thought natural fertilizers or manures favor crops better than industrial fertilizer; we thought organic matter present in manures build soil structure for the betterment of crop growth, but in terms of nutrients generally manures have low content of nutrients as compared to the same quantity of industrial fertilizers. The soil mounds made by ants are usually rich in fertility, attendees wanted to know the cause of that. We thought the ants collect vegetation for consumption and when they die leave organic matter in the soil raising its fertility in the process. The attendees wanted to know if Industrial fertilizers can remain in the soil for more than one cropping season. We thought depending on the type of fertilizer, most of P containing fertilizers remains in the soil longer because of the slow nutrient release process but N containing fertilizers such as CAN or Urea will dissolve and release nutrients rapidly, therefore cannot remain soil for more than one cropping season. The members expressed their wish to have H6302 corn seed which was available in the 1980s and 90s and now are no longer in the market. They commented the variety to be of high quality and resistant to ear rot as opposed to the current H6303 which is prone to ear rot. Unfortunately the H6302 is no longer produced in Tanzania and it seems H6303 took its place. So, no way we can get back H6302. Their suggestion for topics to be taught in the next extension class included:- 1. Disease symptoms and how to control diseases on the following crops: maize, beans, and vegetable crops. 2. Livestock diseases and how to control them; livestock list includes - pigs, chickens, goats, cattle, Rabbits Deliveries After the discussion we delivered 2 bags of NPK cereal fertilizer, 2 bags of NPK winner fertilizer and 4 bags of corn seed Conclusion The extension program being conducted for the first time was perceived as positive and educative to the farmers. It seemed interesting and farmers were eager to learn more and more from the discussion. They thanked the King of Kings Lutheran Church for being kind to continue supporting them for extension network.

Kilolo - CVP Visit Report - Sept 5-2012

2008 CVP Companion Village Project Visit Report 5th Visit 4th Year May 10, 2012. Village Kilolo Parish Pastor Yona Kinganga Companion King of Kings Lutheran Church Attendees 4 Weather Dry and cool Reporters Don, Karen, Rev. Mangu’lisa and Venance. Purpose of the visit • To explain and demonstrate how to take yield measurement Topics 1. Went through the handouts o 5th Visit handout o Yield recording sheet 2. Demonstrations Kilolo Parish is in the fourth year of practicing CVP, we decided to ask the members of the congregation to explain how they would go about measuring yield. One of the members volunteered to explain as follows; that he would take a 10m piece of string and use it to measure a 10m row, count the number of plants and number of ears within the measured row and record them. He would then harvest the ears from the measured row, thresh them and measure the volume of the grains and record in liters. He said he would repeat the exercise at two more places. The explanation given by the member of the congregation was precise and accepted by us and other members as the right procedure to take yield measurement. Then we went to their plot to see. Plots information Their Corn looks good except in few spots where the plants reported earlier to have unusual root development were poorly developed. In these spots, plants had fallen down because the roots were poorly developed and could not support the plants but also they had small cobs. We also observed a few plants with disease infection. The infected plants had wilted with droopy ears, the same disease infection was observed at Pommern Parish. The grains were poorly filled and shriveled. We could not identify the disease immediately, we continue to investigate. Beans were at maturing stage. However, the bean pods were poorly filled. The Parish planted two varieties; BIFA and UYOLE NJANO. By appearance BIFA was seen to be performing better than the other variety. Pyrethrum plants survival was good (about 75%) but the plot was not weeded. There were many weeds. Comments Some members of the congregation have adopted the agricultural practices which are taught at the demonstration plot. The Pastor reported 14 members to have adopted. 4/14 use certified seed and fertilizer as recommended, the rest use local varieties because they have a feeling that the certified seed is expensive and they used DAP fertilizer instead of NPK recommended. Because of little fertilizer they apply, they widen the space between plants to 30 – 40cm instead the 20cm. Conclusion Parishioners were encouraged to try all the methods taught at the demonstration plot except the fertilizer if they cannot afford space. They were advised to maintain inter – row space of 60cm and alter the intra – row space depending on the amount of fertilizer they have. They were reminded to weed their pyrethrum plot immediately. The Parishioners also are studying the performance of the two bean varieties; Uyole njano and BIFA planted in their plot, which is good for them to make choice variety for the next planting season.

Kilolo Parish - CVP Visit Report-May 10-2012

2012 CVP Companion Village Project Visit Report 5th Visit 4th Year May 10, 2012. Village Kilolo Parish Pastor Yona Kinganga Companion King of Kings Lutheran Church Attendees 4 Weather Dry and cool Reporters Don, Karen, Rev. Mangu’lisa and Venance. Purpose of the visit • To explain and demonstrate how to take yield measurement Topics 1. Went through the handouts o 5th Visit handout o Yield recording sheet 2. Demonstrations Kilolo Parish is in the fourth year of practicing CVP, we decided to ask the members of the congregation to explain how they would go about measuring yield. One of the members volunteered to explain as follows; that he would take a 10m piece of string and use it to measure a 10m row, count the number of plants and number of ears within the measured row and record them. He would then harvest the ears from the measured row, thresh them and measure the volume of the grains and record in liters. He said he would repeat the exercise at two more places. The explanation given by the member of the congregation was precise and accepted by us and other members as the right procedure to take yield measurement. Then we went to their plot to see. Plots information Their Corn looks good except in few spots where the plants reported earlier to have unusual root development were poorly developed. In these spots, plants had fallen down because the roots were poorly developed and could not support the plants but also they had small cobs. We also observed a few plants with disease infection. The infected plants had wilted with droopy ears, the same disease infection was observed at Pommern Parish. The grains were poorly filled and shriveled. We could not identify the disease immediately, we continue to investigate. Beans were at maturing stage. However, the bean pods were poorly filled. The Parish planted two varieties; BIFA and UYOLE NJANO. By appearance BIFA was seen to be performing better than the other variety. Pyrethrum plants survival was good (about 75%) but the plot was not weeded. There were many weeds. Comments Some members of the congregation have adopted the agricultural practices which are taught at the demonstration plot. The Pastor reported 14 members to have adopted. 4/14 use certified seed and fertilizer as recommended, the rest use local varieties because they have a feeling that the certified seed is expensive and they used DAP fertilizer instead of NPK recommended. Because of little fertilizer they apply, they widen the space between plants to 30 – 40cm instead the 20cm. Conclusion Parishioners were encouraged to try all the methods taught at the demonstration plot except the fertilizer if they cannot afford space. They were advised to maintain inter – row space of 60cm and alter the intra – row space depending on the amount of fertilizer they have. They were reminded to weed their pyrethrum plot immediately. The Parishioners also are studying the performance of the two bean varieties; Uyole njano and BIFA planted in their plot, which is good for them to make choice variety for the next planting season.

Kilolo - King of Kings; CVP Visit Report for Feb 1-2012

Companion Village Project
4th Visit Year 4
February, 01.2012

Village Kilolo Parish
Pastor Yonna Kinganga
Companion King of Kings Lutheran Church
Attendees 13
Weather for the past month Adequate amount of rainfall for the crops to grow well
Institute Staff Gabriel, Roger, Steve and Venance
Purpose of the visit
• Delivering fertilizers, pesticides and bean seeds.
• Steve to explain post-harvest management practices and inspect the corn stored in the drum kind of silo.
Topics:
Review of the handouts, 4th visit instructions;
• Discussion about germination, Replanting and Pest control
• weeding after planting
• Monthly weeding after tasseling
1. Demonstrations: There was a demonstration on planting and fertilization of beans on rows 30cm apart and 10cm between plants. Also there was a demonstration on how to do second application of fertilizer on corn.
2. Insecticide Application. We instructed them on how to apply the insecticide correctly on both corn and beans and the rates to apply.
3. Steve spent some time explaining about post-harvest losses and ways to reduce those losses.
4. Delivery: The following items were delivered;

Item Fertilizers Insecticide Hand sprayer
On maize For beans
Variety/Type CAN NPK Thionex 35 EC
Amount 2bags 2bags 1 Litre 1
Discussion and conclusion
We saw unusual plant growth in some spots in their corn field. The plants in affected spots looked shorter, unhealthy and poorly developed. We uprooted one affected plant for observation. The root system looked underdeveloped. There was no hardpan underneath. Photographs were taken for further investigation.
Church members had a few questions which were answered accordingly.
Steve examined the crop stored in the drum kind of silo. The crop was all rotten. It was advised that the crop should be condemned. Compensation for the loss was made by the Institute of Agriculture. This kind of storage facility was put on trial basis, therefore, well for research purposes.

Kilolo-CVP Visit Report - Nov 25-2011

2010 CVP
Companion Village Project
4th Visit Year Two
November 25, 2011

Village Kitowo
Pastor Hezron Kiswaga
Companion First Evangelical Lutheran, Rush City
Attendees 13
Weather for the past month Dry
Reporters Rev.Mang’ulisa and Pongolani

Purpose
• Delivering seeds and fertilizers
• Demonstrating planting and fertilizer application

Topics
• Review of the handouts
- 3rd Visit Instruction
- Plant population and Fertilizer applications
- Fertilizer needs template
• Demonstrations
o Planting and fertilizer applications
It was demonstrated on how to plant seeds and how to apply fertilizers. It was insisted that during planting seeds and fertilizers should not be placed together in a hole. Fertilizers should be at least 5cm from the seed.
o Seeds and fertilizers
The following were delivered
Corn Seeds Fertilizers
Variety Amount (kg) Type Amount (bags)
H614 8 NPK 2

Conclusion
They were reminded that success of the program is highly depending on the commitment and management offered by the parish members to the plot. Better management of the plot will give better results in the plots, and hence better results will encourage many parish members to participate in the program and adapt the techniques. .

Kilolo - King of Kings; CVP Visit Report for Nov 22-2011

2008 CVP
CompanionVillage Project
3rd Visit Year Four
November 22, 2011

Village Kilolo
Pastor Yona Kinganga
Companion King of Kings, Woodbury
Attendees 4
Weather for the past month Dry
Staffs Pongolani, Rev. Mang’ulisa and Magnus Chaula (PCT)

The demonstration meeting was held in the parish office. We intend to establish pyrethrum demonstration plot by the Pyrethrum Company of Tanzania (PCT), the pyrethrum farming training will be conducted together with corn and beans farming trainings. Therefore in this visit, Field officer from PCT together with Institute of Agriculture staffs conducted demonstrations.

Purpose
• Delivering seeds and fertilizers
• Demonstrating planting and fertilizer application

Topics
• Review of the handouts
The handouts contain instructions were reviewed
- 3rd Visit Instruction
- Plant population and Fertilizer applications
- Fertilizer needs template
• Demonstrations
o Planting and fertilizer applications
Demonstration on how to plant and apply fertilizers was conducted. They participated in planting and applying fertilizer in the demonstration plot.
• Seeds and fertilizers
The following were delivered
Corn Seeds Fertilizers
Variety Amount (kg) Type Amount (bags)
H628 8 NPK 2
• Pyrethrum demonstration
Field officer from PCT Mr. Magnus Chaula spoke about advantages of growing pyrethrum. He assured the villagers that there is reliable market of pyrethrum. PCT will get into contracts with farmers to buy from them with a good price. A famer has to follow appropriate agronomic practices to get high quality flowers. He then instructed them about appropriate land preparation for growing pyrethrum. Thus villagers were instructed to prepare a plot for pyrethrum demonstration plot. Seedlings will be transplanted to this plot in the coming January.

Conclusion
Agricultural training has been conducted in Kilolo for three years. Each year there has been improvements. This has become one of the village were success of the plots are widely observed. A pastor and Parish members have show great commitment for the program. It is expected that the commitment shown and the successes realized in three years will be shown and realized this year too.

Kilolo - King of Kings; CVP Visit Report for Sept 13, 2011

2009 CVP
Companion Village Project
6th Visit Year Three
September 13, 2011
Village Kilolo
Pastor Yona Kinganga
Companion King of Kings, Woodbury
Attendees 11
Weather for the past month Dry
Ag institute staff Gabriel & Rev. Mang’ulisa
Purposes of the visit
• To collect the yield measurement
• To deliver grain storage chemical “Shumba”
• End of season discussion and planning for the next farming season
Topics
1. Review of the handouts
• 6th Visit instruction handout
• Yield recording sheet
2. Harvesting
Both corn and beans have been harvested. The corn yield is high as it was last year. This is one of the best demonstration plot we have. There has been a problem with the suitability of the bean seeds we brought here. The bean yield is lower than that of the last year.
Crop Corn Beans
Yield per ½ acres 15 bags 2 bags 1 tin
3. Storage
We instructed them on how to store grain for home usage and for selling at the time of high price. We instructed how to mix grain storage pesticides “shumba” and the appropriate volume of grain per bottle recommended. We left the pesticides to them to mix with their harvested grains.
4. Discussion about the farming season
Corn has performed well, the variety is good although does not tolerate prolonged rainfall season. Bean varieties did not perform as better as that of last year. We discussed with them that next planting season we will return the same variety we introduced the year before.
5. Adaptation
Some parish members have been started to adapt the techniques. Pastor and one parish member said they are using the techniques. Pastor is teaching other villagers spacing, fertilizer application, minimum tillage and other practices.
Comments/questions
 Is the close spacing not affecting the yield?
Yes, close spacing may lead into low yield if it is not properly followed. We recommend that close spacing should go together with the enough amounts of the fertilizers applied. Fertilizers will reduce plant competition for the nutrients and lead into high yield
 They said most of them would like to apply the techniques but some of the practices require buying inputs. As the inputs are getting expensive year after year, their ability to purchase them is getting lower and lower.
We advised them to establish self help groups and saving and credit cooperative
Conclusion
This is the best plot we had this year. We told Pastor that his management and the good work of the perish members has made this plot to be very good plot. We encouraged them to use the techniques to their farm so that to increase the yields of what they farm.

Kilolo - King of Kings; CVP Visit Report for May 31, 2011

2009 CVP
Companion Village Project
5th Visit Year Three
May 31, 2011
Village Kilolo
Pastor Yona Kinganga
Companion King of Kings, Woodbury
Attendees 4
Weather for the past month Dry
Ag institute staff Gabriel, Don and Karen

The Pastors told us that they were late to get the information about our demonstration visit therefore there will be few people today. We told him that what we want are the people who will instruct others during the harvesting time in taking the yield measurements. We sat in the Parish office together with Pastor and few Parish leaders and discuss about the demonstration plot.
Purpose of the visit
• Explain and demonstrate how to take yield measurement
Topics
1. Introduction
Don spoke about the importance of getting the right yield measurements and explained why they are highly needed.
2. Went through the handouts
o 5th Visit handout
o Yield recording sheet
o Rain record sheets to know the amount of rain received during this season
3. Demonstrations
We demonstrated how to measure the 10 m row (in three different locations within the demonstration plot) for the yield determination, this was demonstrated by using a miter tape, we used spray paint to mark the demarcations within which the measurements should be taken.

Plots information
• Corn plot looks nice. Spacing has been properly followed, the plants are tall and the ears are well filled. Pastor has grown another plot adjacent to the demonstration plot for the purpose of demonstrating difference between the use of fertilizers, spacing and seeds.
• Bean plot looks nice too. Two types of varieties have been planted here for the purpose of experimenting the suitability of the seed varieties. There was heavy rainfall during the flowering stage which causes the reduction of the flowers, and also failure of palliation.

Comments
 They are grateful that the program has been extended into forth year. They express their gratitude to their companion congregation (King of Kings) for agreeing to sponsor the plot for the fourth year
 The bean variety has performed better than that of last year

Conclusions
We thank the Pastor and those Parish leaders for the good work they do in the demonstration plot. We asked them to properly collect data from the plots as instructed for the benefit of the whole program.

Kilolo - King of Kings; CVP Visit Report for Jan 27-2011

2008 CVP
Companion Village Project
Visit Report
4rd Visit 3rd year
January 27, 2011

Village Kilolo
Pastor Yona Kinganga
Companion King of Kings, Woodbury
Attendees Male 5 Female 2
Weather Sunny
Reporters Nafeti, Roger and Pongolani

Purpose of the visit

• Deliver fertilizer for 2nd application
• Deliver bean seeds and NPK fertilizer for planting beans
• Deliver pesticides ( Thionex) and Sprayer
• Give instructions on bean planting and 2nd fertilizer application on the corn plot

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

Review of the handouts
We gave them and went through the handouts for the 4th visit containing detailed information on;
• The important of regular weeding
• Planting bean seeds and NPK fertilizer placement
• 2nd fertilizer application
• Pesticide application

Delivery

Type/Variety Amount
Bean seeds Uyole 96 40kg
Fertilizers NPK 2 bags
CAN 2 bags
Pesticides Thionex ½ Litre






Demonstrations

Corn plot
Corn plants are knee high and they are ready for 2nd fertilizer application. Corn looks good and they were planted using the recommended spacing and they had good germination. We demonstrated how to apply CAN fertilizer and pesticide on the corn plot.

Bean plot
Beans will be planted anytime from the end of January once they get rain. Instructions on how to plant beans were given.

Questions from the audience

1. Are there any problems with soaking seeds which are to be used for replanting?
If you are sure that during planting there will be enough moisture in the soil as is the case with irrigation then there might not be any problem with germination. On the other hand if there won’t be enough moisture in the soil at the planting time then there will be a problem with the soaked seeds adapting to the new environment (Dry soil) and can result to poor germination or wastage of seeds.

2. It looks like placing fertilizer 5cm from the plant is very close.
Five 5cm from the plant is a reasonable distance where by fertilizer can not be in direct contact with the roots but still the roots can be able to utilize fertilizer from that distance.

3. How long does the pesticide stay within the plant before you can apply the second time?
In order to apply pesticide for the second time you are supposed to have regular visits at the plot/field and if you see any signs of insect/pest damage then you can go for the second pesticide application.


Conclusion
Pastor Yona Kinganga requested us if we can make a visit to see some of the fields which farmers planted using the recommended practices we are teaching them.

Kilolo - King of Kings; CVP Visit Report for Oct. 29-2010

2010 CVP
Companion Village Project
Visit Report
3rd Visit 3rd year
October 29, 2010

Village Kilolo
Pastor Yona Kingaga
Companion King of Kings
Attendees Male 5 Female 5
Weather Sunny
Reporters Nafeti, Pongolani

Purpose of the visit
• Delivering seeds and fertilizers
• Demonstrating corn planting and fertilizer applications

Review of the handouts
Together with them we went through the handouts
• 3rd Visit Instruction
• Plant population with 60 cm. rows and Fertilizer applications
• Fertilizer needs template

Demonstrations
o Planting and fertilizer applications
We demonstrated on how to place seeds and how to apply fertilizers. We insisted that they should not place seeds and fertilizers together. There should be at least 5cm apart.
o Seeds and fertilizers
We delivered 2 bags of NPK and corn seeds.

Crop Seeds Fertilizer
Varieties Amount Type Amount
Corn H628 8kg (4 bags ) NPK 100kg (2 bags)

Questions from the audience

• In case a farmer have small piece of land which is used to grow corn and crop rotation is not possible what will be the effects?
You can do rotation of beans by planting beans in a smaller plot and then rotate with corn year after year.
• How should we know that the type of soil we have is not suitable to apply UREA;
Depends on soil PH of the particular area which determines on whether CAN or UREA to be used for side dressing.
• Concern on late fertilizer delivery in shops.
You can buy before the season starts and keep them to use at planting time.
• In case if a farmer cannot buy hybrid seeds can they still follow that Ag.Inst. Techniques?
Yes, they can still use the techniques which do not need cash money such as minimum tillage.

Conclusion

Pastor Yona Kingaga said Corn variety which they planted in 2008 had good yield compared to variety they planted in 2009 and they suggested that we should plant this year the 2008 variety. We gave them the 2008 corn variety which is hybrid 628.

Kilolo July 20, 2010

2010 CVP
Companion Village Project
Visit Report
6th Visit Year Two
July 20, 2010


Village Kilolo
Pastor Yohana Kinganga
Companion King of Kings, Woodbury, MN
Attendees 4
Weather for the past month Dry
Reporters Ibrahim, Gabriel and Lunodzo

In this visit we were accompanied by Miss Leah Mlay, Law lecturer at Tumaini University who was interested to learn about the demonstration plots and the CV Project.
Purposes of the visit
• To collect the yield measurement
• To deliver grain storage pesticides “Shumba”
• End of season discussion and planning for the next farming season
Topics
1. Review of the handouts
• 6th Visit instruction handout
• Yield recording sheet
2. Harvesting
Corn has not been harvested yet.
Amounts in bags/plot
( ½ Acre) Yield in 10m in 3 lines( For further analysis) Remarks
Corn Litres
No. of plants
Beans 1 bag 1tin Litres 0.3 0.75 0.75 Yield higher than local variety
No. of plants 20 42 100 Leaf disease has reduced yield

3. Storage
We instructed them on how to store grain for home usage and for selling at the time of high price. We instructed how to mix grain storage pesticides “shumba” and the appropriate volume of grain per bottle recommended. We left the pesticides to them to mix with their harvested grains.

4. Discussion about the farming season
• Corn
Corn is not yet harvested. However, the crop looks good. There are big trees in the mid of their plots which affects some of the plants with their shadows.
• Beans
The beans were affected by fungal disease; they apply Thionex to control the diseases however the disease persisted. Later on they applied another pesticide called Celecron which seemed to control the disease. The beans have been harvested, the yield is good. They like the seeds “Urafiki”. However this type of beans has small seeds compare to that they get last year.
Comments/questions
 They said the corn H6303 introduced last season seem to yield high however they were concerned because it gives just single ear per plant
We told them, when we get the yield measurement we will be in good position to determine if it yields higher or not. Having single ears is not the only determinant factor.
 They said the pesticides Thionex is not good and the one works better is Celecron
We told them that can be true in accordance with their area; however failure to work for Thionex might be contributed by continuous rainfall period (The Thionex application was done in this period here)
 Pastor said the program has been helpful to many congregation members. People are adopting the techniques and they are buying improved seeds. On behalf of his congregation members, he delivered thanks to the institute and companion congregation.

Conclusion
We reminded them to send us the corn yield measurement once they harvest. We thanked Pastor for good record keeping and the good work in the plots

Kilolo - CVP Report May 18-2010

2010 CVP
Companion Village Project
Visit Report
5th Visit Year Two
May 18, 2010


Village Kilolo
Pastor Yohana Kinganga
Companion King of Kings, Woodbury, MN
Attendees 6
Weather for the past month Rainy
Reporters Ibrahim, Gabriel and Lunodzo

Purpose of the visit
• Explain and demonstrate how to take yield measurement.
• Deliver two containers (20 liters and 1 liter size) and a 10 m string.
Topics
1. Greetings
Pastor Lunodzo gave greetings on behalf of the DIRA, King of Kings, Saint Paul Area Synod and US Ag Advisory Committee for volunteering to provide fund and to implement of Ag training program
2. Went through the handouts
o 5th Visit handout
o Yield recording sheet
o Rain record sheets to know the amount of rain received during this season
3. Demonstrations
We demonstrated how to measure the 10 m row (in three different locations within the demonstration plot and neighbors farm) for the yield determination, this was demonstrated by using a 10 m string, how to measure and count the number of corn plants and ears. After shelling they are supposed to measure the amount of grain by using one liter container that was given to them by the institute of Ag.
These measurements are done to both corn and beans.

Plots information
Beans looks good, they like the beans variety introduced to them.

Corn not yet harvested, but they didn’t perform better as compared to last year’s. We introduced a different variety to this year, last year variety was good but some fungi diseases attack the crop so we had decided to try a different variety.



Comments
 They thinks (by looking the field) won’t have a better yield as compared to last year’s corn yield. This was due to the change of corn variety.
NB: Last year after harvest, they asked if we can introduce a different variety so that they will learn and see if new variety will yield better.
We are glad that they are learning sometimes a different variety will make a difference in terms of production.
 They are happy with the beans variety introduced even though the final judgment will be after harvesting.

Questions from audience and answers

 They asked how they can determine the amount of rain.
We told them, the rain gauge that was given to them will help to determine the amount of rain received. To get better results, they have to record effectively.
 They asked if the Institute will introduce a different corn variety for this year so that will give them more opportunity of learning more about corn variety.
It depends, if the variety we know which we think will perform better is available in the market we will love to introduce to them.

Conclusions/Recommendations
We appreciated them for better job they have been doing and encouraged them to practice what we are teaching them for their life improvement.

Kilolo - CVP Report Jan 22-2010

2008 CVP
Companion Village Project
Visit Report
4th visit Year Two
January 22, 2010

Village Kilolo
Pastor Yona Kinganga
Companion King of Kings, Woodbury
Attendees 14
Weather for the past month Dry for a week now
Reporters Gabriel, Alfred

We met Pastor and other members of the congregation working in the corn plot. We went around looking at the plot then we started the meeting and demonstrations.
Purpose of the visit
• Bean planting and fertilizer application demonstrations
• Bean seeds, fertilizers and Pesticides delivery
Topics
1. Corn plot and Rain records
Corn Seed variety planted H 6303
Planting date November 27, 2009
Replanting date December 12, 2009
First weeding November 01, 2010
Pests/Diseases Nil
We checked the rain records in the box file. The records have been written down as instructed.
2. Review of Handouts
o Bean seeds and fertilizer delivered information was added in the Fertilizer need template in the box file of the congregation
o 4th visit handout was reviewed
3. Demonstrations
I. Beans
It was demonstrated how to measure inter row spacing (30cm) and intra row spacing (10cm). String was used to make trench and in the trench bean seeds were placed 10cm apart. Fertilizer was placed 5cm from the seeds. Both seeds and fertilizer were covered.
II. Corn
It was demonstrated how to make second application of fertilizer in the corn. Two holes were made 5cm from the plant and fertilizer was put then covered. We told them to do this when the plants are knee high.
III. Pesticides
It was demonstrated how mix the pesticide “Thionex” which is used to control crop damaging insects.

4. Fertilizers, bean seed and pesticides delivery
The congregation was given 2 bags of NPK for bean and 2 bags of CAN for corn. The bean seed variety delivered is known as “Urafiki” (30kg). We also gave them 1 bottle of Thionex pesticide.

Comments/questions from audience
 They asked why they apply fertilizer when the plants reach at knee high instead of applying at the time of tasseling?
I told them that the fertilizer we apply when the plant is knee high is usually nitrogenous fertilizer which supplies nitrogen into the plant. We apply at this stage because at this stage the plant needs nitrogen to have healthy growth and high yield.
 What is suitable time to put fertilizers in the soil, at the time of heavy rainfall or at the time when rain stops for a while?
I told them to apply fertilizers when the plants reach knee high as it has been instructed. They should not wait until the rain stops. Fertilizer applied at the time of normal rains works fine, however, heavy rainfall can sometimes cause leaching or soil erosion which can erode fertilizer.
 Those who did not use fertilizer at the time of sawing seeds, at what time are they suppose to apply fertilizer (CAN)?
I told them they should apply fertilizer at the time when plant reaches knee high.

Conclusions/Recommendations
The Pastor of this congregation works really hard. The records have been kept very well, the instructions have been properly followed and the plots are well taken care of. According to his congregation members, he really works as an extension officer. He goes to other people farms and instructs them what to do. We visited the corn plots, the spacing has been correctly made and plants look nice. I believe we are going to have the best demonstration plots in this congregation. Pastor said not only members of the church but also people who are not members of that church have begun to adopt the techniques. Those who practice these techniques have realized that they can save money in tillage and increase yields. At the end of the meeting I asked them a few review questions.

NB:
• 1 bag of NPK is 50kg and 1 bag of CAN is 50kg

Kilolo CVP Visit of Nov 13-09

2008 CVP
Companion Village Project
Visit Report
1st visit Year Two
November 13th, 2009



Village Kilolo
Pastor Yohana Kinganga
Companion King of Kings Lutheran Church
Attendees
Weather for the past month
Reporters
………………………………………………
Sunny and dry
Ibrahim Wikedzi and Fred Bergsrud

We started the meeting with about…….people, the crowd were eagerly to learn (Note; Kilolo was the best 2008-CVP by yielding the highest number of corn bags as compared to others (11 bags and 3 tins of shelled corn per half acre plot). Also they followed the agronomic practices we instructed them and recorded events in their box file, having Fred Bergsrud (Retired Professor at U of M) at the meeting, he gave them A+
Pastor Kinganga, were invited by several farmers to go out to their farms to demonstrate the agronomic practices we taught him through CVP. On our way to the church we saw some field which the corn stalks were not burnt but chopped down and kept in rows, ready for planting when rain comes. “The words are getting out”. We brought a corn variety (H 6303) we couldn’t get in down, but when we reached there they told us that variety was available in the village little shop, so we bought and gave them.

Purpose of the visit
• Demonstrations on planting and fertilizer application
• To deliver fertilizer and seeds.
• Deliver a twine

Topics
1. Greetings
Fred gave greetings from Saint Paul Area Synod, King of Kings Lutheran Church and US Advisory Committee.
2. Review of Handouts
o Fertilizer needs template was filled and left to the box file of the congregation
o Plant population handout was reviewed
o Fertilizer application handout was reviewed


3. Rain gauge
The rain started during mid night, so they couldn’t put their rain gauge, but we discussed about rain fall recording with reference to Mlowa and Nduli where they were able to record 13 mm and 40 mm respectively.

4. Demonstrations
It is there second year training, we did refresh training on how to use twine during seed planting and the way to place fertilizer 5 cm on each side of seed. We reminded them to remember to do a crop rotation, so they are supposed to plant corn in the plot they planted beans last year and plant corn in the corn plot.

5. Fertilizer and seed delivery
According to the soil analysis of the soil of this area, types of fertilizer recommended are NPK (10-18-24).The congregation was given NPK 2 bags and 4 bags of seeds. They were told to apply this fertilizer at the time of planting.

Comments/questions from audience
 Comment from Pastor; Zero tillage minimizes costs of production, and they have seen the advantage of leaving crop residues by looking the field where they left crop residues last year the soil seem loose and easy to work on this year.
 They think the record form is not giving them enough room to fill in events/records.
The answer was last year we told them, they should write some notes in other pieces of paper and that is what they did in their box file.
 Comments, they advice the importance of heaving Micro-Loans to facilitate their ability to practice what they learnt.
 The pastor asked if we can give them sprayer(20 liters size) since last year they had a problem of getting a sprayer to rent
I told them, I will discuss with my Director, Inst. 0f Ag and see if will be possible to get one for them.

Conclusions/Recommendations
We highly recommend them to follow again all agronomic practices we are teaching and they will be successful in the crop production more than what they were able to get last year. We encouraged them to maintain their position of being the best out of all 20 parishes we have now.

Ipogoro-6th CVP Visit - Aug 26-2009

Ag Inst – Ipogoro notes
6th CVP Visit
(Partner – Augustana, St. Paul, MN)
Aug 26, 2009
Pastor Mwitula

Remember: Ipogoro has half the plots and the preaching point, Kitwiru has the other half.
They were only a pastor and 2 other people who attended, reason was, there was another meeting in the morning around 7 am up to 1pm and Inst of Ag meeting scheduled at 2pm, so people were really exhausted and went home before we arrived from Tungamalenga. We requested pastor to inform us when we schedule if there will any meeting so that we see if it will work out or we should change the schedule.

They told us they are happy with Pioneer seed variety and would like to continue growing the same variety 2009/10 growing season.

Yield obtained from ¼ of an acre is 38.5 tins equivalent to 5.5 bags of shelled corn. And the pastor said he will donate 1 bag of corn to the church during the harvest offering time.
In Kitwiru plot, they harvested corn already but not thrashed yet, soon they will thrashed and give us how many bags obtained. The harvested corn in Kitwiru was also good and similar to the harvested corn in Ipogoro.

They will prefer to have a different beans variety.

Today we discussed and demonstrated the use of storage chemicals and delivered the storage chemical called Shumba i.e. a trade name.
They didn’t record yield as we instructed them in our early visits, and we highly recommended them to record 10 meters in rows next year 2009/10 in both demo plots and neighbors farm.

Kilolo-6th CVP Visit - Aug 25-2009

Ag Inst – Kilolo
6th CVP Visit
(Partner – King of Kings, Woodbury, MN)
August 25, 2009 Pastor Yona Kinganga

Notes about this crop:
Remember the corn plot at Kilolo was one of the best corn crops of the CVP plots.
The number of people attended was 20. I was impressed the way they have been recording almost all the events instructed by the Institute of Agriculture. They haven’t thrashed their corn yet, they showed me the pile of corn inside the room at pastor’s house. I instructed them to thrashed corn as soon as possible since the corn looked dry enough.

They did harvest all the corn with mould or fungal diseases (Fussarium sp) and put into bags, the idea was to know and estimate the percentage damage caused by disease.

The reasons for the better yield

I stressed the successfully of the plot was due to their hard working and followed the Ag Institute’s recommendation and doing everything in a timely manner that is why the harvested ears of corn are big and well filled out.

Records:
Demonstration plot;
Ø First 10 meters – harvested amount 4.5 Kg or Liters of shelled corn.
Ø Second 10 meters –harvested amount 5.0 Kg or Liters of shelled corn
Ø Third 10 meters-harvested amount 6.0 Kg or Liters of shelled corn
Average in 10 meters in line is 5 Kg or Liters of shelled corn.

Neighbor’s farm; Pastor Kinganga’s Farm
Ø First 10 meters- harvested amount 3.0 Kg or Liters of shelled corn.
Ø Second 10 meters –harvested amount 2.25 Kg or Liters of shelled corn
Ø Third 10 meters –harvested amount 2.5 Kg or Liters of shelled corn
Average in 10 meters in line is 2.5 Kg or Liters of shelled corn.

The price of corn in One tin of shelled corn is 4,000/= TShs. (price due to August, 2009 and it is subjected to change anytime going up or down) until it will be subjected going up in October and no chances of going down again. We recommended they should store and sell when the price is up (Suggested time to sell is January, 2010)
Beans price is 14,000/= to 15,000/= per tin.
Seed Varieties:
Beans; they are happy with Urafiki Variety we introduced to them; they prefer to continue growing it this year 2009/2010 growing season.
Corn; they doubt with H628 reasons, it grows too tall and fall/lodge off after mature and attacked by fungal diseases due to high moisture.
With consultations with seed experts we may try H 6303 (note, we still need make decision on this matter) this variety of corn is tolerable with high moisture at maturity stage and work fine in high altitude especially in Dabaga area.

Problems occurred in 2008/09:
- Lack of sprayers, they rented from the neighbor and the Inst of Ag were charged 13,000/= TShs for 5 days. (2 times spraying)
- Stolen corn (approximately 1.5 bags of shelled corn.

Kilolo - 4th CVP Visit

Partner: King of Kings, Woodbury, Minn.
Tuesday January 27, 2009
Pastor Yona Kinganga and the recently ordained evangelist David Mapepele from the Luganga preaching point was there.
10 attendees from Kilolo

The plot is located right next to the church and the corn looked great. These were the best looking plots that we’ve seen so far. One can tell that this congregation and the pastor take these plots seriously. Some of the corn was shoulder high. There was a noticeable difference between the CVP plot and the neighboring fields, the corn was a foot to 18 inches taller. The pastor pointed out that they ran out of fertilizer part way (about 90%) through the plot, again demonstrating a marked difference that the proper fertilizer applied in the correct manner can have. What a great visual reinforcement of what we are trying to teach them.

Most of the corn rows were 60 cm apart, but they ranged up to the 70s and one was as high as 80 cm apart. There was an average of 23.6 cm between plants in a row. These were the highest plant densities we’ve encountered so far.

The bean plot had been weeded and the residue had been placed in 60 cm rows. This was the first CVP plot that we have visited where the bean plot had been weeded before we got there.

Today we delivered 100 kg of NPK, 100 kg of CAN, 16 kg of Uyole Market seed. I bottle of Thionex had been previously delivered.

We met in church and reviewed the plot activities. The first rain occurred on November 23, 2008. The corn was planted on December 1, 2008. Places where corn did not emerge were replanted two weeks later on December 15 & 16. The corn has been weeded twice, on December 17–22 and again on January 12-16. The corn was sprayed with insecticide (Thionex) on January 10-11, 2009.

Ibrahim went through the hand outs. He emphasized the importance of weeding, that lack of weeding can be the biggest deterrent to crop yield. He also emphasized seed spacing at planting, since we are trying to fertilize high plant populations to maximize yield it is important to properly space the seeds so that we actually get high plant populations.

Ibrahim asked if they have experienced any benefits from the teaching we have done and the demonstrations that have been conducted. Some of their responses were:
· The use of soil tests to determine fertilizer recommendations, and not just guessing as to how much to apply.
· Appropriate fertilizer measurements to assure application of the correct amount.
· The advantages of using fertilizer, they can see the impact of using fertilizer.
· Minimum tillage reduces the cost of production, the community has also noticed the advantages of minimum tillage.
· Placing the residue between the rows of corn has helped to control weeds.
· They used to plant 3 seeds in a hole about 60 cm apart. They thought that planting seeds 20 cm apart was too close. With fertilization, they can see the advantage of close planting, and having single plants at 20 cm instead of having three plants at 60 cm.
· In the past they mixed crops, now they realize that one crop at a time gives the best results.

Ibrahim demonstrated the placement of the second application of fertilizer (CAN) 5 cm on each side of the corn plants. The fertilizer should be placed 5 cm from the plant along side of the row and not in the row. Ibrahim demonstrated how to plant and fertilize the bean seeds. First dig a row or trench with the corner of the hoe, or if the ground is hard dig a continuous trench by digging at 90 degrees to the direction of the trench. Place the bean seeds 9 cm apart, or about the width of one’s fist, and then place one cap of fertilizer between the bean seeds. Finally cover the bean seeds and fertilizer with soil.

While eating lunch in the pastor’s house we noticed some Urafiki beans and asked some questions.
· They have had a positive experience with Urafiki beans.
· They have eaten the beans themselves and have sold some.
· They are a bush type bean, about 20 inches tall and about 10 inches wide.
· They yield more than Uyole beans.
· However, the Urafiki beans don’t taste as good as the Uyole beans.
· The Urafiki beans don’t have gas and they store better, especially in warm areas.
o If one makes Urafiki beans for lunch, you can have them again for dinner.
o If one makes Uyole beans for lunch, they will get soft and start to ferment before dinne.
· Urafiki beans are good for feeding large groups of people.

Photo link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/21557421@N08/sets/72157604431106091/detail/