Backyard farming

How can I start a garden in my backyard?

Jane Natwijuka

Dear Jane
Use this rainy season to grow some vegetables, spices and herbs around your home. Even the laziest person can practice this simple farming.

Materials you need
Soil, manure, charcoal dust, sand, ash, containers, sacks, bags, cups and many others.
Garden tools such as hoe, spade, shovel and watering can are also a must.
You should also plan for mulches such as saw dust, dry grass and coffee husks.
Finally you will require seed

lings or seeds and fertiliser.

Process
•Collect all materials and plan for your space.
•Mix soil with manure, charcoal dust and sand at the ratio of 3:1:1:1 and two kilogrammes of ash.
•Pack the mixed soil in containers and other materials you prepared.
•Make sure your containers have holes at the bottom and the sides.
•Plant your seedlings in the containers.

Management of this garden
•Ensure regular watering of your garden.
•Mulching is very vital before and when crops start flowering.
•Do not allow foreign plants such as striga to infest your crops hence weeding is a must.
•You are also advised to keep pruning excess branches and plants.
•Disease and pest control must be undertaken to have a rich harvest.

Which crops to grow
You can grow crops such as cabbages, sukuma wiki, spinach, beetroot, spring onions, tomatoes, green pepper, lettuce, strawberry, mint, rosemary and many others.

Answered by Dr Allan Ahimbisibwe CEO at Spark Agro-Initiatives Ltd.

How do I tell my goat is healthy? Philip Byaruhanga

Dear Phillip
There are so many things from which you can tell a healthy animal (goat). You can recognise a healthy animal by its behaviour, appearance and the proper functioning of its life processes. The following signs indicate the goat is healthy.
•Goats are generally energetic animals and walk at a good pace. They are curious and have a bright look in their eyes.
•They have a good appetite and chew their cud when they have eaten enough. The coat should be smooth and shiny, and the animal should not be skinny.
•If you look closely at the appearance, start with the mucus membranes; these are good indicators of the general condition.
•A healthy animal has pink mucus membranes of the eye, mouth, nose and vulva (only females).
•One of the most important life functions is the good intake and digestion of feed and water. A good intake can be judged on the basis of the eating habits of the goat, a good digestion can be seen by the dung: many round and firm droppings.
•Young goats have a high temperature (up to 39.0 C = 102.2 F). Among mature goats their temperature is about 38.5 C (101.3).

Note
Goats have been long considered the poor man’s cow. Goats are low-maintenance livestock compared to cows. Just give them a sizeable area of land with lots of grass, water and adequate shelter and you’re good to go.

Answered by Dr Sadat S. Walusimbi of Makerere University

I am a retiree and would like to invest in farming. What is the most important point in cassava farming?
Capt Silver Omollo

Dear Silver
To begin cassava farming and processing, you will need to put some things in place.

The basic requirements include: acquiring farmland, developing the farmland to suit cassava production, selecting the best variety of cassava, and selecting the best cassava stem cutting to plant.

Before you get started, of course, you will need to have a good business feasibility plan and raise capital for the business. For a starter, you need about Shs2m to cultivate an acre of cassava.

Answered by Sam Olupot, cassava agronomist

How deadly is milk fever disease?

Jackson Mungoma

Dear Jackson
One out of 20 cows die from milk fever, and 80 per cent of the cases occur a day before or after calving. Acting quickly will save a dairy farmer from losing the animal.

Milk fever is a metabolic disease commonly known among dairy farmers as the “falling disease.” It is caused by low calcium levels in an animal’s bloodstream.

Normally, the cow suffers from the disease just before or after calving, when demand for calcium for milk production exceeds the body’s ability to mobilise calcium reserves.

Answered by Julia Nechesa, an animal nutritionist