Research in Arusha, Tanzania

In the past two days in Arusha I have visited two drip irrigation supply company, one fertilizer mining and supply company, the ECHO farm, two equipment sales companies, the Tropical Pesticide Research Institute, and the Salian Agricultural Research Institute. All of the people I have met have been kind, helpful, cheerful, competent, and appreciative. These places were not easy to find and the journey was made much easier with the help of several excellent drivers, a new friend that I met by 'chance', and a well connected agronomist at the ECHO farm. I discovered a genuine interest in sustainability and in reducing agriculture's dependence on chemicals. I spoke with several researchers and a soil scientist who are exploring ways to accomplish peat control and to improve soil fertility using natural methods. They know that it is possible. They know that the poor soils can be improved and the farmers could achieve better yields and healthier crops.

I learned several options for planting cover crops and green manures. I saw each of them growing and had help considering the positives and negatives of each. Rama Ngatoluwa, the soil scientist, spoke for a long time about the benefits that these crops could have for the soil and for farming. He helped me to appreciate both the benefits and the difficulties of applying these methods in Tanzania. 

I am thankful that I have been able to learn so much in a short amount of time.