Tips on land acquisition, making feeds and growing garlic

A worker feeds two-week-old chicks at the Lubanga poultry centre in Bungoma County. ISAIAH ESIPISU |

What you need to know:

  • Making poultry feeds require a balance of different sources of nutrients. For energy provision as a rule of thumb, you need 70 per cent and here you can use different varieties of energy sources such as whole maize, maize bran, wheat bran and wheat pollard.
  • It is difficult to know if your land will be acquired because this is done on need basis. However, before this is done, you will be duly informed and later compensated.
  • The Environmental Impact Assessment Report and appropriate approvals/certification for the project and the Relocation Action Plan are other key documents to be submitted.
  • Garlic also likes rich organic matter, so well-composted manure or other bulky organic matter should be incorporated into the ground prior to planting.

MAKING OWN CHICKEN FEEDS
I want to make chicken feeds using local materials because of the high cost of commercial meals. Kindly advise me on how to go about it.
Nancy Talam, Eldoret

Making poultry rations will depend on the type of materials you are able to acquire. For energy sources, consider maize, wheat bran/pollard while for protein, consider cotton and sunflower seed cakes as plant protein and omena as animal protein.

The ration will also require mineral supplements such as limestone flour and salt, and premixes as vitamin supplement. Once you have identified what materials you are able to acquire, you can contact me to advice you on the mixing ratios. Contact: [email protected] or Tel: +254 51 2217684/5
Sophie Miyumo, Department of Animal Sciences, Egerton University

Making poultry feeds require a balance of different sources of nutrients. For energy provision as a rule of thumb, you need 70 per cent and here you can use different varieties of energy sources such as whole maize, maize bran, wheat bran and wheat pollard.

As a source of protein, you need between 17 to 22 per cent where you can use soya bean or omena or fishmeal but in small quantities. Fir the remaining percentage, you need to use limestone at 5 per cent and premix at 2 per cent and 1 per cent for dicalcium phosphate (DCP).

Mugatha, Anthony Mbugua. Department of Animal Sciences, Egerton University. Email: [email protected]

LAND ACQUISITION

Our ancestral home is in Kiboswa where a lot of development is going on, leading to acquisition of land. How can we tell if our land will be acquired?
Sila

It is difficult to know if your land will be acquired because this is done on need basis. However, before this is done, you will be duly informed and later compensated.

Section 107(1) of the Land Act 2012 requires the acquiring body to obtain prior approval from their respective Cabinet Secretary before the National Land Commission commences the acquisition process.

Cadastral drawings show how the infrastructure excises each land parcel, the parcel list table detailing land parcel numbers, total area of land parcels and acreage affected by the infrastructure for each parcel. These drawings shall be submitted to the commission for scrutiny and records.

Then a listing for parcel numbers indicating the plot reference, registered owner and affected acreage (for easy appreciation by project affected persons) should be provided in both soft and hard copy.

Official searches of affected land parcels should also be provided.

The Environmental Impact Assessment Report and appropriate approvals/certification for the project and the Relocation Action Plan are other key documents to be submitted.

The commission normally requests the entities to remit compensation money into the Land Compensation Fund (Section 153 of the Land Act 2012) to be administered by the commission.

This is in the purview that in previous acquisitions, the compensation payments were delayed as opposed to the promptness required by the law. All applicants will have to take the Land Acquisition and Committee sub-committee members on a site tour for general appreciation of the project in respective locations that will be affected.

National Land Commission

GARLIC IN MBEERE

Can garlic do well in Mbeere, Embu County? The place is semi-arid.
Wahome

Yes, garlic can grow well in Embu. It, however, requires well-draining soils, so if you’re on heavy-clay based soils, then you’ll need to add some sand to lighten it.

Garlic also likes rich organic matter, so well-composted manure or other bulky organic matter should be incorporated into the ground prior to planting. Choose a sunny and relatively sheltered spot and you’re ready to plant your garlic cloves. In case of severe drought you can irrigate.

Muriuki Ruth Wangari, Department of crops, horticulture and soils, Egerton University

SEEDS FOR FODDER

Where do I buy seeds for shrubs like calliandra? I am in Thika. Please educate me on general information about fodder farming.
Wangeura Mbari

Calliandra seeds are usually in short supply locally but you can contact Kenya Forestry Research Institute (KEFRI) offices in Muguga, Kiambu County for more information. Fodder crops can be categorised into two namely energy rich and protein rich crops.

Respectively, the former constitutes crops such as maize, sorghum and napier while the latter lucerne, desmodium, vetch and even multi-purpose trees such as calliandra and sesbania.

To ensure proper nutrition of your animals, establish at least one type of crop from each category provided it thrives in your locality and provides sufficient herbage mass (crop quantity).

Land preparation, from the time of site selection until sowing, must provide optimum conditions for germination, emergence and establishment. Most fodder crops are best established at the onset of rains but spacing, seed rates and fodder plant management differs from crop to crop.

Kimitei K. Ronald, Department of Animal Sciences - Egerton University.

INGREDIENTS OF ANIMAL FEEDS

I have been reading Seeds of Gold from the beginning and I am so happy with the content. However, my question has remained unanswered for weeks. What are ingredients in the animal feeds?

Sorry for the delay. Animal feeds must be well formulated to ensure balance of all nutrients such as energy, protein, vitamins and minerals.

The raw materials are classed into cereals and grains like maize, sorghum, rice, wheat brans or germs; cakes or oil meals like groundnut cake, soybean meal, sunflower cakes; feed of animal origin like omena, bone meal; by-products like rice bran, wheat bran and molasses; premixes that contains vitamins and minerals.

Each of these ingredients provide specific nutrient and should, therefore, be mixed in accurate parts that meet the requirement of the intended animal species depending on availability.

Felix Akatch Opinya, Department of Animal Sciences, Egerton University

POND PLANTS

I would like to know if there is any type of plant that can be grown in a fish pond for fish to feed.

Ian, Bungoma

Plants in and around the ponds greatly improve the life and productivity of the facility; but not just any plants will do. These plants are beneficial in that they are a source of oxygen and food for fish and are also hiding place for organisms that fish feed on.

When choosing the kind of plant to grow, ensure they are edible and soft enough. They should also be fast-growing to provide consistent feed source but not overgrowing to take over the fish pond. Such plants can be submerged, emergent or floating and include duckweed and watercress.

Felix Akatch Opinya, Department of Animal Sciences, Egerton University