My sick child prompted me to start growing pumpkins

John Gichuki on his pumpkin farm in Nyeri County [KIbata Kihu, Standard]

 

Sometime back in 2011, John Gichuki was a worried man. His six-month old baby was sick and as part of the treatment regimen, the doctor had recommended a rich diet of pumpkins. However, he had no pumpkins on his farm in Gachatha village, Tetu constituency.

“I had just moved back home from Nairobi where I was a salesman. I was surprised that there were no pumpkins on most farms. I had to do something,” he says.

He got seeds from a reputable source, did his research and rolled his sleeves. Vine by vine, he ventured into the unknown.

Now seven years on, Gichuki is one of the few farmers growing the vegetables on a large scale in the area. The pumpkins occupy more than two acres on his farm and he has also rented his neighbours’ farms to cultivate the crop. He has secured a market in the neighbourhood and parts of the constituency.

He says one of the advantages of growing and selling pumpkins is they have a long shelf life.

“This means I am not affected by market prices, I can keep my harvest for up to a year waiting for the demand to go up,” he points out. Pumpkins are also low maintenance and can grow with little tilling and weeding.

“Once I get seeds from the pumpkins, I dry them then dig holes in the soil and plant them directly. For healthy crop, I use manure,” he says. Manure must be applied to the soil before the pumpkins are planted, and Gichuki uses, animal manure from his cows and goats.

“I do not use chemicals or fertilisers because I grow my vegetables organically,” Gichuki says. To protect the soils from losing moisture, Gichuki uses dried grass as mulch.

“I plant the pumpkin seeds separated by at least one metre. This ensures the vines have space to grow,” he explains.

A week after planting, the seeds germinate.

“I usually plant my pumpkins at the onset of the rainy season, however of late, it has been difficult to predict the rain patterns so I have to irrigate the pumpkins to avoid withering,” Gichuki says.

One of the challenges of growing pumpkins he says, is that they often take up more space due to their creeping vines. This means they need large sizes of land.

A handful of seeds can produce up to 20 pumpkins which each grow along the vines.

The pumpkins can be harvested three months after planting, and continue to be harvested up to two weeks.

“It takes about seven months before I clear the farm and plant a fresh crop,” Gichuki says.

Pest control

Like most horticultural crops, pumpkins also get attacked by pests like aphids and wasps which attack the plants and destroy the fruit.

The leaves are also susceptible to powdery mildew, which can affect productivity and quality of the produce.

“ I sell the pumpkins per kg, with each kg selling for Sh60. With each pumpkin weighing 3kgs, from one I get Sh180,” he says.

He sells about 100 pumpkins per day which brings in about Sh18,000.

However he often has to transport his pumpkins to remote areas in Kieni Constituency where he can fetch up to Sh300 per pumpkin.

John Wambugu, an agronomist at Agricultural Training Centre in Nyeri County says when it comes to pumpkins, you must identify the market, before you grow the crop. This, determines the size of the pumpkin and type. For instance, if the buyers have large families you need to grow more large sized pumpkins. Types like butternut are great for soups. There are pumpkins which are specifically grown for makng flour.

For those interested in growing pumpkins, Wambugu advises them to identify the season for planting because the crop requires plenty of water to thrive.

“If you rely on rain-fed agriculture, that’s tricky because nowadays the rains are erratic. You are better off having a back up plan like irrigation,” he says.

Well aerated soils are also key in addition to starting off by buying quality seeds from a recognised dealer.