By Nosisa Purazi
My name is Nosisa Purazi and I am a single parent living in ward 17 in Insiza District of Matabeleland South Province. I am 33 years old. My life changed in March 2021 when I participated in a workshop for lead farmers in my area. Up to that point my family was living a miserable life characterized by limited and unbalanced food supplies.
The workshop was organized by Zimbabwe Project (ZIMPRO) Trust in partnership with Fambidzanai Permaculture Centre. It focused on how to conserve our environment by practicing agroecology. We were also trained on how to design a small piece of land into a profitable container garden using readily available resources.
After the workshop I was inspired to start my own container garden. I identified the location for my garden. I selected an area at the back of my fowl run. I then started to collect used containers. I collected used sacks, plastic bags, dishes, buckets and plastic bottles. I also prepared compost using locally available materials.
To get further support in this process, I consulted our local Agricultural Technical Extension (AGRITEX) Officer who shared information and linked me with other successful farmers in my community. These farmers gave me suckers, seeds and tree seedlings. When everything was in place, I planted more than 300 diverse plants in different containers. I looked after my garden as I watched the plants grow.
After about two months, my garden was flourishing. I harvested different vegetables for household consumption. After a few more months, I was producing excess vegetables which I sold. I was selling two bundles of vegetables for US$1 and I earned around US$50 per week.
I used some of the money to buy eight indigenous chickens. I had learned that small livestock like chickens are an important component in container gardening because they provide manure. Chickens also feed on excess vegetables, and this reduced food waste. The income I generated also helped me to pay school fees for my children. One of my children is now doing ‘A’ Level at a local boarding school.
My pilot container garden was a success. This encouraged me to widen my knowledge on agroecology so that I would be able to implement more projects. I applied for a Diploma in Agroecology offered by Fambidzanai Permaculture Centre in association with Bindura University of Science Education. I am now in my second year of studying for the three-year diploma. So far I have learned a lot of things and I have managed to apply some of the knowledge that I am getting.
I have expanded my garden by introducing a herbarium site with different herbs including spices and other medicinal plants. I sell these herbs and some of them I use them as nutritional supplement for my family.
I would like to encourage other single mothers and youths to take part in learning and implementing agroecology projects to fight poverty and food insecurity. I am happy that ever since I adopted agroecology my life has changed and I look forward to a prosperous and sustainable future.