Increasing The Yield

Much labour goes into the preparation of the land for food – cultivation, planting, etc. The amount of labour expended is about the same, whether a good or poor harvest results. At very little extra cost it is possible to significantly increase the yields; the purchase of good quality seed, although more expensive, justifies this.

Photo: Sis Emily Mayimba of Sengabay (Malawi) with some of the bags of maize which benefited from the use of fertilizer.

We have been told that fertilisers can boost the yield up to six times. In some cases the cold reality is that many of our brethren and sisters in African countries cannot afford either good seed or fertiliser, hence a poor return for their labour and an inability to provide for better things next year.

In an endeavour to lift them out of this situation, some have been helped to get good seed and fertiliser, the hope being that after initial help they will be able to save some money from the better crops to provide seed and fertiliser for the next season. In many cases, if this initial help had not been provided most of them would still have survived somehow. And so, in theory, in spite of all the other
pressing needs, it should be possible for them, once helped, to provide for the next season’s crops. It does mean sacrifices have to be made to achieve this, but then the extra yield would not have been obtained without the initial help.

Photo: Sis Chimwemwe Jairos and Sis Eunice Mphambo of Chapita (Malawi) showing one of the bags of maize realised from the use of fertilizer they were helped with