NYS Farm where the Savvy go for Lessons

Tucked in Nyandarua County, Tumaini Farm, which is run by the National Youth Service, hosts a modern potato propagation unit as well as huge maize, dairy and horticultural farms, all of which employ some of the best farming practices. The farm attracts farmers from across the country and beyond, who visit for lessons. Some also visit for inputs like seedlings or seeds.

The animals, which have an identification number, are washed thoroughly with a soft cloth with alkaline detergents to ensure they are clean and pests are kept at bay. The farm uses drip irrigation to maintain a steady supply of water to the plants. They sell the harvest to hotels in Nakuru. Dressed in jungle-green attire and black boots, the National Youth Service (NYS) men and women stand out on the farm named Tumaini in Nyandarua County. Some are scouting for pests on a tomato farm, others are in the broccoli section harvesting the crop, in the chicken coop vaccinating birds and in the dairy shed milking the cows.

The 625-acre farm, located 800 metres off the Dundori-Ol-Kalou Road in Nyandarua and owned by the NYS, is as busy as a beehive as the servicemen and women who manage it ensure everything goes right. The farm attracts farmers from across the country and beyond, who visit for lessons. Some also visit for inputs like seedlings or seeds.

At the potato seed production unit, run in partnership with the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (Kephis) and the Kenya Agricultural Research and Livestock Organisation (Kalro), the crops are grown using aeroponics technology. “This is an unexploited technology and we deployed it to meet the increasing demand for potato seeds,” says Kennedy Nyakang’o, a senior assistant director and commanding officer of the unit.