Annex 4: Case study “Organic Farming” - ITAS

utilization of compost or precomposed manure more promising for the Tassa System. Reason
is the reduced time span between the application of organic fertilizer and the sowing.
Generally, combinations of different adopted techniques should be preferred instead of
drawing the focus on one single approach. By accumulating different positive effects, an
adopted set of approaches may has the potential to considerably increase the benefits of the
production system [Kriegl 2001, p.186].
4.1.2 The Double-Digging Method – an example of additional income creation for
small-scale farmers in Kenya
Market-oriented organic production in Kenya is, according to Bues’s distinction [2007,
p. 11f], the main purpose of specialised large- and medium-scale farms, with the large-scale
producers serving the international market. Medium-scale producers are characterized by
producing for the national market. Nevertheless, the author also describes a mixed form of
subsistence and commercial production, where small-scale farmers who achieve marketable
surpluses or produce small shares of cash-crops also operate on the national market. The
importance/scope of these market-oriented smallholders in Kenya can be estimated to be
considerably high since small-scale farming is described by Omondi [2006 in Bues 2007,
p. 6] to account for more than 85 % of the agricultural sector. Just like large-scale commercial
farms, many of these smallholders are also organized in groups such as the Kenya Organic
Farmers Association (KOFA), (founded as a national representative organisation)
[KOAN 2005].
Characteristics of the Double-Digging Method
Double-Digging is a method of deep soil preparation in which the soil is loosened to a depth
of 60 cm (2 feet) and fertilized with organic matter [Mundy 1998]. This technique implies the
inversion of the soil by removing the topsoil of one segment using it as subsoil for an adjacent
segment of a seedbed of about 150cm width. Finally, the whole seedbed consists of topsoil
covered by the former subsoil. Compost incorporation is realized by mixing it with the topsoil
used to fill the pits. The whole seedbed can be constructed either as a sunken bed for the dry
season or as a raised bed for the rainy season in order to facilitate optimal water management.
Under regular soil conditions, a repetition of the Double-Digging every 3 years is regarded as
sufficient [Bues 2007, p.41; Mundy 1998].
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