We live in a beautiful country indeed. Our potential for agri-business is immense, our land is fertile and our people are hard workers.
Thanks to a fast growing demand for fresh grocery, demand for agricultural products such as watermelons has grown exponentially over the last few years.
Today I want to share some important tips about watermelon farming.
How To Grow Your Ksh.40,000 Into Ksh.400,000 In A 100 Days
1. Get the Seeds
High quality seeds are available at Kenya Seeds Company and Simlaw Seeds Company outlets. At the moment 500 grams of seeds is retailing at Ksh.12,500 and it can serve up to 1 acre.
Keep in mind that because watermelon produce large vines, you need to leave a space of at least 1.5 metres between rows. This leafy crop should be grown away from any shade so that it receives at least 6 hours of direct sunlight.
2. Choose the Right Variety
The variety of watermelon you choose can determine what profit you are going to reap from your investment.
According to Mr. Robert Musyoki, a variety known as Sweet Rose is the best bet for first time farmers since it is highly resistant to diseases and pests.
Other varieties that are in high demand in Kenya include: Sugar-Baby, Jubilee and Congo.
3. How Long to Maturity?
Watermelons normally reach maturity in 80 to 100 days. To check if your fruits are ready you only need to turn them to see if they have a yellow patch on the part that lies against the ground.
Another way to check for maturity would be by thumping the fruits – you should expect to hear a dull noise from a ripe one.
4. Can I Plant Watermelons in My Home Area?
“Watermelon is adapatable to a wide range of environments” said Robert Musyoki during a telephone interview with our research team. In general watermelons grow well in mid-hot coastal areas and dry plains.
Example of such places: Machakos, Embu, Kirinyaga, Loitoktok, Garissa, Isiolo, Kerio Valley and some parts of Meru.
According to Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) this crop can also perform well in areas with black cotton soil (such as Kitengela) if planted under drip irrigation.
5. Challenges to Watch Out For
As with any other business, watermelon farming has its fair share of challenges. According to Dr. John McOpiyo (a one-time Watermelon farmer) says that finding the right pesticides, and fungicide is always a challenge.
He narrated to us how he sprayed his farm with wrong chemicals only to lose all his crops.
We recommend seeking advice from an extension officer before applying any pesticides of fungicides to watermelons.
6. How Much You Need (1 acre farm budget)
Seeds – Ksh.12,500
Labour – Ksh.10,000
Ploughing and weeding – Ksh.10,000
50 KG DAP Fertilizer – Ksh.2,500
An acre of land can produce 45,000 Kilograms. Each Kilogram retails at a farm-gate price of Ksh.10 – Ksh.15.
In short, we are talking about a return of about Ksh.450,000 minimum.
7. Where Is the Market for Watermelons
Major market for watermelons in Kenya is easily available in Nairobi’s City Market, Agakhan Market, Githurai Market, Kangemi and Kongowea Market that is in Mombasa.
Alternatively, you can look for market in hotels and supermarkets in your locality.
“There are middle-men who normally come to the farms seeking to buy your produce even before it matures, so I don’t think finding market for watermelon would be a big problem” Julius Kombo (a farmer from Lamu, Kenya).
How former watchman and college dropout found a soft landing in watermelon farming
Raised by a single parent, Zachariah Onchuri is one of those few youths who have gone through various challenges in their hustles through the persistence for success has borne them fruits.
Zack, as famously known by his friends, was forced out of college in 2009 when he could not pay his school fees given his mother who is his only parent, he could depend on was unable to pay his fees.
His hustle as a ‘mutura’ seller in Eldoret Town near Elgon View College where he was taking his journalism course could also not continue as the town ‘askaris’ were always on his case due to lack of business permit.
When it became unbearable, he dropped out of college, left his home in Sotik, Bomet County for Kilifi Town after a friend of his called him over to join him in a security job.
“I had no choice, I found myself being a night watchman in the coastal town, a job which could earn me Sh.3,500 a month,” said Zack.
During the day, he could also get involved in hawking fruits such as watermelon, oranges and pineapples at least to increase his earning, foot his bills and support his mother back at home.
Fortunately for him, the fruit hawking business picked and he saw no need of continuing as a night security guard. So, he left the watchman job in May 2009 to focus on his new business.
“I used to make Sh.500 a day from watermelon sales alone as it was loved by most consumers and it would always run out of stock leaving me with nothing to sell even when the demand was still high,” said Zack.
Soon an idea would strike his mind – farming watermelon. However, his first challenge was the lack of a farm though he could afford farm inputs from his little savings.
Luckily, a young man from the Chakama location in Kilifi County whom they had become friends offered him a quarter piece of land to grow watermelon.
Without any skills in commercial farming and had not thought of consulting, Zack left his business in town to invest about Sh.11,000 in watermelon farming.
Unfortunately, he lost almost the entire crop to Bacterial Fruit Blotch and Powdery Mildew, very common watermelon diseases.
“At a time I was expecting my first fruits in December that year, I realized the products were still very small and unhealthy while others were withering away. There was no hope on them so I destroyed everything,” he said.
Not losing hope, he hustled for a loan of Sh.50,000 to begin afresh since his Chakama friend had accepted to let him another half an acre piece of the plot.
Before starting his round two of watermelon farming, he had to consult the county agriculture extension officer and some experienced farmers in the area.
In mid-January, he planted the fruits again using the friend’s generator water pump to draw water from Athi River which the farm was closer to water his tender crops through the dry season.
By mid-March 2011, he harvested about six tonnes of watermelon which he took to markets in Malindi and Kilifi to sell by himself at Sh.40 per kilo without passing through middlemen hence making full profit.
“At the end of that season I made Sh.200,000 gross income remaining with Sh.140,000 after expenses and this has since motivated me,” said Zack.
Today the young farmer has over 47 acres of land (his own and others leased) under rotation watermelon farming at Chakama and Garsen in Malindi.
He produces 10 to 17 tonnes of the crop per acre selling on order to wholesalers from Mombasa, Malindi Kilifi and Nairobi at Sh.60 per kilo.
This earns him between Sh.900,000 and Sh.1.2 million clean net income after farm expenses. He uses this money to settle siblings school fees, some on his mother’s needs while saving the rest.
He has also ventured into other vegetables such as okra, cabbages, capsicum, and zucchini which helps him in rotation farming he has adopted to keep diseases away and improve the structure of his farms’ soils.
Finally;
As we always tell you, there’s no marathon race that has ever been won by those who did not start the race. If you like the idea discussed above and you have what it takes to actualize it…then don’t wait to start…just do it.
