20 Jul 2017

Mr Charles Mazereku of Tutume once read an article about conservation farming, and it inspired him to design a hand held planter.

He did some research on the Internet and met with a Chinese engineer who helped him to design the planter.

Through his Molapowabojang based company called Mbiwacha, Mr Mazereku said he sold hand held planters to farmers around the country.

He described the planter as less labour intensive and user friendly, and that it was ideal for row planting and could be used in backyard gardens and in fields of up to 10 hectares. The planter can also be used to apply fertilizer.

Mr Mazereku said one of the advantages of the planter was that it could be used to fill gaps between crops when the space was too big.

He said the planter could be used to plant maize, millet, sorghum, beans and groundnuts, but that it could not be used to plant vegetables like tomatoes and cabbage.

The planter has two handles which are adjustable to waist level, and the adjustment makes it easy for anyone to use the machine.

It has a big front wheel which helps to maintain the straightness of rows and a small wheel at the back that helps to compress the soil after planting.

 Mr Mazereku said it also has a pull handle, which was ideal when used by two people. It also has two compartments for seeds and fertilizers and could be adjusted to the size of seeds.

The planter is easy to maintain as it only needs to be oiled and can be stored in a small space.

Mr Mazereku said he had received positive feedback from farmers who had used the planter, adding that they were happy with the yield they received, as they harvested more than normal. BOPA