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One of the many agricultural lecture/workshops at Chuya Yaku.
This was the farm of Abel Canelos and Yolanda Vargas
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Written by: Rip Winkel, F2F
Volunteer
This is
the second report on my Partners of the Americas' USAID-funded Farmer-to-Farmer (F2F) volunteer assignment to Puyo
Ecuador. In the first report, I outlined my schedule, and explained a bit of
what the purpose of the project was about. In this second article, I would like
to detail a little more on the work done, the communities and some of the folks
that I was fortunate enough to get to know. And as stated before, I feel
privileged to have been able to work this project for Farmer-to-Farmer program.
Each week that I was in
Ecuador, it seemed that there was less and less time to get things done. In Chuya Yaku, where the majority of the work was conducted, 8 out of 10 farms in this Kichwa territory participated in the trainings and workshops. The size of the groups attending these sessions
ranged anywhere from 5 to 28 people. There were 9 to 12 people that attended regularly,
and then others from the community would attend for reasons of curiosity, or
for wanting to know more about the subject that was being lectured and/or
practiced that day. Each session had a topic that was discussed or reviewed
before the group went out to the cacao field to prune. These topics ranged from proper pruning
methods, grafting techniques, making homemade (organic) pesticides, and ways to
increase yield, to soil characteristics including erosion prevention, soil
structure, soil pH and nutrient availability, to organic material, etc.).
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Cristian Kaisar of Chuya Yaku trying out the new pole
pruner on cacao at the farm of Doña Clara SantÃ.
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One
of the highlights for me was when I brought a pole pruner apparatus with me to
one of the workshops. The point of bringing this tool (from the States) was to
demonstrate an easier way to prune the height of cacao trees. Traditionally it
has been done with machetes. Using the pole pruner allowed for better control
of tree height, it makes it less strenuous physically to prune and lessens the
damage to the trees. When I presented it, their eyes all lit up in wonder, as
they gathered around pulling on the rope and spring, touching all the pulleys
and levers, and asking me how much I wanted for it as if it were an
auction. One person in particular,
Benito Vargas, wanted to take it apart so his son could see the different parts
and build one just like it.
By the end of the 10 weeks, the
majority of the cacao trees on each one of these 8 farms were correctly pruned,
and a schedule for spaying was set up to combat the ever-advancing
Monilia disease.
Another
community I was conducting lecture/workshops in was Esfuerzo II. This community
is in a different situation altogether.
A few years back they started a project where they took the organic
trash from the markets in Puyo twice a month. With this organic trash, they
would clean it, chop up large pieces and mix in biol, rice hulls, etc. and
let it compost. After 6 weeks, they had rich compost which they would put in bags and sell them at $6.00 each. It sold well. Over time, they were able to
take their earnings and construct a greenhouse adjacent to their warehouse. The
main point of the workshops here were growing crops in this green-house, as
well as learning to graft, especially citrus trees.
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The community of Esfurezo II turning the organic
material and working the compost business.
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This group of 9 people on the average, (5
women and 4 men) was well organized, and had no qualms about getting the work
done. They were taking steps that afforded them bigger projects, with more
financial potential. They were on the verge of marketing the produce from their
greenhouse and building onto their existing composting warehouse - doubling
it in size. What I appreciated was that they took time to enjoy the work they
did. Toward the end of the compost turning, and just before the workshop began
in the greenhouse, or on practicing grafting techniques, one of the older
gentleman would pull out a bottle of homemade, fermented sugar cane juice and serve
everyone a little glass full just as an enjoyment. The beverage was sweet with
a real kick to it.I am hoping that this community
diversifies their compost product - customizing it for individual crops so as to
increase the value of the compost.
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| Success in the greenhouse of Esfuerzo II. |
Another community I was involved
with, especially the elementary school, was a community called “10 de Agosto.” There was a class of 18 eight to
ten year-old students who were learning to make biol in 3 liter
coke bottles, plant vegetable seeds in seed trays, and work a covered
garden (in the Puyo area, the rain comes so often, so hard, and in such
large amounts, that it is advisable to cover your garden area to protect your
plants). These kids were great, and incredibly receptive to new methods of planting
vegetables and fruits as well as learning to weed, irrigate properly, and even
endure my lectures on soil fertility! What I found to be the funniest thing was
in one workshop, and out in the garden, the kids
would all want to plant from the seed tray all at the same time, completely oblivious
to the fact that they were stepping over and on top of the plants that had just
been planted. They just wanted to have that opportunity to plant something
themselves. Two varieties of seeds that were presented to them and that they
were excited to see grow were patty pan squash and okra, neither of which they
had ever seen before.
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Students at 10 de Agosto watering in the seeds they had
just planted in their covered garden area. |
The fourth and last
community I worked with was Kilometer 6, also known as La Libertad. As I stated
in the last report, this is where the current headquarters for Arajuno Road
Project (ARP) is located. This community is closest to the city of Puyo, and
tends to be the busiest of the four. Having just moved out to Km 6 within the
last year, ARP is working towards constructing a learning center, which would
be an advantage to all the communities up and down the Arajuno road. They have
constructed a covered growing area on the back side of the property, irrigated
by a rainwater drip system. They have added a composting area, biol processing
area, and have been planting various cultivars for demonstration plots, e.g.
coffee, cacao, pineapple, yucca, banana, etc. They also provide the region with
a library, computer access and teach English. The community, in conjunction with
ARP, sponsors soccer game on the weekend - making it a very popular place from
Puyo to Arajuno. Staying here in this community as I did kept me either busy or
entertained. It was great. Laura Hepting and Rodrigo Engracia of ARP have done
an incredible job over the last year, and their goals have not yet been
reached.
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Part of the community of Kilometer 6 at a workshop.
This meeting included planting up vegetables in seed trays |
Once again, I am grateful to Farmer to Farmer, Partners of the Americas, and USAID for the opportunity they have given me in this
‘adventure’ of a life time. I can only hope that the progress in agricultural
development continues for these four communities.
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