Chamomile farming is one of the most profitable crops that can be grown on a small piece of land. However, the crop remains unknown to many farmers despite its huge profits.
The plant is grown for its flowers which contain nutrients that help in managing insomnia, anxiety, and digestive upsets.
Its other health benefits include reducing menstrual pain, treating diabetes, and reducing inflammation, among others.
According to Wilson Ndung’u, an agronomist at Lavington herbs, the secret to getting more profits in this venture is through value addition. Further, a farmer doesn’t need to have a large piece of land for them to make profits.
In his small exhibition piece of land sized 1m wide and 10 meters long, he harvests flowers that he uses to make drugs for treating insomnia and other health problems.
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Out of his small piece of land, he gets 10-10ml bottles of the drugs. He sells each bottle at sh 3,000, meaning he gets sh 30,000 per harvest. He harvests twice a week.
On planting chamomile, Ndung’u said seeds should be broadcasted in a well-prepared seedbed. The beds should have topsoil excavated from furrows. He recommends drip irrigation as overhead irrigation encourages moldering.
The plant should be top-dressed with an appropriate fertilizer after the second harvest in a week. The type of fertilizer to be used for top dressing is dependent on the status of the soil; therefore, farmers need to test the soil first so as to be advised on which fertilizer to use.
The crop is prone to aphids which he controls through spraying or organically, through the use of stickers. The chamomile plant is also weed-resistant; therefore, little labor is required.
While many farmers grow chamomile destined for the international markets, Ndung’u notes that there are markets locally where farmers can sell their produce at a good price.
‘’Many farmers make the mistake of growing chamomile and start looking for a market after the plant matures. They don’t know that they are supposed to look for markets immediately after planting,’’ he said.
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Chamomile matures after eight weeks. In the local market, a kilo of the flowers goes for sh 1,000. Ndung’u, however, noted that many buyers prefer dried flowers over fresh ones.
‘’A one-acre farm can give you about 1200 kilos of fresh flowers, but no one will buy them when fresh. So you will need to dry them and divide the kilos obtained after drying by five. You will get approximately 240 kilos,’’ added Ndung’u.
To ensure consistent supply in the market, Ndung’u advised farmers to subdivide their farms into portions and plant and harvest each portion at a time.
”If you have a one-acre farm, subdivide it into eighths. Plant the first eighths, and after three weeks, plant the other until you fill your farm,”
”During harvesting, when you exhaust one portion, the other one will have matured already. That way, you will never fall short of supplies,” he added.
