HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Huron Expositor, 1974-01-03, Page 5I could get a good . grain
five • and the people
quickly, so '4trickly in
I had difficulty keeping
preser
bought
fact, tha
.1•MMO 1••••• 011••••• •••/M1.. ..MNIMI MIMS ,
McGregor
Top Quality
BEEF
'Government Inspected
Whole Beef '984
Half Beef 994
Standing around with a farmer admiring cars of corn from a
fertilized cornfield.'
The bullock plow makes a 24" ridge upon which the farmer •
,either intercrops or monocrops.
LOVE'S
LAST .
GIFT -
REME.MBRANCE
Whether it's a
• ARKER • -INSCRIPTION
Tilling a loved one —
'Help You Decide on Your Memorial Requirements
r"HONE: EXETER 235-0620
• MONUMENT
— You ale re
. LET ..T. PRYDE IL SON LTD.
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. •
,
WaltOti man. works as itcolforol volui
' (Continued from Pig%
harvesting. The children all help
their mothers while they are
young, but later the boys begin to
• help their fathers. The children
are obedient and respectful of all
people older than themselves.
Over open fire
Food generally consists of two
parts. One is the Saab (a thia
porridge, made from millet flour)
and a soup. Pieces of The saab are
dipped into the soup and eaten.
The base of the soup is usually
• water, oil, salt, and hot red
pepper. Other ingredients may be
.greens, fish, meat, tomatoes and
onions. All foods are prepared
over an open fire, either in a room
or in the open part of the
compound.
.‘ Moit of the food used by the
peoplc is grown on their , own,
farms! Each household taS two
farming areas. Around each the.
grourid is cultivated and is called
the Ngasuruk, The main farm,
called the Kpaab, is situated
outside of the village. ' The
average size of this main farm is
4.6-acres. Generally the farmers
practise Shifting Cultivation.
Because they have not known
about fertilizer they usually farm
a piece of land until it becomes
infertile. Then they clear a new
pie of land. . •
The staple crops of the area are
maize (corn), millet, guinea corn
(sorghum), -yams, groundnuts
A (peanuts), rice and different kinds
of beans. This food serves a
two-fold purpose.'lFirst of gill it
provides foed for the household
during the coming year, (Most
households bay only salt and a
few soup ingredients to supple-
, ment what they grow.) The_
second purpose of the food is to
provide money to buy clothing ,
- cooking utensils and other things
needed for the house.
04 experience With great joy and
satisfaction,
market. They will prepare rice or 14 tons sold inl'972, I fully expect
saabiand soup to serve to those that this will have a significant
OTT ng to the market, from . effect on the coming harvest.
outlying villages. Other women
will use some of the guinea corn
to brew pito (a local beer) for sale
bbth from the house and from the
market. To further supplement
their income they may sell cattle,
goats, sheep and fowls.
It is interesting to note that
cattle are not to provide a source
of income but as a status symbol
or something like a vavings
account. The majority of the cattle
are looked after by the Fulani'
people '(from Niger and the
northern part of Upper Volta).
Tlie only pay that the Fulani man
receives is free use of the milk
and a small amount of millet per
cattle beast annually.
After studying existing
conditions and trying to uncover
the needs of the people. the next
stpe was to examine the resources
at my disposal, to see how best to
apply them to the needg From
this developed my program and
approach to the people.
Hand hoe
It is difficult to explain every
aspect of. my program but
perhaps a few s ecitic examples being made to improve poultry
would ex g- :in mode of plysluetion and the government
operation The lo
nky
ksethod--of,""''' has encouraged the raising of ca
farming ntails using a special rabbits. To this end I have put up
a chicken house and a special type of and Doc7.-..The blade of the room for rabbits. Each,. is hoe i usually made from any
avalla constructed with local materials, le scrap metal. But I found
ail there was a hard steel disc and is well within the reach olthe
people. But before these ideas abou 0" in diameter available,
become widely accepted, a few and"''' began to buy these and p resell : them to the farmers. _The people will have to try them and a • idea was really accepted and in a find it
e
success.
Onial short time 2300 hoe blades were Wat r is a pere
sever
problem,
sold. In going out to the villages so I organized al village
and taking time to sit with the gropes into communal labour, for
farmers I discovered that they the digging of wells. When they
were ' greatly troubled with met hard stone I arranged for a
weavels in the grain and beans. dynamite crew to come. in' and
Further investigation revealed give assistance. 'Then help
was given to. them to have the
wells lined.'
Dsry season
Finally there are the dry season
gardens which I tried to organize
along the rivers. During the dry
season a man has much spare
time and there is a gross shortage
of fresh vegetables in the market.
These two facts merge well to
have people venture info garden-
ing. However, much more must
be done on these lines before this
can be called a success.
I beer
In additio to sellin e crops
outright so en sell a
••variety of prepared foods in the
1, Demonstration -
There still is a great majority of
people that are not aware of the
benefit of fertilizer. Because of
this situation I have set up several
demonstration plots of various
crops, in the out villages. By this
the fanners are shown how to use
the fertilizer and its benefit.
Although the local hoe is an
ingenious tool for tilling the soil it
is slow With the result that the
amount of land a. man can
cultivate is small. A reasonable
improvement in this system is the
use of animal traction. I was able
to get a small number of bullock
(o e n) plows. The cattle are
alr ady in the area. The few
farmers .who did buy the plows
were able to more than double
their acreage. I have shied away
from tractors simply because the
cost is far out of, reach of the
average farmer. In order to do
something which was generally.
Within the means of everyofie, I
concentrated my efforts,'
promoting animal tracition..-'
Throughout Ghana efforts are
it in gt
Ove '
had
to th
resp •
enough
aspect of the .
have.set up
ck.
,L
the past two years Walt
egun to introduce fertilizer
people. But due to his other
sibilities he did not have
to spend on this
i rk; This year,.
system of
distribution whereb • e people
could get the fertilizer ,to their
farms easily. As a result 67 tolls
were, Sold this year compared to
There are many more aspects
-of the 'work which I could
illustrate but by now y ou }me a
good idea as to the approach I
have ugept. But do not, think that
this wont that I have started is
independent. In the first place.
there are many more 'agricultural
stations in the North. Through the -
fact that we re coordinated by the
Christian Service Committee, we
are able to share our ideas and
what is learned in one part of the
country can be carried to. others
quickly and effiCiently." In the
second plaCe, the Agricultural
work is intimately connected to •
the work of the church, It is one
specific way to illustrate God'S
Jove and, mercy. to . His people.
. In conclusion I do look forward
to. the day when I will return to
Canada, hut. or now as I'am living
and Working in' Ghana I look .0 n
A lady doing the daily chore of sweepi
(
,0,,i,:trat c 11141L1 t
I • AUTO
• FIRE
I Donald G. Eaton I
! Insurance Agency Limited
Office in Masonic Klock I •
I Main Street I
i Phone 527-1610 — Seaforth I
Wells constructed like this—supply the people with a•cleaner
and healthier source of water.
• One of the workers gathering eggs from a poultry house
made of local materials h ousing an improved strain of chickens.
Within 10 Mile
Grant McGregor
Phone 262-5839
Price subject to change
INCLUDES: ,GUTIING
WRAPPING and QUICK
FREEZING.
Free Delivery
Yd
Proper .management of a peanuts demonstration plot is , . .
Jerry experimenting with a ' checked to insure that the resulting harvest is a success.
,, hand operated, peanut slieller. : . . . . .
ARE YOU TIRED OF PAYING INCOME TAX?
Let me showyou how you can KEEP
those tax dollars for your OWN
retirement.
Don't wait until the LAST MINUTE,
budget your savings NOW and you
will qualify for a tax exemption at
the end of the year.
•
Story
and pictures
. by
Gerald 'Baan
WEDDING INVITATIONS ,
THE HURON EXPOSITOR
PHONE 527-0240 SEAFORTH
A newly designed rabbit house made '•$f local materials
increases the potential Lfor a farmer to 'rear rabbits both for food
ti,nd sale. •
tr.( (114.14.... •••.(.i,•
4.
Bullocks, 'are used practically as a means Of transportingt
things around the station and'also as a demonstration to the local .
farmers.
We sincerely hope that
!the New Y ear,to come will be
mafle.bri ghter with peace everywhere.
MILTON J.'. DIETz
LIMITED
Greet the New Year
with a 'cheer and
see it through
with happiness!
4.0
1-1;ippyr /Yew 161
It's New Year time again . .- time for us
to wish every day is packed with
the best Of luck, health, happiness.
From the Commission and Staff of the
SEAFORTH PUBLIC unto
COMMISSION n ,
4