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REPUBLIC OF KENYA

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ANNUAL REPORT 1965

VOLUME 1

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR OF AGRICULTURE

Six Shillings - 1967 DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ANNUAL REPORT 1965

VOLUME 1

REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR OF AGRICULTURE CONTENTS PART !-AGRICULTURE IN 1965 PAGE Review of the Year . . 1 The Weather of Kenya, 1965 3 Land Management 4 Mixed Farming 5 Crop Production 5 Livestock Enterprises 14 Agricultural Crop Exports .. 16

PART II-RESEARCH AND SPECIALIST SERVICES General Crop Husbandry 25 Grassland Husbandry 26 Animal Husbandry .. 28 Soi! and Agricultural Chemistry 28 Plant Pathology 30 Entomology .. 31 Plant Breeding 33 Horticulture 38 Pyrethrum 43 Sisal .. 45 Sugar .. 47 Irrigation 50 Agricultural Machinery Unit 51

PART ID- FIEW SERVICES Progress in lmproved Farm.ing­ Large-scale Farrning 51 Resettlement 52 Development Loans 52 Small-scale Farming 53 Reconditioning, Resettlement and Development Schemes 55 Soil and Water Conservation 62 Irrigation 66 Agricultural Education 74 Marketing 77 Grading and Inspection Services 78 Bird Control (Quelea) 80

PART IV-GENERAL Library 80 Publications 81 Legislation 83 Staff .. 84 Acknowledgement 85 Erratum 85 CONTENTS-{C ontd.) TABLES PAGE A.-Rainfall Figures 3 B.- Particuiars of Small-scale Fann Coffee as at 31- 12-65 17 C.-Quantities and Values of Agricultural Exports 18 D .-Quantities and values of the more important products marketed from Small-farm Areas 20 E.-lmports of fruit into Kenya . . 24 DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ANNUAL REPORT 1965

PART !-AGRICULTURE IN 1965 Review of the Year The year 1965 was a difficult year for the farming community in Kenya. This was mainly due to partial failure of the long rains accompanied by attack of insect pests on both crops and grassland. The fact that rains were light in the early part of the year meant that many crop failures resulted, especially when this was accornpanied by attacks ot pests such as cut-worm and army-worm, and many areas were living under famine conditions by the middle of the year. The Department of Agriculture and its extension service mounted a crash maize­ planting programme for the short rains using funds obtained from the Treasury, which were distributed on a Joan basis to those areas where short-rains planting of maize was considered to be a reasonable proposition if the crop was weil planted, properly fertilized and protected against pest attacks. The year will also be remembered for an increasing influx of technical aid both in the form of personnel and finance from overseas. Noteworthy among the arrivais of tecbnical-aid staff was the setting up of the West German Technical Aid Team in the Trans Nzoia District, wbose first priority was to assist and uplift the new African Jarge-scale farmers in that district. This team bas already made a great impact on the problem of the large-scale African farmer and it is hoped that with financial assistance, this form of aid will prove to be higbly successful. The large-scale African farmer in general posed a most severe problem to the extension service, bearing in mind the great influence the large-scale farmers can have on the national economy, and as these farmers now number in excess of 700, they are obviously an important feature of the farming sector and although great strides have been made during 1965, they still Jack sufficient knowledge and finance and so are one of the most critical aspects of the agricultural scene in Kenya. In addition to the crash maize programme mentioned above, it was necessary to import foodstutl's from overseas, and the United States Government in particular is to be tbanked for its gifts of yellow rnaize which alleviated the very serious situation regarding the feeding of the population of the country. The decline in coffee cultural standards and the subsequent decline in the quality of the crop caused great concern during the year. In addition the decline in sisal priees due to competition from synthetics became increasingly critical. However, an optimistic report by Mr. L. H. Brown, formerly Chief Agriculturist, on the possibilities in Kenya of developing tea growing for the small-scale African farmer togetber with the expansion of and success witb the cotton crop, were signs that in spite of a bad year, there were reasons for guarded optimism in the agricultural sector. Whereas land consolidation was almost completed in Central Province, the demand for acceleratcd land consolidation from such areas as Eastern Province was most marked and the Department was concerned with the presentation of both an accelerated land-consolidation programme and a development follow-up proposai to the British Government and the World Bank respectively. There is no doubt tbat at present the sbortage of agricultural credit for the small-scale farmer, due in many cases to the fact that the land is not consolidated, is retarding progress in the small-scale farming areas. The Chemelil Sugar Development Scheme and the cootinued construction of the Muhoroni Sugar Mills were features of agricultural development in Nyanza Province. Efforts were also made in the province to increase and develop mecbaoical cultivation for cotton growing. The Assistant Mioister for Agricul­ ture, Mr. Murgor, laid the foundation stone for the Homa Bay Farmers' Training Centre in December 1965. The Coast Province initiated severa! successful agricultural self-help scbemes and tree crop planting was emphasized in the Coast settlement scbemes. A "plant early" cotton campaign was not so successful, but efforts to alleviate famine by sorghum and cassava-planting campaigns achieved a high degree of success. In Eastern Province, the introduction of seasonal loans to cotton growers was a great step forward in the development of this crop, but the province was badly affected as far as food crops were concerned due to Jack of rain following a mediocre short rains in 1964. In Central Province certain areas suffered greatly from the squatter problem and enforced staff changes meant lack of continuity within the extension service. This bas now been corrected. In Western Province the success of the introduction of hybrid maize was very marked indeed and is a beartening sign fot the future development of this crop in the province. In Rift Valley Province stock !osses due to the drought, especially in Saroburu and Mukogodo, were severe in the early part of the year. There were also !osses of arable crops and Endebess was particularly badly bit in this respect. lt is, of course, in Rift Valley Province that the African large-scale farmers pose such an immense problem regarding production, especially to the extension and allied services. The development of a weil-irrigation scheme in Turkana District continued in spite of the fact that overseas technical and fioancial aid which bad been expected did not actually arrive. Although an understanding of the need to accept development as part of general national progress was shown by the Masai, this problem still presented the greatest obstacle to progress in that district especially in such areas as the Trans Mara. The Masai have, however, accepted the idea that a dipping pro­ gramme is necessary in Narok District and there is a growing awareness in the tribe of the need to develop their high-potential land. The European farmer in most cases, while not knowing wbat his future might be, continued to develop and produce from the land owned and leased by him in both the highlands and on the ranches and plantations under his control. The Stamp Mission to look into the proposed transfer of land from European to African ownership visited Kenya during the year and later presented its report. The Farmers Training Centre programme continued to develop and acbieved even greater success. In 1965 23,279 farmers passed through the centres coropared with 19,271 in 1964. The 4-K movement continued to expand and increase and as a measure of their success, clubs numbered 713 in 1965, compared with 448 in 1964. One matter which must not be forgotten in any review of 1965 is the fact that, despite the departure of many qualified and experienced officers from the extension service, the country's food position would not bave been so critical

2 bad the advice of the Department been accepted by farroers on the ground, in preparing land and growing food crops required for subsistence and in many cases for sale. The Weather of Kenya, 1965 "Weather in Kenya" means for ail practical purposes "Rainfall in Kenya". This year was the first after a row of years since 1961 when rainfall did not roeasure up to the loog-term annual average. A number of areas in Kenya, especially the agriculturally important regions, experienced a prolonged deficit from average monthly rainfall values, notably the Eastern, Central and Rift Valley Provinces. Rainfall was plentiful only duriog October and November while the March to May rains failed in most areas. This led to a serious drying out of the sail and to a fall of the water table with consequent partial or total crop failure. A statistical investigation shows, however, that the leogth and ioteosity of this drought is neither unprecedented nor unusual in Kenya. In fact, the frequency of such droughts bas markedly decreased during the last 10 years compared with previous decades. The actual monthly rainfall averaged for provinces is compared with the long-period means in the following table, to allow a quick survey of the rainfall situation during 1965. North- Coast East East Central Rift West Nyanza January A + + A + A A February March + A A April A A May A June + + + + July + August A September .. + + October + A + + + + + November .. + + + A A + + December .. + = more than average A = about average - = Jess than average

TABLE A.-RAl NFALL FIGURES CENTRAL PROVINCE AND NAIROBI Total Average DISTRICT mm. mm. % Nairobi Airport 488·6 865 ·2 56 Kiambu District Office 78 1·4 1,057·6 74 Limuru Mabroukie .. 974·1 1,333 ·8 73 Fort Hall District Office 1,027·8 1,1 91·2 86 Makuyu Sisal 759·4 1,020·5 74 Ruiru Marula 720·5 851·4 85 Mitubiri IGtito 723 ·7 882·4 82 Nyeri M.O.W. 707·0 935·6 76

3 TABLE A.-RAINFALL FtGURES-(Contd.) Total Average R wr VALLEY PRovrNCE mm. mm. % Narok Met. Station 569·1 733·2 78 Ngong District Office 705-4 828·9 85 Nanyuki Met. Station 500·0 754·9 66 Nakuru Met. Station 616·1 869-4 71 Subukia Expt. Station 667·9 994·9 67 Njoro Plant Breeding Station 552·9 930·2 59 Naivasha District Office 520·9 617·5 84 Eldoret Met. Station 889·2 1,097·6 81 Soy Kipsomba Estate 755·2 1,108·1 68 Turbo, Stanley Estate 1,014·7 135·7 75 Rumuruti 317·1 526·8 60 Tbomson's Falls Forest 688-4 1,043·4 66 Londiani Forest 707·7 1,187·6 60 Kitale Met. Station .. 1,024·3 1,171·6 87 Cherangani Kipkoitet 969·1 1,112·0 87 Hoey's Bridge 974·9 1,202·3 8 1 Endebess Goronga .. 750·3 1,040·8 72 Kericho District Office 1,645·3 1,052·5 89 Lodwar Met. Station 104·1 166·7 llO Kajiado District Office 509·7 508-4 100 WESTERN AND NYANZA PROVINCES Kisumu Met. Station 1,402·6 1,293·1 108 Kisii District Office .. 2,616·9 1,749·3 150 Kakamega District Office 1,806·7 1,962·3 96 Sotik Kivoga 1,514·1 1,410·8 107 Bungoma Yet. Station 1,475·5 1,461-4 101 Muhoroni Railway Station .. 998·2 1,522·6 65 NORTH-EASTERN PROVrNCE Mandera Met. Station 283·1 239·6 11 8 Garissa Met. Station 307·1 302·8 101 Wajir 350·9 256·4 137 EASTERN PROVINCE Machakos D istrict Office 785.7 913 .7 86 Kitui Endau Dispensary 900. 1 1,043.8 86 Makindu Met. Station 384.3 617.2 62 Embu District Office 909.2 1,058.8 86 Moyalc District Office 512.3 704.2 73 Meru District Office .. 946.2 1,379.3 69 Marsabit 820.5 846.3 97 COAST PROVINCE Port Reitz Met. Station 978.8 1,045.5 94 Voi Met. Station 434.4 539.7 80 Kilifi District Office 711.1 949.5 75 Lamu Met. Station .. 748.6 929.1 81 Malindi Met. Station 788.3 1,051.0 75 Mariakani 777.5 872.8 89 Land Management Development in land management has been very slight in a year in wbich farmers have been hard-put to cope with the effects of drougbt or only very light and intermittent rainfall. The new large-scale African farmers in Rift Valley Province, and especially tbose who were in their first year, were bardest bit. European farmers, still uncertain of their future, have developed on a m ucb smaller scale.

4 The development of the extension service to the new large-scale farmers bas bad a salutary effect which bas been greatly enbanced by the West German Tecbnical Aid group centred on Kitale. The assisted owners' position is worse than that of the new large-scale farmers, principally on account of the difficulties this group experiences in obtaining development loans. The overall picture of development in land use in the small-farm areas is one of continued progress, particularly in Elgeyo-Marakwet in Rift Valley Province, where the introduction of sbeep and pyretbrum have given the neces­ sary stimulus for the breakthrougb to mixed farming on a commercial basis to be initiated. In Masai the cultivation of wheat bas been started and sugar-cane is now being grown in the southern lowlands of Nandi District, Central Nyanza and Kericho District. In the drier and purely pastoral areas a welcome decrease in resistance to the selling of stock bas been observed. The expansion of the smallholder tea acreage has continued witb the demand for tea stumps greatly exceeding the supply. It bas been possible to concentrate attention on pineapples and to expand the acreage grown between the 4,500 feet contour and the 5,800 feet contour in Cen!ral Province.

Mixed Farming

The development of mixed farming in the areas of s m:~ll-scale farming bas continued as more farmers see the value of selling tbeir unproductive stock in favour of the purcbase of high-grade dairy cows. The use ot the A.l schemes bas enabled many farmers to upgrade at a comparatively low cost. The move­ mcnt in this direction has been largely encouragcd by the sctting up of dairy co-operatives and the acquisition of whole milk quotas with Kenya Co-operative Crcamcrics LlcL The capital injection wbich bad been acbieved through loans to farmers bas cnabled them to buy high-quality stock and the indications are that this stock is Iooked after very weil once it bas been bought. The advisabiljty of con­ centration on the purchase of stock bas been questioned, but it is considered that true mixed farming, which is the only type that can be continued with any degree of success over long periods, depends for its success largely on good-quality stock with the power to yield weil and on highly priced cash crops. As loans are issued for both these purposes it is to be expected that the greatest good may be achieved, but payments in many areas are behindband.

Crop Production Wcather in general and rai nfall in particular are important functions of crop production. This ycar has consequently been difficult duc to the uneven distri­ bution of rain and drought. Crop production per unit of land and effort has thcrefore been below average but the cash returns were in many cases compen- ated for by incrcased acreage and better priees. This was weil demonstrated in coffee and tea, whilst pyrethrum was impaired by drought. Overa ll , it can be said that there was an increase in export value of ail major agricultural crops compared with 1964. The foll owing are the details of each specifie crop.

5 Bixa.- The attempts made to increase the acreage to 200 under the 1964-70 Development Plan met with success. The greater part has been planted in the Shimba Hills where there were already 30 acres in bearing; 15.3 tons of Anatto valued at ! 1,3 15 were marketed in 1965.

Cashew N uls.-These continue to be one of the most important cash crops at the Coast, and of great value to the economy of the Gedi and other settle­ ment schemes. Over 8,000 tons were sold to the marketing board d uring the 1964/ 65 crop year, compared with 5,408 tons in 1963 /64. The priee for the 1965 / 66 crop has been raised from 35 cents to 40 cents per lb. and is proving a great incentive to higher production. Tbere are now 68,000 acres under the crop at the Coast, with 47,000 acres of trees in bearing. The Kenya Agricultural Produce Marketing Board's factory, which processes the crop at K ilifi, is bei ng expanded to twice its present capacity. The total value of the crop exported from the Coast Province in 1965, amounted to !325,61 1 compared wi th !221,321 in 1964.

Cassm·a.-Considerable increase in planting is reported from most Cassava­ growing areas, in an attempt to overcome the food shortage. Mosaic r esistant strains wcre bulked in severa! districts and planting material issued to farmers in the Coast, Western and Nyanza Prov,inces.

Castor Seed.-This crop is a good income-eamer in the Kitui and lower Machakos areas of the Eastern Province as well as in parts of the Coast Province. In Eastern Province, present production is sufficient to produce 2,000 tons of oil. Generally speaking, howevcr, production declined in 1965 from ali important growing areas. Castor seed worth !217,587 was exported in 1965. Value of sales from the main producing areas- the Eastern and Coast Provinces-amounted to !97,364 and .fl9,983 respectively.

Cereals.- The estimated acreage und er cereals in the Jarge-scale farm sector in 1965, were as follows: - '000 acres Wheat 268.2 Maize-Hybrid .. 57.6 Synthetic 12.2 Others . . 26.2 96.0 Bar ley 22.1 Oats 11.8 Other cereals 2.5 TOTAL 400.6

Wheat yields in both the large- and small-scale farming areas were severely affected by drought and army-worm outbreaks, except in the high areas of the Rift Valley Province where yields of up to 16 bags per acre were obtaioed. E lsewhere, very Jow yields were recorded, the overall average for the country being estimated at 4.33 bags per acre. In the small-farm sector, especially in the Rift Valley and Central P rovinces, great interest is being shown in the cultivation of wheat. The acreage in that sector is estimated at 32,900 acres. A major breakthrough in wheat development has occurred in Masai where approxi­ mately 3,000 acres were planted on a share-cropping basis in the Ngong and Narok D istricts.

6 Generally spca king, 1965 was a very bad year for maize. The Long R ains crop in most areas either fa iled completely or was severely affected by drought and outbreaks of a rmy-worm. This however was offset to sorne extent by an increased acreage, due largely to greater interest being shown in the cultivation of hybrid varieties. ln the large-scale fa rming a reas, it is estimated that the acreage under maize increased by about 20,000 acres in 1965. R ecorded sales of maize to the Majze M a rketing Board during the crop season 1st August 1964 to 3 1st J uly 1965 were as follows : - 200 lb. Bags Rift Valley Province 671 ,887 Western Province 283, 11 6 Nyanza Province 138,274 Eastern Province 66,258 Central Province 9,147 Coast Province 23

TOTAL 1,168,705 bags

This was valued a t !2,042,962. T he estima led production of cereals for the 1964/65 season is :­ '000 Bags Large-scale Sma/1-scale Farms Farms Total Wheat 1,500.0 1,500.0 Ma ize 600.6 522.4 1,123.0 Bar ley 171.0 171.0 Chi/lies.- The Coast Province remains the major producer of this crop, exporting f39,529 worth of chillies in 1965. Other provinces, like Nyanza, Western and Eastern, which started growing the crop, appear to be losing interest in it; their production for 1965 being more than 50 per cent Jess than that of the previous yea r. Marketing difficulties appear to be the main reason for this. and at the Coast, unless new markets are found for the increased production, the industry is likely to suffer badly. The value of cbillies exported in 1965 amounted to about !32,000. Coconuts.-Copra a nd other coconut products exported from the Coast Province in 1965, were va lued at f402,716, an increase of 6 1 per cent on the 1963 figures. Comparative fi gures for 1964 a re as follows :- 1964 1965 f, f, Fresb coconuts 35,966 45,520 Copra 42,518 133,039 Co ir 18,5 11 21 ,057 Palm toddy 227.000 203,100

TOTAL . . f. 323,995 402,716

Nurseries have now been established in the Kwa le, K ilifi, Lamu and Tana River Districts, but owing to Jack of funds, only 2,000 acres were planted in 1965 instead of 10,000, the yea rly target for the 1964/70 Devclopment Plan. Copra is now marketed by the Agriculture Produce Marketing Board, an arrangement which should ensure greater stability of priees and more detailed information generall y concerning the industry.

7 Coffee.-Although coffee standards have declined over the last three years, a situa ti on which has been aggravated by prevalence of coffee berry disease, cofi"ee still rcmains an important cash crop to the country. Even with the drop in quality in sorne areas, K enya still produces the world"s best cotice and coffee is Kenya's Export No. 1. However, because of this decline in standards, mainly in the co-operative coffee-growing areas, it was considered necessary to investigatc the reason for it and to formulate a plan to put the matter right. A crash programme is bcing drawn up wi th a view to improving the standards in the fie ld and factory. ln doing thjs, it is hoped not only to raise the qua li ty, but to obtain a belier return for the growers and thus stimulate their interest. Restriction of coffee acreages in accordance with the International Coffee Agreement has continued. It is hoped thal by 1967 ali areas will have reached thcir maxi mum authorizcd acreage leaving the task of infilling only. Obtaining accuratc records of growers and their acreages by socicties has been a difficuJt and arduous task. The work sti Jl continues together with the collecting of up­ to-date informat ion o n a li factory sites, so that closer supervision on the increase o f factory insta lla ti ons can be carried out parallel with that of crop production. Large-scalc coffec farmers in the country have donc much to improve their coffce management and it is remarkable how thei r cofi"ce has withstood the dry conditions of this last year. One of the main problems is the theft of seedlings from nurse ri es which amount to sorne thousands of pounds of Joss. The total crop (or 1964/65 crop year was 38,753 tons compared with 43,496 tons for the previous year. The average priee per ton was !314. The total value of coffcc production on small-scale farms is given in Table B. Cotton.- A II arcas reported that a considerable amount of efi"ort was devoted to cncouraging growers to plant more cotton along the recommcnded !ines in an cndeavour to obtain increased yields per acre. Unfortunately, results in sorne arcas werc poor due to the adverse weather conditions. Elsewhere yields were good. The Cotton Board gave short-lerm loans to assist farmers with culti vation and pest control. These proved popular but involved the Department in a lot of extra work. Collecting the repayments of the loans has been di ffic ult in sorne areas, cspecia ll y in Western Province, where growers smuggled more than 1.000 baies to Uganda, being attracted by the higher priee there. Production increased, however, by over 5,500 baies of lint, owing to increased pl anting in ali areas particularly in the Kirinyaga and Embu Districts of the Central and Eastern Provinces. In these provinces the acreage under cotton incrcased by more than 50 per cent. In Nyanza also, in spite of adverse weather conditi ons, the 1964/ 65 crop produced 6,524 baies, nearly double the previous scason·s production. Cotton statistics for the 1964/ 65 crop are as follows : -

Seed Cotton Baies Lint Cents/lb. for Estimated 1 Cents/lb. Paid produced 1 Lint- Average Prov ince acreage 1 A.R. B.R. A.R. B.R. A. R. B.R. 1 1 1 1 Western and

Nya nza 0 0 100,000 56 25 13,166 1,824 197.0 142.0 Eastern and

Ce nt rai 0 0 16,400 50 25 1,679 1,715 199.0 148 .0 Coas t, Lamu and Galole 26,500 56 25 3,397 1,093 2 19.0 148.5

TOTAL 142,900 1 18,242 1 4,636 ===

8 Fruit.- A miscellaneous selection of fruits and vegetables are exported as deck cargo to Aden, Djibuti, Kismayu and other places as far afield as Kuwait, annuall y. This useful outlet for coastal products is carried out mainly by Arab traders. It would secm possible to export fruits to European countries, since pineapples and mangoes are carried on unrefrigerated boats to Aden and arrive in good order. The export of mangoes by air from Malindi declined during the latter half of the year due to the shortage of good-quality fruit. However, enthusiasm is being shown by increased plantings. Central and Eastern Provinces continue to supply fruits for the Nairobi market. Groundnuts.-Aithough the acreage under th is crop increased in 1965, production dropped because of adverse weather conditions. Commercial pro­ duction of groundnuts is lim ited to Nyanza Province; 1,283 tons were sold to the West Kenya Marketing Board in 1965 compared to 1,476 in 1964. The priee increased from Sh. 86 to Sh. 98/75 per bag and total exports were valued at !123,645. Kenaf.- Kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus-variety Guatemala) is a new crop which has been tried, under irrigation, in Masai District at Nguruman. Yields have reached t ton per acre with two crops per year. Fifty acres under co­ operative management arc being developed, assisted by funds through the Central Agricultural Board. Experiments are being carricd out at the Coast. Mirna.-A co-operative was formed in Meru to assist with the marketing of miraa, where increased interest is being shown in this lucrative crop. There are at present 1,200 acres of mature miraa out of about 3,000 acres planted. Scven-and-a-half million bundles were exported during 1965. Intercst is also being shown in the Chyulu Hills of Maehakos. Onions.- On ions are grown around Mt. E lgon (Bombay Red variety), Nandi, Kericho, Machakos and Shimba Hills for sale in the nearby towns. These are rain-grown crops and enter the market when priees are Jow, so arc not a very profitable cash crop. They are grown under irrigation at Perkerra and are the subject of a separate report. Elsewhere they are grown for local consumpti on. Passion Fruit.-Grown in Kisii and Sotik in Nyanza Province. The crop has increased in popularity because of its high value per acre coupled with the insta llation of new machinery in Mr. Lanyon's factory, now taken over by the Canning Crops Board. It is reported that the factory will have a capacity of three times its old intake. A survey completed in December showed that there were 32,997 acres of vines di tributed amongst 6,768 growers. However, bearing in mind that the Sotik factory only requires 4,000,000 lb. of fruit in 1966, it is expected that there will be a serious degree of over-production. The priee per lb. to growers remained at 15 cents giving a gross return of Sh. 3,000 per acre. The main problems are low standards of culture, delivery of over-ripe fruit, and diseases. Passion fruit deliveries and sa les in Kisii increased from 316,498 lb. valued at !2,374 in 1964 to 2,228,794 lb. valued at !16,715 for 1965. Production in the East of Rift area amounted to 300,000 lb. of fruit valued at !3,000.

9 Pineapples.-Commercial production is still confined mainly to the J(jambu and Thika Districts of Central Province, but increased plantipgs were being undertaken in the southern areas of Murang'a District and sorne srnall quantities in Eastern Province. There are about 8, 150 acres producing about 10,000 tons of fruit, but arrange­ ments have been made wi th the Californian Packing Corporation to expand the industry to an annual production of 42,000 tons by 1968. lt was hoped to have planted up to 1,068 acres during the 1965 Short and Long Rains between 4,500 and 5,800 ft. a.s.l. within a radius of 25-30 miles from Thika, but due to poor delivery of planting material this was not possible. A Pineapple Officer was appointed to organize the plan and it is hoped that the Short and Long Rains acreages will be planted by June 1966. 1t is estimated that a total of 24,000 tons of fruit were sold to canners in 1965. Smallholder growers sold 9,888 tons of fruit to Kenya Canners Ltd. at Thika giving a return of f68,997 compared to 8,398 tons valued at f45,340 du ring 1964. Kenya Orchards Ltd. in Machakos a Iso bought pineapples from J(jambu and Murang'a, although they grow weil in Machakos. The Kamba, however, are reluctant to grow the crop in any quantity. Another interesting development was the export of fresh fruits to European markets, 500 tons of fresh fruits were exported mainly to the U.K. with sorne sales to Germany.

Potatoes.-The demand for certified seed potatoes continues. There bas been an increase in the number of registered seed growers in the Rift Valley as a result of better priees being offered. Despite adverse weather conditions and cut-worm damage, yields of 80 bags per acre have been obtained. About 185 acres of the 750 acres grown were registered for seed. Total production was 3,750 tons. Earlier in the year, 14 German varieties were introduced for trial. lt is estimated that up to 10,000 acres are grown in Central Province, mainly in Nya ndarua, producing nearly 250,000 tons valued at f330,640 to the grower. Unfavourable weather conditions and bacterial wilt hampered the crop, however. Increased plantings are reported in Bungoma, Embu, Meru and Taita.

Pulses.- Recorded production and sales of pulses feil in most provinces due mainly to the fact that a large proportion of the crop was used for home consumption. In many areas the crop helped to overcome the food sbortage and increased planting look place to make good the failure of the maize crop. Recorded sales and export are shown in Tables C and D.

Pyrethrum.-As a result of the increase in the pyrethrum quota, a great drive was made to increase the crop. Emphasis was placed on the selection of clonai material with a high pyrethrin content and the Pyrethrum Board's increase in priees reftected this change in policy. Unfortunately, th.is enthusiasm suffered a set-back due to Jack of sufficient planting rnaterial and adverse weather con­ ditions. Generally speaking, flowering was slow and pyrethrin production also low due to the drought, which caused the Board to extend the pool period to September, thus enabling the farmers to fuliiJ their quotas. Between March and October, the monthly interim payment to growers increased from Sh. 1/80 per lb. of 1.5 per cent flowers (pyrethrins content) to Sb. 2/20. In order to encourage the cultivation of good-quality pyrethrurn, the Board also introduced a scheme for separate payments for high-pyrethrin fiowers.

JO D ue to the drought, most areas wi th the exception of Nyanza were unable to fiJI their quotas. Production in Kisii amounted to 2,865 tons valued at f535. Production fi gures for the pool years 1963/64 and 1964/65 and exports of pyrethrum products in 1964 and 1965 are given below:- Licensed Delivered Exporls Value Pool-Year tons 10/IS tons f.. 1963/64 6,848 5, 186 1,154 (1964) 2,452,086 1964/65 8,327 6,157 J' 122 (1965) 2,229,745 Rice.-Most of the rice is grown at the Mwea Irrigation Scheme. Considerable interest is also shown in Busia, Bungoma, Central Nyanza, Kwale and the Tana River arca. The exportable surplus from Mwea for the Short Rains 1964 crop decreased from 168,508 bags worth !669,605 to 156,711 bags worth !250,738. T he drop was mainly due to the lower average production of 28.28 bags per acre and does not reflect a drop in total production since there has been a lot of black­ marketing. The decli ne in yield is attri butable mainly to staffing difficulties and the adverse effects of double cropping over a th ree-year period on two large uni ts of the Tebere Black. Production in Nyanza Province increased to approximately 1,500 tons compared to 1,270 tons in 1964. T he total value of rice grown in Kenya was !321,204. The Short Rains 1965-planted crop was 6,428 acres and is being harvested at the time of writing. A bumper crop, averaging at 35 bags per acre is expected. A further 1,200 acres have been bunded and leve lied as part of the general extension to the scheme to 10,000 acres by 1970. Sisal.-The world market priees of sisal declined rapidly du ring the fi rst 7 months of the year from !90 to !78 per ton for under-grade and only showed a slight steadying towards the end of the year, after which the market remained dull. This, together with the threat of alternative synthetics to sisal, forecast further declines in priees for the future and precipitated the Jack of interest in developing new sisal projects. Any plans for expansion were abandoned for a policy of encouraging hedge-row planting only, since when production in ali sisal factories has been drastically reduced. Despite the decline in priees, plantation acreage was generall y maintained at its existing leve!. Total production declined due mainly to a decrease in smallholder output, whilst plantation output remained more or Jess constant. F igures of production and export for 1965 were as follows :- Value Produclion Export fo.b. tons tons Mombasa 1964 66,959 56,976 6,028,028 1965 62,975 57,329 3,851,898 Sugar.-Ever-increasing interest bas been shown in this crop and acreages are rapidly expanding in ali the main sugar areas, especially in Central Nyanza, Nandi and Kericho, around the existing factory at Miwani and the new factories at Muhoroni and Chemelil, which open in 1966 and 1968 respective1y, and in Kwale District at the Coast around Ramisi. The Chemelil Sugar Company agreed to cultivate 25-acre minimum blocks on a credit basis using heavy

11 machinery for smallholders in the adjoining areas of Nandi and Central Nyanza Districts. At the Coast, the acreage of sugar-cane at Ramisi increased from 8,400 to J 0,000 acres. ln the southern Kwale a rea sugar-cane planting by small­ holders continued to increase and now stands at 1,600 acres. Although production will increase as the new mills come into operation, this will not catch up with the rate of consumption, so importation will have to continue for sorne time to bridge the gap. The following figures show what the expected shortfall mjght be:- Local Production Requirements Short/ali tons tons tons 1965 28,500 110,000 81,500 1970 146,000 170,000 24,000 Increased plantings are reported in other areas mainly for the production of jaggery, chewing and beer. Despite the fact that the return per acre remains low due to poor management in the smallholder areas, jaggery production increased, especially in Kakamega and South Nyanza. In order to ensure an adequate cane supply for the sugar factories in the Nyanza Basin, it was decided to close ali jaggery factories in the area, in addition to encouraging increased cane-planting. Despite increased planti ngs sugar production continued to decline in 1965, with a drop of nearly 6,000 tons over the previous year's output. A total of 28,511 was produced, 24,269 tons at Miwaru, Nyanza, and 4,242 tons at Rawsi, Coast Province. This was due, to a large extent, to increased jaggery production, which in N yanza alone was estimated at 20,000 tons. It is estimated that if the cane crushed for jaggery in the MiwanifKjbos area were used for the manu­ factu re of sugar, another 18,800 tons would have been produced, even at the low recovery figure of 9.4 per cent. Tea.- During 1964/ 65, 2,024 acres of tea were planted by smallholders under the Kenya Tea Development Authority's auspices. The actual target for the year, including the shortfall from previous years, was 2,892 acres, thus 1eaving a shortfall of 868 acres. This was due to the fact that finance for the second plan was not available in time to enable sufficient seedlings to be produced in the nurseries. The total acreage planted to date is 12,683 acres by 22,343 growers, giving an average of .57 acres for each holding. Other points of interest were:- Kangaita Tea Factory in Kirinyaga District was opened. The building of factories at Litein in Kericho District and Nyakoba in Kisii District were started. T wo main nurseries were established by K.T.D.A. at Kangaita and Kabianga, ali the other minor nurseries being closed down. Potted seedlings, propagated vegetatively were used for the first time; although thesc seedlings enabled growers to obtain tea production quicker, the majority still prefer stumps. The Agriculture Finance Corporation gave loans to assist in the redemption of tea blocks whkh have changed bands as a result of consolidation. Work continues on the observation tea plots in Taita and Shimba Hills. Growers attended courses at Krumosi Trruning Centre.

12 Total production of made tea in -1965 amounted to 43,702,000 lb. of which approximately 35,399,000 lb. valued at !7,030,000 were exported. Local sales amounted to 8,500,000 lb. and were valued at f1,433,000. The K .T.D.A. purchased 11 ,655,177 lb. of the total green leaf valued at f303,070 from smallbolder growers. Tobacco.- The production of ftue-cured tobacco undertaken by "Master growers" under contract with the B.A.T. Kenya Ltd. continued in the Embu, Sagana and Kitui areas. A considerable reduction in acreage under this crop is recorded for 1965, probably due to the introduction of cotton in sorne of the tobacco-growing areas. The total tobacco acreage for 1965 was 590 compared wi th 936 in 1964. Figures of production for the year under review are as fo llows :- Production value Acres

Flue cured lb. f. Kitui-Eastern Province 290 107,700 9,942 Embu-Eastern Province 125 51,600 4,628 Sagana-Central Province 80 19,000 1,819 Air cured Embu-Eastern Province 50 10,500 694 Sagana-Central Province 45 21,600 1,645

TOTAL 590 210,400 18,628

Vegetables.- Kiambu and Machakos remain the main vegetable-growing areas for Nairobi, but the potential continues to be largely untapped. They are grown as a food supplement in most districts. The establishment of the Panafprod Company's Factory at Naivasha has attracted increased production in the area. Jt is hoped a second factory will be constructed at Karatina, which will help to absorb the vegetablcs now being wasted. Attempts to increase the production of tomatoes in Machakos for the canning industry did not meet with much success due to the difference in priee being offered by the canners and the fresh market. Encouragement in the improvement of standards has bcen given in Embu and Elgeyo Districts in the anticipation of canning factories being established in the areas. The marketing difficulties of the Taita vegetable producers remain unsolved. A strong marketing organization is needed, or better still, a dehydration plant to meet the potential of the arca. Up to 20 different types of vegetable are listed as exported overseas from the coastal producers; e.g. ladies fingers, green chillies and karalla. Tomatoes are grown extensively on the coral rag within ten miles of Mombasa and prove quite a lucrative business. In Kisii, farmers arc showing great interest in the vegetable-processiog factory to be built there, but arrangements for this arc stiJl in hand. Capsicum is still a popular crop in Nyanza and Western Provinces but Jack of suitable grading and marketing is limiting production. Wattle.-Tbe potential in ail the wattle-growing areas of Rift Valley, Central and Eastern Provinces is much larger than the quotas issued and thus continues to cause considerable ill-feeling among producers. This feeling may be reflected in the fact that Central Province wattle acreages are being reduced in sorne areas in favour of tea, pyrethrum and grass for livestock. Production in Machakos and Taita has, however, been low due to over-cutting in previous years. Charcoal and wattle poles continue to be a good source of revenue to growers in Rift Valley and Central Provinces.

13 A further drop in wattle-bark production was reported in 1965. Total pro­ duction of both stick and green bark dropped from 4,477.2 tons valued at !422,236 in 1964 to 38,087 tons valued at !388,657 in 1965. Wattle-bark purchases and tbeir value in 1965 were as follows:-

Small-farm sector Large-farm sector Total

Tons Value Tons Value Tons Value 1 f. f. f. Stick bark .. .. 13,502 175,606 3,337 43,781 16,839 219,387 Green bark .. 5,799 44,397 15,449 124,871 21,248 169,270

The export value of wattle-bark extract was !812,480 and that of processed bark !139,198.

Livestock Enterprises Dairy Cattle.-Tbe large-scale farming sector is decreasing in number wilh the trend of splitting up large-scale farms for seUlement scbemes. This bas meant tbat the herds and flocks on tbese farms bave also been dispersed, mostly to the small-farm sector and it may be seen tbat the total number of grade cattle in the small-farming sector a re increasing as the large-scale berd is decreasing. The large-scale farming berd bas dropped by 2,000 head in the past three years, but the small-scale farming berd bas increased from 49,000 head in 1963 to 84,000 in 1965 and the production of dairy products in this sector is increasing, too. It is not possible yet to adduce figures for ail dairy production from the small-farm sector, but the figures available show great increases m the sales of wbole milk, cream and ghee.

NUMOERS OF DAIRY CATILE AND MILK PRODUCTION FIGURES Total Number Whole milk Butter fat Year Dairy cows of dairy Sales Sales in milk animais '000 gal. '000 lb. 1961 145,500 392,700 17,918 10,784 1962 135,800 355,700 17,884 11,275 1963 132,600 332,000 17,484 10,493 1964 114,600 284,600 16,729 9,051 1965 100,801 260,130 15,351 7,227

ESTIM ATED NUMBER OF GRADE STOCK IN SMALL-FARM SECTOR 1963 1964 1965 Central Province . . 38,000 46,800 49,650 Rift Valley Province 6,000 11 ,000 14,066 Eastern Province .. 4,000 5,160 6,000 Nyanza Province .. 1,000 3,200 7,800 Western Province 350 650 6,500 Coast Province 50 62 75

TOTAL 49,400 66,872 84,091

The days of the small-scale farmer being able to buy grade cattle cbeaply seem now to bave passed and it b as become necessary in many areas to cncentrate more on the upgrading of local native stock with A.I., but sorne disappoiotment bas again been experienced in the general efficacy of the insemi­ nations, many of which bave to be repeated.

14 Beef Cattle.-Tbe total number of beef cattle on the large-scale farms con­ tinued to drop for a variety of reasons, the main being subdivision for settle­ ment. This trend is intensified by the continuance of stock thefts, particularly in Rift Valley and Eastern Provinces. Again the downward trend exhibited in the large-scale-farming sector is set off by increase ranching activities in the small-scale-farming sector through the setting up of ranching co-operatives, many of whom are very successful.

EsTJMATED NUMBER OF BEEF CATTLE IN THE LARGE-FARM SECTOR Cows Total 1961 127,500 549,100 1962 124,800 530,400 1963 115,100 480,700 1964 108,200 451,100 1965 106,900 446,300 Sheep.-Tbe sbeep population in the Jarge-farm sector bas decreased over the past six years and the trend bas continued tbroughout the year. At the same lime, the small-farm sector bas been increasing its ftock of woolled sheep, especially in Rift Valley Province where the number is now up to 9,045, most of which are in Elgeyo-Marakwet. In Central Province, too, importations amounting to 32,125 head of sheep and goats are recorded. A large proportion of this figure will be woolled sheep.

ESTIMATED N UMBER OF SHEEP AND WOOL PRODUCTION FIGURES IN THE LARGE-FARM SECTOR Native Woolled Other Year breeds breeds breeds Total 1961 57,000 484,200 38,900 580,200 1962 37,000 435,000 37,500 510,900 1963 28,300 411,900 28,700 501,800 1964 20,400 372,500 16,900 409,800 1965 30,3 16 340,728 28,940 399,784 Wool Sales Exports Year '000 lb. '000 lb. 1961 2,672.5 2,556.1 1962 2,650.1 3,050.1 1963 2,742.7 3,366.5 1964 2,350.0 2,874.5 1965 2,285.1 2,669.0 (estimated for Dec.) It is envisaged that most of the higher and more remote areas of the country will be best served wi th woolled sheep domlnating cash enterprises. Pigs.- The total number of breeding sows bas dropped again in the large-scale farming sector, but there bas been development in pig production in the Nyeri area where supplies of baconers and porkers to Uplands Bacon Factory have been weil maintained. Year Breeding sows Breeding bom·s Others Total 1961 8,700 800 32,000 41 ,400 1962 5,500 800 28,200 34,500 1963 5,600 700 29,200 35,400 1964 5,900 1,000 29,800 36,600 1965 5,574 1,209 29,496 36,300

15 The prolonged drought led to much oi the maize stocks being used. üp and a severe shortage of feeding stuffs for pigs resulted. Priees too, inevitably rose, which caused sorne of the large units in the Uasin Gishu to be dispersed. Similar shortages of foodstuffs were experienced in Central Province.

Poultry.-In the poultry world, the decline since 1963 bas been arrested and total bi rds kept for breeding ànd egg-production has increased despite the difficulties experienced in supplies of foodstuffs. Tbe first of the following two tables shows the trend in breeding stock and total poultry population, both of which bave risen. The second table shows a marked decrease both in the number of birds sold for slaughter and those sold for fattening and breeding. This is due to the sbortage of feeding stuffs. The number of eggs sold has, however, risen.

ESTIMATED BREEDING STOCK AND TOTAL P OULTRY POPULATION Year Breeding stock Others Total 1961 62,800 217,800 280,600 1962 68,800 218,900 287,700 1963 80,200 175,500 255,700 1964 57,600 145,700 203,300 1965 63,393 148,627 198,700

EsTJMATED SALES OF POULTRY MEAT AND EGG PRODUCTION Poultry sold for Poultry so/d for Egg production Year slaughter and fattening and in dozens /ocally consumed breeding 1960/61 204,700 124,300 2,01 4,000 1961/62 260,800 66,200 2,114,800 1962/63 243,200 306,800 1,855,000 1963/64 244,100 474,800 1,656,868

Agricultural Crop Exports The total value of agricultural exports feil from f40,022,170 in 1964 to f36,478,965 in 1965. The major factors responsible for this decline were the adverse weather conditions which reduced production of many major crops and livestock products and the slump in the world priees for sisal and wattle bark and extract. Exports of the following products exceeded f 500,000 in value:- Position in 1964 1965 Product 1964 f. f. Coffee .. 1 15,411,167 14,111,099 Tea 2 6,055,514 6,084,613 Sisal .. 3 6,028,028 3,851,898 Meat and meat products 5 2,105,401 2,407,258 Pyrethrum (mainly ex tract) .. 4 2,453,086 2,229,745 Hides and skins 6 1,285,213 1,747,297 Wattle bark and extract 7 1,080,802 829,425 Tinned pineapples 8 873,782 774,658 Cotton 9 647,884 747,040 Wool .. 11 514,425 560,378 Cashew nuts .. 550,132 The total export value of ali livestock and livestock products in 1965 amounted to f.5,291 ,000 compared to f5,016,000 in 1964, but the export value of butter, ghee and cheese went down by almost f500,000 owiog to drought. Particulars of production and exports are given in Tables C aod D.

16 TABLE B.- PARTICULARS OF SMALL-SCALE FARM COFFEE AS AT 31 - 12- 65

Total Production Numbcr N u rn ber D ISTRICT Total in 1965 (tons) Value to Nu rn ber N u rn bor of N umbor of Plamed Growers of of Soedlings of Co-op. Acrea go Clean Bu ni f. Growers N urseries in Nursery Facto ries Societies 1

ARAIJICA- Bungoma ...... 5,2 14 345·54 ·89 11 3,571 13,226 14 266,450 22 13 Kakamega .. .. 1,308 88·58 46·63 30,153 4,610 6 575,146 6 8 Central Nyanza .. .. 217 2·22 20·51 1,662 1,316 - 135,000 2 3 South Nyanza .. .. 1,559 81·99 52·30 27,166 4,197 22 358,116 7 7 Kisii ...... 12,853 1,722·39 839·19 568,175 4 1,512 29 554,880 54 26 West Pokot .. .. 202 4·95 - 1,559 508 1 37,395 1 1 Barinço ...... 328} {661 1 49,393 - 2 Nand1 ...... 420 24·20 5·97 7,594 995 1 28,042 1 2 Kcricho 226 7·84 8·31 2,944 476 - - 2 2 Narok/Kaji~do (Masai):: 147 - ·Il 3 140 1 54,937 1 4 Nycri ...... 14,919 1,182·60 172·72 409,680 24,664 5 383,100 29 5 Kirinya~a ...... 13,130 1,845-86 164·74 63 1,521 16,605 7 ? 24 7 Murang a ...... 23,161 1,683·22 163·57 550,347 26,636 17 967,000 32 15 K iambu ...... 12,7 11 1,740·09 112·95 584,178 13,821 26 ? 28 10 Meru ...... 27,557 3,941·82 272·02 1,230,633 50,808 22 578,600 92 22 Embu ...... 8,082 971·49 11 8·78 327,493 15,339 16 590,653 16 10 Kitui ...... 44 - 3-30 108 400 1 16,000 2 2 Machakos .. .. 6,589 782·05 166·06 273,696 15,017 12 95,307 22 10 Tai ta ...... 1,035 96·57 22·56 32,535 2,825 4 258,266 3 1 129,702 14,541·47 2,171·66 4,793,01 8 233,756 IR5 5,583,743 344 150

R OBUSTA- Buogoma .. .. 3 -- - 6 - -- - Busia ...... 149 - 20 496 256 - - - 3 Kakamcga .. . . 75 - 2 50 403 - - '-- 1 Central Nyanza . . .. 166 - 10 248 427 - -- 3 - 393 - 32 794 1,092 - 1 - - 7 - TABLE C.-QUANTITJES AND VALUES OF AGRTCULTURAL EXPORTS

1955 1962 1963 1964 1965 Unit Quantity f. Quantity 1 f. Quantity f: Quantity f: Quantity f: LtvESTOCK PRODUCfS- Bees wax .. .. Cwt. 1,38 1 32,766 829 15,848 1,280 24,816 1,303 25,401 1,813 33,867 Buttcr/Ghce .. .. 30,405 517,646 66,774 926,813 58,324 828,260 46,430 754,209 16,607 292,6 13 Catt le ...... No . 601 25,740 1,807 58,305 2,174 89,913 1,580 67,897 1,180 52,472 Chcese .. Cwt. 484 6,070 1,025 14,878 859 12,059 1,988 24,678 282 4,992 El)CS ...... Doz. 61,303 10,928 425,993 86,088 243,547 51,074 182,983 36,320 15 1,986 30,785 Htdcs and Skins .. Cwt. 100,400 1,300,801 125,79 1 1,357,565 109,177 1,253,458 109,654 1,285,2 13 145,496 1,747,297 Meat: Bacon and Ham .. .. 4,838 70,998 556 93,682 6,578 120,098 6,858 117,798 8,659 152,792 Beef and Veal .. .. 12,284 92,698 46,981 569,087 66,329 607,954 58,208 63 1,631 52,097 633,172 Extracts ...... 38 190 3,399 292,550 3,240 327,785 2,618 501,141 2,001 527,305 Mutton ...... 335 3,254 4,104 32,452 3, 154 27,355 1,408 13,482 785 8,223 Pork ...... 493 5,772 868 13,603 849 14,223 557 8,553 834 14,255 Tinned Meat .. 174 1,807 93,621 1,684,404 84,44 1 1,396,547 49,655 832,796 64,615 1,071,5 11 Sheep and Goats .. No. 167 605 13,494 63,364 121 464 -- - - ...... Wool .. 100 lb. 13,818 256,908 30,501 529,243 33,665 583,840 28,745 514,425 30,337 560,378 00 Othcr Livestock Products - - 37,938 - 221,074 - 188,523 - 201,727 - 16 1,35 1 CROt• PRODUCfS- Bran and Pollard Tons 5,214 91,140 8,132 11 7,962 6,896 109,939 430 7,255 6,266 108,259 Cashcw Nuts and Kernels .. 194 49,045 1,996 92,377 5,056 227,407 4,781 292,79 1 6,829 550,132 Castor Seed .. .. 4,905 195,653 4,380 183,252 7,340 303,254 4,883 224,241 5,140 2 17,587 Coconuts and Copra 644 34,865 71 8 22,730 1,737 42,632 1,847 37,128 1,764 4 1,715 Coconut Oit .. :: 1 è~vt. 693 3.461 529 2,559 1,398 6,355 2,512° 10,856 1,575 10,879 Co!fee ...... 388,469 8,926,908 610,290 10,612,670 736,205 11,031,428 3,711 15,411 ,167 756,894 14,111,099 Co ir ...... T~ns 637 17,068 826 19,730 874 21,194 120 36,850 1,262 38,019 Cotton .. . . 100 lb. 52,249 691,649 40,867 435,274 43,405 437,015 9,862 647,884 73,076 747,040 Essential Oils and Res- inoids ...... Cwt. 113,522 41,312 1,534 51,897 1,664 43,454 1, 103 28,713 1,177 33,247 G rain, other than Maize and Wheat .. .. Cwt. 408 1,6 17 11 ,940 18,252 13,453 20, 18 1 13,798 23,924 5,046 16,230 G roundnuts .. Tons - 56 882 53,021 3,185 220, 152 1,643 127,714 1,29 1 123,645 Groundnut Oit .. .. Cwt. -- 90 542 301 1,347 - - 23 147 Maize unnùlled .. 1,543,034 1,665,422 1, 184,361 1,011,967 1,720,319 1,573,953 17,621 16,616 3,380 3,358 Ma ize meal and Flour .. 12,554 17,107 73,192 68,625 165,155 177,794 34,602 54,333 20 54 Passion Fruit .. . . d~tl. 13,339 9,269 11 ,273 8,345 18,819 13,897 1,578 9,799 5,5 18 43,167 Pineapplc Juice . . n.a. n.a. 224,075 73,328 198,969 57,778 24,923° 63,426 30,635 9 1,673 Pineapple (tinned) .. 100 lb . 92,7 11 515,414 186,430 692,297 210,048 8 15, 13 1 232,678 873,782 200,033 774,658

•centals. TABLE C.-QUANTJTŒS AND VALUES OF AGRICULTURAL EXPORTS-(Contd.)

1955 1962 1963 1 1964 1965 Unit Quantity f. Quantity f. Quantity f. Quantity 1 f. Quantity 1 f. 1 CROP PRODUCTS- Potatoes -. Cwt. 16,000 17,302 51,361 61,692 46,296 53,507 24,003 33,763 26,588 37,626 Pulses including Beans and Peas ...... 12,89 1 36,784 75,483 19 1,497 425,144 792,109 252,392 52 1,465 185,436 476,24 1 Pyrethrum .. .. 185,536 284,732 30,415 440,923 34,712 481,657 18,509 286,498 17,055 266,074 Pyrethrum Extract .. 2,443 953,746 7,460 2,723,486 6,679 2,547,929 5,570 2,166,588 5,391 1,963,671 Sesame Seed .. .. T~ns 395 26,462 688 46,884 1,206 76,434 844 53,120 55 1 36,955 Sesame Oil .. .. Cwt. 280 1,946 32 259 - - - - 2 1 175 Sisal .. .. Tons 33,502 1,958,63 1 56,043 4,323,174 63,782 7,532,128 56,976 6,028,028 57,329 3,851,898 -\0 Sugar-J ~ggery .. Cwt. 467 1,461 335 843 3,097 6,238 75,936 37,703 1,934° 4,186 Sunflower seed . . .. Tons 1,668 54,288 935 39,953 1,11 2 55,297 1,212 53,149 1,361 68,441 Tea ...... Cwt. 115,572 2,761,1 51 264,795 5, 189,235 294,202 5,665,409 326,091 6,055,514 313,328 6,084,613 Wattle Bark .. Cwt. 162,713 265,4 12 103,401 147,091 108,966 157,217 128,610 197,694 76, 136 11 8,393 Wattle Extract .. .. Tons 33,223 2,260,853 16,449 724,731 13,8 14 637,59 1 18, 154 883,108 13, 134 711 ,032 Wheat Flour Cwt. 15,271 40,697 1,398 4,371 2,061 6,224 1,192 3,725 1,665 5,376 Other Agricul t ur al Produce .. .. - 267,136 412,178 592,053 820,065 652,362 Total Domestic Exports of Agricultural Origin .. f. 23,554,708 33,731,001 39, 133,073 40,022,170 1 36,478,965 TOTAL DOMESTIC EXPORTS .. f. 25,666,650 J37,913,088 43,831.885 47, 114,924 47,173,294 -- •centals. TABLE D.-QUANTITIES AND VALUES OF THE MORE IMPORTANT PRODUCfS MARKETED FROM SMALL-FARM AREAS (PARTLY ESTIMATED) DURING 1965

Unit of Quantity Western Nyanza R:ft Central Eastern Coast ITEM and Province Province Valley Province Province Province Total Value Province

Bixa (Aoatto) ...... Tons - - - - - 15 15 f. ---- - 1,3 15 1,315 Ba nanas ...... Tons 1,100 500 230 1,720 85 4,110 7,745 f. 12,300 7,300 3,200 10,944 803 27,200 61,747 Cashew Nuts ...... Tons - - - - - 8,850 8,850 f. - - - - - 396,504 396,504 Cassava ...... 125 lb. 37 1 860 - - - 14,336 15,567 f. 196 455 7,598 8,249 N - - - 0 Chillies ...... Tons 0.6 3.5 0.2 - - 376 380.3 f. 41 230 12 -- 22,808 23,091 Coffee (Ciean and Buni) ...... Tons 429 2,214.3 41 6,450 6,567 95 15,796.3 f. 79,548 488,626 10,300 2,155,302 1,954,600 31,122 4,719,498 Copra ...... Tons - - - - - 3,900 3,900 f. - - - - - 133,039 133,039 Coconuts ...... Tons - - - - - 3,510 3,510 f. - -- - - 45,520 45,520 Coir ...... Tons - --- - 1,700 1,700 f. - -- - - 21,057 21,057 Castor Seed ...... 180 lb. 1,986 1,631 4 983 46,770 12,166 63,540 f. 4,492 3.691 7 1,910 81,320 23,013 114,433 Cotton Lint (A.R. and B.R.) . . .. 400 lb. 7,910 5,482 - 270 2,818 4,668 21,148 f. 270,630 169,172 - 7,560 75,458 129,817 652,637 Charcoal Fuel and Poles ...... ------f. - - - 7,495 1,865 9,160 18,520 Groundnuts ...... 180 lb. 7 15,787 - - 1 - 15,795 f. 24 63,463 -- 4 - 63,491 TABLE D.-QUANTITIES AND VALUES OF THE MORE IMPORTANT PRODUCfS MARKETEO FROM SMALL-FARM AREAS (PARTLY ESTIMATED) DURING 1965-{Contd.)

Unit of Quantity Western Nyanza Rift Central Eastern Coast ITEM and Province Province Valley Province Province Province Total Value Province

Kapok ...... ------Maize Bran (wishwa) ...... 200 lb. ------f------5,000 5,000 Maize ...... 200 lb. 285,843 84,856 34,168 10,628 58,777 - 474,272 f- 373,740 110,949 42,710 13,285 72,178 - 612,862 Millet ...... 200 lb. 5,617 11 ,822 761 68 1,396 89 19,753 f- 7,583 15,960 1,420 76 2,181 167 27,387 Miraa (Catha edulis) ...... Tons - - - - 107 - 107 f- - - - - 120,000 - 120,000 Onion ...... Tons - - 80 34 27 - 141 f- - - 3,200 536 924 - 4,660 Palm Wine ...... Gals. - - - - - 180,500 180,500 f------203, 100 203,100 Potatoes ...... 180 lb. 7,964 - 152,232 315,748 97,000 - 572,944 t 5,760 - 147,796 331 ,263 121,250 - 606.069 Pulses ...... 200 lb. 1,596 4,043 276 61,154 74,072 3,770 144,913 f- 3,388 9,104 548 125,146 162,625 7,588 308,399 Pyrethrum ...... Tons - 2,865 304 2,554 15 - 5,738 t - 535,500 65,360 285,163 1,839 - 887,862 Pinea ppl es ...... Tons - - - 9,878 - 300 10,178 t -- - 68,997 - 6,000 74,997 Rice (paddy) ...... 160 lb. 8,765 20,694 - 161,962 - - 191,421 t 18,082 43,983 - 259,139 - - 321,204 TABLE D.- QUANTITIES AND VALUES OF THE MORE IMPORTANT PRODUCIS MARKETED FROM SMALL-FARM AREAS (PARTLY ESTIMATED) DURING 1965- (Contd.)

Unit of 1 Quantity Western Nyanza Rift ITEM Central Eastern Coast and Province Province Valley Province Province Province Total Value Province

Sesame ...... 180 lb. 59 1,254 - - 11 6,496 7,820 f, 249 6,039 - - 48 27,933 34,269 Sisal F ibre ...... Tons 500 1,437 75 91 1 1,097 - 4,020 f, 30,000 66,454 3,600 10,248 48,697 - 158,999 Sugar-cane ...... Tons 2,645 89,552 6,658 417 148 8,370 107,790 f, 29,620 238,500 13,073 1,199 444 19,670 302,506 Sorghurn ...... 200 lb. 6,152 1,962 55 - - - 8,169 f. 7,451 3,032 72 - - - 10,555 Sunflower ...... Tons 149 0.7 9 - 0.1 - 159 f, 3,448 14 255 - 3 - 3,720 Sweet Potatoes ...... Tons - 10 - 730 - 680 1,420 f, - 100 - 8,000 - 5,400 13,500 Tea (made) ...... Cwt. 5,289 5,436 5,580 15,869 4,791 - 36,965 f, 29,620 52,209 52,800 147,968 24,014 - 306,611 Tiro ber ...... Tons ------f, ------Tobacco (snutr) ...... Lb. -- - 105,280 - - 105,280 i - - - 8,225 - - 8,225 Tobacco ...... Lb. -- - 40,679 169,366 - 210,045 f, - - - 3,464 15,264 - 18,728 Vegetable and Fruit ...... Tons - - - 4,245 772 4,260 9,277 f, - - - 44,700 13,460 46,100 104,260 Watt le Bark ...... Tons - - 1,627 13,757 2,930 650 18,964 f, - - 21,150 110,744 66,295 4,137 202,326 Wheat ...... 200 lb. 100 1 60,099 1,324 5,152 - 66,676 f, 226 2 47,724 3,178 12,365 - 63,495 TABLE D.-QUANTITTES AND VALUES OF THE MORE IMPORTANT PRODUCTS MARKETED FROM SMALL-FARM ARBAS (PARTLY ESTIMATED) DURING 1965- (Comd.)

Unit of Quantity Western Nyanza Rift Central Eastern Coast ITEM and Province Province Valley Province Province Province Total Value Province

Flowers ...... Bu oches - - - 251,000 - - 251,000 f. - - - 2,510 - - 2,510 Geranium Oil ...... Lb. - - - 27 - - 27 f. - - - 390 - - 390 Green Maize ...... Tons - - - - 2 - 2 f. - - - - 11 3,370 3,381 Wool ...... Tons - - 15 - - - 15 f. - - 3,900 - - - 3,900 Betel Leaf ...... ------3,600 3,600 Mangoes ...... ------f. - - - - - 6,532 6,532 TOTAL VALUE . . .. f. 876,398 1,814,783 417,127 1 3,607,442 2,775,648 1 1, 185,825 10,678,148 TABLE E.- IMPORTS OF FRUIT INTO KENYA, 1965

AustralJa Italy Le banon Spain Den mark Rhodesia Israel Zanzibar U.K. PakJstan Total

A pples centals .. 8,291 3,825 785 - 116 - - - - - 13,017 ±: .. . . 35,067 19,835 4,149 - 600 -- - - - 59,651 Grapes centals .. 545 3 35 1,184 - 242 - - - - 2,009 ±: .. . . 5,103 34 569 9,497 - 2,522 - -- - 17,725 Citrus centals and other fruits .. ------±: .. . . 204 3,537 5 1,879 - - 26 186 199 1 6,037

Total centals 8,836 3,828 820 1,184 1 11 6 242 - - - - 15,026 f. 40,374 23,406 4,723 11,376 600 . 2,522 26 186 199 1 83,413 1 PART 11-RESEARCH AND SPECJALIST SERVICES General Crop Husbaodry

A 1 Katumani, in spi te of a total rainfall of only 5 in. du ring the growing season, yields of seven bags per acre of maize were obtained on a field scale by using short-lerm varieties in conjunction with the recommended agronomie practices for the area. Yields of over four bags per acre of Mexico 142 beans were also recorded. Crambe at narrow spacings produced less than that at wide spacings and nitrogen applications did not increase yields during this season. Both crambe and rape depleted soil moisture and nitrogen as much as maize. Late planting was again demonstrated to have a deleterious effect on yields of maize and the crop also required more weedings and suffered more from pests than early planted maize. Short-term castors were grown successfully. At Kisii, Mexico 142 beans yielded 9 bags per acre in a variety trial, over 3 bags per acre better than any other variety. The chilli variety, Commercial Red, yielded 4,875 lb. per acre over a 16-month growing season. Powdery mildew presented a problem but in spite of this the crop was very profitable. In a time-of-plantiog trial with maize, the hlgbest yields, as in 1964, were obtained from planting in early February, one-and-a-half months before the long rains. In a spacing trial with soya beans the best yields were obtained at a spacing of 12 in. between rows and 4 to 6 in. in the row. At Homa Bay, poor results were obtained in a trial with soya beans indicatiog that the lake-shore area is loo hlgh for thls crop. At Kendu Bay, a cassava variely trial yielded well with the variety 5025/ 30 giving 9.5 tons per acre. At 01 Joro Orok, it was reported that the tile drains laid in the furrows of ridge and furrow vlei land in 1963 were not working and the water-table profile is now similar in both the tiled and untiled furrows. Yields of potatoes were very poor as a result of the drougbt, maximum yields of ooly three tons per acre being obtained in a variety trial.

A 1 Mtwapa, the yields of fresh fruit of Acietuno (Simarouba glauca) were reduced during 1965, 26 trees yielding only 98 Jb. compared with a yield of 227 lb. from 25 trees in 1964. Recording of selected trees of cashew out planted in 1959 continued, the highest yielder giving 24.7 lb. during the year. A one­ acre observation plot of limes yielded 13! tons of fresh fruit in two seasons, January to March and July to December. In a variety trial with castor, yields of 1,3 13 lb. per acre were obtained from Hybrid 1123. The local variety of sesame outyielded ali others in a variety trial, averaging 1,227 lb. per acre. Observation plots of Kenaf indicated that the variety G.4 is suited to coastal conditions. The sorghum variety H x 58 and H x 57 yielded over 1,500 lb. of grain per acre in a variety trial. Maize and Dobbs sorghum planted in the same trial failed because of drought. Reducing the intra-row spacing of sorghum from 9 in. to 6 in. increased yields. The variety Serena which yielded 977 lb. of grain per acre was judged to be the most palatable by a lasting panel. The first ratoon crop of sugar-cane from a nitrogen X phosphate X ridging trial at Shimba Hills was harvested. Good residual responses to phosphate were obtained although there was no difference in response between 200 lb. per acre applications and 400 lb. per acre application of double superphosphate. Phosphate was the major nutrient deficiency in exploratory fertilizer trials with maize at Busia, Lamukanda and Kabuyefwe in W estern Province. For the second year in succession no responses to ferti lizers were obtained wi th

25 maize on Mount Elgon soiJs. The groundnut variety Mani Pintar yielded well in thrce varicty trials conducted at Mabanga, Busia and Kakamega, the highest yield being 8.5 bags of shelled nuts to the acre at Mabanga. The soya bean variety Belgian Congo yielded 9.5 bags per acre in a variety trial at Bungoma. The sweet potato varieties Lunyulule and Toilo yielded 4.5 tons of roots to the acre in a variety trial at Busia. The optimum time for lifting cassava at Kakamega was shown to be 14 to 16 months after planting. At Embu, la te-plan ting of ma ize was shown to reduce maize yields consi­ derably. It was further shown that, this season, nitrogen top-dressing had little effect on the yields of both early and Jate-planted maize. In a cultural demonstration it was shown that even in a year of poor rainfall up to 20 bags per acre of maize can be obtained if the most important cultural practices, namcly early planting, adequate weeding, the use of phosphate fertilizers and an adequate plant population are adhered to. At Eldoret, in an attempt to reduce premature piping of wheat wbich was occurring as a result of the mid-season drought, strips of wbeat were mown when the crop had reached 6 to 9 in. in height. It is estimated that mowing reduccd the yields by 15 per cent in comparison with unmown wheat. In a trial with German potato seed under irrigation the variety Lerche yielded 9 tons per acre. At the National Agricultural Research Station, Kitale, studies on crops suitable for rotation with maize continued. In a series of fertilizer trials on wheat the only worth-whilc responses were to phosphate; the wheat grew weil but harvcsting was very difficult due to bad weather and ils quality was low. Preli­ minary screening of a collection of soya bean varieties from the U.S.A. was carricd out but none of them had the vigour of local varieties. Whilst they will be uscful as breeding material there is little possibility thal they can be used directly.

Grassland Husbandry At the National A griculrural Research Station, Kitale, li ttle in the way of new introductions were made but the legume Desmodium intortum, obtained from Au tralia, looks extremely promising and seed bulking is in progress prior to its bcing testcd in grazing trials in 1966. In grazing trials both Nandi setaria (S. splwcelata) and coloured guinea grass (Panicum coloratum) have formed good productive mixtures with Desmodium uncinatum and Glycine javanica: of the Rhodes grasses, the newly bred Pokot variety was outstanding in vigour and leafiness. In the fodder grasses Napier was more productive and casier to manage than the others. Guatemala grass was slower to establish but later was quite productive; a recent introduction, Penniset11m squamulatum, was promising being more drought-resistant than Napier grass. Breeding work on Setaria spha­ ce/ata and Star Grass (Cynodon dactylon) continued. Studies on the depth of germination of grass seed continued and work on the ftowering and seed maturation of common pasture legumes commenced. Studies continued on the phosphorus rcquiremcnts of grazed grass/legume pastures: In this rather dry year phosphate did not significantly increase the dry-matter yield of the pasture but it did increase the amount of phosphorus in the herbage. In a trial to esti­ mate nitrogen fixation by Desmodium uncinatum grown wi th Nandi setaria the mixture yielded 55 lb. per acre of N more than the pure grass plots; this increase was wholly due to the N present in the legume fraction of the herbage. Studies of the elfect of seeding rate on the establishment of Mbarara Rhodes grass showed that rates as low as t lb. per acre of pure germinating seed could produce a full stand and as great a yield as seed rates of up to lt lb. per acre. 26 ln a fertilizer trial with Sudan grass the dry-matter yield was increased by sorne 42 per cent by the application of 200 lb. per acre of single superphosphate in the seed-bed and the recovery of applied phosphorus was 45 per cent. At Marindas hardly any harvesting of grass plots was possible becausc of the dry weather. A stocking-rate trial to study the effects of three rates of sheep stockiog was started. At Katumani, the trials planted in April/June were a virtual failure. The evaluation of grasses by cattle liveweight (Mpwapwa) gave the highest gains in one grazing in July. The evaluation of ten grasses by sheep in the February 1 March grazing showed very little differences with Ch/oris gayana (M pwapwa) giving the lowest gains. Desmodium uncinatum and a local Glycine planted along with Panicum maximum (Mackinnon road) are showing promise under irrigation. At 01 l ora Orok, the preliminary results from a grass variety trial show that Mbarara and Masaba Rhodes grasses greatly out-yielded Pokot Rhodes, improved and ordinary Nandi Setaria in dry.matter production. However, Pokot Rhodes and improved Nandi Setaria were themselves superior to ordinary Setaria. No effect of nitrogcn has been apparent as yet. In legume variety observations, Clare Sub-clover, Bacchus March Sub-clover and Louisiana White clover ali established and grew weil, but Mt. Barker Sub-clover, Dwalganup Sub-clover, Rueppells Red clover and Kenya White clover were poor, both on the vlei and red-loam soils. A trial at Kisii to investigate the best method of establishing a Rhodes / Setaria/Louisiana White clover ley under maize gave excellent stands of the grasses but the clover lake was almost a complete failure. Best grass establish­ ment was obtained by broadcasling the grass seed under maize spaced at 3 ft. by 3 ft. with three plants per hole when the maize was 18 in. high. At Embu, du ring the second year of a grass variety trial under grazing con­ ditions, Embu Creeping Guinea grass (Panicum maximum Jacq.) had an average of 10.4 per cent crudc protein, 31.9 per cent crude fibre and yields of 1.7 tons per acre of dry matter. lt proved to be superior in quality, palatability and in dry-matter yields to two clonai Nandi Setarias (Setaria sphace/ata) and to Thika Elephant grass. Unfortunately crceping Guinea grass is highly susceptible to a streak disease which is being studied at E.A.A.F.R.O., Muguga.. At Murinduko, the residual effect of 15 tons per acre farmyard manure and 2 cwt. per acre double superphosphate, applied to maize in the Long Rains 1962 was being measurcd in terms of yields of Rhodes grass and the effects of both manure and the fertilizer continued to be significant. In a similar trial at Embu, the residual effects of 12 tons per acre F.Y.M. is just fading away white that of 2 cwt. per acre double superphosphate has negative responses due to 8 cwt. per acre of sulphate of ammoni a applied since May 1963. At Eldoret, cio vers and the small-seeded grasses failed to establish although Rhodes grass pl anted in April eventually covered the plots in November, following rain in October. This was too tate for the object of the experiment. Annual grasses, such as the Sorghum grasses were more successful. Columbus grass planted in June gave a eut of 2-! tons green matter per acre in September, a further 5 tons in November with sorne aftermath, after that Panicum colo­ ratum showed promise with a eut of 5t tons green matter per acre in November, and if it survives the dry season, is worth further trial. Rhodes grass gave 3t tons per acre green matter. A top-dressing trial on established Rhodes grass showed that 4 cwt. per acre of sulphate of ammonia was needed to produce any response and was completely uneconomic duriog this season.

27 At the National Agricultural Research Station, Kitale, the seeds acreage was increased to 140 this year. First bulking of the new varieties Nandi setaria Selection III and Pokot Rhodes grass was started. The dry year and army-worm attack seriously affected new plantings and early harvests were poor; the crop recovered with the later rains to achieve sorne of the best yields recorded for the later harvest. Nandi setaria yielded 225 lb. per acre; Mbarara Rhodes averaged 265 lb. per acre; Brachiaria ruziziensis averaged 260 lb. per acre and Desmodium uncinatum 75 lb. per acre. With the purchase of a new combine harvester, fields of Louisiana White clover and Desmodium uncinatum were harvested successfully.

Anima) Husbandry CATTLE At the National Agricultural R esearch Station, Kitale, a trial was conducted to study the effect on milk production of a cereal feed to add more energy to the diet when the pasture is at its flush. Results to date suggest that maize meal is superior to bran and that both maize meal and bran are superior to pasture alone. Preliminary results from a calf-rearing trial at the Coast Agricultural Research Station, Mtwapa, indicate that rearing on skim-milk from the fourth week is satisfactory.

PIGS At the National Agricultural Research Station, Kitale, a feeding trial was conducted to study the amounts of pollards, bran and maize-germ meal that could be substituted for maize in pig rations; the trial included a comparison of white and yellow maize and the use of a green food in the diet. Results to date indicate that up to 24 per cent of pollards can be included in the restricted ration without adverse results: yellow maize appears to have a better con­ version ratio than white and be more palatable: a green feed (edible canna) quickens the time taken to reach bacon weight but seems to have an adverse effect on grading results.

SHEEP At the National Agricultural Research Station, Ki/ale, the sheep flock thrived and remained healthy during the year. The flock was divided so that half lambed in May and June and the remainder Jambed in September: the Septem­ ber lambing was markedly inferior to the early Iambing, only 83 per cent of lambs to ewes as compared with 116 per cent for the May and June lambs. The September larnbs were generally poorer and many died. The percentage of May and June lambs surviving is 84 per cent and of September lambs 47 per cent. Wool yields averaged 10.5 lb. per ewe and 2.5 lb. per lamb.

Soils and Agricultural Chemistry During the year, the analytical services of the Chemistry Section continued to meet calls made on them for assistance and guidance in local land-use investigations, soi! survey of new areas for development, selection and mapping of new potential areas for tea expansion by the Kenya Tea Development Authority, irrigation water investigation, soi! physics investigation particularly in areas proposed for irrigation, fertilizer and feeding-stuff analysis both for Government departments and for private enterprise. In al! a total number of sorne 13,6 15 samples were received for analysis. About 1,000 of these samples were handled in the fertilizer and feeding-stuffs section, and these included samples from experimental stations and the various commercial firms. The rest of the samples were mainly soils and plant material. 28 The beginning of the year was tully occupied by completing and checking data on Tana Basin Investigation soils and only 1,500 advisory soils were analysed. Despite additional survey soils, throughput of advisory analysis was stepped up and towards the end of the year a total of over 650 samples per week was attained.

Results of experiments conducted in the bracken zone soils of Central Kenya, have thrown sorne light on the long-standing mystery of the productivi ty of these soils. Of the phosphatic fertilizers available in the market today, single superphosphatic (20 per cent Pp5 watcr soluble) has been found to give com­ paratively the best results, both from the point of view of yields and case of handling. Farmyard manure has been found to be very good, but inadequate supplies of the manure limits its use for many farmers.

The investigation into the cause of paraUel streak has confirmed that this condition occurs only where the minimum temperature falls bclow 15.8° C. An experiment on the time takcn for the symptoms to appear revealed tbat parallel streak occurred about five months aftcr the change of temperature, thus supporting the previous conclusion that the appearance of symptoms in field sisal in December is due to the low temperatures recorded in July and August.

Studies on copper nutrition in wheat have been concluded and written up for publication. Rcsults have shown that spraying with copper oxychloride is more effective than with the sul phate form of copper. This is particuJarly so at the higher rate wherc the sul phate spray caused severe scorching of the leaves. On the other band when the two forms were broadcast there was no significant difference betwecn responses at each rate of application. In the seed-dressing treatment the response was similar to thal obtained by spraying copper in either form at the Jower rate.

An experiment carried out in the Jaboratory to study the fixation of phosphate by the soil indicated that soils high in iron, aluminium and amorphous material, bave a h.igh phosphate fixing rate. As the rate of fixation is slow in the field plants growing on these soils would be expected to obtain sorne of the phosphates before it is fixed. In the mineralogy study of Malawi's soils, on phosphate fixation, it was found that soils containing kaolioite were more likely to fix phosphate than those containing 2: 1 type of clay minerais. Prompted by a Iow yield of riec from one of the plots on Mwea Irrigation soils, the analysis of the soils from the plot, laken from various deptbs, revealed that high pH Ievels and high sodium were responsible for the low riec yields. Reclamation practices already applied by digging a drain across the plot and applying gypsum show that the riec stand in the previously poor plot has greatJy improved, and it is difficuJt to differentiate the plot from the others visually.

Water intake studies on Kano Plain soifs have shown that soils which are 2: 1 clay mineral type expand du ring wet periods, this expansion results in sealing up the pores which virtually stops any more water intake. Application of gypsum and ripping improve these soils. Consequently the problem of sugar-cane droughting bas been found to be connected with the amount of available moisture in the soil.

In the Lower Tana survey work bas been completed and a map covering an arca of 660,000 acres is in the final stage of production. Advice was given on suitable grasses to be grown on the soils; this was donc during visits to the arca. FoUowing a survey in the Turkana, a correlation between the vegetation asso­ ciations along the Turkwel and the major alluvial soi! types bas been established. 29 Reclamation trials are envisaged in Taveta following a report and a detailed map of Kamleza. The trials would indicate drainage, reclamation and overall development of the Taveta soi ls which are highly saline due to unco-ordinated irrigation and inadequate drainage. Development of about 90,000 acres of Lambwe Valley is envisaged. Investigations of the clay mineralogy of the soils of Central Kenya (cross section from Lower to Upper Murang'a) have shown that soils of the high altitudes have been influenced by volcanic ash. Consequently these soils contain large amounts of amorphous material, which influence their chernical and physical behaviour. Soils of the lower altitudes were found not to have been influenced by volcanic ash, and unlike those of high altitude, do not contain large amounts of amorphous materia l. These soils contain largely K aolinite, and so are generally weil supplied with bases, have good physical structure, and invariably always r espond to phosphate application. The X-ray spectrograph has been fu ll y calibrated for the analysis of zinc, copper, manganese and iron in plant material.

Plant Pathology Advisory Laboratory.-The year was dry and disease incidences werc gcnerally low. Citrus black spot (Guignardia citricarpa), ascochyta blight (Ascochyta gos­ sypii) of cotton and downy mildew (Bremia lactucae) were recorded for the first time. It bas been proved that the common weed So/anum nigrum is an alternative host of the tomato bacterial canker organism, Corynebacterium Micha­ ganensi. It is now five years si nce "Host lists of Kenya Fungi and Bacteria", by R. M. Nattrass, was published as Commonwealth MycologicaJ Paper No. 81 and a five-year supplement has been prepared for publication in Vol. II of this report. Sugar-cane Smut.-Research on this disease continued througbout the year and, as previously, was aimed at reducing the period of time required to test cane varieties for susceptibility. U seful progress has been made. In addition it has been shown that most of the infection in the fi eld occurs on developing secondary ti ller buds and it is consequently the morphological cbaracteristics of these young shoots which determine varietal resistance. Infection rates are now known for 120 cane varieties. Bacterial Wilt of Potatoes.-Studies on the pathogen involved the testing of 60 common weed species as possible alternative hosts. Eight of these were shown to harbour the pathogen. These weeds are likely to be of significance in the dry-season survival of the pathogen and a fi eld trial to determine this was commenced. A survey of weeds in Central Province showed that 5 per cent of the known alternative hosts are carrying the disease. Saprophytic survival of the pathogen in sterile soil at various moisture tensions was determined; the maximum period of survival at moistures of ten atmospheres or Jess is 25 days. Studies on the host continued and involved both the search for resistance and the development of techniques for measuring resistance by epidermiological metbods. It has now been clearly shown that useful levels of resistance to chemical Biotype II occur. It now appears that this very serious disease can be controlled by a combination of (i) the use of healtby seed, (ii) dry­ season bare fallowing of potato fields and (iii) the use of resistant varieties. Passion Fruit Brown Spot.-This disease, caused by Alterna ria passiflorae, is responsible for severe damage to passion fruit crops which constitute the main­ stay of the cash economy of sorne of the new settlement schemes. At the end of the year, it became possible to devote the full-time services of a plant pathologist to research on this disease.

30 Legume Bacteriology.-Research was confined to the nitrogen fixation of Phaseo/us vulgaris which is the second Jargest crop in Kenya and the principle source of protein in the diet. It was shown that, under agricultural conditions, the wild Rhizobium in the soi! is fully effective and the use of strains of known high effectiveness as legume inoculants is not necessary.

Seed Testing.-A record number of 3,556 samples were tested during 1965. As part of the overseas aid programme of the Netherlands Government, the seed-testing laboratory has been re-equipped with the most modem equipment; two seed analysts spent four months in Wageningen for training and two Dutch experts visited Kenya. This assistance has transformed the seed testing of Kenya and is gratefully acknowledged.

Entomology FJELD PESTS Cotton grown in Eastern and Central Provinces suffered very much from American and Spiny Bollworms during 1965. At the Coast, Spiny Bollworm caused unprecedented damage to cotton, whilst in Nyanza cotton pests were completely overshadowed by the drought. Insecticide trials were carried out on cotton at Kitui, Kampi-ya-Mawe, Malindi and Galole. The results of these trials confi.rmed the efficiency of spraying, vis-à-vis dusting, and also confirmed the effectiveness of carbaryl against Cotton Stainers and Spiny Bollworm. A trial of drift spraying of cotton using uJtra-low-volume oit solutions applied from an aircraft, was carried out in Nyanza. Control of Cotton Stainers by drift spraying was as efficient as that obtained with convential applications. Laboratory testing of insecticides to determine their absolute toxicity to Cotton Strainers, using a "topical measured drop" technique has continued throughout the year. Investigation into the biology and control of the Groundnut Hopper continues. The main features of the !ife history of this pest have now been èlucidated, but effective control measures have not yet been developed. Rice grown at the Mwea Irrigation Scheme suffered from attack by Rice Hispid during the year; this pest normaJly causes significant damage only in rice nurseries. An assessment was made of the importance of White Borer on second-crop (Short Rains) riec at Mwea-Tebere; damage was considerably Jess than in the previous Long Rains crop. Work continued on the ecology of our Coastal Stem Borers. It is anticipated that this work may lead to recommendations for the control of these pests by mainly cultural methods. The Short Rains bean crops in Eastern and Central Provinces suffered very severe damage from American Bollworm at the end of the year. This pest built up very heavy populations indeed, and damage was caused to crops which are not normally attacked by this species. Wheat in ear was attacked and severa! hundred acres were aerial sprayed to control the pest. Tea was also damaged. The Jight rains throughout the year in Baringo District allowed the spray régimé for control of Onion Thrips at Perkerra to proceed without interruption. Thiodan was used almost exclusively and control has apparently been good. Trials on the research farm have shown that malathion is the most effective safe insecticide and at the rate of two pints to the acre of 50 per cent m.l. bas given very large yield increases over untreated controls.

31 Damage by eut-worms was widespread during the year principaUy on maize and potatoes. The damage started in May on seedJing maize and was controUed quite effectively by the use of a bait which incorporated molasses. lt was apparent thal a bail without molasses was insufficiently attractive to divert the cut-worm from the maize.

Nematocerus weevils were much in evidence duriog the year causing damage to wheat, maize, barley, clover and tea seedlings. Most of the damage was caused by larvae but in sorne farms at Njoro and 0 1 Arabe[ severe damage was donc by adults to young wheat and maize. D .D.T. spraying remained an effective control measure against adults but no economical control of the larva is yet known. Army-worm outbreaks developed over widespread a reas of Kenya during the March to May period and much damage to young cereal crops occurred. Control measures were subsidized by the Government and most cereal crops werc thereby saved. Army-worm again gave cause for alarm during the last few wecks of the year when limüed outbreaks occurred; however these out­ breaks wcre generally confined to grass and did not cause economically significant damage. Work on biological control projects continued in co-operation witb the Commonwealth Institute of Biological Control. The major emphasis at present is on the control of the weeds Lantmw and Prickly Pear, and survey work preparatory to the control of our stem-borer pests of graminaceous crops.

STORED PRODUCTS PESTS As the result of a series of trials on phosphine fumigation, recommendations have becn made for the control of insects infesting cotton seed cake in closed railway wagons and 30-ton stacks of bagged maize and wheat. R ates of up to 230 aluminium phosphide tablets per 1,000 cu. ft. did not affect germination or seedling weight in haricot beans, maize, sunflower or wheat, even at high­ moisture contents. The movement and distribution of phosphine in bulk maizc was also investigated. A population of Maize Weevil from Kitale bas been found to be resistant to lindane. lnsects from this source were bred up for laboratory bio-assay using 0.1 per cent flour-based insecticide dusts admixed with mai.ze. Fenitrothion, malathion, pyrethrins and "Tribuphon" gave promising enough results to merit their inclusion in subsequent crib trials. Dromodan and carbaryl were not effective at standa rd dosage rates. A study of the infestation of field maize by stored product insects was initiated at Kitale. Heavy pre-harvest infestation of Maize Weevil occurs. The main source is maize stored near by but a search is being made for alternative hosts and habourages. Weevils can fly at least a quarter of a mile and suctîon trap catches have shown that during the month of September the majority fl y from the store during the afternoon. The )east mature cars with S. zeamais adults on had a moisture content of more than 50 pcr cent, 13 weeks before harvest. The next generation of adults can emerge bcfore harvcst. Ears are much more likely to be infested by weevils when the sheath is open at the end. A trial was carried out to assess the efficiency of mixtures of pyrethrins and malathion when used as an admixing dust for the protection of stored maize. The results indicated that such mixtures show considerable promise and a large fie ld trial was planned as a follow-up.

32 A study of the behaviour under field conditions, of the Red Flour Beetle was started at the National Agricultural Laboratories by a guest research worker, Dr. Graham. His findings may weil prove to be of importance to a truc under­ standing of the methods of control of this very serious pest of stored produce. With a view to the eventual setting up of a "Pest Infestation and Storage Division", an examination was started of the existing methods of agricultural produce trading in Kenya and their effect on infestation and storage !osses. It is already clea r that avoidable losses of export crops, both quantitative and qualitative, commonly occur and this is of particul ar concern when one con­ siders the importance to the nation of maintaining a name for quality in these days of increasing competition for markets. This work is being carried out by Mr. M. T. Locke, a technical expert provided by the Government of the United Kingdom. Towards the end of the year a new project was started to investigate the bio-nomics and control of Bean Bruchids. This project is particularly valuable in that it coïncides with the concentrated drive currently being mounted by the fi eld services of the Department to produce large quantities of haricot beans of canning quality for the export market. The presence of Bean Bruchids in samples of Kenya haricot beans has been one of the main causes in the past for our failure to attract buyers for canning quality beans. This project, also, is being carried out by a technical expert, M r. J. A. McFarlane, provided by the Government of the United Kingdom.

Plant Breeding WHEAT RESEARCII General.-The acreage planted to wheat in the main season was 314,000; this was increased by second plantings in the Short Rai ns to a total of 326,034 acres, the second highest figure on record. The total acreage represents an increase of 9 per cent over the 1964 fi gure. Although there is a great need for increased wheat production, the spread of the practice of double cropping is viewed with sorne alarm as it could have serious repercussions, particularly in increasing the carry-over of stem rust between seasons. The widespread drought during the year was responsible for an overall reduction in wheat yields and the estimated average yield stands at 4.53 bags per acre. The lowcst areas were particularly badly hit; in contras! the high country, where rainfall is normally excessive, may weil have a record harvest. Diseases were generall y at a low leve! with the exception of yellow car rust which caused considerable reduction in yield in sorne areas. The total crop is estimated at 1,476,065 bags, a 7 per cent reduction from 1964, while consumption of wheat products rose by approximately 25 per cent during the year. Consequently it will be necessary to import considerable quan­ tities of wheat during 1966 in order to make up the deficit. There is an obvious need to increase local production of wheat; there is little prospect of a substantial expansion of acreage in the established areas but the station has been co­ operating in trials to assess the potential for wheat growing in new areas, particularly the Masai Land Unit, and no special difficulty is envisaged from the biological standpoint. It is hoped that it will be possible to provide an agronomist at Njoro and that this will lead eventually to increased production per acre, although the greatest potential for extra yield lies in increased and more efficient extension work in putting existing knowledge into practice. The overall quali ty leve! of the 1965 crop was satisfactory and baking strength fi gures showed a consid erable improvement over the low values obtained in 1964. There was no significant change in the pattern of barley and oat

33 growing, although precise figures are not available. Malting barley was generally grown against contracts issued by the local breweries and the system appeared to work very satisfactorily. There were considerable plantings of the new oat variety Surcgrain which has been found to be unsuitable for porridge production, but no difficulty is foreseen in disposing of the crop in view of the stock-feed shortage. The final separation of the wheat and maize research sections took place on lst April 1965 giving official recognition to a situation which had existed for sorne time. Wheat Breeding.-The main breeding programme at Njoro was carried through successfully although it was necessary to use irrigation on severa! occasions. A heavy epidemie of stem rust was established by inoculation and good screening was possible, as the incidence of other diseases was very light. Severa! trial sites were rendered useless by drought but the high-altitude pro­ gramme at Molo had a good season with very high levels of stripe rust and ear rust from which sorne very useful results were obtained. Four new va rieties, three of Kenya breeding, were released at the end of the season for 1966 plantings. One in particular, Romany, is very promising and has given high yields in ali areas. Seed production was severely limited by drought and ali varieties are likely to be oversubscribed. Once again a large number of nurseries and individual accessions were received from overseas for incorporation in the breeding programme. There were serious !osses of senior staff during the year but in general it was possible to carry on the research programme due largely to the availability of a full complement of assistant plant breeders, but further senior staff are urgently needed. The Rockfeller Foundation grant in support of the International Rust Testing Centre at Njoro expired on 31st December 1965 but an application has been made for a further grant for an additional three-year period. Agronomy.- It had been hoped to obtain an agronomist for the 1965 season but this proved to be impossible. The programme of trials which h ad been planned was therefore scaled down to provide a preliminary survey as a basis for a more comprehensive programme in the future. In the event, the trials were genera ll y badly droughted and of little value. The programme for 1966 will depend upon the availabi lity of qualified staff. Plant Pathology.- As the plant pathologist was largely concerned with adminis­ tration, the activities of the pathology section were seriously curtailed and the main emphasis was placed on maintenance of services to the plant breeders ra ther than in independent programme of research. The annual field survey of stem-rust races was continued in full ; no new races were detected but the balance between races showed further changes. Work on variability in the stem-rust fungus was continued, and experiments to assess loose smut resistance were continued and extended.

MAIZE RESEARCH Genera/.- In April 1965 the former plant breeding section was divided into the wheat research section, with headquarters at Njoro, and the maize research section, with headquarters at Kitale. The continuing rapid and vast expansion of maize research, from its resumption ten years ago to the point where its scale now exceeds that of wheat research, had made this change long overdue and in fact it was merely administrative recognition of the separation thal had aJready taken place natura ll y on technical grounds. This is the firs t report of the maize research section.

34 Expansio11.- Expansion continued with the cstabli $hment of the E mbu breeding programme for medium maturity maize. ln the near future it is planned to add agronomy research and develop the joint improvement of varieties and cultural practices, a combincd approach that has made possible the rapid progress at Kitale and Katumani. Ali major maize-growing areas of Kenya are now covered by the tluee programmes as follows :- (a) Kitnle-late maturity ma ize. Serves tl1e main commercial maize-growing areas of Rift, Western and Nyanza Provinces with one long rainfall season a year. There are four units comprising headquarters, genetics, plant breeding and agronomy. This main station supports the other two pro­ grammes with basic research, training and technical gu id ance. It is also the East African maize centre of the United States sorgbum-millet-maize scheme for 1\frica. (b) Embu- medium maturity maize. Serves the two rainfall-season a reas of Central Kenya, round Mount Kenya and the Aberdares. (c) Kntunwni- earl y maturity maize. Serves areas of poor erratic rainfall often experi encing famine, especia Uy Machakos and Kitui Districts of Eastern Province, where a very early maturing maize is needed to escape drought, to complete ali the essential stages of development of the plant before the rain shuts off. Kenya is often troubled with alternating maize shortages and surpluses because the 7 per cent or so that is grown by large-scale commerci al farmers on 4 per cent of the total acreage cannot even out the fluctua ti ons in the other 93 per cent grown by subsistence farmers. It was forecast in the last annual report that larger imports would be needed in 1965 due to the reduction in acreage of maize on large-scale farms to Jess than half the level of previous years. The situation was made much worse by a serious drought in the 1965 main season and an carly stop to the Short Rains at the end of the year. It is now obvious that importati ons must con ti nue on a large scale in 1966. A serious food shortage hit the people throughout the country and in December ilie President ordered an inquiry into mai ze marketing and distribution, especially to investi­ gate why importations did not arrive when needed, but also to study ilie supply position. Though the maize resea rch section !ost sorne trial locations due to drought, and irrigation was needed to save sorne breeding plots at K atumani, the general etfect of the adverse season on the research effort was negligible and the rapid progress continued at ali stations. In the first year's work at Embu a varietal double cross is showing very good promise; at K atumani the Composite A gave I l bags per acre on only 5 in. rainfall ; and at Kitale the new thinking on breeding mcthods is producing excellent progress following on f rom the good start already made. A maize-sorghum-millet workshop conference was held at Kitale and Serere, Uganda, wi th the co-operation of E.A.A.F.R.O. for breeders from eastern Africa with Dr. G. F. Sprague, Leader of Corn and Sorghum Investigations, United States Department of Agriculture, in the chair. Delegates attended from Zambia Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi, Sudan, Somalia and Kenya. Interest was stimulated in recurrent selection breeding methods, the delegates toured some of our fi eld plots, and a more extensive exchange of breeding material has resulted. The in-service training project began with partiCipation by Mr. John Monyo, Mwanza, Tanzania, and Mr. Y. M usisi, Kawanda, Uganda, as weil as severa! new members of our own staff.

35 Kitale- late maturity maize.- Good progress was made in the second full year of the maize genetics project and considerable support was given by the breeding programmes at Kitale, to Embu and K atumani, and to other eastern African countries. This support will expand with the contacts made during the successful workshop conference. Preliminary information from the project indicates that the introduction of varieties from Centra l America has greatly increased the progress that can be made from recurrent selection.

The following table shows the rapid expansion in the acreage of hybrids grown since the first were released in 1964. The equally rapid improvement in introducing improved hybrids is also shown. Acres Hybrids Year grown available Pedigrees of Hybrids 1964 35,000 611 Kitale Syn. Il x Ecuador 573 621 (A x G) x (E x D) 631 (G x D) x A 1965 . . 70,000 As above ~~:}63 1 622 (G x D ) x (A x F) 632 (A x G) x F 1966 .. 100,000 611 B Kitale Syn. Il[ x Ecuador 573 612 (A x G) x Ecuador 573 622} 632 As above

The target for 1965 seed production was 14,000 bags hybrid seed to plant 140,000 acres but the drought reduced this to 10,000 bags actua lly harvested. The success of the hybrids themselves, and the impact on farmers of the 5,000 maize demonstra tion plots, caused the demand for seed for planting in 1966 to jump up to 30,000 bags. Seed production next year will have to be greatly increased to meet this very encouraging demand.

Recurrent selections in composites (previously called bulk popula tions) are making much more rapid increases in yield than the very satisfactory improve­ ment of conventional hyb rid breeding from inbrcds. Future hybrids will proba bl y be improved Kenya Composites crossed to improved Central American Composites, and this type of hybrid wi ll replace current double and three-way crosses of inbreds.

The maize agronomist completed hi s second full year·s programme. This extended from basic research on factors affecting growth to the series of district variety and cultural trials on which are based our annual recommendations on varieties a nd cultural practices. Confident recommenda ti ons, based on con­ sistent and statistically significant trials results, are now made on time of planting. correct population per acre and spacing, and the type o f hybrid best suited to each arca. Sound recommendations on stalk borer and weevil control were previously availa ble. This advice, wi th a joi nt approach on varietal and cultural recommendations combined, reaching the farmers through the extension staff. maize demonstration plots, a nnua l hand-outs, field days, etc., bas generally resultcd in doubli ng of yields where hybrids have been grown (ignoring d rought­ affected a reas). This compares with an average o f only 30 per cent increase over ordina ry local maize when hybrids a re grown in trials under exactly the same conditions and e mphasizes the need to use hybrids as a lever to stimulate better cultura l methods.

36 Much more work is needed in the many different soil types in different ecological areas before equall y confi dent recommendations can be made on ferti lizer use. Economie response to fertilizer has been far f rom consistent. The fact that ferti lizer is the largest single cost item of maize growing, makes it very difficult to make firm recommendations, especially to small-scale farmers with limited cash available. Embu- Medium Maturity Maize.- In the first year of the Embu breeding programme, a wide variety of accessions from man y countries were grown. Among these, the most promising initial results were from sorne early by late crosses. These were crosses that bad been made the previous year at J(jtale of the best Kitale late maize crossed to the best K atumani early maize. The best of these early by late crosses were the same medium maturity as the local Muratha maize and about 30 per cent hi gher in yield . It was decided to press ahead urgently as top priority in the second rains season wi th further trials and with the fi rst steps of seed production of the fo llowing hybrid :- (Kitale Hybrid 62 1 x K atumani Synthetic IV) X (Cometico x Katumani Synthetic Ill). In co-operation with the Mwanza Research Station in Tanzania, certain medium and earl y Central American accessions from medium and low altitudes, were crossed to Muratha and Kitale Syn thetic Ill as testers. These test crosses, together with sorne late by early crosses and other good medium maturity material, were then incorporated into an East African Co-operative Medium Maturity Variety Trial which is being grown at a number of locations in East Africa. The in formation from this trial will enable us to select the varieties with best crossing value as source material for long-term breeding at Embu; while sorne variety crosses may be good enough for immediate commercial exploitation. Much of this material looks to have very good possibilities. This preliminary work from the first year at Embu, by utilizing the support of our existing programmes, has thus yielded something for immediate use and a wealth of material for future improvement that is somewhat embarrassing. In co-operation with a development and expansion of the agronomy research, now bei ng done by the agricultural rescarch officer at Embu, there are good prospects of a big jump in the maize yields of Central Kenya. Katumani- Early Maturity Maize.- The poor-rainfall a reas served by Ka tu­ mani were aga in the region most severely affected by the 1965 drought. Large­ scale famine reli ef was necessa ry. In severa) areas the only maize to come to harvest was the maize demo nstration plots which had combined use of dry planting, carly Katumani seed, clean weeding and good husbandry gcncrall y. On the Katumani station itself there was the remarkable achievement from Katumaru Composite A of Il bags of maize on only 5 in. rainfall. Such crops, standing out in an area where ali othcr maize had fai led completely, made a great impact o n hungry people. Whereas previously we had plenty of seed but no demand, we now found o urselves with terrifie demand far greater than the seed avai lable. As seed bulking by other methods in severa! seasons had fa iled to meet the level of the present large-scale demand, the Kenya Seed Company werc asked to help and have now made a good commercial start. Katumani Synthetic IV in trials averaged 23 per cent higher yield than the best early maizc so far available, Synthetic TI, and was released. Previously Katumani Synthetics had outyielded local Machakos maizc only in a poor­ rainfall season, admittedly when the need was greatest. Katumani Synthetic IV is much higher yielding under poor conditions and is also as good or better under good conditions. Katumani Synthetic V was formed and components for Katumani Synthetic VI were selected from yield trials.

37 Straight synthetics will soou be replaced by synthetic crosses and selections from composites of synthetic crosses. Synthetic II X Synthetic III in three­ season trials at two locations has outyielded the parent synthetic at an average of 27 per cent. The improvement is much greater in a poor season when it is most wanted. The second generation of the cross still has 14 per cent superiority. Selection in the advanced generation of the cross, grown as a composite, is expccted to regain most of the 27 per cent. Katumani Composite A from Synthetic lU x IV was twice bulked and selected to this end. Orher Crops.- Locations of the E.A.A.F.R.O. district sorghum trials run from Kakamega could not be planted this year but were continued at Kampi ya Mawe and M urinduko. The variety Serena is now confidently recommended as supcrior to Tada or Dobbs, the best varieties previously available. The groundout programme based on Kakamega was considerably developed wi th satisfactory progrcss. A programme for improvement of bcans, principally food beans but also canning beans, was begun at Embu.

Horticulture Acietu11o (Simnmba g/auca).- Piantings at Thika Horticulture Station, Kara­ maini Estate (Thika), and Mtwapa Experimental Station have come into bearing. As cxpected from ovcrseas literature, the trees are male, female or herma­ phrodite. Yield records will therefore be made and propagation studies conducted with a view to vegetative propagation of high-yielding femalc or hermaphrodite trees. Apple.- A stoolbed nursery has been started at Moto with imported Malling stocks, for commercial and experimental propagation. Bnnanas.- An importer's agent from the Middle East pronounced the following varieties in the Banana Museum at Thika to be suitable for the Middle East market :- Juba Muraru (also called Mulalu) Chinese D warf Mutahato D warf Cavendish (a lso called Ki­ Gabon malindi, K ingurwe, Kisukari Ki ta rasa Kiko, Mundatsi, Kingakiza and Quaheuing Malindi) Uganda Green Sialiamuli Uganda Red A trial sea consignment for the Middle East was sent by the Horticultural Co-operative Union Ltd. but it suffered from over-heating at Kilindi. Black blemishes on the skins make most of Kenya bananas unexportable according to the Agricultural Export (Horticultural Produce Inspection) Rules (Cap. 319). This damage, which was diagnosed by the plant pathology section as probably mechanical, may be partly due to Thrips, and experiments on Thrips control are in progress. There arc varietal differences in the incidence of the black skin blemishes, and recording of observation plots will include this factor. Brinja/s (Sola11um melongena L.).-Variety Florida High Bush produced an clongated larger and brighter fruit than Black Beauty. Variety Nagoke, Long Black Hybrid is purple-leaved and produced a purple-coloured long fruit of very good quality. Broccoli (Brassica oleracea L. var. italica Pleuck).-Variety Green Sprouting produced medium-sized heads. Variety White Mamoth failed to produce a head even 4t months after transplanting.

38 Brussels sprouts (Brassica oleracea L. var. gemmifera Zenker).-All the com­ merciall y available varieties grew but forrned loose sprouts. Infestation by aphids was reduced when planted in a single row. Carrois (Daucus carola L.).-All varieties did very well. Care should be laken about keeping the top soil rnoist during post-germination period for about 4 weeks. Cauliflower (Brassica oleracea L. var. botrytis L.).-Variety Pua Kea (ex Hawaii) produced a Jarger head than Early Patua which produced 2 in. to 3 in. heads. Celery (Apuim graveolens L. var. dulee Pers).-Variety Golden Self-blanching was grown successfully by planting at 9 in. X 6 in. on 2t-3 ft. beds. There was no success with other varieties which needed earthing up for etiolation or blanching the stems. Citrus Fruits.- Piantation management studies supervised by the horticultun.: section have commenced in the orchard at the Coffee Research Station, Ruiru. Recommendations from local past work and from overseas have been collated and will be issued in 1966. A nursery, designed ultimately to produce virus­ free budli ngs on suitable rootstocks, has been established on the old Pasture Station at Thika. Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.).- Several varieties of cucumber were grown. The variety Puerto Rico No. 6 showed resistance to Downy and Powdery mildews. Fruit size and shape were also good. H ybrids types, although of reasonable quali ty, produccd uneven-shaped fruits, and were considered unsuit­ able for field production. Dates.- Assessments were made of the fruit from the plantation at Perkerra. Fruit from the varieties Khalasa, K alara, Kastawy and Rhars X Ammary was of reasonable quality. Dudi (Lagenaria siceraria Standl).- This was found to do weil throughout the year. Any variety with straight-necked elongated frui t is suitable"for export. Lighter-coloured varieties were Jess susceptible to blernishi ng caused by rough handling. French Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.).- Variety Cornelli No. 14 was least affectecl by rust whereas Blue Lake and Tender Green were heavily infected. Tender Long and Masterpiece were mid ly infected. Top clressing with nitro­ genous fertilizer increased the harvest period and improved both quality and quantity of the pocls. Garlic (Allium sativum L.).-It was found that any variety of garlic could be grown in areas where onions grow. provided heavy manure and irrigation were available. Large bulbs with few cloves grew as well as small bulbs with many cloves. Closer spaci ng (3 in. x 3 in.) resulted in the reduction of bulb size in comparison with the normal spacing of 12 in. X 3 in. · Grapes.-Assessments were made of the fruit from the plot at Perkerra. Fruit from the varieties 37, 40, 41, 53, 57 and 65 was satisfactory. The varieties 6, 7, 14, 16, 21, 27, 39, 50, 51, 52, 54, 56, 58, 60, 61, 62, 63, 66 are to be kept for further assessment, wh ile 20, 22, 25, 32, 44, 47 and 49 are unplcasant and to be rcjected. It was established that, if the routine sprays are carried out according to "Notes on K enya Agriculture VIII: Important Plant Diseases" (R. A. Robinson. 1962), grape vines wi ll bear a crop at Perkerra and Molo. Propagation of Molo varieties began at Thika.

39 Green Peas (Pistun sativum L.).- Yarieties Meteor and P.Y. matured in six weeks. Tall varieties were more susceptible to bird damage. Guava.- There is no difficulty in growing this crop at Thika, Mtwa pa and Kisii. A control is required for False Codling Moth. " Malherbe" appears to be the best variety so far, though the fruit is small. Two other varieties bave not yet given enough fruit for assessment. Yitamin C assessments was suspended due to departure of the chemist who was to have done it. Hawaiian varieties introduced by the United States Agency for International Development have proved sour, tasteless and very prone to False Codling Moth. Macadamia Nuts.- With the onset of plentiful fruiting on Karamaini Estate, T hika, and an estate at Kitale, propagation by selected seed became possible. Karamaini Estate sold 197,000 seedlings, mostly to Central Province, using their own seed and an importation from H awaii. Four thousand seedlings from selected Kitale seed grown at Thika H orti­ culture Station are avail able for sale in Rift Valley, Western and N yanza Provinces. Cuttings ft own from H awaii were grafted on to seedlings at Karamaini Estate. Grafting has been done exactly according to H awaiian instructions by a competent operator, but success is small. This may be due to the time taken in freight, or to our drier atmosphere. Mango.- Seedlings near M twapa were successfully grafted with the following American varieties imported by a grower: Jacqueline, Palmer, D avis B aden, Zill, Eaden, Anderson, Spring Feil, Kent. The performance of these varieties at the Coast is not yet known. They are on the tarrn of Mr. D 'Cruz. Miraa.-Connoisseurs from Meru recommended and provided the following varieties for experimentati on : Kilakiru, K athara. Mooli (Raphanus sarivius L.).-Long-white types did weil when grown on ridges 18 inches high and 24 inches apart. Best resul ts were obtai ned when seedlings were thinned to 6 inches apart before the second pair of true leaves appeared and when the soi! was kept during root development. Okra (Hibiscus esculentus L.).- Spineless varieties were found to withstand handling better than spiny types. Cold weather in June and July caused poor fruit set and a high incidence of lea f diseases. Wind protection was found to improve fruit set.

Onions (A Ilium se pa L.) Bulbs.-In observation plots, Tropicana H ybrid consistently produced larger bulbs in comparison to Red Creole, White Creole and Mexican White. Yariety H aici Shiro failed to bulb. Variety Early Grand produced good bulbs and stored weil for nine weeks at room temperature. Red Narsik produced small-sized bulbs. Spacing onions at 3 in. by 3 in. resulted in the production of small-sized bulbs even when Tropicana H ybrid was used. Pickling or Peari.-Yariety Silver Skin produced large bulbs. Another variety Ebenesar White Globe is at present under observation. Bunching or Green.- A longer white neck was obtained when seed was planted in a deep furrow and the "stem" graduall y covered with soi!.

40 Pmvpaw for Pa pain.-The two fertilizer and spacing trials have shown so far that- (1) phosphate hastens growth and fruiting; (2) pawpaws survived during the drought year 1965, although their growth was not strong; (3) fruiting takes about 14 months from seed at Thika. The variety used is Solo. Plantings for papain cannot be recommended at this stage as yields may be low and "Pencil Point condition" may yet appear.

PINEAPPLES Development and Commercial.- The part-failure of the April-June rains resulted in shortage of supplies to canneries. Total tons delivered during the year were: - Kenya Canners Ltd., Thika 14,182 Kenya Orchards Ltd., Machakos 5,320 Panafprod, Naivasha, bought Grade 3 pineapples for dehydrating. The drought also caused a very severe setback to young plantings; the effects will be evident for three years. An agreement was concluded between California Packing Corporation Ltd. and the Kenya Government. The first phase of this agreement allows for ex­ pansion of total average production from 26,000 tons per year to ali canneries now to 42,000 tons per year in 1968. Kenya Canners Ltd. came under the control of California Packing Corporation Ltd. It was decided that ali new production capacity should be allotted to the "high-altitude" (smallholder) areas. A plan was drawn up for the planting of 1,068 acres in these a reas in the October-December rains of 1965, and 1,068 acres in the April-June rains of 1966. Plantings were organized by the chief agriculturist in Central Province, and the report on them appears in the Central P rovince Annual Report, 1965. Planting were restricted to below 5,800 ft. a.s.l ., and will be restricted to below 5,700 ft. a .s.l. during the 1966 plantings.

EXPERIMENTATION Quality in Relation to A /ti tude.- Tests were made in co-operation with Kenya Canners Ltd. and the senior soif chemist. The report appears in the Annual Report, Part I of the Senior Soi! Chemist (1965). Since theo, Kenya Canners Ltd. have determined that fruit grown above 5,700 a.s.l. is unreliable in its quality, particuJarly because it breaks up physicall y during canning. Plastic Mu/ch v. Grass Mu/ch v. Ridging.-R atoon yield results await analysis. The use of black plastic (250 gauge) mulch at present plastic priees cannot possibly be economie, costing .€88 per acre. (1 lb. to 14 ft. or double row; double rows 2 ft. + 3 ft. apart; Sir. 2/80 per lb. of plastic 3 ft. wide at quanti/y priee.) Mealybug Control.- These experiments are being reported by the senior entomologist. Soif Fumigation.- A trial at Karamainj Estate, Thika, showed no significant differences in the ratoon crop. Previous experiments (Annual Report, 1963) show thal fumigation is economie on the plant crop.

41 lrrigation.-AonÙal Report, Part ll, 1964, stated that · experiments proved no significant iocrease in yield from irrigation. These experiments were over a period of reasonably wet years. Calculations made by an estate owner and reported to the Canning Crops Board show that eli mination of (osses during drought years such as 1965, particularly in young plants, can make irrigation economie. Spacing.- In the Annual Report, Part I, 1964, it was reported that close spacing (3 ft. + 2 ft. X 6 in. giving 34,000 plants per acre) gives greatly increased yields. Estate experience has, however, shown that this spacing results in elongated fruit, increased Pineapple Scale incidence and difficulties in harvesting. The close spacing is unlikely to be widely used. · P/um.- Propagation of Methley and Santa Rosa re-started at Thika and Molo. Potaroes.-Potato priees remained at a reasonable level througbout the year; the Nairobi wholesale priee was generally above Sb. 25 a bag of 180 lb. A large co-operative association undertook to develop sced supplies by con­ tracting with growers and offering support priees. This g~ea tl y increased the supplies of certified seed in the second half of the year. These suppljes were theo under-cut by traders who persuaded farmers in the. Central Province that movement permits issued in Nyandarua District were seed certificates. The West German Government donated seed of 16 varieties of potatoes. This was issued to farmers, farmers' training centres and experimental stations for Ïrjal. The foll owing varieties performed very poorly: I rmgard, Valuta, Rheinhort, Fi na. Of these, F ina is stated, by growers who know it, to be worthy of re-trial. The following varieties proved worth re-trial: Anco, Benedetta, Clivia, Cosima, Maritta, Feldeslohn, Petra, Eva, Lerche, Lovensa. At Molo, potato experiments had to be abandoned due to heavy virus infection· wh ich is thought to have been transmitted by the Potato Root Apbid infestation last year. · Work on Bacterial Wilt of potatoes and the breeding of varieties resistant to Bacterial Wilt is undertaken by the senior plant pathologist. Shanks' Blackberry.- Jam-making tests by Kenya Orehards Ltd. using fruit from Molo bave shown that thjs blackberry makes an excellent jam. There is scope for limited production. Strmrherries.-The following herbicides have proved satisfactory at Molo. Pre-p/anting : C-2059, 2 lb. a.i. per acre. Monuron. 6 lb. a.i. per acre (not less th an 10 da ys be fore plan ting). Diuron, 1 lb. a.i. per acre. Neburon, 2-4 lb. a.i. per acre. Dichlobenil, 7-10 lb. a.i. per acre. WL-5792, 2 lb. a.i. per acre. Simazine, 2 lb. a.i. per acre. On Established Crop (Note: The strawberry plants must be scrcened from the spray): Dichlobenil, 7 lb. a.i. per acre. Neburon, 3 lb. a.i. per acre. Diuron, 1 lb. a.i. per acre. M onuron, 4-8 lb. a.i. per acre.

42 However, mulching with grass or straw is probably the best method of weed control in Kenya where soil-water conservation has to be laken into account. This work is published in "Third E.A. Herbicide Conference on Soii-Applied Herbicides in E ast Africa" (E.A.C.S.O. Oct. 1964). Sweet Corn (Zea mays L.).- Variety Golden Bantam produced good-quali ty cobs despite hcavy rust infestation at later stages in growth. Varieties Bathman's Earl y YeUow and Stowelli Evergreen wcre taller and Jess susceptible to rust but took longer to mature. Sweet Pepper (Capsicum allllllm L.).- Variety Chinese Giant produced thick­ wa Ued smoother and larger fruit tban Yellow Wonder which in turn was superior to California Wonder. Tomato-shaped Sweet Pepper is flat but with many ridges. Size was 2t in. to 3 in. by 1 in. X 1t in. lt could be a good type for stuffing. Tomatoes (Lycopersico11 esculentum Mill).-Using variety San Marzano, a spacing x fertility trial was carried out. The results await analysis. Losses in crop due to fruit rots were heavy. On observational plots it was found that for the fresh market, staked but unpruned plants produced better crops. Tripod-type stakes gave better support than single stakes. Variety Moncy Maker showed reasonable resistance to Bacterial Wi lt caused by Pseudomonas solanacearum. Va lor (Canal'alia gladiata).- Varieties which produced long, slim and straight pods were found to be preferable. Sorne sort of support was necessary on erect­ growing varicties. Watermelon (Citmllus l'lllgaris Schard).-Varieties Congo (oblong fruit) and Chilean Black (round fruit) were found to be resistant to leaf diseases. Fruit weight varied from 15-20 lb. The ftesh was light red and sweet. The rind was hard and thick, and the fruit transported weil.

Pyrethrum Fertili::.er Trials.-A trial conducted on the sub-station at Bibirioni (Limuru) has, in its second year, still shown no response to phosphate fertilizer (triple superphosphate at 150 and 300 lb. per acre). The application of 560 lb. per acre of hyperphosphate (30 per cent) produced an increase over the control but it was not significant. The trial is on fertile soi! and it will be nccessary to compare this with fields in the arca. At Othaya (Nyeri District) the usual large response to phosphate was obtained (second year of trial). The control indicates that the trial site is very infertile. With 187.5 lb. per acre the yield was doubled and 375 lb. produced nearly a four-fold increase ovcr the check. Herc also it will be nccessary to determine how typical the trial site is. The trial at Keroka (Kisii) is in its first year and is showing a rcsponsc to large applications of phosphate but more results must be awaited to confirm the trend. Polyploidy.- Using colchicine as a seed treatment the previous plant breeder in 1962 established a population of approximately 6,000 plants, sorne of which it was hopcd would be tetraploids. From this population al! suspected tctra­ ploids (83 plants thal looked different) were selected and root-tip chromosome counts done. Of these 83 selections three were triploids (induced or natural), 34 were tetraploids and the rest diploids, which means that on a visual basis tetraploids can be selected with an accuracy 'of about 40 per cent, reducing cytological analysis tremendously.

43 Preliminary gas liquid chromatographie analysis shows that the ratios of the cinerins to pyrethrins are within the same range for tetraploids and triploids as for the diploids. However, the total percentage of pyrethrins for tetraploids appeared lower than for diploids. The triploids were withing the range of the diploids for total pyrethrins content but sorne very good triploids (naturally occurring) have been selected from other untreated populations. The object now is to conduct further tests on the 34 tetraploids and to cross them with sorne of our best diploid clones to form triploid populations for further selection and study. One advantage of triploids regardless of pyrethrin content, is their large flower size.

Crosses.- Diallel crosses between nine clones selected on the basis of the 1963 polycross progeny yield trial were attempted in isolated plots (36 crosses). However, establishment due to lack of rain was very poor. Only about half of these crosses can therefore be tested for performance in 1966, at one station instead of four or five as planned.

Spectrographie Analyses.- The total number of sam pies analysed for pyre­ thrin content in 1965 by the Pyrethrum Marketing Board laboratories in Nakuru was about 5,400. This figure includes approximately 1,500 single plant selections from which the best wi ll be kept for further observation. It is hoped that individual selections can be increased by a factor of six to seven times, starting in 1966. The probability of picking up good plants must be increased.

Seed.- The de rn and for seed has continued to be considerably higher than production. In order to meet the demand, seed fi eld expansion was attempted in April-May. However, drought conditions had disastrous effects on severa! of these attempts as weil as on the established fields. The total production for the year was just under 1,500 lb.

Heritability.-The computer analysis of the heritability trial for yield and content has been partly completed (by Mr. Contant). T he heritability value for pyrethrins content for ali data is 0.5009 which is increased to 0.9959 when only the most reliable data is used. The value for flower yield (ali plots treated separately) is 0.4509. The standard deviations for these values have not yet been derived. In other words selection for pyrethrins content is more effective than for flower yield.

Herbicides.-The picture for herbicides is stiJl somewhat confused. Many trials which have been conducted have tested the chemical under adverse weather conditions- loo wet or too dry. Although a number of chemicals have shown promising weed control the safety factor for the pyrethrum p lants is sti Jl in doubt. However, splits are definitely more tolerant than seedlings. On the other band one may have to face the possibi lity that in a fa rmer's field the conditions wi ll often not be at the optimum and damage from chemicals could result. Irrigation Nurseries.-A departure from previous years is the organization of irrigation nurseries for the propagation of proven clones for eventual distri­ bution to farmers. The idea is to achieve maximum multiplication by growing plants at warmer altitudes, with optimum moisture ali year. Based on Tanzania results it should be possible to achieve rapid vegetative multiplicatio n without having the plant waste energy on flower production. With nurseries scattered near a li growing areas the distribution of improved clones to growers should be relatively efficient. This has been organized mainly by the Pyrethrum Marketing Board and this section has coniributed plants of a number of clones. Severa( nu rseries arc already working weil , others wi ll no doubt improve.

44 Cutting.-Only one experiment with stem cutting (no roots) of Clone 1708 was conducted. The percentage of cuttings produci ng roots was approximately five, which means th al in addition to the plants produced from crown splits and basal cuttings, sorne additional plants could be produced by taking stem cuttings. Species.- The Chrysanthemum species collection is bei ng maintained and gas liquid chromatographie analysis have been conducted. Sorne pyrethrins are contained by a few species. Whether this could be of value in a crossing pro­ gramme is hard to say but the addition of sorne of the distinct flower charac­ teristics from sorne of the species would certainly be of value in fundamental studies of pyrethrum.

The chromosome counts of the species have been checked and found to be 911, 11 11 18 and 27 • Sisal N urseries.-Nursery trials have been discontinued. Plant Management.- The trial to determine the importance of desuckering now in its fifth year, still showed no significant difference between treatments. The trial to determine if the yields of fibre would increase, when grasses and weeds were substituted by leguminous cover crops, was first laid down in February 1959. Unfortunately, little information was available at the time on the methods of establishing and maintai ning such legumes in sisal inter-rows and the experiment has been marred from the start by mistakes and frequent replantings. No specifie conclusions can therefore be drawn but those interested could obtain details from the Thika Sisal Research Station. Two growth trials were laid down at the same time in 1959. The original object was to determine if a cash crop of pineapples (A nanas comosus) could be grown success fully between the inter-rows of sisal planted in double rows at a population of 1,980 plants per acre. The original object was abandoned as the pineapples failed during the drought of 1961. Since then the inter-rows have been used successfully for the testi ng of grasses and legumes. As the trials are contiguous to the meteorological station and are remark­ abl y uniform, it has been decided to utilize them for studies of growth in relation to climate. Recordings of leaf production and fibre yield are therefore being maintained and are to be correlated with the climatic conditions prevailing over the cycle. A 33 factorial trial was planted in May 1962 to compare the effects of different types of mulch applied to the actual rows of fie ld sisal. Growth has been good and the trial wi ll be due for a first eut in January 1966. Application of sisal waste at 50 tons pcr acre has produced a significant increase of 7.8 leaves per plant, whilst 50-gauge polythene mulch has produced an increase of 1 1.9 leaves per plant. Comparable increases are apparent for Jeaf length. The effects of sisal waste and polythene are linear, which means thal a maximum has not yet been reached and the increase will continue. The increased production from clean weeding, however, is quadratic, and having reached ils maximum, no further increases can be expected. Ferti/izers.-The ni trogen rates trial laid down in October 1960 has not yet been concluded and no results can be given. It would appear, however, that N in nitrate form produces the best response but it will be interesting to see if the slower acting urea can catch up. In a trial to compare the residual effect of CD Urea (BASF) with sulphate of ammonia which was laid down in October 1960, it appears as if the rate of decline is slower in the case of CD U rea than for sulphate of ammonia. 45 A trial was planted in September 1960 to compare three rates of nitrogen as sulphate of ammoni a (100, 200 and 300 lb. per acre, repeated) and three methods of applying waste (50 tons as mu1ch, 50 tons dug in, 25 tons as mulcb, plus 25 tons dug in) and one rate of caJcium as agricultural lime at planting Ct ton per acre). There was no response from calcium either when applied alone or in com­ bination with the other treatments. There were significant effects from waste and nitrogen. No firm recommendations cao yet be given on a trial laid down on Hoey"s Bridge soifs to compare different rates of lime, sulphate of ammonia and sisal waste o r to the trial on the Magarini Sands at Vipingo Sisal Estate comparing a series of different fertilizer rates. Plant Disorders.-The present phase of research into Pa ralle! Streak was drawn to a close. The tentative findings from a temperature experiment show thal parallel streak occurs only where the minimum daily temperature falls below 60.5° F. or 15.8° C. Temperatures were then altered and under these new conditions, the symptoms first appeared five months after the onset of the cold period, and it is thus confirmed thal the appearance of symptoms on field sisal is the result of low night temperatures prevailing severa! montbs previously. Plants take a similar time to recover after the removal of the cold environment. From the observations, it was obvious that Marginal Streak is the forerunner of Parallel Streak, but no attempt was made to investigate the exact conditions necessary to produce symptoms of marginal streak aJonc. A review of the problem was published in the February issue of the Kenya Sisal Board Bulletin, 1966. Pla111 lmprovement.- A sisal and hybrid population trial planted in 1961 indieates that the effect of interplant competition is increasing as the plants mature, leading to more leaves being produced from lower plant populations. There are no significant differences between the leaf lengths of the di ffe rent populations of hybrid, but in comparison with those of sisal they are sorne 20 cm. shorter. Herbicides.-Messrs. Kleenway Ltd. with the Du Pont representative laid down a low-rates trial of Hyver X and other experimental herbicides whilst Messrs. Hoechst Ltd. laid down a trial of Afalon and Aresin. Ail applications were made on nursery material. A number of demonstration plots were also put down on selected estates. The Hyvar X high-rates trial laid down by Messrs. Kleenway in May 1964 continued to give good results and has been carried over into 1966 to deter­ mine the maximum period of control. This trial compared 4, 6 and 8 lb. product per acre with no weeding and hand-weeding treatments. Up to December ali sprayed plots remained free of broad-leaved weeds (with the exception of the rhizome-forming Sonchus exauriculatus), and free of annual and perennial grasses (with the exception of Digitaria scalarum). H and-weeded plots have required four weedings and are now in need of a flfth. It is very noticeable that hand weeding has increased the amount of Digitaria scalarum present compared with unweeded plots. When this experiment is lifted, the species and weights of weed present will be recorded and correlated with the size, wcight and leaf number of the sisal plants. A full report will be published in the Kenya Sisal Board Bulletin. A recommendation to growers on the correct use and rate of application of Bromacil (Hyvar X) was made in Octobcr (Bromacil : A herbicide sui table for sisal nurseries, Kenya Sisal Board Bulletin 54, October 1965). ·

46 Caver Crops.- Over 100 species have been screened for suitability, and species can now be recommended for each estale. A cover crop trial was planted in October 1965 and was concluded at the end of the year. It involved a comparison of different methods of planting, followed by chemical weed control. Species :- Desmodium sandwicense at 2.5 and 5 lb. / acre. Do/ichos biflorus at 2.5 and 5 lb.jacre. Phaseolus atropurpureus at 5.0 and 10 !b./acre. Ca/apogonium mucunoides at 5.0 and 10 lb./ acre. Centrosema pubescens at 2.5 and 5 Jb. jacre. Treatmellt:- Seeds mechanically scarified. Seeds not scarified. Seed inocul ated dry with "Hansens" inoculant. Seed lime-pelleted with "Hansens" inoculant. Seedbed sprayed with ' •'on at 0.5, 1.0, 1.5 and 2.0 lb. active ingredient/ acre. Seedbed sprayed with Aresin al above rates. Seedbed sprayed with 2,4-DB at 1.0, 1.5, 2.0 and 2.5 lb. active ingredient/ acre. Seedbed sprayed witb MCPB at above rates. After seedbed preparation the soil was analysed for fertility. This varied considerably and fertilizers were applied in deficient areas to obtain a fairly uniform field. An overall application of 30 tons sisal waste per acre was then dug in. Legume seed was hand-planted in rows and regular recordings of germination and growth were made.

R esults.-It soon became apparent that the application of sisal waste had supressed the germination of both weeds and legumes, and consequently it was not possible statistically to compare the different treatments. H owever, it was found that ali legumes could withstand the highest rate of herbicide applied, and that the lowest seeding rate in each case was sufficient to produce a good co ver.

Calapogonium mucunoides was unaffected by the sisal-waste application, and with this species there was no visible benefit obtained by scarification or by any method of inoculation. Nodulation appeared to be satisfactory although the actual activity of the Rhizobia was not tested for in the laboratory.

Sugar NYANZA The large number of trials harvested towards the end of 1964 has resulted in eomparatively few results coming to hand in 1965. The drought, by ruining <>ther experiments, has reduced these stiJl further. The trials were as follows:- (a) A Variety Trial.-Tbe plant crop under rain-fed conditi ons was taken in January at Miwani, NCo 293 giving 72 tons per acre, Co 421 67 tons per acre and Co 33 1 65t tons per acre. This land had received gypsum in 1956.

47 (b) A New Poor Land lmprovement Trial.- The plant crop was harvested in D ecember at Miwa ni and, in spite of the drought gave sorne significant results. A dressing of two tons per acre gypsum, applied in 1956 still gave a significant increase over control and this effeet was still further increased by the growing of a green manure crop, (Crotalaria juncea) just prior to the planting of cane in February 1964. A dressing of two tons per acre gypsum, first applied in late 1963, shortly before planting, showed a beneficiai effect, the non-significance of which might possibly be due to the subsequent dry conditions. When applied, however, to land which had had a previous gypsum dressing in 1956, the result was a depression in yield which was significant in the presence of a green manure treatment. (c) A Gypsum and Nitrogen Trial.- The plant crop under irrigation was ha rvested in November on the Kano Irrigation Station, two tons per acre gypsum giving a highly significant and economie increase over control. The increase due to the high rate of nitrogen was significant but un­ economie and was slightly reduced in the presence of gypsum, which supports earlier results. The most nearly economie nürogen ef:fect was just under fi ve tons of cane for six cwt. of sulphate of a mmonia, which is stiJl not worth while. (d) A Three-row Spacing Trial.- This trial which incorporated three-row spacings (4 ft., 5 ft. and 6ft.), three-set spacings (1 ft. 6 in., 2ft. 3in., 3 ft. centres) and three levels of nitrogen (0, two cwt. per acre and four cwt. per acre CAN), was harvested for seed in July at Kibos a t 13 months of age. Drought and " Red Stripe" bedevilled the trial from early on, so tha t no significa nt main effects were observed. A significant interaction how­ ever was obtained between ni trogen and sett spaeing. in which two cwt. CAN gave a n increase of nearly three tons cane and four cwt. CAN gave an increase of over seven tons cane with the 1t ft. spacing. (e) Pre-emergence Herbicide Tria/s.-In a series of these trials, only Pesco 18/15 at two gallons per acre, T ordon 22K at both two and four quarts per acre, Fenac M 673 A at two US gallons per acre (dug in), Kuron at three lb. per acre, gave acceptable overall weed control. Tordon appeared to delay cane germination, although this appeared to catch up la ter. Kuron appeared to retard the growth of cane. and Fenac, already expen­ sive. had to be dug in. These disadvantages, plus the greate r persistence of Pesco 18 f 15, makes the last-named the most promising herbicide a t present under tria l. This herbicide was then sprayed on to four commer­ cial varieties of cane (Co 42 1, Co 331 , NCo 3 10 a nd B 4 1227) at six weeks after germination a nd at rates of up to six gallons per acre. A marginal chlorosis was observed on ali varieties, but o nl y rates above four gallons per acre appeared to do perma nent damage to the cane.

(/)Ti me of Plaming Trial.- Pesco 18 f 15 has sin ce been used with considerable success to control weeds in this trial; but, as the year has been dry, we are not in a posit ion to recommend it as yet in a li conditions. (g) Minimum Permissible Use of Water.- Four irrigation trials, to invcsigatc the minimum permissible use of water over a restrictcd period, were harvested during the year and the resul ts wi ll be d iscusscd together. The object, in full , of these trials is "to find out the minimum leve! of irrigation, during the low-ftow period of the river, which a crop of sugar­ cane can survive without economie damage.'' This low-flow period is usuall y confi ned to the months: December, Ja nuary and February, so

48 that, with full irrigation whenever necessary during the rest of the year, the following irrigation differentiais were given during the months of December, Janua ry a nd February: -

W0 Control-No irrigation. W A single 3 in. irrigation .:oinciding with the third W irrigation. 1 2 W2 A 3 in. irrigation whenevcr available moisture ha d fallen to 50 per cent of its maximum. ln order that the effect of this water restriction could be assessed on cane at different stages of growth, the cane in the four tria ls was planted a t different times with the intention of recording the effect on both plant crops and ratoons : - (i) The fi rst trial was planted in October 1962, but full irrigation was given d uring the following December, January a nd February, so that it ran unchecked into the next low-flow period (December 1963, Ja nuary a nd February 1964) at 14 months of age. Water restriction appeared to have little elfect on the harvest, possibly because there was a greater than normal a mount of rain d uring the critical period. After the harvest in July 1964, the crop was ratooned and taken thro ugh another low-flow period d uring which irrigati on differentiais were given, before harvesting in December 1965. Once more, in spite this time of a normal dry period, the depression caused by water restriction was not significa nt. Perhaps this is due in part to the low tra nspiration of cane a t onl y five months of age. (ii) T he second trial, harvested in M ay 1965, was plaoted in early July 1963 and ran into the fi rst irrigation differentiais at fi ve months of age and these were combined with a second set during the December 1964-February 1965 period, whic h the cane encountered at 17 months of age. Neither set of irrigation ditTerentials prod uced any effect a t ali , as there was little dry weather d uring the first period and the cane was, in addi tion, small , whilst the cane had possibly got over its most vigorous growth period a t the onset of the second set. (iii) The third trial, ha rvested in July 1965, was planted in October 1963, encountering the December 1963-F ebruary 1964 dry period at two months of age. when its wate r requirements were sma ll. o cffect was encountered therefore from the first set of irrigation differentiais, when rainfall in any case was adequate. The second set however, which the cane encountered at 14 months of age indicated a s igni­ fic ant depression due to water restriction a t this sensitive stage of growth. (i v) The fourth tria l. harvested in Novembcr 1965, was planted in la tc January 1964 with adeq uate irrigati on and ran into the dry Dccember 1964-Februa ry 1965 peri od a t Il months of age. T he e tTect of water restricti on at this sensitive stage of growth was a significa nt depression. T he indication is that cane can sta nd considerable water restriction at a young stage of growth, when the leaf expanse is small, and when it has passed its most vigorous stage of growth at. say 17- 18 months of age.

49 (h) Snwt Obsen•ation Trial.- In 1964, ten new varieties were added to the original 80 in the Smut Observation Blocks and 17 discarded for acute susceptibility to Sugar Cane Smut in the plant crop. In 1965, the ten accessions of 1964 were gapped up and 19 new varieties added. These included 16 from Muguga and three from Ramisi, which are doing weil there, but have been lost from Muguga. A furthcr 14 of the original 80 wcrc discarded during 1965 for acute susceptibility to smut in the first r:ltoon, and three of the 1964 accessions were discarded for susceptibility in the plant crop.

W ES"rERN The museum at Kakamega, which now consists of 48 varietics, is producing somc intcresting results. The first ratoon of 24 of thesc was laken between Septembcr and December 1964 but was not reported last year. NCo 293 yielded at the rate of 137 tons per acre, Co 467 at 90 tons per acre and Trojan at 84 tons pcr acre. Even allowing for the edge effects on small plots, these ratoon yields without irrigation are exceptionally good. Amongst the newer accessions, the H awaiian varieties are pre-eminent from an observational point of view, which is contrary to their behaviour in Nya nza. As severa) of thesc are showing smut resistance in the smut-testing-blocks, the varietal outlook for Western Province appears promising.

COAST The only Government trial to reach harvest during 1965 was a first ratoon incorporati ng three rates of nitrogen, three rates of phosphate and three times of ridgi ng in Shimba Hills. The ridgi ng was inadequatel y done, and drought prccluded a ni trogen response, but residual phosphate still showed a highly significant response up to 200 lb. per acre. The overall yield was, however, very low indced. At Galole, the first F.A.O. Sugar Observational Variety Trial showcd B 41227 as yiclding 60. 1 tons per acre with a sucrose content of 11.6 per cent without fertilizcr but with irrigation. For a growing period of only 13 months, this is very promising. In a second trial, B 41227 gave 59.2 tons per acre with 120 lb. N and 45 lb. P -an incrcase of 13.5 tons per acre over control. As the P has elsewhere been shown to be inffective, the increase is due to the application of six cwt. sulphate of ammonia. Sucrose percentage was assessed at the Ramisi factory at 14.9, wh ich is outstanding for these hot conditions.

Irrigation P ERKERRA Experimental work on onions continued. Malathion 50 per cent M.L. at two pints per acre was shown to be the most effective and safe insecticide for the control of Onion Thrips and gave a yield increase of 240 per cent over the unsprayed plots. D .D.T. 25 per cent M.L. at five pints to the acre was far Jess effective, giving a yield increase of 170 per cent. T he results of a fertilizer trial showed that there is a marked response in onions to nitrogenous fertilizer. Sulphatc of ammonia applied at the rate of 300 lb. per acre increased yields of Red Creole from 4.72 to ns per acre to 5.68 tons per acre and yields of Tropicana Hybrid from 6.21 tons per acre to 7.29 tons pcr acre. Sulphate of ammonia applied at 600 lb. per acre iocreased yields onl y very slightly over the 300 lb. per acre application. Twelve varieties of onions were compared in variety trials of which El Toro While Mexican was the most promising. In an onion-seed production trial, 750 selected bulbs from Perkerra were grown at

50 Molo and flowered satisfactorily, each bulb producing two to three flower heads. Unfortunately, rain in November brought on a serious attack of a downy mildew (Peronospora destructor) which reduced the seed yields considerably. In a out­ grass control experi ment repeat ploughing during dry weather was sbown to make an effective reduction in the number of viable bulbs but practical methods of control have still to be determined.

MWEA Experimental work conducted at Mwea during the year is given in the report for the scbeme.

ÜALOLE Experimental work continued under the auspices of the staff of the UNSF /FAO Tana Basin Survey and will be reported separately in the survey report.

Agricultmal Machinery Unit There have becn no major changes in the programme since last year and work has continucd on long-term cultivation trials, research into the performance of tractors and implements, and the improvement and development of machinery to suit Kenya requirements. The investigation of the wear of metals by soi ! abrazion carried out in conjunction with the N.I.A.E. have produced results of considerable importance. More long-term cultivation trials have been started at Katumani Experiment Station in conjunction with the soi! department of the E.A.A.F.R.O.; the effect of tie-ridging on rainfall acceptancy is being observed, and altbough the full results and conclusions from these trials emerge only very slowly, there has been a marked difference in the growth rate of maize grown on various treat­ ments of similar land during a year of low rainfall. In co-operation with the National Maize lmprovement Centre work has been continued to improve the effici ency of maize planting by laboratory and fi eld-testing-available maize planters. Extended tests have been made on sisal decorticators to assess the feasibility of extracting fibre from sisal growing on small plots using smaU engine-driven units. Investigations were made to assess the practicability of extracting fibre mechanically from Doum Palm growing in Turkana. The utili­ zation of fi sh waste by mechanical processing for manurial purposes for the same arca was also investigated. During the year reports have been issued on the performance of sisal raspidors, motorized cultivators, dise ploughs, tractors, and ox-drawn implements. Papers have been given by the officer in charge on the "Performance of Mobile Sisal Raspidors-The Progress of Long-term Cultivation Trials at Egerton College" (jointly with Thierstein) and "Mechaniza tion of Small-scale Farms and Ox-drawn Implements". In March, Kenya was host Government and Egcrton College provided the venue for the meeting of East African agricultural machinery specialists. Throughout the year the unit has enjoyed a happy relationship with agricultural machinery units in Uganda and Tanzania, E.A.A.F.R.O., and overseas <> rganizations.

PART Ill-FJELD SERVICES Progress in lntproved Farming l.ARGE-SCAL E FARMING As a result of prevalent drought conditions throughout most of the Iarge-scale farming areas, the year on the whole was a bad one for the majority of large­ scale mixed farmers. The poor year left the new large-scale African farmers

51 and pa rticularly those in their first year on a la rge farm in a pa rticularly critical situation. Many farmers found themselves short of essential short-term credit and this, together with a muJtiplicity of problems, arising in many cases from the Jack of necessary knowledge and experience in the management of la rge-scale farming enterprises, leaves the Department with a very serious exten­ sion problem. To sorne extent th is problem has been a lleviated by the a rrivai of the West German Technical Aid Team in Kita le District together with two British technical aid officers and ten local officers experienced in large-scale fa r ming. As a result of the difficulties encountered, it is understandable that progress in the mixed-farming areas has temporarily ha lted and a special effort on the pa rt of the extension services wi ll be required together with hopes of a better year to come, in order to obtain the required state of development. The established la rge-scale farmers in Eastern and Centra l Province, although experiencing a difficult year, have continued by a nd large to develop their fa rms a long sound !ines a nd a number of farmers in Eastern Province arc cxpanding into new crops such as cotton, in order to broaden the base of thei r economy.

RESElTLEMENT The ycar 1964/ 65 was again one of intense acllVlly within the D epartment of Settlement. During the yea r sorne 8,235 families were settled, bringing the total settled to date within the million-acre seUlement scheme to 23,917 fa milies. The D epartment's soi! conservation a nd planning services continued to be engaged on settlement schemes tbroughout the year and planned a further 8,499 hold ings bringing the tota l to date within the million-acre settlement scheme to 26,087 holdings. The Agricultura l D e pa rtment seconded staff for settlement dulies to the Department of Settlement This proved to be a consider­ able drain on this Department's staff resources. With the million-acre settlement scheme a lmost completed it is expected that the soi! conservation service will be relcased for duties on other settlement and development projects.

D EVELOPMENT LOANS Finance for loans to farmers, co-operative soctettes and local authorities remained at essentia lly the same leve! as in the previous financial year. T he Central AgriculturaJ Boa rd approved the following grants a nd loans during the 1965 / 66 fi na ncial year.

ÜRANTS AGRARIAN LOANS 1 Rural 1 For and Range To To To Local Range Sel! le- Manage- indivi- Co-ops. Au thor- Develop- ment ment duals ities ment

Central .. . . - - 7 1,000 18,000 - 3,501 Eastern . . .. 3,352 9,500 55,000 7,500 7,001 7,501 Coast .. . . 57,851 9,500 25,000 13,500 - 2,001 Nyanza .. . . 3,001 - 40,500 12,000 10,502 - Western .. . . 3,250 - 52,000 13,003 7,001 - Rift Valley .. 17,001 27,000 78,000 16,250 5,504 36,002 North-Eastern .. 1 4,000 - - - - Nairobi .. . . - - 18,135 - 600 - TOTAL .. 84,756 50,000 340,135 80,253 30,608 49,004

52 The Agricultural Finance Corporation approved the following loans during 1965 : - (a) Devefopment Loans [ 649 Loans were approved amounting to 1,044,878 9 Loans (for sugar development) 46,975

658 f. l ,091 ,853

(b) A grarian Loans.-The Corporation, administering these loans as the agent of Government approved loans in 1964/ 65 amounting to !198,003 and further loans totalling !145,088 in the period July-December 1965.

SMALL-SCALE FARMING During the year remarkable progress was achieved in most parts of the small-scale farming areas. Land consolidation, enclosure, registratioo and farm lay-out forged ahead in most areas, and the demand for improved seed exceeded expectatioo. Many farmers turned to the use of tractors under a mechanization scheme launched by the Cotton Lint and Seed Marketing Board. Many also availed themselves of contract service and sorne purchased their own machi nery. There was outstanding expansion of cotton, tea, sugar-cane, whilst pineapples were catching up by the end of the year. Progress was also evident in group ranching.

Coast Province reports:- Sorne progress was made in Land Consolidation in Taita Hills. In Kilifi District increased interest was shown in farm enclosure, and at Kaloleni and Jibana people were requesting land consolidation. Demarcation of high-potential land at Vitengeni was started, 29 plots being completed during the year. An encouraging sign of progress was increased demand for planning and layout of farms, so far restricted by insufficient staff and fi nance. Coconut improvement continued with the opening of additional nurseries at Faza Island and at Ngao as a step towards the introduction of the crop into Tana. The use of fcrtilizer was on the increase in Kilifi District, 300 bags of sulphate of ammooia having been used on demonstrations as weil as 180 bags sold to farmers in Kaloleni area. Another promising feature was the number of self-help groups which have been formed throughout the province. Cotton and sorghum campaigns met with great success although failure of the rains kept the yields low. Contract ploughing attracted much interest in Kalolcni and Kilifi and loan applica ti ons for tractor purchase were received from Kilifi and Kwale Districts. Progress continued to be made in sugar-cane growing in the Southern Division of Kwale, where a total of 600 acres was planted and sugar loans totalling !5,000 issued to farmers. The 1964-1970 Development Plan got under way with a fair number of coconuts, cashew nuts, mangoes and bixa planted in ali the coastal districts, particularly on the settlement schemes. The security situation continued to affect progress in Lamu and Tana Districts. Celllra/ Province reports:- Considerable interest in land consolidation and demarcation was reported throughout the year so that by the end of July a total of 937,963 acres com­ prising 170,369 farms bad been consolidated. Although only one farm was planned du ring the year sorne 1,339 farms were laid out, comprising Il ,150 l!Cres. This brought the total number of laid-out and planned farms to 27,107 and 1,555 respectively.

53 Both farm lay-outs and loans to individual farmers proved major factors in furlhering overall agricultural development in the province. The !alter included Ioans granted on a short-term basis to stimulate the production of such crops as cotton and Gathano maize. Although pyrethrum prod uction was not supported by Joan money an attempt was made to improve the pyrethrin content of planting materia l. A pineapple expansion programme was undertaken for supply of pineapples to California Packers. By the year's end sorne 90 acres had been planted by 167 farmers.

Rift Valley Province reports :- The major progress of the year occurred in Masai District where the people are reported to have "seen the light" and gone rapidly ahead in both group ranching spheres and cash-crop development. In West Pokot, Baringo and Kerio Valley of Elgeyo progress was hampered by partial failure of the Long Rains and the drought that followed, which in turn gave rise to severe famine con­ ditions especially in South Baringo and Kerio Valley. Drought conditions also led to acute shortage of grazing which caused death to a large number of stock in Pokot and Samburu wi th consequent reduction in farmers' income and need for famine relief.

Following success in maize-demonstration plots, a good harvest was obtained in the higb-potential areas of Kericho, Nandi, Elgeyo, West Pokot, and Baringo which did much to stimulate interest in the use of improved varieties. Tremendous intcrest in self-help and 4K clubs was noticeable in ali districts. Accelerated development of sugar-cane in Nandi and Kericho Districts was put in hand and 25-acre blocks were laid out in Chemase area.

Nyanza Province reports:- Although not eas il y visible and obvious, great progress was made in land consolidation and follow-up on consolidated farms. Consolidation was fast in South and Central Nyanza and many areas were declared adjudication areas. In Kisii where nearl y aU the farms have been consolidated and enclosed there was a great demand for land registration, which is in progress. ln Central Nyanza sorne 30 farms were selected to be developed as demon­ stration holdings where it is hoped to concentrate extension efforts with a view to selting an example to surrounding farmers. Communal "Saga" group spirit was maintained and colton and sugar cultivation was carried out in blocks. In South Nyanza ù1e number of grade cattle was almost doubled from 91 in the previous yea r to 150 registered in 1965.

During the year Joan money was approved for issue to farmers to the tune of Sh. 151,900 to 102 farmers in Kisii, Sh. 96,000 to 37 farmers in S. Nyanza, and Sb. 145,000 for five coffee societies in South Nyanza. Throughout farmers in the province showed interest in development.

Western Province reports:- Progress was made in land consolidation and registration so that by the end of the year a total of 347,986 acres had been registered in Bungoma and Kakamega. Farm lay-out covered 469 farms totalling 24,240 acres in Kakamega. More and more farmers turned to the use of tractors in cultivation, and in Bungoma ten tractors were purcbased during the year with A.F.C. loans, bringing the total number of these machines in ilie district to weil over 60.

54 Efforts were made to interest farmers in the use of Minimum-Financial-Return advances for growing maize. The North Nyanza Joint Loans Board was wound up in April and A.F.C. look over the issue of loans in Kakamega D istrict. There was a demand for development Joans and a total of !29,006.5 was issued to small-scale farmers, while !86,061 was issued to Iarge-scale farmers. The loans were mainly for dairy cattle and water development. For the first time farmers greatly valued the use of hybrid maize seed and fertilizer and the demand rose sharply at the close of the yea r. In Bungoma about 425 tons of phosphate and 160 tons of sulphate of ammonia were used. On the whole farmers in the province awoke to the necd of farming seriously.

Eastern Province reports:- ln the high-potential areas, progress was slowed down by lack of credit following the restriction of agrarian loans scheme. Most of the young officers of the Departmcnt wcre not sure of themselves when it came to advice in live­ stock matters, and none of them had any experience in farm management beyond book-keeping. In the drier areas the success of the maize-development pro­ gramme encouraged many farmers to plant their crops in pure stands and it became possible to introduce them to simple arable rotation. Those farmers who adopted advice were able to profit handsomely from general shortages in the district during the year.

Reconditioniog, Rescttlemcnt and Developmcnt Scbcmcs

COAST PROVINCE Reconditioning : Kilifi District Bamba Grazing Schenu.-A grazing control scheme was put into force to recondition 35,000 acres in the Bamba area. Water supply was constructed and the scheme is to be rigidly controlled by the county council. Three blocks will be rotated at six-montl1ly intervals and water will be available only in the block being rotated. This scheme is a major contribution by the range manage­ ment and veterinary staff.

Resell/ement: Lanw District Manda Scheme.- By the end of the year there were 38 farmers in the scheme, 32 of which were refugees from Kiunga. By July 160 acres had been planted to sorghum, cotton and simsim. The scbeme continued to suffer from an acute shortage of water, which had to be transported from Lamu. The feasibility of a large-scale settlement scheme on Manda was being studied. Hindiwa Schemes.- The re were 57 farmers in the scheme, wttich included ten Waswahili, 14 Wasanye and 33 Waboni. Each tribe farmed separately. About 50 acres were bush-cleared and planted with maize, cotton and castor. Mpeketoni Scheme.-This scheme suffered a set-back with the departure of the Waswahili, Jeaving onJy 28 Wasanye farmers who being hunters, wasted valuable time to non-farming activities. Sixty acres of cotton was planted com­ munally, yielding 200 bags. Simsirn gave good yields but maize was seriously affected by stalk-borer infestation. Mtangwanda Schemes.-Nearly 115 acres were bush-cleared and planted with maize and cotton by 22 refugee farmers from Kiunga. Most of the crops were a write-off because of drought. 55 Bori Sclremes.- This was a new scheme started this year by 18 Kinga refugees. Sorne 31 acres were planted with maize, cotton and finger millet. Harvest was po or.

Tana River District Vumbwe Scheme.-About 50 acres were cleared by 31 farmers, 26 acres of which were planted with maize, cotton and simsim. Yields were poor because of Jack of rain. Tarassaa Scheme.-This was started in February by a group of 33 farmers. The 28 acres of maize and 22 of cotton planted gave poor yields. Dlralu Scheme.-Bush-clearing communally by a group of ten farmers. Sorne six acres were planted to maize and cotton and 300 coconut seedlings were also planted. Pumbao Scheme was started late in the year by about 80 farmers. Sorne 12 acres had been cleared by the year's end and planted to sorghum and sim sim.

K wale District Shirnba Hills Settlement Scheme.-During the year the number of settlers increased from 1,939 to 2,250. Sorne 78 far mers were issued with licences as a step towards being granted title deeds. The Kwale County Council approved two areas for Digo settlement- Mwapala and Nguluku-to be included in the settlement area, amounting to 8,000 acres for 325 farmers. The water problem was satisfactory except in the new area of Majimboni. Medical facilities were improved during the year. The two 4K clubs at Kichaka Simba and Lukere did weil at the Kenya Agricultural Show. The Shimba Hill Farmers' Co-operative Society improved slightly. Self-help groups did outstanding work in converting two camps into schools. Excessive Short Rains had adverse effect on cashew nuts and cotton. The total rainfall was 51.08 inches in 92 days. Chillies did well but market conditions were not bright due to the Iow priee offered by the Kenya Agricultural Produce Marketing Board. Kikoneni Settlement Scheme.-T otalling 50,000 acres, this was taken over by the settlement board for possible re-settlement in 1966 subject to availability of funds. Mutuga Grazing Scheme.-This is a new scheme under investigation. The scheme area, approximately 12,000 acres, is recommended for mixed clairy and beef production.

K ilifi District Roka Settlement.- Piots were surveyed by the survey department, 216 plots being allocated during the year while 440 plots were ready for allocation early in 1966. Rent payment was in arrears by Sb. 15,000 by the end of the year. A considerable acreage of tree crops was planted by self-help groups. These included 906 acres of cashews, 668 acres of coconuts and ten acres of improved mangees. Accelerated progress in boundary demarcation with sisal was reported. Maize and cotton were the main annual crops grown. Mtwapa Settlement.-A total of 172 plots bad been allocated by the end of the year and there was a big demand for more as a result of which nego­ tiations for more land were in progress. About 340 acres of casbews, 200 of coconuts, and 200 of mangees were planted. With more staff posted to the scheme considerable development is envisaged in the near future. 56 Gede and Madunguni.-This scheme came und er the jurisdiction of the county couocil which passed by-Jaws in an endeavour to ensure greater develop­ ment. Plots were cleared by self-help groups, and generally keen interest was taken by many plot-holders to develop.

Taifa District M odambogo Scheme.- The object of this scheme was to provide land for the laodless and those affected by land consolidation in the hills. The aim is to seUle 600 families on 15 to 20-acre plots. Late in the year plans for the scbeme were being drawn up, demarcation of plots being expected carly in 1966. Kishushe comprises 75,000 acres of grazing land. By the year's end, no grazing system had been worked out. Myasenyi Scheme was originally started with a view to accommodate stock from badly eroded areas of Mbololo. When the project failed, a ranchlng company consisting of a few stock-owners was started and this has made steady progress throughout the year. Eroded A reas.-In the eroded a reas of Msau, soil conservation by-laws were not weil observed. Cha la G razing Scheme.-No progress was reported. The construction of a channel with a view to utilize the Lumi River for irrigation was started by self­ help groups. Musinga Block.- Thls was provided by the Director of Voi Sisal Estates. It was intended to give landless people around Voi an opportunity of participating in the development of the area. A total of 3,000 acres bas beeo earmarked for needy people.

CENTRAL PROVINCE Duriog 1964/65 the Central Land Board purchased 143,596 acres for seUle­ ment in the Thomson's Falls and 01 Kalou areas as part of the " One-Million­ Acre Scheme". The majority of the land in Nyandarua is now settled. Ali the schemes have been occupied except the Oraimtia, 0 1 Kalou South, Gilgil West and Upper Gilgi l schemes. During 1965, 89,695 acres involving 2,983 farms were settled. This means that by the end of 1965 there were 12,780 settlers in Nyandarua occupying a total of 423,785 acres.

Nyandarua District There are 38 scbemes in Nyandarua, of which 23 are high density, 14 low density and one medium density. There was a noticeable Jack of technical knowledge among the settlers on these schemes. There was a tendency for settlers to over-stock their plots especially with sheep. Extension and drougbt were problems on the scbemes. Nyeri District Four of the eight settlement schemes in Nyeri were seriously affected by the failure of the Long Rains and the resultant Joss of crops. However, develop­ ment continued during the year. Dairying was one of the major enterprises and there were 12,300 head of grade cattle on these schemes during the year. The standards of calf-rearing were still Jow and this means that potentially good cattle from grade cows are not producing high-yielding replacements. Loan repayment by settlers was not good, largely due to the drought. Only 4 per cent of the amount due was paid at the March billing and only 7 per cent of the September billing had been paid by the end of November 1965.

57 Kiambu District Unfortunately little information was available about the state of the two settlement schemes in Kiambu. The economy of both is based on dairying, pyrcthrum and potatoes. The milk production in Sigona Settlement Scheme for the year ending 30th November was 72,790 gallons. It appears that despite the drought, milk production increased. Jet Seulement Schemes.- In Nyeri District 579 settlers are settled on 4,332 acres in three jet schemes. Due to roads becoming impassable in wet weather the amount of produce exported from the schemes is limited. Despite the small size of the two schemes in Kiambu sorne families were able to support them­ selves and carn sorne cash income. These two schemes produce milk, pyrethrum and vegetables. Settlers on the jet schemes should be granted title dceds for their farms so they can obtain loans more rapidly and continue to increase their production. On the whole there is still a need for intensive extension on the settlement schemes if production is to be increased sufficiently to contribute to the national economy.

RIFT V ALLE Y PROVINCE Baringo District Lembus Forest (Selllement under Central Agricultural Board).- The final phase of settlement was in sight. Demarcation of the last two localities to be settled at Masaba and Metipso/Chemususa was proceeding. Two administrative problems were the illegal occupation of 127 plots and the presence of squatters in the forest. Agricultural progress was satisfactory in the Torongo area. The introduction of grade cattle and wool sheep continued and potato-growing was on the increase. Co-operative marketing of products was gaining strength. Kerio Valley Development Scheme (under C.A .B.).-Funds were allocated for the star! of this scheme, object of which is to enable the introduction of suitable crops under trial, in conjunction with investigational work by the veterinary department into the tsetse situation and the maintenance of cattle under drugs. It is intended to work out a fuller scheme in combination with range management during 1966/67.

Elgeyo-Marakwet District Kerio Valley Development Scheme (under C.A.B.).- Funds allocated and the objects of the scheme are exactly similar to that projected on the Baringo side of the Kerio River and reported above.

Kajiado District Nguruman.-Some 50 acres of land were cleared for planting to Kenaf during 1966. A co-operative society was formed.

Narok District A 2,000-acre wheat/sheep scheme was surveyed in the Melile/ Il Damat section of Narok, and this is expected to get off the ground during 1966. Wheat trials were carried out during the year and yields of 16-18 bagsjacre were obtained. It is expected that the Masai wiJI be organized into a co-operative society and that the scheme will employ a manager initially until the co-operative has paid off its loans and trained a manager to take over. The scheme is in the hands of the Agricultural Development Corporation.

58 Kericho District Chepelungu Scheme (Kipsigis County Council).-The District Agricultural Officer reports "A great improvement has taken place here since the last annual report was written, ma inly due to the influence of selp-help groups. There are stiJl 20 plots unoccupied, but most plots have been cleared. Small dams are being built and farming is being done." Embomas Scheme (Ki psi gis Couilly Council)--The whol e scheme has now been settled, and progress was satisfactory as far as clearing and planting was concerned. The scheme started in 1964 for squatters from the Lumbwa area, on land excised from forest.

Nandi District Kaimosi.-Little agricultural progress was reported. Kipkaren Salient.-Final settlement of this scheme was held up by unwilling­ ness of the farmer to sell up until mid-1965. The farm comprising sorne 2,200 acres has however been planned for settlement, and demarcation of plot boundaries is in hand. It was hoped to settle the remaining plots early in 1966. Sorora.-Overall progress was moderate. Coffce did not receive sufficient attention. Spore Land-Na11di Hills Tea Estates.-Survey was begun on land belonging to tea estates on which it had been agreed to settle existing squatters. Kibigori Livestock lmprovement Centre.-Permission to settle this land amounting to 3,000 acres was obtained during 1965. Planning of the potential sugar land was completed, when it was found that 1,250 acres were available. This was divided into fifty 25-acre blacks so that ten acres could be cleared and planted each year. The remaining land was planned to absorb 250 settlers, allowing each seltler two acres subsistence, five acres sugar-cane and a share in communal grazing. Settlement is expected in 1966. Clearing of the first 250 acres was in progress by the year's end. It was expected that the land would be Ieased to a co-operative society (to be formed) on behalf of its members for an initial period of at !east five years. 0/enguruone Scheme (C .A .8.).-Progress and grea ter incentive for farming generall y were reported. Permanent fencing was being undertaken and the main access road was improved. A co-operative society and 4K clubs were started. It was encouraging to note that pyrethrum acreage was increasing. Potatoes continued to do weil and 156 acres of wheat were planted. Grade cattle and sheep rapidly replaced indigenous cattle.

NYANZA PROVINCE Kisii District A total of fiv e schemes have been settled to date, of which Nyansiongo and Mwangori were settled in 1965 and have a total of 227 settlers. The schemes are mainly based on dairying, tea, pyrethrum, passion fruit and maizc. Pigs and sheep (Romney Marsh) are kept on a few holdings. Vlei soils on Manga Scheme (27 plots) remained a problem because of poor drainage conditions. Tractors were scarse in the scheme and most cultivation was by hand. However the schemes made good progress. The co-operative societies in the area got a milk quota of 500 gallons to Nakuru daily. They found it difficult to fulfill this because of unhygienic production.

59 Details of the settlement ~che mes were as follows:-

Average Total No. of acrea ge Rainfall Scheme Date settled acreage of plots of plots in. A - B -C Lietago .. . . April1962 1,705 54 22-34-38 58- 60 Manga . . .. Sept. 1963 7,295 314 22- 0 - 0 (no categories) N/A Nyasiongo . . .. June 1965 4,383 168 N/A 50-55 Mwangori . . .. Aug. 1965 4,302 59 Nf A N/A Gesima . . .. Oec. 1964 5,564 243 20-68-20 55-60 1

South Nyanza District Lambwe Valley received many visitors, but notbing concrete was done on the ground. A decision was taken to initiate a 5,000-acre cotton scheme around Ruri Hills while awaiting the main development project for the valley. A detailed soi! survey of the valley was completed and a report submitted. A wach Delta.-Some 45 acres planted with sisal in 1964 helped to control soi! erosion in the area. A total of about 325 acres of land is involved in the programme. Homa Mountain Scheme was handed over to the Forest Department. Sorne .f2,000 was earmarked for this scheme by the C.A.B. but !500 was spent on the Lambwe Valley soi! survey, leaving a balance of !1,500 for the scheme. A reafforestation programme on Ruri Hills, Homa Mountain and Wire Hills was started. Land Consolidation proceeded weil in Kabondo and Kasipul. A joint depart­ mental follow-up to be organized under the auspices of the community develop­ ment department was under consideration and it was intended to develop Kabondo as an example to the rest of the province where land consolidation is in progress. Central Nyanza District Tsetse-fly A reas.- Bush-clearing was carried out by the N ational Youth Service in Bonda Division along the Yala River. The aim was to provide a barrier for stopping the tsetse flies from flying from their breeding habitats along the river into areas inhabited by people. About 800 acres were cleared. A spraying programme was also undertaken in Alego Location. It is hoped that cleared areas will be brought under cultivation to stop bush regeneration and reinfestation. Settlement.- Four settlement schemes were in operation, details of which are as follows :- Songhor.- The Government required an initial deposit of Sb. 121. The demand was great and 457 families were settled. God A bworo.- International Bank for Reconstruction and Development- 317 plots were settled. Good progress was being made by the end of the year. Tamu.- (I.B.R.D.) 422 plots settled. Muhorom.- (I.B.R .D.) 402 plots settled. Koru-Fort Ternan.- (I.B.R .D.) This scheme was planned but not settled. Plot demarcation was started towards the end of the year.

60 The schemes in Central Nyanza are based mainly on sugar-cane and dai rying. The first-planted cane was harvested as seed cane and fetched !65 per ton, resulting in considerable income for the first group of settlers. This gave the scherne a great irnpetus, resulting in an irnprovement in the standard of husbandry and great dernand for plots. A distinctive feature of the scherne was the decision to have sorne plots which cou1d not easily fit into the sugar-cane scheme as over-size plots of 40-80 acres. A lùgber deposit of Sh. 1,500 was demanded for these instead of Sh. 1,000 paid for the other plots. These over-size plots were planned to accornrnodate both sugar-cane and cattle.

WESTERN PROVINCE. Settlernent continued in the Western Province settlernent cornplex. No up­ to-date figures have been received showing the number of farnilies settled.

EASTERN PROVINCE Reconditioning No formai reconditioning schernes as such were in operation in any of the districts. A certain arnount of reseeding of rnangalata took place in Kitui, but little else. Resettlement Scltemes The srnall schemes in Meru financed by the Central Agricultural Board were put on an irnproved footing when scherne supervisors were employed at the start of the new financial year. These schemes were making good progress Proposais were made to the C.A.B. to increase the rate of settlernent in Meru to the point at which seven schemes will be in operation. These would cover slightly more than 150,000 acres. In M achakos the ill-conceived seUlement in Ngwatu and D arajani proceeded despite instructions to close. The nurnbers of settlers in the areas is reportedly approaching 1,000. In Lower Makueni the sarne conditions as at Ngwata­ Darajani occur in a more extrerne forrn. With the nurnber of settlers in the arca as yet very few it was hoped no settlernent would lake place until the scherne was properly launched. Just over a year ago the di rectors of Matuu Estate made a gift of 8,500 acres to their long-terrn employees. One of the conditions attached to the gift was the formation of a co-operative by the settlers. Largely due to the Jack of effective leadership the co-operative has not known its own rnind and has not agreed to proposais made to them. 1t was proposed to serve a management order on the land in the hope that a manager will be able to guide the society. Kiamabe Estate was proposiog to sell about 2,500 acres to sorne of their employees for a nominal fee. In an effort to settle the problern of the Machakos commonage, it was proposed carly in the year that approximately 1,000 acres should be Jeased to the neighbouring Kiima Kimwe Co-operative, who were farrning a settlement farm adjacent to this land. Very little effective control of the trespassing stock was achieved, and the position, if anything, was worse than a year ago. Development Schemes Following a visit to the Yatta by the Minister for Economie Planning and Development proposais were put forward for settling people on srnallholdings irrigated from the Yatta Furrow. Survey to develop an initial 30-40 acres was completed and it was hoped thal sorne 20 families would be settled by the middle of 1966.

61 Soil and Water Conservation

GENERAL The priority assigned to work on the million-acre settlement scheme continued throughout 1965 with the result th at ali units werc concentrated on work in the settlement areas. However, by July work was Jargely completed in the Central Province and the units based at Nakuru and Thomson's Falls did undertake work outside seu lement on a scale not achieved since the pre-settlement days of 1961.

The completion of the million-acre seulement scheme will result in a change of emphasis in the type of work which units have been undertaking for the fiv e-year programme. This change has already started and the Ruiru unit formcrly merged with South Kinangop was reformed in 1965 to deal with a rising demand for work in Central and Eastern Provinces. At the year·s end plans arc being laid to form a unit permanently based in the Coast Province to deal with the risiog demaod for planned agricultural development in the area.

During 1965 soil conservation service hcavy construction units were maintained at the following centres :- South Kinangop Eldoret Ruiru Sotik Thomson's Falls Kit ale Nakuru

At ali the above centres land planning units were maintained throughout the year to meet the demands of settlement and in addition the planning unit at Kericho continued to deal with planning aspects of sugar development in both the Muhoroni and Chemelil areas.

Work on both the planning and construction sides cootinued to keep pace with the demands of seulement in ali areas except Muhoroni wherc difficulties in the land-purchase programme caused delay.

SOIL CONSERVATJON-LARGE- SCALE FARMING A REAS

Details of the work do ne in each of the districts are shown below:-

ACREAGES PROTECTED BY S.C .S. W ORK

District 196 1/62 1963 1964 1965 1 1963/65 1 1 1 1 Trans Nzoia . . .. 79,405 13,756 42,081 58,316 ' 114,153 Uasin Gishu .. . . 142,695 23,823 15,852 38,700 78,375 Nakuru (Laikipia) .. 100,927 36,085 38,341 40,655 11 5,081 0 1 Joro Orok .. .. 83,241 36,432 56,701 32,177 125,310 South Kinangop .. 39,370 13,685 32,825 38,755 85,265 Nyanza .. . . 13,633 3,166 - 35,759 38,925 Nairobi .. . . 7,743 5,402 23,290 10,487 39,179 Total .. 467,014 132,349 209,090 254,849 596,288 1 1

62 FARM PLANNING (Excluding Settlement Sciiemes)

Farms Farms Total D istrict Surveyed Total Planned Planned 1951/65 and mapped 1965 1951 /65

No. Acreage No. Acreage No. Acreage No. Acreage

Trans Nzoia .. . . Nil Nil 11 3 109,436 - - 75 88,344 Uasin Gishu .. . . - - 84 113,915 - - 70 95,289 Nakuru ...... - - 153 130,40 1 - - 11 7 101 ,865 01 Joro Orok .. . . - - 80 11 5,858 - - 40 72,245 South Kinangop .. . . -- 45 34,096 - - - - Nyanza ...... - - - - - 6 6,345 Nairobi ...... - - 13 1,463 - - 8 12,656 1 Total .. . . - - j478 504,869 - - 316 376,744

SOIL CONSERVATION SERVICE (Output of rerracing for the year 1965) (Settlement and Large-Scale Farms)

No. of Broad 1 Farms Base Division N arrow District Terraced and V Ditches Based Total Acres T erraces by Tractors Terraces 1 Trans Nzoia . . .. - - 58,316 - 58,316 Uasin Gishu .. . . 5 1 14·7 39,340 - 1 39,355 Nakuru ...... - 1 - 40,655 - 40,655 01 Joro Orok . . .. - - 32, 177 - 1 32, 177 38,435 South Kinangop .. - - 1 - 38,435 Nyanza ...... - - 35,759 - 35,759 Nairobi ...... - - 10,487 2,500 12,987 1

51 1 14·7 255,169 2,500 257,684 1 1 1

SOIL CONSERVATION FOR SETILEMEI\'T SCHEMES

Tractor No. of District Grou nd Planned Work Plots Roads Ditches Water Survey Acres Acres Planned Miles Miles Ho les

Trans Nzoia .. - 7 1,780 58,316 2,804 259 193 9 Uasin Gishu .. - 43,275 38,700 1,450 149 132 93 Nakuru .. .. - 40,655 40,655 1,346 178 150 - 0 1 Joro Orok .. - 32,177 32,177 1,237 138 1 19 - South Kinangop - 4,800 38,435 240 60 52 - Nyanza .. . . - 35,759 35,759 1,750 175 96 J I Nairobi Survey Unit .. .. 10,487 10,487 10,487 334 23 56 - Total .. 10,487 238,933 254,529 9,161 982 798 11 3

63 SOIL CONSERVATION-SMALL-5CALE FARMING AREAS Coast Province Control measures against soil erosion using hench terraces and trash lines were continued throughout the year in Taita District. In Kwale District 1,250 far ms were contoured and 496 miles of trash li nes were constructed. Ki li fi District reports 55 farms contoured totalling 8,000 acres, and 2,393 miles of grass strips marked. The bad areas of Mbololo and Kwale hinterland remained as in previous years.

Central Province Soil erosion once more proved a problem in almost ali small-scale farming areas. There was a tendency to cultivate ali the land without leaving any grass strips to check erosion. However, wbere farmers used fertilizer and obtained good crops, land was valued and protected by means of terraces. Farm layout and planning was an important feature in soi! conservation work in the province. Below are sorne figu res on otber soil conservation work:- Grass strips planted 29.48 miles Reversed NBT measured 101.39 miles Reversed NBT dug 100.83 miles Bench terraces measured 80.56 miles Bench terraces dug 136.78 miles

R ift Valley Province There was a deterioration in soil conservation in parts of Elgeyo Marakwet and Baringo scrapland shambas. lt became increasingly difficult to control steep and riverside cultivati on. There was deterioration of this nature also in Masai along the Mbagathi River, now said to be nearly under control. In Nandi and Kericho grass strips remained satisfactory. There is an obvious need for district agricultural committees to adopt a more forceful approach to both land-use and land-usage rules, especiall y in hilly terrain with rising pressure on land.

Nyanza Province Trash !ines and grass strips remained the chief soil conservation measures throughout the province. There was, however, a general deterioration of soil conservation standards, examples being the indiscriminate burning of trasb and stalks in Kisii ; ploughing up and down the slopes in S. Nyanza; and the general Jack of co-operation in soil conservation work on the part of Central Nyanza farmers. This deterioration of standards was reported to the various D.A.C.s and their advice is awaited. Jt seems that a strong decision to enforce the land-usage by-Jaws ought to be laken jointly by the administration, agricultural department and D.A.C.s in order to save the situation.

Western Province There was careless burning of bushes and fields after harvesting. However, contour ploughing was observed throughout the districts and a number of grass strips were measured during the year.

64 Eastern Province Following the introduction of the basic land usage rules, Machakos D .A.C. introduced by-laws with which to replace the old Mrican District Council by-laws. The subsequent joint campaign by the Department of Agriculture and the administration was rewarded with sorne improvement. The other districts bad not, by the end of the year, passed any by-laws to supplement the rules. Poor conservation and dangerous cuJtivation by squatters was therefore much in evidence. In Embu there was pressing need for the planting of grass on the bench faces and on coffee shambas situated on steep hill-slopes.

WATER CONSERVATION-M ECHANICAL DAM CONSTRUCTION UNIT With the emphasis of work for the heavy construction units placed on the completion of the miLlion-acre settlement scheme only a limited amount of water­ hole construction was undertaken during the year.

Storage District D ams Water million Location H ours holes gallons worked

Trans Nzoia .. - 9 2·5 1 - 328 Uasin Gishu .. - 133 28·0 - 2,602 - - Nakuru . . .. 1 1·0 1 108 01 Joro Orok .. 3 2 4·0 - 305 South Kinangop .. - - - - - Nyanza . . .. - - - - - Nairobi . . .. 1 1 3·0 - 650 Total . . .. 5 145 38·5 - 3,993 1

WATER SUPPLIES-SMALL-SCALE FARMING AREAS Coast Province The pipeline to Kinango in the Kwale District was nearing completion at the end of the year. This should bring considerable development to this area. Extension to the (Shimba Hills) Lukere pipeline to bring water to the dry area in the southern part of the scheme, was being carried out. This should benefit a further 60 farms. A survey was under way for a new pipeline in the northern area of the scheme. There was sorne difficulty with the running of the bore-holes in the Kwale hinterland as the county council had insufficient funds for repairing them. However, Government came to the county council's rescue and the bore-holes were functioning again by the end of the year. During the year the need for a complete survey of water resources in the province was felt. Such a survey would be an asset in the planning of ranches or re-settlement schemes. A detailed water requirement report was submitted to the director in September.

Central Province Kiambu went ahead of other districts in the improvement of water supplies. The Gitangu Water Reticulation Scheme was constructed over a distance of 2t miles at Ngecha by a self-help group. Another example of water development

65 in Kiambu was the Kijabe water project. During the year 83 bore-holes were sunk in Kiambu and Murang·a and 55 water tanks and 95 water pumps erected. Loans for the construction of stone water tanks, pumps and piping were issued by the D.A.C.s and the provincial agricultura1 board. The considerable interest shown by the majority of farmers in piped water supplies is an indication that time is ri pe for overall water reticulation schemes on a zone or group basis.

Rift Valley Province In West Pokot repairs to minor water supplies was carried out, while in Baringo the Kisokon pipeline, begun in 1964, was completed. In Masai a major achievement was the completion of the Mabarasha pipeline and also work on bore-hole construction at Poka near Sultan Hamud. 8oth the latter were under supervision of the water development department.

Nyan ::.a Pro1•ince A total of 1,205 wells were dug during 1965 in Kisii District compared to 1,497 in 1964. Some farmers were recommended for a loan to enable them to buy hand-operated pumps for lifting water from the wells. Cases of indiscriminate drainage and cultivation of swamps were reported at Sengera in Kisii. The position in South and Central Nyanza remained the same as in 1964.

Westem Province The foll owi ng water schemes were in existence:- Kibichori Water Sc !te me (Bungo111a).- This reticulation scheme continued to function weil despite di couraging payment of water rates. It was hoped the schcme would be extended in the next few years to cover a larger arca. M alabo Water Scheme (Kakamega).-This scheme is doomed to fail unless the users of water pay their water rates. Muna111a Water Sche111e (Busia).- The M unama Water Reticulati on Scheme was started at the end of the year, and will serve Samia. Other schemes to schools and health centres were completed during the year, including Kisoko, Nangina and Khunyangu.

Eastem Province Progress in this aspect of development was hindered by lack of funds. Not only was the amount of money available from the Central Government lirnited but frequently county councils were unable to match those gran ts which had been p rovided for. In Embu and Meru a number of furrows were put in on a self-help basis. In Machakos a series of small dams and Gabion weirs along the Kee River provided a very useful demonstration of water development to the local people. In Kitui considerable work was needed in cleaning out the soi! deposits on the bottoms of dams and pans. Thcre was need for the people of Kitui to adopt a more responsible attitude towards the control of stock around these expensive developments.

Irrigation MWEA IRRIGATION SCHEME Development.- Work on the 2,000-acre extension of the scheme, financed by the U.K. F reedom from Hunger Committee, continued during the year. A total of 592 acres was completed by mid-year and was cropped in the 1965-66 Short 66 Rains. The new acreage settled 148 additional families. The new tenants built their own houses under scheme supervision wi th loans provided by Barclays Bank. The financing of tenant housing by a commercial ban k was initiated in 1963 and to date 230 houses have been built under the scheme at a total invest­ ment of ! 11 ,500. It is encouraging to report that not a single case of defaulting on loan repayment has occurred.

The development work on the extension proceeded at a good pace through the year and it is anticipated that a further 800 acres wi ll be ready for settlement in the 1966-67 crop. In 1965, a complete reception centre, with drying floor, storage sheds and office, was built for the new block, together with housing for the staff.

Tenants.-The total number of tenants on the scheme rose from 1,340 to 1,484 du ring the year. T he manager in his annual report states as follows :- " Four holdings changed hands during the year under the succession provisions of the Irrigation Rules. In two cases succession was caused by the death of the original licencees, in one case by the disablement of the licencee and in one case by a prison sentence to the licencee. Two holdings passed into the hands of minors and guardians have been appointed. Succession arrangements have been finalized for one of the remaining holdings. No fina l arrangements had been made for the fourth holding by the end of the year. "Twelve tenants were dismissed from the settlement during the year. Six holdings were abandoned and the tenants dismissed for desertion, in five cases dismissal was due to persistant bad husbandry and disregard for the Irrigation Rules and in one case the licence was terminated as the tenant drew a long prison sentence.

"Since the promulgati on of the Irrigation Rules in 1960 a total of 35 tenant licences have been terminated, givi ng an annual mean of seven. The over­ all rate of dismissal and desertion since the inception of the rules is 2.43 per cent. The mean annual rate has been .48 per cent. "The traditional reluctance of the tenants to look after and maintain their holdings in the off-season was as marked as ever. The slack period between the end of harvest and the beginning of the next crop tends to be regarded as a period of holiday and not as a useful time in which to do such essential work as levell ing of the fields, rebuilding of bunds and canal and drain maintenance. rn spite of the many field barazas and the efforts of the extension staff it was necessary to issue a number of warnings in writing to get the tenants moving for the 1965/66 crop."

The report continues:- "The Tenant Thrift Society after sorne teething troubles in its first year of operation settled down admirably and by the end of 1965 had a total of ±:24,000 to its credit. One of the interesting side effects of the society's anxiety to rccovcr loans to its members was the help given to management in con­ trolling the black-market sale of paddy. The society also earned moncy for the members by taking over the drying-floor con tract at the Tebere Centre with considerable success. "Besides their contributions to the society, the tenants also financed and built in co-operation with the Consolata ·Mission a very fin e Harambee • secondary school. T his was opened by His Excellency the President when he visited the settlement."

67 Describing tenant performance, the manager writes :- "In the 196_5, crop, 81 tenants had yields of over 40 bags per acre, compared to 162 in 1964. The number of tenants with Jess than 20 bags per acre feil from 121 in 1964 to 45 in 1965. A total of 400 tenants failed to meet the yardstick of flOO from their holdings in 1965, this was equivalent to 30 per cent of the tenants compared to 31 per cent in the previous crop. The pro­ portion of tenants making more than f150 from their holding feil to 19 per cent compared to 30 per cent in the 1964 crop. "The mean net income per tenant fel! from Sh. 2,483 in 1964 to Sh. 2,322 in 1965."

Cropping.-Statistics for the Short Rains cr op for the last 5 years are as foUows:- 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 Acres 4,958 4,973 4,965 5,465 5,541 Total Yield (bags) 149,998 159,812 167,474 165,474 156,711 Total Yield (tons)_ . 10,714 11,415 11,962 11,847 Il, 193 Mean Yield (bags/acre) 30·25 32·14 33·73 30·99 28·28 Mean Net Income/Tenant Sh. 2,854 2,721 2,8 12 2,483 2,322 The manager states :- "The crop showed a decrease in yield over the previous year of 2.71 bags per acre over the settJement as a whole. At Tebere a drop in yield of 5.95 bags per acre was recorded, white the Mwea Block showed a small increase of .58 bags per acre. The main reason for the poor performance at Tebere was a breakdown in the extension staff at both senior and junior level. This was remedi ed by the middle of the year and the outlook for the 1965/66 crop on the block is excellent. "A fu rther contributory factor to the poor performance in Tebere was the steep drop in yield in Units 2 and 18, amounting to 30 per cent relative to 1964. Both units were double-cropped for 3 years. This trial was abandoned during the year as it bad shown conclusively that double-cropping was not economie. "The decrease in yield in 1965 compared to 1964 was equivalent to 9 per cent. The standard deviation from the mean was of ± 3.27 bags per acre in 1965, compared to ± 4.42, ± 3.44, ±3.31 and ±5.54 bags in 1961, 1962, 1963 and 1964 respectively. The coefficient of vari ability was 10 per cent in 1965 compared to 15 percent, Il percent, 10 percent and 18 percent in the 196 1 to 1964 crops." Pesls and Diseases.-The settlement had a very good year from the point of view of pests and diseases. An outbreak of Leaf Miner, particularly widespread in the Tebere Block, was quickly controlled by spraying. T here were no other incidents to report. Trials and Experimenls.- Tbe routine rice trials on the experiment station were continued. The water-use observation trial being carried out on a unit basis in the Mwea Block was continued throughout the year. The trial has now been going for three crops. The first year's results were nearly useless due to poor supervision by the fi eld staff. In the second year a water consumption of approximately 6.32 acre/feet was recorded. Data for 1965 have not been completely analysed, but the preliminary indications are that very considerable

68 reductions in water use have taken place through better control. This is of considerable significance for the future development of the settlement as it means thal it may weil prove possible to irrigate the entire black-cotton soit potential from run-of-the-river from the Thiba, without expensive storage. A review of the fertilizer trials carried out on the research station showed that little or no response to nitrogen could be expected in the fi rst years of riec cropping, but that after a n umber of seasons responses increased in magni­ tude and significance. A trial was laid down on the 1966 crop to observe the effect of nitrogen application on a field scale. A total of 1,876 acres were fertilized at the rate of 1/2 cwt. of sulphate of ammonia per acre. On 804 acres the fertilizer was applied at the time of transplanting. On the remaining 1,072 acres the application was split, half was put in at transplanting and the other half 40 days later. By the end of the year no rcsults were availa ble, but a distinct vegetative response to both application rates had been notcd. The six pilot holdings on the red soils on Unit 2 continued to be studied during the year. Results to date confirm that maize and beans are not profitable crops to grow under irrigation. Onions did very weil, but have limited prospects in view of the marketing difficulties being encountered by the Perkerra onions. A fertilizer trial on tomatoes was carried out for the horticultural station, as this crop has obvious potential as a replacement for onions on the red soils. Two plots of one acre each of rain-fcd cotton were grown in 1965 on the research station and yielded 1,500 lb. of seed cotton per acre. Late in the year it was decided to extend this trial on a field scale and a block of 131 acres was sown on Unit 12, Tebere. The decision was very sudden and there was neither the time nor the equipment to do a thorough job. The cotton block is being grown on a share-cropping basis with neighbouring black-soi! rice tenants. By the end of the year the crop had germinated and did not have a bad appearance. Harvesting and Marketing.-The harvest was complcted by the 20th of March 1965. The cutting rate was fast, with good weather conditions for harvesting and transporting the crop. For the second year running a local transport co­ operative was used to bring the crop from the fie ld to the reception centres. The same organization was also given the contract to move the crop from the reception centres to the K.A.P.M.B. stores at Sagana. Internai transport was quick and efficient, but movement of paddy to Sagana became very sluggish towards the end of the season. This caused a slow­ down on the drying floors through Jack of stacking space. The rate of flow through the reception centres was more even and no unmanageable build-ups occurred as bad happened in 1964. The greater efficiency was largely due to better understanding between management and the transport contractor. The campaign to avoid heavy breakagc in the mills by reaping a t high moisture contents and thus preventing sun-checking made good progress. The proportion of the crop arriving at the reception centres at 14 per cent moisture or Jess was the lowest ever recorded. Meclzanization.-Cultivatîon for the crop started on the !8th of March and was completed on the 23rd of September. A total of 6,143 acres was rotavated in a period of !50 days. The average daily production per tractor feil from 3.17 acres in the previous crop to a new low of 2.92 acres. The cultivation was the Jongest ever carried out on the settlement and the performance per machine the lowest recorded. The abysmal performance of the mechanical equipmcnt was entirely due to Jack of adequate maintenance since 1961. From the end of that year until the !5th of August 1965, no competent mechanical staff has been available to the

69

/ settlement through the inability to offer attractive terms to the right man. The result bas been a progressive deteriorati on of the tractor fleet. An indication of the effects of Jack of maintenance can be bad be examining the output per tractor over the last five seasons:- Year Crop Acres/Tractor/ Day 1961 1962 5·31 1962 1963 5·59 1963 1964 4·42 1964 1966 3·1 7 1965 1966 2·92

Efficiency has fallen by 45 per cent in three years and the period required to carry out the cultivation has lengthened from 91 days in 1963 to 150 days in 1965, although the relationship, tractors : acres has been unchanged. In August a machinery maintenance superintendent was recruited and a campaign begun to bring the cquipment back into a decent state of repair. It is anticipated that production per tractor will rise in the coming year and the cultivati on period will once more be reduced to reasonable levels.

P ERKERRA IRRI GATION SCHEME Tenants.-The number of tenants rose from 362 at the end of 1964 to 402 at the end of 1965. T he tribal breakdown of the tenants was as follows: - Tugen 301 Njemps 86 Others 15

Of these 234 farmed four-acre holdings, 106 farmed two-acre holdings and 62 were on one-acre holdings.

The trend on the scheme has been towards the more intensive cultivation of smaller holdings, as past experience has indicated that a four-acre holding is beyond the capacity of the majority of the tenants.

As a result of a better crop in 1965 and of greatl y improved management, the tenant morale during the year has been much better and it is encouraging to note a marked increase in the standard of cultivation among the tenants.

T he Irrigati on Rules have been more honoured in the breach tban in the observa nce at Perkerra in the past. During the year a systematic policy of tightening up on the rules, a Uied to an intensification of the extension effort, has been carried out. The response of the tenants has been heartening and it is hoped that by increasing the intensity of field extension the scheme will get out of the vicious circle of poor performance, debt and dissatisfaction.

Cropping.-The statistics for onion production in the last four crops are shown below:- 196 1/62 1962/63 1963/64 1964/65 Acreage 62 253 416 390 Total yield (tons) 36 760 1,200 772 Yield/acre (tons) ·58 3·00 2·88 1·98

70 The comparative grade priees were as follows :-

Cents/lb. Cr op Grade 1 Grade Il Grade Ill

1961/62 28·50 22·75 19·75 1962/63 23·00 18·00 11·00 1963/64 23·73 20·32 13·06 1964/65 24·00 18·82 9·90 1965/66* 33·48 25·00 20·00

•up to December 1965. The 1964/ 1965 crop was one of the most unfortunate in the scheme's history. The unseasonal wet weatber in 1964 caused heavy incidence of disease, witb resultant poor yields and poor quality. The situation was further compli­ cated by severe competition from rain-grown on.ions imported from Tanzania. In July import restrictions were imposed on onions. The effect on priees for Perkerra onions was startling, from a low of 13 cents per lb. for Grade I onions in January and an average of 24.55 cents from February to June, the priee rose to 57 cents per lb. in J uly. Unfortunately the priee rise was too la te to significantly affect the mean priee for the crop as onl y the last month's production benefited from it.

For the 1965 / 1966 crop the manager states as follows:- "The first nuseries were planted out in May at weekly intervals until the end of the month. This completed the first planting and no further seed was sown until the beginning of July. "The second phase had to be postponed due to a shortage of water and this resulted in a six-week hold-up on nursery work during August and September. The situation then improved slightly and nursery planting continued from the end of September until the end of December. "A change in nursery technique has proved successful during the year. The size of individual nursery plots was increased from 1,400 to 2,000 sq. ft. and the seed rate increased from 4 to 5 lb. per plot. "Nurseries continue to be planted in communal blocks q.nder the supervision of a technical assistant but whereas in the past, irrigation was carried out on a block basis by scheme staff, the tenant is now responsible for irrigating his own plot witrun the block. "Ali these changes have been a success and the majority of tenants have grown more than sufficient transplants for their needs. "The entire crop this year wi ll be of the Red Creole variety and results to date are encouraging. "By the end of the year 246 acres of transplants had been planted. lt must be realized, however, that this figure represents the actual planted acreage. "Approximately a quarter to a third of each plot is taken up by 'road­ ways' for spraying machinery, together with headlands. In consequence it is necessary to increase figures quoted, by a quarter to a tbird in order to show the total acreage of developed land utilized for onion growing. It is proposed to make allowances in any future development project to incorporate 'road­ ways' in the cultivated blocks. This will enable the tenant to plant a full acre of crop in each of his plots.

71

1 "Harvesting of the first- plaoting began at the end of October and the first onions were sold off the scheme on 9th November 1965. "During the period November/ December 1964, 155 tons of onions were harvested and sold off the scheme compared with 310 tons in the same period in 1965. This represents a 100 per cent in-crease in production ~ · "The average yield for the 1964/1965 season was just under 2 tons per acre. At 31st December 1965, 74 acres had been harvested at an average yield of 4.19 tons. "Restrictions on imports have been partially successful and as a result priees have been steadiei- than in previous years. "Howcver, marketing problems still give cause for grave concern and at the year's end considerable difficulty has been experienced in selling the crop. "Black-marketing of Tanzania-produced onions still continues and the appearance of locally grown onions from elsewhere in Kenya has produced something of a glut on the market at the year's end."

Pests and Diseases.- The year was abnormally dry and consequently very little damping-off or blast occurred. As the onion acreage increased through the year the thrip population bas built up, but good control was achieved with Thiodan insecticide. In December both the stalk-borer caterpillar and the American boll-worm were seen on the onion crop, but infestations did not reach serious proportions.

TANA RIVER IRRIGATION SCHEME Generai.-The year was the best in the scheme's existence. The cotton yield was the highest ever and the tenant morale was greatly improved. The weather was generally drier than usual and the fl oods in the river poor, with the result that the assured cropping on the scheme became more attractive to the popu­ lation. The provision of It acres of maize to every tenant went a long way towards minimizing the tendency to slip away from the scheme to cultivate food crops in the flood plain, thus neglecting the cotton crop. Tenants.-An interesting feature in 1965 was the stabilization of the tenant population on the scheme. At the end of the year only 12 tenants appeared to be duc for removal from the scheme because of debt or absenteeism. At the end of 1964 a total of 28 tenancies were terminated and in 1963 the dismissals amounted to 103. The tendcncy to settle down on the scheme was undoubtedly due to the better returns enjoyed by the tenant in the Jast t\vo years and the provision of food plots. There was an increase of 19 tenants during the year. This was due to an increase of 58 acres and the splitting of sorne of the bigger holdings into smaUer units. The distribution of holdings by size over the last tbree years was as follows :- No. of H oldings Acres 1963 1964 1965 8 1 31 25 6 .. Il 11 5 .. 5 5 7 4 .. 285 210 233 Total 292 257 276

72 The performance of the six- and eight-acre holdings in 1965 was disappointing because of the shortage of labour for weeding. The more intensive form of cultivation advocated by the F.A.O. Team, e.g. fertilizers, more weeding, etc., imposed too heavy a burden of work on tenants with bigger holdings. The general standard of work by the tenants showed steady improvement th rough the year. A total of 38 tenants made yields of over 2,000 lb. per acre of seed cotton. Cropping.-The cotton crop statistics for the last five years are as follows: - 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 Acres cropped . . 400 1, 200 1,179 1,179 1,233 Mean Yield (Lb.facre). . 970 781 1,038 J,05 1 1,470 Mean Income/Acre (Sh.) (Gross) 485 390 519 588 735 Mean Tenant Jncome (Sb.) (G ross) 1,940 1,560 2,076 2,721 3,283 Mean Net Tenant Jocome (Sh.) 740 760 1,276 1,334 1,943 N OTE.-The water rate was Sh. 300 per acre in 196 1, 1964 and 1965 and Sh. 200 per acre in 1962 and 1963. Sowing of the cotton crop began on the !5th of March and was completed by the 17th of April. This was the earliest sowing ever accomplished on the scheme. Pressure was brougbt to get the crop in the ground as carly as possible as the F.A.O. trials bad consistently proved that carly sowing promoted high yields. Exactly the same trend was apparent on the tenants' holdings in 1965 as will be seen f rom the mean yields obtained over the various sowing dates:- Date of Sowing Mean Yields (lbs .- Acre) March 15- 21 1,715 March 22-28 1,491 March 29- April 4 1,421 April 5- 11 1,333 Apri11 2-17 1,147 In 1965, sulphate of ammonia at the rate of 2 cwt. per acre was applied to 57 per cent of the cotton acreage. The mean yield increase from the fertilizer amounted to 339 lb. of seed cotton per acre. 1t is interesting to note that the fertilizer response feil from a high of 469 lb. per acre in the earliest sowing to a low of 97 lb. per acre in the Jast sowing. In the light of these results it is very doubtful whether fertilizer should be applied in the later sowings. The dry weather at the beginning of the season facil itated wecding, but Jater in the year the weeds tended to get ahead of the tenants. The crop matured earlier than usual and no trouble was experienced in picking, despite the large crop, as plenty of labour was available. This was attributed to the famine conditions prevailing on the river. In the latter part of the year a total of 450 acres of maize was sown in the maize arca and in the village plots. The yields are not expected to be high because of very heavy pest infestation. This was due to the fact that tenants would not clean up and burn stover from the previous crop. Pests and Diseases.- The year was not a bad one for cotton pests. The crop was sprayed at ten-day intervals from the air seven times with a total application of 12 pints of Endrin per acre. Cover was excellent. The maize was very heavily infested by stalk-borer and sorne replanting was necessary. The crop was sprayed three times with 25 per cent D.D.T.

73 Trials and Experimellts.- The F.A.O. Team continued to carry out agronomie trials as part of the feasi bility survey of the Tana Basin. Excellent results were obtained with kenaf, groundnuts and sugar-cane. By the end of the year nego­ tiations were started to retain the services of the Dutch firm of consultants employed by the F.A.O. Team for a further period of two years to follow up the very interesting results obtained to date. A two-acre trial of Kenaf under tenant conditions was carried out on the scheme. Results were not very encouraging, but this was attributed to use of a Cuban variety. On the F.A.O. trial plots, much better yields have been obtained from Guatemala varieties. The Cuban type grew weil up to five feet and then stopped. The stems were very thin and retting was difficult. The yield was of 500 lb. of fibre per acre, the quality was good and a priee of !80 per ton was obtained.

GENERAL IRRJGATION INFORMATION Negotiations were begun to retain the Netherlands firm of consultants to continue and expand the agronomie work initiated at Galole and to help trans­ form the scheme into a high-quality pilot, demonstration and staff-training project as a preliminary to major development in the Tana Basin. There was no progress on the Yala Scheme during the year due to the delay by the F.A.O. in supplying a project manager. By the end of the year this officer had arrived and was energetically getting to grips with the scheme. ln addition to the major irrigation projects a certain number of minor schemes continued at Tavela, Nguruman, Rombo, Kimana and Wei-wei. A review of the irrigation potential in the Yatta area showed that a major project was unwarranted. By the end of the year preliminary work was starting on an aided self-help scheme. At the close of the year the long-awaited National Irrigation Board got appre­ ciably nearer to reality. The Bill was submitted to Parliament and bad got through the First and Second Readings by December. An interim board was set up in June 1965, and accomplisbed a lot of useful work on the Irrigation Bill and in planning for the substantive .board.

Agricultural Education FARMERS' TRAINING CENTRES The success of Kenya's Agricultural Development Plan depends rto a large extent on the progress of the agricultural educa'tion section of the Department. For not only must staff 'be trained at aU levels, to run and implement the schemes, but farmers themselves must be educated, first, to accept the new methods, and then trained to praotise commercial farming, if they are to avoid severe economie setbacks. Farmer training, through the mediu m of short courses offered at residential institutions throughout Kenya, continued during the year. There are no·w 28 centres in Kenya; 18 of these are operated by the Departments of Agriculture and Veterinary Services, the remainder being run and finance by several agencies including the Christian Council of Kenya, the Kenya Tea Development Authority, Department of Settlement and the Roman Catholic Church. In spite of the .invaluable contribution made by these inde-pendent organizations, the problem of financing recurrent expenditure of F.T.Cs. from departmental votes is proving more and more diffi.cult each year. For the past few years, very generous assistance bas been received from OXFAM, UNICEF and the 74 Coffee Board of Kenya which has eased the burden considerably. The contribu­ tions of these organizations, in the form of grants and bursaries to F.T.C.s in 1965 amounted to !28,855. Owing to Jack of funds a nd if the standard of our training and the quality ·of the product is to be mantained, the Department may weil have to envisage reducing the nurnber of these centres by zoning them either according to provinces or ecological areas. During the year under review, 694 short courses were held at F .T.C.s with a total attendance of 23,279 students, botb men and women. The following table shows the performance of the 18 centres, operated by the Depa:rtments of Agriculture and Veterinary Services, during 1965. The number of students who attended courses in 1965 increased by 4,008 over the 1964 total and the number of student days rose by 22,870.

ATIENOANCE AT FARMERS' TRAINING CENTRE IN 1965

Capacity Number Total Centre of of Men Women Total student centre courses day s

Bukura . . .. 100 37 1,869 660 2,529 18,470 JUsii . . .. 103 51 1,532 650 2, 182 21 ,426 Maseno . . .. 30 5 103 - 103 515 Kabianga .. .. 70 58 1,270 809 2,079 11 ,819 Ba raton . . .. 60 75 1,239 282 1,521 8,967 Chebororwa .. 50 78 1,110 387 1,497 7,987 Ngong . . .. 40 7 152 12 164 2,244 Machakos .. . . 80 37 932 891 1,823 20,889 Kitui . . .. 60 35 798 756 1,554 15,182 Embu . . .. 42 19 385 192 577 7,252 Kaguru . . .. 86 62 1,023 996 2,019 15,884 Waruhiu . . .. 28 31 663 688 1,3 51 14,210 Wambugu .. . . 106 53 1,090 446 1,536 13,001 Kenyatta .. .. 53 35 808 629 1,437 10,195 K ia nyaga .. .. 30 31 852 199 1,051 9,792 N domba . . .. 20 11 160 - 160 1,990 Mariakani .. 20 28 471 - 471 6,455 Coast . . .. 30 41 1,019 206 1,225 6,959

TOTAL .. 1,008 1 694 15,476 7,803 23,279 193,237

A new venture in farmer-training bas been the establishment of a special centre at Thomson's Falls, to train new large-scale African farmers, who now own approximately 700 large-scale farms representing a n arca of over 600,000 acres, in the former non-schedu1ed areas. The British Government provided the initia l capita l to purchase and develop the centre which was officiaUy opened by the Minister for Agriculture accompanied by the Britiseh High Commissione r to Kenya on 30th June 1965. The normal course extends over a farming year and the initial intake of tra inees consisted of 70 Jarge-scale farmers and ten potential farm manage rs.

A GRI CULTURAL TRAINING The training of technical assistants for the Department of Agriculture, Settle­ ment and the Kenya Tea Development Authority, continued at the Agricultural Tra ining Centre, Embu. Of the 143 students who completed their course in July 1965, 124 passed their final examinations and were awarded certificates, 11 students

75 were referred and passed the re-sit papers and eight faiLed. The normal yearly output of this centre is 60 to 75, which is barely sufficient to mee! the wastage of the departments for which it trains staff. Egerton College at Njoro, and the Agriculture Faculty of Siriba College in Nyanza were the two institutions concerned with the training of assistant agricul­ turaL ofliccrs at dipLoma level. The Agricultural Faculty at Siri ba closed down in June 1965, after awarding diplomas to 22 students. The 20 fi.rst-year students remaining, transferred to Egerton Oollege, where ali training at diploma levet is now concentrated. In May 1965, Egerton introduced a new three-year agriculture diploma course to replace the previous two-year one. Another new course started in September 1965, is the diploma in range management, whicb is staffed by U.S. A. I. D. under the West Virginia University participant programme. At the end of the 1965 academie year, there were 320 students at the college, 59 of these were from Kenya, stud yi ng agriculture and agricultural engineering. Twenty-four Kenya stu dents were awarded diplomas in agriculture in June 1965, the majority of them joining the Department of Agriculture as assistant agricultural oflicers. Students for the B.Sc. (Agric.) degree normally study at Makerere University College, Kampala, Uganda. A total of 33 Kenya students were reading for their B.Sc. in 1965, nine others completed thcir studies and graduated in March 1965. The programme of overscas training for local officers of the Department con­ tinued during 1965 with the generous help of the U.S.A.I.D. and S.C.A.A.P. Under these schemes 19 officers went overseas for academie training and 20 for short courses of six to eight months duration on general extension work, horticul­ ture, soit conservation and home economies. Sixteen farm leaders, went on a six-month study tour in the U.S.A. under the U.S.A.I.D. Training Programme Schemes.

UNITED STATES AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ln addition to the overseas training programme, the local U.S.A.I.D. extension training team continued to advise and assist officers of the Department to organize courses for staff in extension training methods, home economies and 4-K club work. Du ring 1965, the extension training methods' section held 18 courses totalling 2,000 student days for field officers and technicians. The "Train the Trainer" aspect was emphasized at ali these courses to enable field officers to train their own staff.

HoME EXTENSION PROGRAMME The borne economie section, which operates through F.T.C.s as weil as in the fieLd also ran in-service courses in the Rift Valley, Western and Eastern Provinces. These courses were attended by 88 participants from ali over Kenya, the total number of student days being 784. An interesting aspect of these courses, is the opportunity it affords to home economies assistants to prepare their individual programme after discussing the problems and needs of their respective areas. Courses abroad sponsored by the U.S.A.I.D., included six-month training courses for six home economies assistants in the U.S.A., and academie studies also in the States (or anothcr member of the section. During the year, the home economies supervisor attended a conference on agricultural education sponsored by F.A.O. at Zaria, Northern Nigeria. She also represented the Department at another home economies conference for ail Africa held at the University College, Nairobi, under the auspices of F.A.O. She also acted as liaison officer for an F.A.O. / W.H.O. Scminar on Applied Nutrition in Africa, held at the Kenya Institute of Administration, Nairobi in October 1965. 76 4-K CLUB PROGRAMME The 4-K club programme continued to expand during the year, and is now represented in 27 districts al! over Kenya. The number of clubs rose from 448 in 1964 to 713 with a total membership of 20,000 in 1965. It is gratifying also to record the interest that the local farming community is taking in the movement. There are now 1,400 farmers, both men and women, serving as voluntary leaders of groups. His Excellency the President, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, gave special recognition to the organization when, at a youth council meeting held at State House he referred to the work of the 4-K club and the successful efforts the movement was making to interest the young in farming and inculcate in them a real love for the land. Twelve courses were conducted at F.T.C.s during the year, by 4-K club staff for District Agricultural Officers and their staff in order lo train them to supervise and organize programmes for tbeir respective areas. The number of departmental officers attending these courses was 343. In addition to these, courses were beld also for 4-K club members at F.T.C.s throughout the country. The movement was weil represented at the Agricultural Society of Kenya's Nairobi Show in September 1965. Farm produce and livestock exhibits from 22 districts were on show. The Kiambu 'District 4-K clubs won the Nairobi Lion's Club Competition Cup, for the best overall exhibit, and the 4-K clubs stand won the Freedom from Hunger Cup for the youth organization doing the most to eliminate hunger in Kenya. The National 4-K Programme Planning Committee met in January 1965. Eighteen districts were represented and recommendations for the year's work were formulated and later implemented. Delegations from Ethiopia, Uganda, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia Bechuanaland, Basutoland and Swaziland, sponsored by the Food and Agricultural Organization of U.N. visited Kenya in June, to observe the 4-K club programme in Kenya. The delegates were ali impressed with the work and progress of the movement.

Marketing The details of known exports from the small-scale farming areas during 1964 are shown in Table D. Both the Kenya Agricultural Produce Marketing Board a'fld the West Kenya Marketing Board completed their first year of operation. The following is a brief review of marketing in the provinces:- Coast Province.-The Kenya Agricultural Produce Marketing Board did much in providing incentive to coastal farmers to increase their acreages of scheduled crops purchased by the Board. These crops included cashew nuts, coconut, bixa, castor, cowpeas, grams, sesame, millets, chillies, capsicums, beans, sorghum, rice, maize and groundnuts. The only objection was against the priee of chillies. Central Province.-Tbe Jack of marketing reports from districts was blamed on the absence of district marketing officers except in Kiambu. The move to form co-operatives in the districts continued with the registration of three cotton growers' co-operative societies to sell cotton to the Kitui Ginnery. However, the running of co-operatives was reported to be unsatisfactory in Nyandarua due to low standards of management. Plums grown in Nyeri wcre sold to the Horticul­ tural Co-operative U ni on in Nairobi. During the year there were unsold surpluses of milk, fruits, and vegeta:bles and there was need fo r a drive at national leve! aimed at ensuring satisfactory market­ ing of perishable producls.

77 --

Rift Valley Province.-The year sa w the operation of two new marketing boards in the province. The West Kenya Marketing Board replaced the Nyanza Province Marketing Board and provided service in Nandi, Kericho and Narok. Ail the remaining districts of the province were served by the Kenya Agricultural Produce Marketing Board. Both tbese boards were very new and unable to provide ali the services required. Maize excluded, the majority of the crops were marketed through co-operative societies. Kericho experienced di.fficulty over the sale of 30,000 bags of surplus potatoes which were eventually placed following advice and belp from the senior horticultural officer. Co-operative societics were formed in Masai to deal with the marketing of wheat, sheep and kenaf. Nyanza Province.- A il the major arable agricu1tural produce (mainly maize, sorghum, pulses, groundnuts, simsim, etc.) were handled by the West Kenya Marketing Board. Special cash crops, i.e. coffee, pyrethrum, cotton and sugar-cane were handled by co-operative societies in conjunction with the various com­ modity boards. Sisal was handled by a licensed private fum while tea was bandled by the Kenya Tea Development Authority. Passion fruit was sold to Lanyon's factory at Sotik. Cotton unions were formed to operate around the main ginneries, viz. Ndere, Kibos, Kendu Bay and Roma Bay. The work of the West Kenya Marketing Board was not seriously disturbed by the suspension of five of üs top officiais. Western Province.-All the major arable agricultural produce was marketed through the West Kenya Marketing Board although considerable quantities were illegally sold to Uganda. Co:ffee and cotton continued ~o be marketed tbrough co-operative societies. Sugar-cane was sold to jaggery factories. Eastern Province.-The Kenya Agricultural Produce·Marketing Board expanded its facilit:ies in the province during the year, notably with the opening of a store in Kitui. Difficulties in the purchasing of seed cotton experienced during the previous year were alleviated by a programme of construction of cotton stores. In an effort to establish Mexico 142 pea bean as a cash crop a rather complicated process of field inspection followed by the issue of certificates was introduced to maintain the identity of the bean in competition with the ordinary haricot bean.

Grading and Inspection-Mombasa lnspection-lmports.-The principal feature was the large increase, in quantity and value, of imports as compared with the previous year. This was a direct result of famine conditions, over a wide arca, due to adverse weatber conditions, which necessitated the importation of large quantities of maize and other foodstuffs. The number of packages recorded rose from 413,800 in 1964 to 1,488,298 in 1965. The value of imports rose from Sh. 34,719,613 in 1964 to Sh. 105,724,110 in 1965. Maize imports comprised five shipments of American yelow maize amounting to 79,809 tons. There was one importation of sorghum from America amounting to 7,084 tons. Wheat imports comprised two shipments, one of 1,100 tons from Australia, and the other 9,053 tons from America. Both consignments were in good condition. Jmports of fresh fruit were reduced, amounting to 53,733 packages as compared wi th 66,691 paçkages in 1964. One consignrnent of sorgbum from Dar es Salaam was found to be so heavily infested with Tribolium and Sitophilus as to require fumigation. One hundred and seventy consignments of rice, spiccs, and other produce, were fu migated for the control of Trogoderma Granarium during the year. These included two ship­ ments of Dutch malt which were fuund to be infested on arrivai.

78 Grading- Exports.- The number of phytosanitary certificates issued during the year was 364, as compared with 295 in 1964. One hundred and twenty-nine were for Uganda cotFee, and 25 were Kenya coffee. Exports of castor seed feil to 141,792 bags, as compared with 179,856 bags in 1964. Kenya castor seed totalled 71,731 bags, as against 76,705 bags in 1964. There was an increase in exports of horticultural produce from Mombasa, wbich amounted to 1,834,271 lb. as compared with 1,349,595 in 1964. The declared value was Sh. 632,235. The number of export certificates issued was 440. Inspection fees totalled Sh. 1,998 / 15. Aden and the Arabian Peninsul a were the pri ncipal markets for fresh fruit, and exports of Asian vegetables by air to the United Kingdom amounted to 164,444 lb. Exporls of potatoes amounted 16,580 cwt. as compared with 16,498 cwt. in 1964. There were no exports of Kenya maize, and no grading was undertaken. Under rule 25, one thousand eight hundred bags of maize were shipped ungraded to the Seychelles. The total quantity of beans submitted for grading during the ycar was 30,987 bags, as compared with 36,957 bags in 1964. White haricot beans showed an increase with a total of 19,064 bags as against 14, 125 bags in 1964. Figures for Canadian Wonder beans feil from 5,359 bags in 1964 to only 300 bags in 1965. Shipment of seed beans amounted to 44,712 bags, mainly of Tanzanian origin. Exports of small chillies were 5,603 bags Jess than in the previous ycar, quality was poor, and 5.228 bags, ali of Uganda origin, were passed as undergraded. Exports of capsicums were greatly reduced, and shipments amount.ed to 10,793 bags as compared with 21,553 bags in 1964. Shimba H ills produced the bulk, but quality was disappointing. No wheat was exported. Revenu'e.-Revenue from grading and inspection was less, with a total of Sh. 11 ,630/ 60 as compared with Sh. 16,416/60 in 1964.

SUMMARY- PRODUCE ÜRADED IN 1965

Beans Potatoes Bags Tons Cwt. Tons

K3 695 62 KL. 2,066 103 K4 23,390 2,088 KM 14,514 726 K6 6,900 616 KS RJ 2 RJ 602 30 30,987 2,766 17,182 859

Ch illies Capsicums Bags Tons Bags Tons UG . . 5,228 187 FAO .. 2,1 82 44 RJ . . 136 5 UG .. 8,611 173 RJ .. 58 1 5,364 192 10,851 218 1 1

79 Bird Control (Quelea) Movements.-Tbe movement of Quelea and other small grain·earting birds such as the Chestnut Weaver cbanged considerably from the normal pattern due to the drought condition which persisted. During the fi rst few months of 1965 the Quelea came up the Great Rift Valley from T anzania and settled around the Shombole Swamp in the Magadi area. The only rain was in April-June a nd the birds started ro breed in late ApriL By mid-May control operations started and while they were being carried out, reports of. invasions of the same two species came frome K italc, Nakuru, Machakos, Kitui, K ibwezi, Nanyuki and Nyeri areas. Sorne of the birds came from thei r traditional breeding places like Tsavo and around Lake Rudolf. By August, reports were coming from Rift Valley, Central and Eastern Provinces. Ngong Hills reported infestations for the first time. More colonies were found on the Athi Tiva Scheme in Kitui towards the end of October. As soon as colonies were discovered control measures were taken and about 150 acres of colonies were destroyed. In Magadi, the breeding colonies were scattered in an area of more than 180 square miles a nd out of this only about 95 square miles were brought under control, in the Ngurumani a rea. These control measures were carried out by the Ke nya control unit alone. Contro/.-By using the usual control methods as weil as sorne new methods, the unit managed to destroy severa! dense colonies totalling 15-1 7 million Quelea a nd related species. Of this, 3t million were young birds in breeding colonies. A higher figure might have been destroyed had the drought conditions not dis­ persed colonies into small swarms in ali parts of Kenya which it would have been uneconomic to destroy. The following methods of control were used mainly in Rift Valley:­ (1) Aerial Spraying (using Sa rathion or Queletose). (2) Fuel /Explosives blow-up (fuel bomb). (3) Explosives blow-up. (4) S t.rip spraying with Queletox. (5) Cutting down branches bearing nest.s and young birds. (This proved more economical than flame throwiog.) General.-Priorit y had to be given to control in the Rift Valley Province where the greatest threat to the country's wheat was presented. This was mainly arOLmd Nakuru, Kitale, Eldoret, Mau Summit and Ngong. A s soon as wbeat had been harvested at Ngong the birds moved to Lake Naivasba where they stayed for a while before following the northward movement of the rain and settling in the 0 1 Kalou arca (Lake OlboJosat). ln mid-November breeding started in K itui on the Atbi T iva Scheme which shows that both Quelea a nd the Chestnut Weaver can adapt themselves clima­ tically. Athi Tiva provides a very favourable breeding site. Further investiga­ tions in Meru and Embu were planned.

PART IV-GENERAL Library One of the library clerks was sent on the six months' certificate of librarianship course at the East African School of Libra rianship, Makerere University College, in -the fust half of the year. He gained a certifieate. In July the library assistant was sent for the two-year diploma course. During the year the Iibrarian paid many visit.s to research, provincial and distriot libraries, advising and reorganizing as necessary. It is hoped to visit most of the remaining stations during 1966.

80 Sorne 300 books and smaller items were purchased during the year and about 250 periodkals were bound, mainly for outstation libraries. The library was again used extensively throughout the year by research workers from University College and overseas and by members of visiti ng Missions. Two issues of the departmental newsletter appeared during the year.

Publications The following articles by departmental officers have appeared in local and overseas journals du ring the year:- AJlan, A. Y. Maizc field day at Kitale. The Kenya Farmer No. 1/2, p. 20 (November). Allan, R. G. New potato pest, Kenya Weekly News No. 2031, p. 40, 15th January 1965. Bodgan, A. V. Cultivated Varieties of tropical herbage plants in Kenya. E. Afr. agric. for. J. 30. 330. ---- Vegetative propagation of fodder and pasture grasses. Ibid N o. 105, p. 33 (April). --- Pasture and Fodder Grasses and Legumes for medium and low altitudes. The Kenya Farmer No. 107, p. 30 (June). Bullock, J. A. Preliminary observations and experiments on the control of T Thrips nigropilesus Uzel. Trop. Agric., (Trin.) 42 (l) 75. Bush, E. C., Sheep Management. The Kenya Famzer No. 120, p. 33 (Jan.) ---- A comparison of the milking capacity of Corriedale a nd Corriedale x Border Leicester ewes. E. Afr. agric. for J. 31 (J) 31. Crowe, T. J. and Leeuwangh, J. The giant coffee looper. K enya Coflee 30 (358) 433. D ougall, H. W. and Bodgan, A. V. The chemical composition o( the grasses of Kenya. III. E. Afr. agric. for. J. 30, 314. ---- Urea in the die! of the ruminant The Kenya Farmer No. 109, p. 33 (Aug.). Drysdale, V. M. The efl"ects of variety, fertilizer and site on the nitrogen content of maize grain. The Kenya Farmer No. 106, p. 18 (May). ---- Nutrient removal by maize. The Kenya Farmer No. 103, p. 22 (Feb.) and E. Afr. agric. for. J. 31, 189. Eberhart, S. A. Maize research notes. The Kenya Farmer No. 113, p. 15 (December). Enns, H. International Wheat Rust Testing Centre. Wheat Information Services No. 19 Kyoto University, Japan. ----, Lynch, K. W. and Pinto, F. F. Sumrnary report for 1963 of the Interna­ tional Wheat Rust Testing Centre, Njoro, Kenya, Ibid No. 20 Firman, l. D. A review of leaf rust and coffee berry disease control in Kenya Trop. Agric. (Trin.) 42. 111. - --- and Wallis, J. A. N. Low volume spraying to control coffee leaf rust in Kenya. Amz. Appt. Biol. 55 (1) 123. _, Giglioli, E. G. Mechanical cultivation of riec on the Mwea Irrigation Settlement E. Afr. agric. tor. J. 30. (3) 177. Staff organization and tenant discipline on an irrigated land seUlement. 1bid. p. 202.

8 1 Guthrie, E. J. Wheat research notes. The K enya Farmer No. 108, p. 40 (July) and No. ll1, p. 21 (Nov.) Harrison, M. . H. Maize research notes. The K enya Farmer No. 107, p. 19 (June). Kidner, E. M. Bee[ production from pasture. The Kenya Farmer No. 107, p. 16 (June). --- Beef production Ibid. No. 109, p. 28 (Aug.). --- Bodyweight changes in a commercial Ayrsh.ire herd and their probable association with the interval between calvings. Ibid. No. 108, p. 20 (July). ---.A note on the comparative efliciency of different sets of twin cows for Iivcweight grains and milk yield. E. Afr. agric. for. J. 30. (3) 246. --- Seasonal bodyweight changes in suckled Boran cows and their probable association with the interval betwecn calvings. The Kenya Farmer No. 107, p. 20 (June). Knight, J. Sorne observations on the feeding habits of goals in South Baringo district of Kenya E. Afr. agric. for. J. 30. (3) 182. Kockum, S. Crib storage of maize; a trial with pyrcthrum and lindane. E. Afr. ngric. for. J. 3I. (1) 8. Lynch. K. W. Plant breeding notes. The Kenya Former No. 102 p. 26 (Jan.). --- Wheat research notes. Ibid. 1 IO, p. 36 (Sept.). --- Release of three new wheat varieties and one new oat variety, 1965. Kenya Weekly News, No. 2029, p. 32 (1st January 1965). McFarlane, J. A Insect Infestation of stored wheat. The Kenya Farmer No. 103 p. 34. (Feb.). Moberly, P. K. Maize meal as an energy supplement for the dairy cow. The K enya Farmer No. 105, p. 30 (April). --- The value of prolonged skim milk feeding to Jersey calves. Ibid. p. 32, (April). --- Set-stocking versus rotational grazing of young Jersey calves. Ibid. No. 106, p. 7 (May). --- Sunflower head bran as a supplement for the dairy cow. Ibid. No. 105, p. 19 (April). --- The value of smaU quantities of skim milk to young pigs fed an unpalatable ration. Ibid. No. 106, p. 28 (May). Moore, C. E. M. Production of pasture seeds for medium altitudes. The K enya Farmer No. 105, p. 4 (April) and Kenya Sisal Bd. Bull. No. 53 p. 31 (July). Morrison J. Pasture production at high altitudes. The Kenya Farmer No. 112 p. 44. (Nov.). --- and Moore, C. E. M. Pasture recommendation for medium and higb altitudes. K enya Weekly News 9th April 1965. National Agricultural Rcsearch Station, Kitale. Fodder crops for animal use in Kenya. The Kenya Farmer No. 112, p. 20 (Nov.). Njagi, J. W. E. and Wapakala, W. W. Work in progress in the Coffee Researcb Service: VII Meru. Kenya Gaffee 30 (351) 121. Pereira J. L. and Wallis, J. A N. Work in progress in the Kenya Researcb Service Pt V-Kisii. Kenya Coffee 30 (349) 19. Pinkerton, A. Parallel Streak in Sisal, V. Kenya Sisal Bd. Bull. No. 52, p. 27 (April).

82 ---.- Barrett, M. W. and Guthrie, E. J. A note on copper deficiency in the NJoro area, Kenya. E. Afr. agric. for. J. 30. (3) 257. Suttie, J. M. Establishment of pastures at medium altitudes. The Kenya Panner No. 109, p. 16 (Aug.). --- Napier grass. Ibid. No. /07, p. 21 (June). ---- Sunflower: its culture and chemical composition. Ibid. No. JOB, p. 10 (July). Visser, S. A. Theissen, A. A., Mehlich, A.- Long term influence of decomposing organic matter on various clay minerais. Soi/ Science 100, 232-7. WaUis, J. A. N. and Firman, I.D. Spraying Arabica coffee for the control of coffee berry disease. Ann. appt. Biol. 55 (l) 139. --- Work in progress: the Coffee Advisory Service. Kenya Coffee 30 (357) 385 (Sept.). Wheatley, P. E. Pest Handbook. Goverrunent Printer, Nairobi. Wormer, T. M. and Ebagole, H. E. Visual scoring of starch in Coffea Arabica I. Methods. Exp/. A gric. 1., 33. ------Vi suai scoring of starcb in Coffea A rab ica II. Starch in bearing and non-bearing branches. Ibid. p. 41. ---- and Firman, I. D. Control of crinkle-leaf of coffee in Kenya Experi­ mental Agriculture 1, 1.

Legislation The more important legislative measures enacted during the year were as follows:- AGRICULTURE ÜRDINANCE The Agriculture (Basic Land Usage) Rules 1965.-These rules apply to ail land in Kenya except plots of not more than two acres used for residential pur­ poses only in municipalities and townships, and lands used for recreational purposes, and lay down conditions for the protection of land with slopes exceeding 35 per cent, 20 per cent and 12 per cent, the protection of watercourses and protection against erosion by run-off water. Penalties for oiiences are laid down and district agricultural cornmittees are empowered to make regulations under the rules in respect of their district. The Sun-dried Tea Regulations 1965 .- These regulations prohibit the un­ licensed manufacture of tea and the buying and sale of such tea, lay down the penalties for oiiences and detail powers of search. The K enya Tea Development Authority (Amendment) Order 1965.-Lays down the conditions in which persons shall cease to be members of district or divisional tea committees and provincial boards, lays down their terms of office and amends the First and Second Schedules to include tea on settlement schemes.

THE AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION ACT (No. 7 OF 1965}-Estab­ t:shes the Agricultural Development Corporation, the funclion of which is the initiation, assistance and expansion of agricultural enterprises and undertakings, details its membership and sets out its powers and functions. The Minister of Agriculture .is empowered to make rules under the Act, after consultation w1th the Corporation, for such matters as raising loans and making investments, controlling and regulating the purchase and sale of land for agricultural develop­ ment, and prescribing, controlling and regulating schemes for agricultural development.

83 CANNING CRoPs Acr .-By an addition to the Second Schedule, passion fruit became a scheduled crop under the Act, wbich previously only covered pineapples.

MAIZB MARKETING Aer.- Grading for Local Purchase Regulations 1965.­ These Regulations, on similar tines to tbose previously promulgated, apply to the 1965-planted crop and those planted thereafter.

MARKETING OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCE Acr.-An Order under the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Act amended the ti ùe of this Act from "Marketing of African Produce" to "Marketing of AgricuHural Produce" and made various consequential amendments.

PLANT PROTECfiON Aer.- Importalion Order.- An amendment to this Order added ail species of Musaceae including Ravenala, Strelitzia, Heliconia, Lowia and Orchidantha to Schedule I (importation under permit) and a furtber amendment deleted the items beans and peas aU grams and pulses, grams, !entils, pulses, soya beans from the Third Schedule (importation permitted without permit if for consumption, processing etc.) and substituting lentils (split) and peas (split).

THE SISAL lNDUSTRY AMENDMENT A cr (No. 6 OF 1965).-Amends .the principal Act by reconstructing the Sisal Board to give representation to aU sectors of the industry, and a new definition of "plantation growers" includes co-operative societies whose members have, in the aggregate, more than 100 acres of sisal. A new section ten makes provisi·on for the auditing of the accounts of the Board, bringing the Board into Une wit·h other statutory boards, and tbree new sections und er section 13 make provision for the 1icensing of facto ries processing sisal and sisal fi bre, for the registration of plantati on growers (instead of ali growers as hitberto) and the appointment of inspectors for the purpose of the Act and any regulations made thereunder and defines their powers. A new section (22) makes offences under the Act cognizable to the police.

StaJI D~ring the year M!r. D. J. Pratt was appointed Senior Range Research O:ffice.r, Mr. M.F. Watson as Senior Research Officer, Mr. J. Gitau as Senior Soi! Chernist and Mr. Z. Owiro as Provi ncial Agricultural Offi.cer, Nyanza Province. Mr. J. M. Waller acted as Senior Plant Pathologist, Mr. F. Thornley as Soi! Conserva­ tion Planning Offi.cer, Mr. J. K. Mutbama as Assistant Director of Agriculture, Eastern Province, Mr. D. Mbotela as Provincial Agricultural Officer, Coast Pro­ vince, and Mr. A. I. Machayo as Provincial Agricultural Officer, Western Province. The steady, but reduced, run of retirement of expatriate officers continued. These were almost wholly replaced by newly qualified diplomates from Egerton College in the Assistant Agricultural Officer ranks and by deg.reed personnel in the Agricultural Officer cadre. There were !osses of departmental personnel to other agencies who also took severa! people returning from training who could have been expected to join the Department. At the end of the year there were 20 vacancies in the Agricultural Officer cadre and 40 vacancies in the establish­ ment for Assistant Agricultural Officers. The expected output of diplomates and degrees is expected to fill the A.A.O. ranks du ring 1966, but the "A" scale estab­ lishment will continue not to be wholly filled. This position wi ll not be improved if the general staffi.ng of the Department to meet the needs of the Development Plan is raised, but it is confidently hoped that increased training programmes will fil! most of tbese vacancies and only minimal recruitment of expatriates wjll be necessary. 84 AFRICANIZATION TABLE

Lower Super Super Scale Scale A.O.s A.A.O.s Establishment

3 4

5 20

34 102 1 196 300 1

Acknowledgemcnt I should like to thank ali staff for their efforts during the year. Many bave been called on to assume higher responsibility and ali have responded extremely weil.

P. S. T . MIRIE, Director of Agriculture.

Erratum 1964 ANN1JAL R.EPûRT Table A- Rainfall Figures Kitui Endau Dispensary (Eastern P rovince), percentage figure sbould read 68 per cent not 35 per cent. DeJete reference to tb.is figure on page 13, fifth line from the bottom and substitute "In Eastern Province less than average rainfalls in Kitui were relieved ...."

85 GPK 2680-1,450-12/66