Update on Ebenezer's chickens with Ezra Prescott




Ebenezer chickens

1. Ebenezer has finished slaughtering the 9th batch of chickens. 2. The 10th batch is on the way.
3. There are 3000 chicken per batch.
4. 3 new chicken houses are being built at the moment with the total capacity of 14,000.
5. The aim is to have every apprentice doing chickens - roughly 750 chickens per appy.
6. Chicken are definitely the way to go.

Ezra Prescott

By Molly Manhanga



Update on crops with Jacques Dupreez

George Mlilo (Left) & Jacques Dupreez (Right)

1. Almost 2 hectares of wheat has been planted.
2. 3/4 hectare of garlic has been planted.
3. They are reaping the tomatoes.
4. They are also reaping the peas. The girls have done very well with the peas.
5. The onions are looking good. 3/4 hectare is doing well while the other quarter is looking sparse.
6. In June, more onions and cabbages will be planted.

By Molly Manhanga



Update on Ebenezer's 'Home Schooling'

Nyasha Mathsalaga (Left) and Mthandazo Mlilo (Right)

Mthandazo Mlilo and Nyasha Mathsalaga are the two students at Ebenezer's Home School led by Mrs Nyamayaro. Both the boys are 8 years old and are doing really well. The second term has started and the boys will be joining Nduna Primary School - a local primary school in the area - for their sporting activities: soccer and netball.

The core subjects the boys are learning are Maths, English and Ndebele (local language for Matabeleland province) as well as Social Studies, Environmental Science, Religious Education, Home Economics and Art & Craft. The children have started writing in pen and the adjustment from pencil to pen hasn't been easy. It will take a while before their writing looks..............neat! The boys write exams every 6 weeks. Their next exam will start on the 11th June 2012. We wish them well!

By Molly Manhanga  

Update on Research and Development

Prosper Nguluve

It was good catching up with Prosper Nguluve on the Research and Development plot. This is what he said:

1. They finished harvesting the maize last week.
2. They are in the process of hand shelling the maize.
3. There are four 6m x 6m legume crops: red sun hemp, yellow sun hemp, Pigeon P (nitrogen fixing plant) and velvet beans.

Non of these crops are being watered at the moment with the aim being to see if they are suitable to be grown in the region. Ebenezer falls under region 5 which means it is a poor rainfall area.

Future Plans
Prosper says they'd like to open another block for crop rotation but they are still deciding on the crops.

By Molly Manhanga   

Upgrade to the kitchen

It was really nice seeing the new kitchen chimneys at Ebenezer. They sure help to control the smoke in the kitchen. They have come as a great relief to the Ebenezer 'chefs' as well as to the apprentices. Cooking is now a joy!



By Molly Manhanga

Happenings on the ground

1. There still seems to be water problems. A new pump is expected to arrive tomorrow Monday 7 May 2012.
2. There is lots of garlic seed which needs to be planted. The 2nd year apprentices will take on this task. they will probably plant 11 plots - each plot being 30m x 30m. 
3. There is a very good harvest of peas which were planted by the 1st years.
4. The tomatoes are doing well so far. The apprentices are hoping that they won't be hit by frost as temperatures are changing already as we head into our winter season.
5. The 1st year boys are expecting to start harvesting thier onions by mid-June.
6. More chicken houses will be going up starting tomorrow. The aim is to have 5000 chicken at Ebenezer soon and possibly 8 - 10 times that amount by year end!
7. Rodney Spencer is spending more time on the ground and therefore is also spending more time with the apprentices.

Rodney Spencer and Mxwayisi Dube

Let's hope that the next quarter ..........and more ...........proves to be very fruitful for Ebenezer and that winter doen't wreck havoc on the crops.

By Molly Manhanga