We have just got back after the summer hiatus and have visited the garden with my new, huge, group of Agricultural Plant Science Elective students – 21 of them! One of the biggest classes I have ever had.

The garden is a bit overgrown after the summer. The terrace needs to be finished so that we can use it afresh to plant maize, beans and pumpkins – the three sisters. The greenhouse too needs some tender loving care, and there is coffee to pick. Not only that but we have also counted the number of our cacao plants that survived the dry season over the months of June and July: unfortunately about 20 of the plants that we planted did not survive due to predation or a lack of water, however, forty did survive and we have cacao pods maturing on our existing ten trees that were planted five years ago.

This year is a year to consolidate what we have managed to do. We need to finish the terrace, weed and fertilize the cacao trees; ensure solid management of the coffee trees, together with some more pruning to ensure future growth, and finally, we need to get the greenhouse back functioning and producing us vegetables and fruit. This year I am also going to start again with monographs for the new intake of students, teaching them research and scientific writing skills that they can put into practice.

Keep checking in to see our progress!

Dr Woj