Gardeners' World

Gardeners’World- tree nursery.

Welcome!

My neighbour, James, has a tree nursery: it’s a commercial enterprise, operating adjacent to the family compound, covering an area about 25 metres by 30 metres.

Seedling trees- some of the thousands in James' nursery

Creating compost, fertilized by the family’s hens, prepared soil is packed into polythene sleeves, and seeds, collected from the nursery’s mahogany, mango, neme and pawpaw trees, are sown in threes, fours or fives, to be thinned later after germination. Water comes via the family’s well, is hand pumped into a wheel barrow, then distributed with watering cans twice each day. It’s a time and labour consuming business, given as often as possible to the younger men in the household, and vital for plant survival during the parched dry season which lasts from October until April.

The water is manually pumped up from the well

James learned the techniques of horticulture from Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) but in particular credits a previous volunteer from the USA Peace Corps, Dusty, who took James across borders to Burkina Faso, and later, through Togo to Benin, to observe and practice the skills which would suit northern Ghana’s seasons.  Then bulk orders from the EPA for thousands of seedling trees, to be used as windbreaks and for shade, around public projects, plus to secure soil and prevent desertification, (The Sahara desert is spreading) allowed James’ business to establish.

A mango- with a good full fruit (not a dental floss  variety) is grafted onto a stronger rooting stock. James indicates the grafting point.

The nursery, like any garden, allotment or plot, feels  soothing, peaceful   Within its chain link fence, essential as locally owned animals- the cows, donkeys, pigs, hens and guinea fowl- are all “free range”, the air feels fresher, the shade is cooling, the rustling of drying seed pods and green leaves is calming.

Creature comforts of a shed- without needing the shed:-seating, radio- tuned into the Africa Cup football commentary,  a snack.