Now that the rains have stopped, we are nearing the end of our farming season. Most people will finish harvesting over the next few months and will return to Sonsoro in January.
During the farming season, farmers (that is, nearly the entire population of Sonsoro) actually leave town and move into their country homes amidst their fields. Most people only return to town on our market day, which is every fourth day. On Friday, I went to visit my friend's farm, which is about 15 miles from Sonsoro.
My friend has a large farm and hires laborers to help out. He grows cotton, soybeans, corn, manioc, mangoes, edible flowers, millet, and more, and he also raises bees and chickens. Below are some photos from his farm:
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| A storage container full of millet |
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| I'm very comfortable in this giant pile of cotton. |
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| See how tall the millet grows? The top is eaten, and the stalks are used for construction projects. |
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| The top of the millet can be turned into porridge or mash. |
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| A field of cotton. All the related labor is done by hand. No cotton gin here! |
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| My friend's house, where he lives during the eight or so months he spends every year on his farm. |
Eight months on the farm and only four months in the village. Is that true of most of the village. Somehow, I got the idea that it was the other way around; four on the farm and eight in the village. Maybe that's just this particular farmer. It's interesting that in Benin the millet stalk can be used for construction. The people have found ways to use everything they have. It looks as though we can learn a few things from them.
ReplyDeleteJean Ralley
I used to think that people only stayed on the farm during the rainy season (which is six months long), but this year I discovered that the harvest continues into January, several months after the rains have ended. Perhaps I didn't realize that last year because I spent so much time in the US around that time, and several weeks more in trainings. Students, however, return to Sonsoro once the school year starts, and they are accompanied by an adult. All others stay on the farm until the harvest is over.
ReplyDeleteConstruction with millet stalks is not permanent and it seems that the stalks are often replaced after a few years. Many families use millet stalks to construct shady outdoor areas on a frame of tree logs. Some businesses, such as motorcycle mechanic shops, set up shop under an overhang constructed of logs and millet stalks. Many fences are made of millet stalks tied to tree branch posts. My favorite omelet place in village is built out of millet stalks (they just replaced one of the walls with new stalks earlier this week).
And what good omelets are served there!
ReplyDeleteI did not realize the millet stalks were so tall! The top is what my porridge in Kandi was made from? The Beninese remind me of native Americans, letting nothing go to waste, except, perhaps, those black plastic bags.
I was so awed by the big trucks overflowing with cotton balls lumbering down the road and through Kandi. When one went by me and some cotton fell off, I wanted to pick it up and put it back on the truck. I hated to see someone's hard work left in the dust.