Organic Horticultural Production in the Mueria Community.

I am a teacher in the Mueria EPFR, situated in the district of Nacala-a-velha, in the province of Nampula.

I am going to describe the organic product made by the students. At the moment, they are developing practices of organic production so as to encourage local producers to change their attitude. Seeing as these people use chemical fertilizers and insecticides, they do not obey the rules of security during the handling of their products. They degrade the soil, pollute the waters, intoxicate people and damage the local ecosystem.

Thus the school leads in the practices of: the production of organic compounds made from cow, bird and goat manure, vegetable leaves (black-eyed beans) and grass. Green compost, made basically from vegetable material, such as tridax and the tumbleweed, has shown galloping results. In making bio-fertilizer the students use the following material: goat, cow and bird manure, as well as ashes.

The school produces various types of bio-pesticides, but the most common is that from the leaves of the castor plant, tobacco, garlic and cucumber, which is very efficacious in combating the American caterpillar and the cochineal insect. Mulching (dead covering using dried grass). These techniques make for a high quality, nutritious and healthy product with little chance of contamination. In order to provoke changes, the teachers together with the students have organised lectures and plays on sustainable agriculture. Along with a healthy organic product.