The increasing demand for vegetables has been directly related to better health to prevent lifestyle diseases.

Joseph Male, an expert in vegetable farming says according to the Centre for Agriculture Biosciences (CABI) 89% of Ugandans consume vegetables, accounting for 63.5kg per year against the recommended 149kg per year per person.

“Many people have migrated from rural areas to live in urban areas and are mostly living on small pieces of land.

However, this should not limit them from growing vegetables so as to live healthy lives. I advise as many people as can to grow vegetables, irrespective of the size of land they are living on,” Male says.

Sedium Pathipollium in hanging pots.

Flavia Atto, a vegetable grower says for lack of enough space on a small piece of land, a garden may not be possible. If this is the case, vegetables can be grown in planters and placed in plant holders. These can then be placed in the limited space.

“Vegetables that include carrots, cabbages, spinach, spring onions, nakati, sukuma wiki, egg plants, parsley, lettuce, basil, dodo and coriander can be grown in plant holders which can accommodate 10 planters at a go and can be placed in a small place vertically, where one can plant their vegetables.

Another plant holder can accommodate four planters and another seven; all of which can be horizontally placed to suit a homeowner who has limited land for vegetable farming,” Atto says.    

She explains that although homeowners should plant vegetables to keep their bodies healthy, they should avoid spraying the plants with chemicals and instead use organic manure because chemicals are harmful to human life.

Sedium Pathipollium planted in pots

Atto adds that since seasons changed, homeowners should not depend on rain alone to grow their vegetables because they take about 45 days to mature. This is about one and a half months, a period in which there might not be any rainfall.

This means that a homeowner must practice irrigation, spraying the vegetables and being able to grow them throughout the year, irrespective of whether it rains or not.