Zimbabwe: Crop Condition Remains Dire Despite Rains

Source from:  The Herald 02/01/2010

Harare - The crop condition remains dire in most parts of the country despite rains that have been falling in different farming areas. Some areas that last received rains in mid-December started receiving rains this week but the condition of the staple maize crop has not significantly changed. Crops in some areas had already started wilting and were not revived by the current rains. Zimbabwe Farmers Union director Mr Paul Zakariya yesterday said the situation on the ground was still cause for concern. "There have been light showers in some parts of the country but there have not been serious changes in terms of the crop condition. "The situation is not looking good. There are cases where crops are already a write off. We hope the recent rains will continue until next week so that some crops can be saved from the dry conditions," he said. Mashonaland West farmer Mr David Marimo said the province had received intermittent rainfall in recent weeks but was now experiencing hailstorms that were destroying the tobacco crop. "Large areas of tobacco fields have been destroyed recently by hailstorm while some areas in the province are not receiving meaningful rains," complained Mr Marimo. In Mashonaland East, little showers were received in some parts of Marondera while other areas received heavy rains. Reports from Uzumba in Murehwa indicate the rains have been marginally better and crops are faring well. Information from Mashonaland East Agritex indicates that the rains were, however, not evenly spread. Some crops in the province had temporarily wilted but improved with the rains. In Manicaland, some farmers have lost hope. Manicaland acting provincial Agritex officer Mr Joseph Mukajami said maize was starting to wilt. "Most of the maize crop at knee high stage was affected by the dry spell. "There are clouds and we are just hoping the rains will come," Mr Mukajami said. A visit by The Herald to Chimanimani this week showed the maize crop in the area was a write-off and would likely not recover even if meaningful rains fell soon. The country has for the past few years experienced consecutive droughts. The Meteorological Services Department yesterday said heavy falls of up to 90mm were expected in some parts of the country while Masvingo, Manicaland and southern Midlands would likely experience isolated thunderstorms. Enditem