Testimonials and case studies
Don’t just take it from us! Read through these quotes and videos for on-the-ground insight into how our work and Deep Bed Farming are transforming lives and strengthening ecosystems.
Case study: Mr. Stuart Ziba
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Mr. Stuart Ziba of Kampupu Ziba village is blown away by how much maize he has harvested this year, especially during Malawi’s ongoing food crisis where most farmers are suffering from devasting crop failures. Before he started using Deep Bed Farming, Stuart’s average maize harvest ranged from 60-70 bags of 50kg each. But after receiving training from Tiyeni, Stuart’s maize harvest for the 2023-24 season came to total of 300 bags of 50kg each.
This record-breaking harvest has produced so much maize that Stuart had to hire a machine to shell it all! |
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After the floods: Building farmers’ resilience to Cyclone Freddy
In 2023 Cyclone Freddy wreaked devastation on Malawi, hitting the country’s southern region twice. Climate change had increased the intensity of the cyclone and its effects, a trend that experts say will continue. After the cyclone had subsided, Tiyeni spoke with farmers in our southern hub in Mulanje to hear how Deep Bed Farming had built their resilience to this extreme weather event. Read what these farmers had to say below.
Crops under Deep Bed Farming were resilient in the floods, to the extent that my crops and beds were not washed away with the flooding. If I had not adopted Deep Bed Farming, I would not have survived the impact of Cyclone Freddy in terms of food. Even though the water was too much, I managed to harvest two and a half bags of maize from the [Deep] Beds. |
Indeed those marker ridges and the raised beds withheld the pressure of water, because I could tell the difference between the [conventional] ridges and the [Deep] Beds. In the [conventional] ridges, soil erosion could be seen, and some ridges were washed away while the Deep Beds remained intact and just needed to be raised to their normal height. |
Case study: Mrs. Esther Mwala
Mrs. Esther Mwala of Milonde EPA praises Deep Bed Farming and how it has changed her life. Like many farmers in Malawi, Esther had long been harvesting poor crop yields on her conventional ridges. But Esther’s situation changed drastically after Tiyeni provided her and her community with the training and support to adopt Deep Bed Farming. Esther’s crops yields were so bountiful that she had enough to sell for profit. Using this income, and with the extra time she has gained by switching to Deep Bed Farming, Esther has returned to complete her secondary education, and is committed to then going on to complete a university degree. Esther’s increased profits from using Deep Bed Farming have also provided her with enough funds to pay the school fees for two of her children, both of whom are in Form One.
On the need for Tiyeni’s work: Focus group in Jumpha village
Tiyeni is dedicated to ensuring that we are aware of specific needs of the communities we work with. To this end, we regularly conduct focus groups with these communities to understand individual situations and to inform project development and delivery. The following quotes come from a focus group conducted in Jumpha village in Malawi’s central region, where our Chiwamba training hub is located.
Our land is now worthless. We are all ready to implement land improving technologies to erosion control [sic] and improve soil fertility. |
We had erosion in our land, even gullies, before 1968. When I was born my parents were already facing land degradation. They were contemplating finding a good place to settle. |
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Following this feedback, Tiyeni staff asked a local agricultural officer from the Malawian Ministry of Agriculture whether he thought that Deep Bed Farming could address the need to revitalise degraded land. He responded:
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Deep Bed Farming is one of the initiatives that can help in reclaiming the degraded land in Jumpha because it encourages deep ploughing which breaks the hardpan thereby increases infiltration and reducing [rainwater] runoff and soil erosion, and it incorporates other technologies such as marker ridge construction, box ridges, raised boundaries and foot paths, and manure application which may help in the restoration of the degraded land. Therefore, we strongly recommend and agree that Deep Bed Farming can succeed in reclaiming the degraded lands in Jumpha village. |
Experts and advocates share their thoughts
The wide-reaching impacts of Tiyeni’s work and Deep Bed Farming have drawn the attention (and praise!) of experts and advocates for sustainable agriculture. Read and watch what they have to say below.
The bedding system [of Deep Bed Farming] has got all the advantages so the maize can do well, if we compare to the [conventional] ridges. Because on the [Deep] Bed system, the conservation of water is there all the time... it promises that you are going to have a bumper yield, as you can see from this bedding system. This is marvellous! It is very very good. |
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I have worked in soil and water conservation for around 60 years, and I have rarely seen such impressive results being achieved by resource-poor small-scale farmers [as they achieve from Deep Bed Farming]. |
Deep Bed Farming, in effect, is a no-dig system which is best suited to African soils with deep hardpan... This is a transformative approach which makes the way for financially viable and environmentally stable farming in Africa. |
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It is impossible not to recognise the benefits. On one side, where the Deep Bed Farming method has been applied, huge maize crops, rich and thick, and on the other side, essentially no crops. |