Sowing to reap in this New Year

By Vatapuia Maiava 06 January 2017, 12:00AM

The rain is a blessing.

So says Tala Lameko, from the village of Tapatapao, who sees the New Year as a time to prepare for a harvest. 

Yesterday the 21-year-old was hard at work on his family land clearing and preparing it.

He explains that this work will help his family throughout 2017. For the family, this is a time to prepare by sowing what they will reap.

“As you guys just drove in, we just started our early morning work by clearing the land to grow some tomatoes,” Tala told the Village Voice.

“It’s a new year so it’s time to start fresh again and plant some new crops for the family. Throughout the year, these crops will serve us well.

“Not only will we have these vegetables for the family meals, we will also make quite a bit of money when we take some of it to the market to sell.”

Tala and the family plans to plant a variety of crops so that they have a wider range to earn money from later in the year.

“The land we are clearing to cultivate is about a quarter acre,” he said.

“Aside from the tomatoes, we are planning to also grow some peas, cucumbers, and many other vegetables.

“My wife’s father actually takes care of all of this but working together in unity is what makes things work around here for the entire family.”

But the most important thing to keep in mind when starting up your New Years plantation is the importance of unity.

“Like I mentioned before, working together is the most important thing when doing things like this,” Tala said.

“That’s the belief that my family holds dearly and it’s like they say, working together will not only make things easier but everyone will be blessed with what they have.

“Right now we have planted over 50 tomatoes and we are now just waiting for a few months before we can harvest and make some good money from it at the market.

“We also use these vegetables a lot within my family so that’s two birds with one stone.”

Tala said that working at his age will help in the long run in terms of building farming skills for his own family.

“This is good practice for the future,” he said.

“When I get a bit older and I have many children then I will be able to do farming work to cater for their every need.

“That’s what’s great about working on plantations while you grow up. 

“You pick up certain skills along the way which will prove useful for you in the long run.”

By Vatapuia Maiava 06 January 2017, 12:00AM
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