01 — Development & servicesMaendeleo na huduma

Research on small plots, results for small farms

Utafiti kwenye politi ndogo, matokeo kwa mashamba madogo

Alongside commercial production, Changamka Farm is being built as a working test site — and, as our machinery fleet grows, as a service base for the farmers around us.

Pamoja na uzalishaji wa kibiashara, Shamba la Changamka linajengwa kama eneo la majaribio — na, kadri mitambo yetu inaongezeka, kama kituo cha huduma kwa wakulima wanaotuzunguka.

02 — On-farm researchUtafiti shambani

Trial plots of one to five acres

Politi za majaribio za ekari moja hadi tano

Beyond the commercial blocks, part of the farm is set aside for trials on plots of one to five acres. On that scale a result is still statistically useful, yet small enough that a family farm can copy it without a tractor.

Zaidi ya vitalu vya kibiashara, sehemu ya shamba imetengwa kwa majaribio kwenye politi za ekari moja hadi tano. Kwa ukubwa huo matokeo yanabaki na maana ya kitakwimu, lakini ni madogo kiasi kwamba shamba la familia linaweza kufuata bila trekta.

Each plot is documented from land preparation to weighing: what was done, when, with what input and labour, how much rain fell, and what came out of the field.

Kila politi inaandikwa kutoka utayarishaji wa ardhi hadi kupima mavuno: kilichofanyika, lini, kwa pembejeo na nguvu kazi kiasi gani, mvua iliyonyesha, na kilichotoka shambani.

Aerial view of a grid of small crop trial plots at different growth stages

Tillage comparisons

Kulinganisha mbinu za kulima

Conventional ploughing against minimal tillage and strip-till on the same soil, in the same season: emergence, rooting depth, moisture, fuel used and final yield.

Kulima kwa jembe la kawaida dhidi ya kulima kidogo na strip-till kwenye udongo mmoja, msimu mmoja: kuchipua, kina cha mizizi, unyevu, mafuta yaliyotumika na mavuno ya mwisho.

Cover, mulch and intercropping

Kifuniko, matandazo na kilimo mseto

How much surface residue is needed to hold this sandy soil against dry-season wind, and whether maize with cowpea between the rows outperforms either crop alone.

Mabaki kiasi gani yanahitajika kuzuia udongo huu wa kichanga kupeperushwa kiangazi, na kama mahindi yaliyochanganywa na kunde yanazidi zao moja peke yake.

Varieties, spacing and timing

Mbegu, nafasi na wakati wa kupanda

Which maize, sunflower, cowpea and sorghum varieties handle a short, erratic season here — and what plant population and sowing date suit them.

Mbegu zipi za mahindi, alizeti, kunde na mtama zinavumilia msimu mfupi na usiotabirika hapa — na idadi ya mimea na tarehe ya kupanda inayofaa.

A farmer walking along a path carrying a hoe

03 — Knowledge sharingKushiriki maarifa

Promoting what actually worked

Kueneza kile kilichofanya kazi kweli

Trial results are of no use locked in a file. Our intention is to turn each comparison into something a smallholder can act on: what to change, what it costs, what it returns — written in plain Swahili and shown on the plot itself.

Matokeo ya majaribio hayana faida yakibaki kwenye faili. Nia yetu ni kubadilisha kila ulinganisho kuwa kitu ambacho mkulima mdogo anaweza kutekeleza: nini kubadilisha, gharama yake, na faida yake — kwa Kiswahili rahisi na kuonyeshwa kwenye politi yenyewe.

Field days on the trial plots during the season, open to farmers from the ward.Siku za shamba kwenye politi za majaribio wakati wa msimu, wazi kwa wakulima wa kata.
Short written summaries per trial: method, cost, result.Muhtasari mfupi ulioandikwa kwa kila jaribio: mbinu, gharama, matokeo.
Practical focus on optimising small farms — labour, timing and soil cover before expensive inputs.Msisitizo wa kuboresha mashamba madogo — nguvu kazi, wakati na kifuniko cha udongo kabla ya pembejeo za gharama.

04 — Planned servicesHuduma zilizopangwa

Field work for the surrounding community

Kazi za shamba kwa jamii inayotuzunguka

As the machinery fleet is built up, Entrex intends to carry out contract field operations for farmers in the area. The most needed service is the hardest to do by hand: clearing bush and thorn scrub to bring land back into cultivation.

Kadri mitambo inaongezeka, Entrex inakusudia kufanya kazi za shamba kwa mkataba kwa wakulima wa eneo hili. Huduma inayohitajika zaidi ni ile ngumu zaidi kufanya kwa mkono: kufyeka vichaka na miti ya miiba ili ardhi irudi kwenye kilimo.

Bush clearing with a heavy-duty rotary slasher does in a day what a family cannot do in a season — and leaves the cut material on the surface as mulch instead of burning it.

Kufyeka vichaka kwa slasher nzito inayozunguka hufanya kwa siku moja kile familia haiwezi kufanya kwa msimu mzima — na huacha mabaki juu ya udongo kama matandazo badala ya kuyachoma.

Bush and scrub clearing with a heavy-duty rotary slasher / rotary cutter.Kufyeka vichaka na misitu midogo kwa slasher nzito inayozunguka.
Ripping and subsoiling to break compacted layers on smallholder fields.Kuvunja tabaka gumu la udongo kwenye mashamba ya wakulima wadogo.
Primary and secondary cultivation, and sowing where equipment allows.Kulima kwa awamu ya kwanza na ya pili, na kupanda pale mitambo inaruhusu.
Transport of harvest and inputs between field, store and market.Usafirishaji wa mavuno na pembejeo kati ya shamba, ghala na soko.

Tractor with a heavy-duty rotary slasher clearing dry thorn scrub — Planned service: heavy-duty rotary slasher work, leaving cut brush as surface mulch.

These services are in preparation and depend on the build-up of our machinery fleet. If you farm nearby and want to be contacted when they start, send us a WhatsApp message. Huduma hizi ziko katika maandalizi na zinategemea kukamilika kwa mitambo yetu. Kama unalima jirani na unataka kupata taarifa zitakapoanza, tutumie ujumbe wa WhatsApp.

05 — RoadmapMpango wa maendeleo

Where we are going

Tunakoelekea

2026 · 2027

First seasons and first records

Misimu ya kwanza na kumbukumbu za kwanza

Commercial maize and sunflower under minimal tillage, the four rotation blocks established, the first trial plots laid out and measured, core machinery in place.

Mahindi na alizeti ya kibiashara kwa kulima kidogo, vitalu vinne vya mzunguko vinaanzishwa, politi za kwanza za majaribio zinawekwa na kupimwa, mitambo ya msingi inapatikana.

FROM 2028

Strip-till and technical partnership

Strip-till na ushirikiano wa kiufundi

Transition of maize and sunflower to strip-till establishment, planned cooperation with Claydon, first published comparisons from the trial plots.

Kuhamisha mahindi na alizeti kwenye upandaji wa strip-till, ushirikiano uliopangwa na Claydon, ulinganisho wa kwanza kutoka politi za majaribio kutolewa hadharani.

NEXT STAGE HATUA IJAYO

Services, water and storage

Huduma, maji na maghala

Contract field services for the surrounding community, assessment of groundwater for supplementary irrigation, and on-farm storage so the harvest is not sold at the weakest point of the price cycle.

Huduma za shamba kwa mkataba kwa jamii inayotuzunguka, kupima maji ya ardhini kwa umwagiliaji wa nyongeza, na maghala shambani ili mavuno yasiuzwe wakati bei iko chini zaidi.

LONG TERM MUDA MREFU

Processing and added value

Usindikaji na thamani ya ziada

Moving further along the chain where it makes sense — starting with sunflower, where local pressing turns a bulk commodity into oil and cake with a nearby market.

Kusonga mbele katika mnyororo wa thamani pale inapofaa — kuanzia alizeti, ambapo kukamua hapa hubadilisha zao ghafi kuwa mafuta na mashudu yenye soko la karibu.

Work with us on the next stage

Shirikiana nasi katika hatua ijayo

Machinery suppliers, agricultural researchers, development programmes and investors are all welcome to get in touch.

Wasambazaji wa mitambo, watafiti wa kilimo, programu za maendeleo na wawekezaji wote wanakaribishwa kuwasiliana nasi.