Q: I lose a lot of top soil every rainy season. What can I do to stop this?
A: True, heavy rains wash away the top soil. With the erosion, a lot of the fertility is swept away. This leaves the farm with deep gullies.
Sometimes, because of erosion, trees lose their holding in the ground and fall. There are several ways of controlling soil erosion. For example, you can plant grass strips within and on the hedges of the garden and within the garden.
Use strong grasses such as napier (ebisagazzi) or Guatamela grass. You can also use contours or ridges to control soil erosion. These also increase water infiltration in the soils.
You can use mulching too. This is when the top soil is covered with crop residues. Because the soil is covered, it will be held back even as the water runs through it. Therefore, with which the rain drops will also be contained such as leaves or cuttings
