Posted
In Kenya, in the Rift Valley, there is a species of flowers resembling a daisy, and acting as a natural insecticide. The cultivation of this plant is much more profitable than that of cereals such as corn or beans. Once cultivated, the pyrethrum flower is transformed into powder and then into a serpentine.
The Rift Valley (Kenya) is covered with a multitude of white spots, more and more numerous in recent years. These are pyrethrums, flowers with a yellow heart that could be mistaken for daisies. In the yellow heart of this white flower, there is a natural toxin that acts as a powerful insecticide. In recent years, pyrethrums have made a big comeback: “We all started to take care of pyrethrum together, before we only grew beans and corn”, testifies Lucy Lemuya, one of the farmers.
On one of the hills, flowers grow very easily, but only between 2,200 and 2,800 meters above sea level. Three months after planting the first seeds, the farmers have already started harvesting. Some entrepreneurs have already requested them and are ready to buy them all the available collection. “The climate here is really ideal. It’s hot enough, it rains often and it’s very hilly”, says James Maina, one of the buyers.