Author: Lindani Donyeli

Members of the Masikhulisane Multipurpose Co-operative recently received certificates from Umthathi Training Project at a certificate ceremony in Extension 10 for their participation in a two-week course about healthy living. The course teaches participantsm to grow vegetables for home use, as well as selling to the community, in a back-yard garden they can start from scratch. The course encourages organic planting and participants were given seeds to plant in their gardens, along with garden tools from Umthathi Project. Co-op secretary Sinawe Tsotsa said the aim of that project is to help the youth and give them hope that they can do it…

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Zingisa Budaza is always busy. She’s been growing things for most of her life – and when she’s not in her garden, she’s doing beadwork. When Grocott’s visited her she was in her Extension 6 garden, puling out weeds. “You can’t plant on top of the weeds,” she said. She was also harvesting a fine spinach crop and preparing to plant more. Budaza also does a variety of beadwork. The kind of support she’d like is for community members to buy her beadwork and put in orders. She’d also appreciate seeds so she can continue planting. If you’d like to…

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Kuyasa Special School travelled to Durban over the weekend of 12-14 October to represent the Eastern Cape Schools in the Intellectual games. They were there to take part in various sporting codes, including soccer, athletics and netball. The Eastern Cape team took home 38 medals in all, with the soccer team securing gold alongside the netball team. Kuyasa was represented in the Eastern Cape side by five pupils, namely Dervenito du Plessis, Nomahlubi Hlasela, Lucky Ncudu, and Siyanda Songongo. Du Plessis took part in the athletics portion of the tournament, running the 1500 meters, while Hlasela was one of the…

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On Saturday 13  October, Mfuzo Boxing Club celebrated their 23rd anniversary, as well as the end of the year, by hosting a Boxing Tournament event in B.B Zondani Hall. The event consisted of local clubs and non local clubs from different areas from Buffalo City, Kenton On Sea, Peddie, Adelaide, Thubalethu from Uitenhage, Buffalo, and Seamore. Boxers from all different age categories came together to compete on the day, with competitors participating in bouts for fighters aged 12 to 14 youth,15 to 16, 17 to 18,  and the Elite 19-40 years. The tournament started at 1pm, with the juniors being the…

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Nongazi Mata lives in Vukani. Motivated by neighbouring families who have gardens in their yards, she started planting three months ago. She’s a living, thriving example of the principle of “vukuzenzele” – do it for yourself – who grows food to make her government grant go further. She can make isigwamba using ingredients entirely from her garden. She picks umsobosobo and mixes it with potatoes, carrots, peas and onions. Her aim is to feed herself and her family entirely with food grown in her garden. She would love to be assisted by receiving seeds, especially spinach. – Text and photo by Lindani…

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This week, Makana Mayor Nomhle Gaga and Ward 2 councillor Ramie Xonxa embarked on a clean-up in Joza around the Ethembeni Old Age Home together with the Community Works Programme (CWP). This is part of a clean-up campaign that the Mayor started in August. During these campaigns the Mayor requests that people staying around the area and using the illegal dumping sites stop dumping in those areas. The municipality refuse truck collects refuse on a weekly basis, the Mayor said, and residents are urged to take out their refuse during their scheduled days. “We are aware that residents have been…

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Mninimzi Bastile lives in K Street. He’s been growing things since he was barely as tall as a spinach plant – taught by his own green-fingered dad. The reason for him to plant is that he is unemployed. ‘I don’t have a job, or a way to make money, so this helps me a lot,’ he told Grocott’s Mail. He grows cabbages, spinach, mielies and beetroot. Recently he started planting pumpkins. He would appreciate being given more seeds to plant. – Story and photo: Lindani Donyeli

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Gideon Mapapu is a grandfather, ward committee member, Chairperson of the SANCO branch in Ward 3 and the Deputy Chairperson of ANC. He stays in Extension 10. Mapapu aims to set an example for the community as there is no employment in Grahamstown (Makhanda). Planting vegetables helps him to buy less, and is saving him money. He does not want to see any empty space in his yard and spends most of his free time in the garden. He helps to provide the community with small seeds so that they can grow vegetables and fruit themselves. He has noticed young…

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Nosizwe Rawana she is been planting for four years. She stays with a grand-daughter who is in Grade 8 at Mary Water’s High School. Rawana sells her vegetables to the community after she has wrapped them in  R10 batches. She has another garden in Nombulelo Secondary School. Rawana protects her vegetables from Intuku by throwing pig waste in her garden (apparently, the little buggers don’t like the smell!) She also uses washing water to protect her vegetables from the ants. Rawana has planted spinach, beetroot, strawberries, onions and potatoes. She saves water by storing it in 5L containers for when…

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Ndumiso Gora has been planting for more than ten years. He is eating through his garden. He does not believe in empty space, he chases hunger by occupying an empty space. He has planted spinach, carrots, beetroot, cabbage, cauliflower, potatoes, and onions. He would appreciate it if he could be provided with more seeds to plant more.

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