Kenyans urged to produce temperate fruit trees

They admitted that the Chinese experience shared by Tao as well as best practices in other parts of the world opened their eyes to the untapped potential for temperate fruit tree production in the country.

Participants expressed a need for the 47 county governments to employ more extension officers who should also receive regular training on the latest developments in the sector and transfer the same to farmers.

Hope Maina, a supervisor for the vineyard at Kenya Nuts Company, said the insights shared by Tao on grape production will greatly benefit her company, which has been growing the fruit for the last 25 years on a 56-acre farm.

"It was a pleasure to learn that cultivating grapes in a greenhouse yields more, controls pests and diseases, and the harvest is twice per year. I also learned that we can use hormones that induce and break dormancy," she said.

Maina cited the availability of irrigation water as one of the key requirements in growing grapes. She added that sensitization is important to farmers wishing to venture into grape farming, so they understand where to get the seedlings and find a market for their produce.