A couple from Zwelitsha in Kuyasa has dedicated their life to doing what they like the most to plant in the garden.
Nolizwi and Mthetheleli Ngcana spend their daily lives in the garden at Siphamandla High School taking care of their vegetables to be able to put food on the table.
However, while visiting the garden on Friday 22 September City Vision found one member working.
Nolizwi said her husband went for an odd job in Site C. The pair started the garden in 2012, with 10 other members.
However, they all lost interest, leaving the couple standing. “We started as 12 members and we worked only for six months and stopped working because we didn’t make produce as we were expecting. Four of us came back in 2017 to start afresh. There was another old couple that we worked with until they decided to go and stay in the Eastern Cape in early 2020,” explained Nolizwi.
She said they were fortunate that in 2017 Violence Prevention through Urban Upgrading (VPUU) supported them with a water tank and a shipping container. They also made a borehole for them. She said things began to improve and they are now reaping the rewards.
Nolizwi said while people were indoors during the Covid-19 pandemic, she continued to work with her husband.
“We didn’t stop working during the Covid-19, instead it made us work harder. We never looked back. Covid-19 showed us that you can have a job today and wake up without a job,” she said.
Nolizwi said in October 2022, the Western Department of Agriculture came on board and provided them with working equipment. She declared that they needed more hands to help in the garden. She said her husband is too old and he cannot cope anymore.
“Garden needs dedicated and passionate people. It is not easy working in the garden. We do it because we love and enjoy it,” she said.
She said they wake up at 06:00 daily and go to the garden.
Nolizwi said part of their challenge is to get more markets to sell their veggies. She said for now they are selling their produce at Harvest of Hope in Makhaza, which is a place that buys vegetables from the local farmers and sells them to the retail shops.
She said they also sell it to the community. “Our prices range between R10 to R20. We are selling red and green cabbage, carrots, peas, spring onion, sweet potato, potatoes, broccoli, cornflower, beetroot, etc. We are selling organic food,” she bragged.
Nolizwi highlighted robbery as another challenge that they are facing. She said last year they were robbed five times by criminals stealing working equipment, and electrical cables.