Planting the Seeds of Co-Existence

The Mara Elephant Project Co-Existence Farm sits right on the mighty Mara River in an area of high conflict between people and wildlife. The goal of the farm is to develop agricultural best practices specific to the Mara. 

We partnered with MEP in 2022 to support farm activities. 

In Kenya more elephants are being lost to conflict than they are to poaching.  

Abigael and her team have discovered in the last year that elephants are not the only predators in the Mara! The farm has been visited by hippo, vervet monkeys, birds and many other species although none leave the same trail of destruction as the elephants.

There have been some successes: lavender, citriodora, rosemary, chilli, tea tree, geranium and onion showed zero predation.

The kitchen garden, started in 2022, features crops which can be grown in a small space, are popular at local tables and show low predation levels.  The farm nursery is working to propagate heirloom seeds to make the process of raising seedlings more affordable.

A medicinal garden has also now been introduced. Medicinal plants anecdotally show low levels of predation, have a tangible value in the community and help to keep alive historical knowledge about plants and their usage which has been passed down through generations. The farm team has already planted over 10 crops and received apothecary heirloom seeds to cultivate more. 

The team receive an increasing number of visits from the local community who are keen to collaborate and share expertise - this is a brilliant sign for the success of the project and we feel very proud to have been able to support the MEP farm from such an early stage. 

With thanks to the Mara Elephant Project for the images and update.