I was born in Mookgophong in 1975 and came here to Mohlotsi when I got married. I got my love of growing vegetables from my mother. Even now she is a food gardener and she loves to cook. If I smell telele (wild okra leaves) with tomato cooking, I always think of my mother. My grandmother was the same way. Every time I crush peanuts or roast lerotse seeds for bogobe porridge I think of my granny. She also taught me how to make lerotse jam. There is nothing better than lerotse jam spread on a freshly baked scone. 

One of the first things I did when I came here as a new wife, was to plant fruit trees. As the trees grew, so did my family. Once there was nothing and now there is an orchard. The fruit and vegetables I grow are a way for me to express love. My sons are now adults living in Johannesburg but whenever they visit, I cook them all their favourite foods and give them lots of mustard greens and lerotho (spider plant) to take back with them – the men in my family all like those powerful, peppery leafy greens. Those strong tastes are full of healthy vitamins. As a mother you never stop wanting to feed your children healthy food – even when they are big men. I am very thankful for my sons. They went to initiation, and they took in all the traditional lessons. They are thoughtful, respectful, hard-working men.  

In addition to what I learnt about gardening from my mother, I also benefitted a lot from the SocioTech teachings. I went to my first SocioTech workshop in 2020, where they taught me about trench making, seedling production and seasonality. I learnt about Farming God’s Way, how to make an aloe and tobacco spray to get rid of Red Spider, how to invest in my soil without chemicals. Even though I had already planted many trees, I learnt new and better techniques for fruit trees. I have seen beautiful results in my orchards. I also learnt about keeping chickens.

The thing about the SocioTech way is that it is hard work – especially at first – you need to follow the instructions and not cut corners. If you do what they advise, you see great results. You get out what you put in. I don’t mean that it is unpleasant. There is a lot of joy within that hard work. There is a lovely feeling in my soul that comes from working my land and rearing my animals. The first thing I do every morning is feed my chickens (I have about 40) and my goat. Sometimes I let the goat out to walk around outside my home for about an hour but I don’t let it stay out too long. Then I check around the garden and talk to my plants. If you know your plants and you listen carefully, they tell you what they need. In those quiet moments there is true peace. 

SocioTech also encourages communities to support each other. In this area, from the earliest training sessions we have been helping each other. If one of us goes to a workshop and learns a new skill we share that knowledge. Sadly, it is mostly older women in our farming group, as young ladies resist getting involved. I don’t understand it. Their children are suffering and yet they walk past and say to me ‘why are you playing with the soil?’ But then the next day they ask me to give them free vegetables! I say ‘I can teach you, but I won’t just give you the results of my hard work’. I explain to them that with SocioTech you can start very small - when I started, I had 2 trenches and I was only producing for my own home - and then how big you grow is determined by your own efforts. I tell them that whether they are rich or poor is up to them. If you use your own hands to create a garden you will never be hungry. Your children will go to sleep with full stomachs. They will have the energy and nutrients to study and go far in life. The strange thing is that the young women don’t seem to understand what I am saying. They sit around saying ‘I don’t have work’ but the work is right there in their hands.