Four years ago, Bassirou Seck was farming on unhealthy soil and harvesting very little from his land. It was difficult to see a secure future in farming.
Today, his land tells a different story. It tells a story of transformation, of restoration, and of long-awaited, lasting change. Under the shade of more than 2,000 trees, Bassirou harvests a wide variety of fresh, nutritious vegetables like tomato and eggplant. And for his family, a secure future is no longer a distant dream. Everything has changed.
The transformation of Bassirou’s land in Kaffine, Senegal between 2018 and 2019.
Bassirou Seck joined Trees for the Future’s (TREES) Forest Garden Training Program in 2018. In our four-year training program, farmers learn how to apply regenerative agroforestry practices on their land to create thriving Forest Gardens. Farmers like Bassirou develop the knowledge they need to address the varied challenges they face and plant their way out of poverty and hunger.
“The Forest Garden will just keep growing if I work hard,” says Bassirou on his farm’s transformation so far.
On Bassirou’s farm, the impact has indeed been stunning. Diversifying his crop production helped him protect his income and feed his family in every season. Learning how to compost helped him replace synthetic fertilizers with organic soil health improvement. And planting more than 2,000 trees on his land provides shade for his crops, keeps moisture in his soils, and offers a wide variety of economic and nutritional benefits for his family.
“I can help when someone is sick,” says Bassirou. “My wife can sell some of our produce on the market and we can save money.”
In the communities where we work, farmers often face similar challenges: dying soils, shrinking harvests, fading hope. Bassirou’s story is a testament to the power of your support to change everything.
For Bassirou and more than 41,000 farmers just like him, it is your support that has made the difference. One tree at a time, Forest Gardeners can plant their way to a prosperous future, and face that future with confidence.
And the most important thing of all?
“Now that I have a Forest Garden,” says Bassirou, “I can help my family.”
This season, you can plant lasting change with farmers like Bassirou. Make your donation today.
Bassirou with his family outside their home in Kaffrine.