Petals of Persistence: The Gallant Flower’s Fight Against Climate Change

Abstract

Availability of feeds for livestock production has proved to be a major constraint to farmers in semi- arid areas. The objective of this study was to introduce gallant flowerbased feed formulation for livestock production as a nature solution to climate change. The research study was conducted at Daystar University farm to analyze nutritional value of Galinsoga Parviflora (Gallant flower) as an alternative poultry feed. Gallant flower is a common annual weed found almost in all ecological zones in Kenya. Its seeds can easily be propagated by wind with a short growing period of 50 days to easily escape climate change impact of drought. The experiment was piloted at Daystar University for three months on 829 layers and egg production performance. The field trials established that gallant flower matures in 45 days and can be utilized in fresh, powder and pellet form. Chicken consumed 80gms of gallant flower daily. Gallant flower feeds reduced cost of feeds by 57 % and increase egg production by 32%. Data collected consisted of amount of gallant flower per day, egg size and weight, number of eggs laid as performance indicators. The research study results confirmed the suitability of gallant flower as a nature-based technology which can be fortified in livestock feeds because of its nutritious value to ensure food security and climate change resilience.