Young farmer Nelson and his snake beans

By JAMES KILA of Ramu Nico

IT IS watermelon, cucumber, corn and bean flush season in many parts of the Momase and the Highlands region.

With rains currently being experienced in both regions, gardens are yielding an abundance of fruit and vegetables.

Pictured is Nelson Nungs, aged seven, from Lalok No. 4 village in Astrolabe Bay LLG, Madang province, decorating himself with snake beans. 

Seven-year-old Nelson Nungs decorates himself with snake beans in the garden at Lalok No. 4 village in Rai Coast, Madang province.-Picture by JAMES KILA

They were plentiful in his garden when this writer visited.

These snake beans, some measuring one metre, were harvested by his mother, cooked in coconut milk and neatly tied into small bundles and sold at a roadside market for 20-toea.

Nelson’s beans were cultivated in a new garden as leguminous plants to assist in the growth of rice and cocoa.

This is a form of cultivation appropriately known as inter-cropping.

Travelers along the Ramu and Highlands highways will notice beans, melons, and roasted corn selling in makeshift markets along the road side.

Hungry travelers do not waste time when they stop at these roadside markets.

Many go for roasted corn, watermelons and cucumbers.