Born 23 February 1997 | IT Graduate & Founder
Former IT graduate turned organic farmer. Leading Evergreen Hideout Agricultural Services (NPO: 2024/380375/07).
March 26, 2026 • 8 min read • Soshanguve, PretoriaWhy Start a Garden? More Than Just Food — It's Freedom
Hey there, good people. My name is Kutlwano Mokoena. Welcome to Evergreen Hideout.
Before we talk about soil, compost, or planting — I want to talk about why. Why grow your own food when you can buy vegetables at the market? Why put in the sweat and the hours when modern convenience is just a shop away?
I learned the hard answer to that question in 2021, during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. When the world stopped, the systems we rely on cracked. For many families in Soshanguve, the worry wasn't just about health; it was about the plate. Movement was restricted, jobs were disappearing, and suddenly, the supermarket felt like a fragile lifeline.
I was born on 23 February 1997. I studied Information Technology at Richfield Graduate Institute of Technology from 2016 to 2018 and graduated early in 2019. From 2019 to 2020, I had nothing. No job. No income. No plan.
In 2021, I turned to the soil. Not because I had a romantic dream of being a farmer, but because I needed to eat. I needed to survive. I started farming on a small scale, growing vegetables in a backyard space. I didn't know anything about farming. No one taught me. Everything I learned came from personal research, trial, and error.
I farmed from 2021 to 2023. During that time, I sold spinach door to door for R10 a bunch. That money helped me survive. That food helped feed people in my community. But it wasn't easy. I lost crops to thieves who stole from my field. I lost crops to cows that broke through fences. Birds destroyed my vegetables. Pests ruined harvest after harvest. Every loss taught me something new.
In February 2023, I started a YouTube channel teaching small-space vegetable gardening and monetized it. I registered Evergreen Hideout as a non-profit organization under the name Evergreen Hideout Agricultural Services (NPO Registration: 2024/380375/07).
How My IT Background Makes Me a Better Gardener
You might be wondering: what does an Information Technology graduate know about farming? But over time, I realized that the skills I learned at Richfield are the exact same skills that make me a better gardener and teacher.
1. Research & Information Gathering
Technology is broad when it comes to finding information. When I didn't know why my tomatoes were dying, I used the research skills I learned in IT to find answers. I learned how to separate good information from bad and how to apply what I read to my own situation.
2. Systems Thinking
In IT, you learn to see the whole system. A garden is the same. You have to look at the soil, the water, the sun, the pests, the roots. My IT training taught me to run diagnostics, to look for root causes instead of treating symptoms.
3. Documentation & Data
In the tech world, everything is documented. I'm bringing that same approach to this land project. Every day I work, I'll document what I did, what I observed, what worked, and what failed. That's how we learn.
4. Building Digital Platforms
My IT diploma gave me the skills to build this website and create content that reaches people. All of it comes from what I learned at Richfield.
5. Problem Solving Under Constraints
In IT, you learn to solve problems with limited resources. Farming in Soshanguve is no different. I don't have expensive irrigation systems, but I have a mindset that says: there is always a solution.
But something was missing. I realized that my old content didn't fully reflect the truth of what it takes to grow food. So I made a decision. I deleted everything. I'm starting over. From zero. Today, I have a new piece of land. No fancy equipment. Just soil, sunlight, and a commitment to show you everything.
Phase 1: The Site Diagnostic
Before you ever swing a slasher, you have to read the land. As an IT professional, I was trained to run diagnostics before fixing a server. Permaculture is no different.
Evergreen Field Notes: The Site Assessment
- Biological Indicators: Lush trees nearby mean the water table is accessible.
- Wind & Shelter: Observing the lean of the fence helps map the prevailing winds.
- Security Assessment: Fixing gaps in the fence is the priority to protect from thieves and roaming livestock.
Technical Diagnostic Checklist
Don't guess—analyze. Use these three indicators to check your land's system health before you plant.
Weeds are nature's error logs. Deep-rooted "pioneer" weeds mean your soil is compacted and needs aeration. Broadleaf weeds often indicate high nitrogen, while clover might mean your soil is nitrogen-deficient.
Take a handful of soil, moisten it, and squeeze. If it stays in a hard ball, you have high clay (common in Gauteng), which holds water but lacks oxygen. If it falls apart, you have sand, which drains too fast. We want a "loam" that crumbles but holds some shape.
Look at the height and color of the wild grass. This is your future "Thermophilic Engine" fuel. Tall, dry grass is Carbon; fresh green grass is Nitrogen. If your land is covered in dry grass, you already have 50% of the materials needed for high-quality compost.
Facing the Overgrowth: Why Conduct a Walkthrough?
In the tech world, you don't write code until you understand the environment it will run in. In permaculture, the "walkthrough" is your environment audit.
Diagnostic Walkthrough: What I'm Looking For
- Biomass Check: The thickness of the dry grass indicates a high organic matter potential.
- Obstacle Mapping: Identifying hidden debris near the tree line that require manual clearing.
- Canopy Analysis: The healthy canopy above confirms soil depth is sufficient for large root systems.
What's Next?
In the next post, we move to Action. I'll be showing you "The Big Clean" — how to clear this overgrowth to prepare for our first organic beds. Let's find our freedom in the soil.
— Kutlwano
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📍 Soshanguve, Pretoria, South Africa