In the arid region of Timbuktu in central Mali, market gardening has to contend with a sandy soil that is not especially fertile, in addition to difficult climatic conditions. Daytime temperatures can reach 120° F (50° C), and precipitation barely exceeds 6 inches (150 mm) per year. These sand gardens, consisting of a patchwork of tiny parcels of about 10 square feet, must use water very sparingly. They yield foods (including peas, fava beans, lentils, beans, cabbages, lettuce, and peanuts) intended mostly for immediate consumption. The growth of this type of gardening in Mali is a consequence of the severe droughts of 1973–75 and 1983–85, which decimated the livestock of the nomadic herdsmen in the northern areas, forcing some of them to settle in one place and adopt subsistence farming.

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