Some crop farmers in parts of the country have lamented that due to the inconsistent rainfall in the country, will likely affect this year’s harvest.
Mr Rabi’u Zuntu, the Chairman of the Tomatoes Growers Association, Kaduna state, said that rain inconsistencies may not affect some crops but would have a general effect on the yields.
“The inconsistencies in rainfall that we have experienced this year may be advantageous to some crops and disadvantageous to others.
“There are various stages of growth of different crops. Certain crops require heavy rainfall at the beginning of cultivation, while some at the middle of cultivation and others towards the end.
“This insufficient rain we are currently experiencing will affect some crops negatively considering the ratio and the percentage of rainfall; it will affect most yields negatively.
“Generally, insufficient rainfall will affect the yield and output of many crops.
“Crops like maize, cassava, beans, and others will be affected by these insufficient rainfalls we are currently experiencing,” Zuntu said.
He noted that tomatoes require rain at the early stage and middle of cultivation but not at the end stage of cultivation.
“Tomatoes require enough rain after transplanting and the flowering stage but not at the end stage.
“Once we are almost getting ready for harvest, tomatoes do not require much rain.
“For farmers up North, going for irrigation systems at this time is nearly impossible, because most of the farms have no reservoir or dams where the farmers can channel the water to their farms,” he said.
However, a crop farmer, Mr Uche Ikenga said the inconsistent rain had forestalled flooding and would be beneficial to some crops.
“The rains are gradually coming back up north and we are encouraged by the tempered manner the rain is coming.
“The deluge is not here yet. The current consistency of the rain is not destructive. This is something we are glad about.
“What the rain drops the crops can absorb, if we have this slightly low pattern of rainfall, it will help our crops this year.
“With these rain patterns, that means we will have a good harvest by September or October,” Ikenga said.
On his part, an agriculture analyst, Mr Omotunde Banjoko called on farmers to move to irrigated farming from seasonal farming and urged the government to invest in irrigated farming to help boost crop production.
“This current climate condition will affect our harvest and once crop growth is stunted, definitely they will not get to full maturity.
“With these inconsistent rains, when you expect to harvest three to four tonnes of a crop, the farmers end up harvesting 0.5 tonnes.
“The reduced rainfall will affect our yields because the bulk of our farms are not irrigated because the cost of irrigation is not cheap.
“What we should learn from this inconsistent rain is that climate change is real and that we should start investing in irrigated kits.
“However, smallholder farmers cannot afford this and that is why we still rely on seasonal farming.
“The government should start funding kits for irrigation so we can have our crops all year round.
“We should also activate all our river basins as promised by the Presidency, so the waters can now be channeled to the farms for irrigation farming.
“We should start working on how we can maximize our water bodies for farming purposes. This will definitely increase our yields and subsequently reduce the high cost of food,” Banjoko said.
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