AGRICULTURE PRACTICES IN NIGERIA

BY ANTHONY MERCY ETUK

SUMMITED TO

MR SOLOMON
















INTRODUCTION
The Nigerian small-scale farmers are estimated to account for the cultivation of about 90 per
Cent of the total cultivated land area in Nigeria, producing nearly 90 per cent of total
Agricultural output (CTA, 1997).
Nigeria is blessed with a land mass of about 98 million hectares, out of which 83 million
Hectares are suitable for cultivation but with only 30 to 34 million hectares presently under
Cultivation.
The Nigerian agriculture sector is an industry of perpetual toilage and indignity, plagued with
Drudgery, aged and ageing farming population. These small-holder farmers therefore remain
Impoverished, still depending on manual labour to carry out their various farming operations.
Nigeria however possesses tremendous agricultural potentials. These include a large array of
flora and fauna, naturally fertile and irrigable land and diverse agricultural climate, stretching
From the highly forested humid south to the savannah vegetation zones of the north. Rainfall
Intensity is highest in the southern coastal region, decreasing progressively into the dryer,
wind erosion-prone Sahel savannah region of the northern boundary limits.
It should however be pointed out that even with its diverse climate and soils, the country has
a huge agricultural potential if its soils and other natural endowments are well managed.
Subsistence Farming
Initially, most Nigerian farmer merely engage in subsistence farming to provide food for their family while very little is made available in the market.

Animal rearing
Agricultural practices in Nigeria also include the rearing of animals for meat production, poultry birds, diary animals and also animal that serves as beast of burden - aides in the transportation of goods and man.
Livestock farming is a very important aspect of agriculture in Nigeria, the Nigerian community depend mostly on meat from cows and chicken. meat in Nigeria is an important part of the Foods eaten in Nigeria, suffice it to say that Nigerians don't cook foods without meat or fish.
the kind of animals reared in Nigeria includes - Cow, Goat, Sheep, Cattle, Pig, Horse and several others while poultry birds includes chicken, turkey, duck, pigeons and others.
Historic crop rotation methods are mentioned in Roman literature, and referred to by several civilizations in Asia and on three major elements: sophisticated systems of crop rotation, highly developed irrigation techniques and the introduction of a large variety of crops which were studied and catalogued according to the season, type of land and amount of water they require.


CROP ROTATION
is the practice of growing a series of dissimilar/different types of crops in the same area in sequential seasons.
Crop rotation gives various benefits to the soil. A traditional element of crop rotation is the replenishment of nitrogen through the use of green manure in sequence with cereals and other crops. Crop rotation also mitigates the build-up of pathogens and pests that often occurs when one species is continuously cropped, and can also improve soil structure and fertility by alternating deep-rooted and shallow-rooted plants.
Crop rotation is one component of polyculture.

SHIFTING CULTIVATION
is an agricultural system in which plots of land are cultivated temporarily, then abandoned and allowed to revert to their natural vegetation while the cultivator moves on to another plot. The period of cultivation is usually terminated when the soil shows signs of exhaustion or, more commonly, when the field is overrun by weeds. The length of time that a field is cultivated is usually shorter than the period over which the land is allowed to regenerate by lying fallow.
Of these cultivators, many use a practice of slash-and-burn as one element of their farming cycle. Others employ land clearing without any burning, and some cultivators are purely migratory and do not use any cyclical method on a given plot. Sometimes no slashing at all is needed where regrowth is purely of grasses, an outcome not uncommon when soils are near exhaustion and need to lie fallow.
One land-clearing system of shifting agriculture is the slash-and-burn method, which leaves only stumps and large trees in the field after the standing vegetation has been cut down and burned, its ashes enriching the soil. Cultivation of the earth after clearing is usually accomplished by hoe or digging stick and not by plough
.
FISH FARMING
is the principal form of aquaculture, while other methods may fall under mariculture. Fish farming involves raising fish commercially in tanks or enclosures, usually for food. A facility that releases juvenile fish into the wild for recreational fishing or to supplement a species' natural numbers is generally referred to as a fish hatchery. Worldwide, the most important fish species used in fish farming are carp, salmon, tilapia and catfish.

COMMERCIAL AGRICULTURE
is large-scale production of crops for sale, intended for widespread distribution to wholesalers or retail outlets. In commercial farming crops such as wheat, maize, tea, coffee, sugarcane, cashew, rubber, banana, cotton are harvested and sold into world markets. Commercial agriculture includes livestock production and livestock grazing.
POULTRY FARMING
is the raising of domesticated birds such as chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese, for the purpose of farming meat or eggs for food. Poultry are farmed in great numbers with chickens being the most numerous. More than 50 billion chickens are raised annually as a source of food, for both their meat and their eggs. Chickens raised for eggs are usually called layers whilst chickens raised for meat are often called broilers
PEASANT FARMING
The main feature of the peasant farming type of agriculture in Nigeria are:
1) Farms are very small; they are often less than 1 hectare in size.
2) Farms are often fragmented (consisting of several scattered plots of land, which may be quite far apart).
3) Farming implements are simple, e.g. hoes and cutlasses.
4) Fallowing is practised as no fertilizers are used.
5) Crops are grown mainly for subsistence (i.e., to maintain the family).
6) Crops grown include maize, millet, guinea corn, cocoyam, cassava, yams and sweet potatoes.

PLANTATION OR ESTATE AGRICULTURE
The main features of plantation agriculture are that
*. It involves very large area of land sometimes extending to several hundreds or thousands of hectares.
*. Each plantation concentrates on the production of a single crop, which is often grown for export or industry.
*. Large numbers of paid workers are employed.
*. A great deal of capital is involved.
*. Many plantations have their own factories for processing farm outputs.
*. Methods of crop raising are modern and efficient.
*. Plantations are owned by governments, corporate organizations or individuals.
*. Crops grown include cocoa, oil palm, rubber, coffee, tea, etc.


BUSH FALLOW SYSTEM
The main features of the bush fallow systems are that:
*. It is mainly practised by peasant cultivators.
*. The family is the main sources of labour.
*. The farms are rotated rather than the crops being rotated.
*. It involves short periods of cultivation (1-3 years) and long periods of fallow (10 - 15 years).
*. Simple implements such as the hoe and cutlass are used.
*. Many crops may be planted on the same plot of land.
*. The size of the farm is usually small.
*. Productivity per unit of land or per unit of labour is low.
*. It is mainly for family consumption or subsistence.
*. The "slash and burn" method of clearing the land is practised.
*. It is common in western Nigeria

BUSH FALLOW SYSTEM
The main features of the bush fallow systems are that:
*. It is mainly practised by peasant cultivators.
*. The family is the main sources of labour.
*. The farms are rotated rather than the crops being rotated.
*. It involves short periods of cultivation (1-3 years) and long periods of fallow (10 - 15 years).
*. Simple implements such as the hoe and cutlass are used.
*. Many crops may be planted on the same plot of land.
*. The size of the farm is usually small.
*. Productivity per unit of land or per unit of labour is low.
*. It is mainly for family consumption or subsistence.
*. The "slash and burn" method of clearing the land is practised.
*. It is common in western Nigeria.
Continuous Rotation
The main features of the continuous rotation system are:
1) It allows for continuous cultivation on the same piece of land.
2) Crops are rotated from one plot to another on the same piece of land.
3) Manure, ash and household refuse are used to eliminate fallowing or reduce it to the minimum.
4) The system is practised in and around big cities e.g. Kano, Kaduna, Lagos, Enugu. etc.
5) Irrigation may be practised. THIS PROJECT WAS WRITTEN BY ANTHONY MERCY ETUK,A STUDENTS OF ST CHARLES COLLEGE ILORIN,KWARA STATE.

Chaii, no Nairalander made comment about this post, na so so gossip dem sabi do

Great informative post, Agriculture is so important to create a robust economy.Food is an important input, frankly it powers the citizens of a nation. Hence the reason why this input must be local and not imported in. Look at the employment base of agriculture in Nigeria, there are over 170 million mouths to feed 3 times a day, that is half a billion meals a day. Now think of the labour, marketing, logistics, organisation needed to provide half a billion meals a day. It is for this reason the Government of Nigeria must provide the means to harness agriculture in Nigeria so that other than fertilizer and machinery to facilitate efficient agricultural practices no food materials should be imported in Nigeria till the country becomes a net exporter of food.

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