c2far:
Itydee, your energy is huge. Your kind never die! They are the kind of folks with nine lives.

@fluentinfor has done you a huge favour with the several feedbacks offered. Priceless information he has given. It's difficult to farm with bits and pieces of information like this. I hope you have called him and possibly explored sitting with him for hours for a crash course to mitigate your risk. In your shoes, I will even offer to pay him. You still need more insights into pesticide use and application by the way. Apart from knowing the quantity to apply you also need to know how to apply.

At this phase, I'll suggest you consider the economic analysis of what you intend. See if your losses can be reduced and view what you have spent thus far as a learning fee in the classroom of how not to farm cucumbers.

There's a mention of tomatoes there. Consider it. Everyone takes tomatoes, whether rich or poor. I digress. The underlying for anyone thinking of going into agriculture is to go and spend a few days at a farm where what you intend to do is practised. Next to this is to have a sound economic analysis that you either do yourself or ensure you verify with your local market when it is done. What you read here in nairaland can never pass for understanding the dynamics of agriculture in the Nigerian context.

Once again @itydee, I salute your resolute nature. Folks like you are always successful even if it takes a little longer. My love and best wishes bro.

My brother, many do not see it as a favor at all. If it were the days when there isn't information on nairaland, I just wonder how they will cope. We started at a time when consultants were just collecting cash from ignorant people, and they made good cash on ebooks. But we made thorough research, sacrificed huge amount on pilots, and God sent good guys on our way to assit us. It is why I always share info freely. The market is too big for anyone to hold grip tightly. So, I am not threatened a bit that if I teach anyone, I am losing out. I have my farms, so I do not need to get wealthy with training people ONLY. But I have taught many and after, they held grip of the information and refused to assist others. Even, so many of them didn't offer me assistance when I needed it. So many cases. The most common one is testing such people to assist sales with my product. Lol. Are they naughty not to realise I can sell my products? But simple test like, please, check your area and get me the contact of the person selling this product. They demanded for percentage in return fast. You hear, if I give You The info, I have lost out. Hahahahhahahhaha. But s(he) got info from me first freely. S(he) buzzed, asked questions on daily basis and I never relented to answer fast. And the same people still returned to ask for help after messing up. Is it not crazy? People value knowledge lesser than money. And it is why politicians give them peanut and buy their votes. Knowledge is power.

Funny thing is that I do not collect even cash for training many people in those days. But when I got to Agric groups and started dishing out info, I used to run into problems with consultants. I only asked trainees to buy materials but still they wouldn't know where to get them and in those days, I would still assist them to buy. When it was free, many would just buy the materials and would abandon the training. Lol. It was free bros. But i started collecting cash for it and I saw the rush dropped, but still I was unhappy because I was collecting cash. So, I decided to stop training. I still think I have not giving out to the public yet the way God has directed me to. And after stopping the training, I opened a nairaland account to dish out info freely. However, I still notice that anything free is not valuable. But we will try out best. Lol.

You nailed it. It is just unwise to operate without considering the economic analysis. Why should I encounter terrible loss cos I say I am not afraid of trying. A beg, that one pass me ooooo. I have given him the best advice anyone can. And I have talked to him personally, it is left for him to take it or not.

I only can wish everyone the best of luck.

fluentinfor:


From my experience with cucumber, it is one of the best and at the same time most delicate crop among vegetables. Also, it is a crop which sales is extremely high or fairly good If you do not allow market women to cheat you.

Since it is delicate, it is not just the nutrient management you pay attention to. You pay attention to your spraying formular. Again doing everything at the right time matters a lot. For example staking.

Just look at the pictures posted again by owner of the farm, i can tell you that his plants are in trouble. They are stressed.

My brother, I do not attend to anyone who does not have drip system or just asking me information anyhow. But I help as many people as possible that I see are willing to help themselves. If I tell you to buy drip and you keep saying it is expensive but I see you buying some stupid things, I will just ignore. It is a privilege for me to even talk to anyone. When I started, those who called themselves consultants hid all information from us.

Mind you, someone sells drip on this nairaland and as soon as he saw my posts he quickly added some parts from mine to his thread. Just copied from my write up. Such is life. Anyway, we have been in the game for long. Anyone who cares to listen should. We do not force anyone to listen..

Kindly send me email. Please, make sure you have drip irrigation. If not, please, do not bother to mail me. It is time to give counsel to who is ready to take accept it and not just to everybody.

Thank you sir. On the drip aspect we have drip that covers almost 1 acre of land with a 3000 tank in fact we have filter because d source of water is osun river.

Thank you sir

fluentinfor:


My brother, many do not see it as a favor at all. If it were the days when there isn't information on nairaland, I just wonder how they will cope. We started at a time when consultants were just collecting cash from ignorant people, and they made good cash on ebooks. But we made thorough research, sacrificed huge amount on pilots, and God sent good guys on our way to assit us. It is why I always share info freely. The market is too big for anyone to hold grip tightly. So, I am not threatened a bit that if I teach anyone, I am losing out. I have my farms, so I do not need to get wealthy with training people ONLY. But I have taught many and after, they held grip of the information and refused to assist others. Even, so many of them didn't offer me assistance when I needed it. So many cases. The most common one is testing such people to assist sales with my product. Lol. Are they naughty not to realise I can sell my products? But simple test like, please, check your area and get me the contact of the person selling this product. They demanded for percentage in return fast. You hear, if I give You The info, I have lost out. Hahahahhahahhaha. But s(he) got info from me first freely. S(he) buzzed, asked questions on daily basis and I never relented to answer fast. And the same people still returned to ask for help after messing up. Is it not crazy? People value knowledge lesser than money. And it is why politicians give them peanut and buy their votes. Knowledge is power.

Funny thing is that I do not collect even cash for training many people in those days. But when I got to Agric groups and started dishing out info, I used to run into problems with consultants. I only asked trainees to buy materials but still they wouldn't know where to get them and in those days, I would still assist them to buy. When it was free, many would just buy the materials and would abandon the training. Lol. It was free bros. But i started collecting cash for it and I saw the rush dropped, but still I was unhappy because I was collecting cash. So, I decided to stop training. I still think I have not giving out to the public yet the way God has directed me to. And after stopping the training, I opened a nairaland account to dish out info freely. However, I still notice that anything free is not valuable. But we will try out best. Lol.

You nailed it. It is just unwise to operate without considering the economic analysis. Why should I encounter terrible loss cos I say I am not afraid of trying. A beg, that one pass me ooooo. I have given him the best advice anyone can. And I have talked to him personally, it is left for him to take it or not.

I only can wish everyone the best of luck.

pls Sir, Mr fluentinfor, can 5.5hp mud pump pump water from 10m deep well(konga)

baldwin84:


pls Sir, Mr fluentinfor, can 5.5hp mud pump pump water from 10m deep well(konga)

The depth of your well or borehole does not determine if surface suction pump (mud pump) can be used. The most important factor is your water level. If your water level is very high up to a certain point, it can be used. I am not sure but it is within the range of 10 to 30 ft to the top of the well or borehole. Not so sure of the exact figure but that is the range.

Good afternoon.

Glad to know people like you still exists. You give humanity hope. Keep doing what you are doing bro. It can only get well.

I'll reach out to you inbox as I'll be glad to have you allow me in your circle of friends. Progressives like you are the real charities that keep the world going.

My respect.

fluentinfor:


My brother, many do not see it as a favor at all. If it were the days when there isn't information on nairaland, I just wonder how they will cope. We started at a time when consultants were just collecting cash from ignorant people, and they made good cash on ebooks. But we made thorough research, sacrificed huge amount on pilots, and God sent good guys on our way to assit us. It is why I always share info freely. The market is too big for anyone to hold grip tightly. So, I am not threatened a bit that if I teach anyone, I am losing out. I have my farms, so I do not need to get wealthy with training people ONLY. But I have taught many and after, they held grip of the information and refused to assist others. Even, so many of them didn't offer me assistance when I needed it. So many cases. The most common one is testing such people to assist sales with my product. Lol. Are they naughty not to realise I can sell my products? But simple test like, please, check your area and get me the contact of the person selling this product. They demanded for percentage in return fast. You hear, if I give You The info, I have lost out. Hahahahhahahhaha. But s(he) got info from me first freely. S(he) buzzed, asked questions on daily basis and I never relented to answer fast. And the same people still returned to ask for help after messing up. Is it not crazy? People value knowledge lesser than money. And it is why politicians give them peanut and buy their votes. Knowledge is power.

Funny thing is that I do not collect even cash for training many people in those days. But when I got to Agric groups and started dishing out info, I used to run into problems with consultants. I only asked trainees to buy materials but still they wouldn't know where to get them and in those days, I would still assist them to buy. When it was free, many would just buy the materials and would abandon the training. Lol. It was free bros. But i started collecting cash for it and I saw the rush dropped, but still I was unhappy because I was collecting cash. So, I decided to stop training. I still think I have not giving out to the public yet the way God has directed me to. And after stopping the training, I opened a nairaland account to dish out info freely. However, I still notice that anything free is not valuable. But we will try out best. Lol.

You nailed it. It is just unwise to operate without considering the economic analysis. Why should I encounter terrible loss cos I say I am not afraid of trying. A beg, that one pass me ooooo. I have given him the best advice anyone can. And I have talked to him personally, it is left for him to take it or not.

I only can wish everyone the best of luck.

Good afternoon.

Glad to know people like you still exist. You give humanity hope. Keep doing what you are doing bro. It can only get well.

I'll reach out to you inbox as I'll be glad to have you allow me in your circle of friends. Progressives like you are the real charities that keep the world going.

My respect.

fluentinfor:


My brother, many do not see it as a favor at all. If it were the days when there isn't information on nairaland, I just wonder how they will cope. We started at a time when consultants were just collecting cash from ignorant people, and they made good cash on ebooks. But we made thorough research, sacrificed huge amount on pilots, and God sent good guys on our way to assit us. It is why I always share info freely. The market is too big for anyone to hold grip tightly. So, I am not threatened a bit that if I teach anyone, I am losing out. I have my farms, so I do not need to get wealthy with training people ONLY. But I have taught many and after, they held grip of the information and refused to assist others. Even, so many of them didn't offer me assistance when I needed it. So many cases. The most common one is testing such people to assist sales with my product. Lol. Are they naughty not to realise I can sell my products? But simple test like, please, check your area and get me the contact of the person selling this product. They demanded for percentage in return fast. You hear, if I give You The info, I have lost out. Hahahahhahahhaha. But s(he) got info from me first freely. S(he) buzzed, asked questions on daily basis and I never relented to answer fast. And the same people still returned to ask for help after messing up. Is it not crazy? People value knowledge lesser than money. And it is why politicians give them peanut and buy their votes. Knowledge is power.

Funny thing is that I do not collect even cash for training many people in those days. But when I got to Agric groups and started dishing out info, I used to run into problems with consultants. I only asked trainees to buy materials but still they wouldn't know where to get them and in those days, I would still assist them to buy. When it was free, many would just buy the materials and would abandon the training. Lol. It was free bros. But i started collecting cash for it and I saw the rush dropped, but still I was unhappy because I was collecting cash. So, I decided to stop training. I still think I have not giving out to the public yet the way God has directed me to. And after stopping the training, I opened a nairaland account to dish out info freely. However, I still notice that anything free is not valuable. But we will try out best. Lol.

You nailed it. It is just unwise to operate without considering the economic analysis. Why should I encounter terrible loss cos I say I am not afraid of trying. A beg, that one pass me ooooo. I have given him the best advice anyone can. And I have talked to him personally, it is left for him to take it or not.

I only can wish everyone the best of luck.

fluentinfor:


My brother, many do not see it as a favor at all. If it were the days when there isn't information on nairaland, I just wonder how they will cope. We started at a time when consultants were just collecting cash from ignorant people, and they made good cash on ebooks. But we made thorough research, sacrificed huge amount on pilots, and God sent good guys on our way to assit us. It is why I always share info freely. The market is too big for anyone to hold grip tightly. So, I am not threatened a bit that if I teach anyone, I am losing out. I have my farms, so I do not need to get wealthy with training people ONLY. But I have taught many and after, they held grip of the information and refused to assist others. Even, so many of them didn't offer me assistance when I needed it. So many cases. The most common one is testing such people to assist sales with my product. Lol. Are they naughty not to realise I can sell my products? But simple test like, please, check your area and get me the contact of the person selling this product. They demanded for percentage in return fast. You hear, if I give You The info, I have lost out. Hahahahhahahhaha. But s(he) got info from me first freely. S(he) buzzed, asked questions on daily basis and I never relented to answer fast. And the same people still returned to ask for help after messing up. Is it not crazy? People value knowledge lesser than money. And it is why politicians give them peanut and buy their votes. Knowledge is power.

Funny thing is that I do not collect even cash for training many people in those days. But when I got to Agric groups and started dishing out info, I used to run into problems with consultants. I only asked trainees to buy materials but still they wouldn't know where to get them and in those days, I would still assist them to buy. When it was free, many would just buy the materials and would abandon the training. Lol. It was free bros. But i started collecting cash for it and I saw the rush dropped, but still I was unhappy because I was collecting cash. So, I decided to stop training. I still think I have not giving out to the public yet the way God has directed me to. And after stopping the training, I opened a nairaland account to dish out info freely. However, I still notice that anything free is not valuable. But we will try out best. Lol.

You nailed it. It is just unwise to operate without considering the economic analysis. Why should I encounter terrible loss cos I say I am not afraid of trying. A beg, that one pass me ooooo. I have given him the best advice anyone can. And I have talked to him personally, it is left for him to take it or not.

I only can wish everyone the best of luck.

Lol, Naija

The status as at Tuesday this week. We are watering and adding pesticides and fertilisers.
I'm attacked by folding leaves disease with ants at the back of the leaves. Any help on the way forward?

More pics. What is the cause of the cucumbers curving? Some of the seeds are curved.

Itydee:
thanks. It only confused me the more. All the same I will read it up.
Tell me where I can get the preferred products in Port Harcourt or Lagos.

I sell them. Im based in igboora oyo state but can deliver to you in PH via transporters

The following are the specifications :

Thickness : 0.4mm
Flow rate: 3litres per hour
Emitter spacing: 30cm spacing.

Itydee:
More pics. What is the cause of the cucumbers curving? Some of the seeds are curved.

This is the evidence that you are not feeding your plants well. You may apply enough fertilizer but when water content in the soil is not enough, the nutrient you apply will not be available for the plants. Your plants lack calcium too. Stop everything you are doing and get your irrigation solved like I advised you earlier. If you fail to solve your irrigation challenge, all you are doing is waste of time. You are over working your workers telling them to use buckets and hose to irrigate. This is 2018 for Christ sake. When they see that you are not producing well, they will run away because they know it is story you might tell them when salary time comes, and they might be planning to steal some of your equipment to make up for their pay I am writing from what we have seen. We know farms that will work and farms that will not. Go and check my first sentence in my very first post on your thread, then, you will realize again that i was reluctant to make comments on your thread because I know that the real truth might be too much for you to bear. Bros, your N350,000 is gone. Let me be honest with you.

You staked your plants very poorly. Each cucumber when matured weighs minimum of 300 grams. From one bamboo pole to another bamboo pole, I believe you will have around 50 plants. If you have like 25 plants with matured cucumbers, the weight is going to be around 7.5kg. Just look at the support you have...that tiny rope. Can that support 7.5kg? If you do it well, you should have up to 15kg or more. See, your plants will soon start dropping on the floor cos of overload. You have a terrible set up. I must tell you. You dId not consult well before doing this project. You need to be trained well. Real training and not a "yeye" training.

Also, you wrote you have small ants at the back of your leaves. Your plants have been attacked by the terrible pests called aphids and thrips. The folding leaves is evidence of viral disease. Go through my post and spray what I have recommended for you earlier. I knew you will face the challenge and I had written the solution.

My brother, this may be my last message on your thread.

From now onward, I wish you the best with the way you want to handle your farm. With this viral disease, poor staking style, and poor irrigation system, the truth is that you have a slim chance to even recover N20,000 from this thing you are doing.

My Recommendation
Stop all you are doing. Close your farm, and find a place where you can be properly trained. Or find someone who is honest to train you on your farm. Do a pilot on 1/4 plot of land.


Blessings.

Itydee:
More pics. What is the cause of the cucumbers curving? Some of the seeds are curved.

Greetings,

I have indeed been following up on your progress (which obviously is heading for the rocks) with keen interest, and I have this to say; You have deliberately ignored all advice given to you. I said consult and work with an expert on this project. Nevertheless, you got professional tips people pay to get trained for on a platter of gold, haba!!! This is money going down the drain if I have to be honest with you. Like they say; prevention is always better. Preventing and avoiding the diseases in the first place is always best practice in Agriculture. Online and internet farmers plenty oooo! Farming goes beyond e-books and reading on forums biko. I said it before and i'm saying it again; for this project of yours to succeed, INVOLVE A PROFESSIONAL PRACTICING MODERN FARMER . Note my silence was golden after my initial post, I saw a pro on the thread na so me sef carry biro dey take notes dey sharpen my skills

All isn't lost bro, You can simply hit the restart button and get this done properly . By the way, I love your zeal

Thanks for your advice.
I'm not stubborn. WI'll you be my mentor ? At least you are less harsh and not sarcastic.

I said in my earlier posts that I started with a mentor who bought the land for me and helped with the initial setup. the guy ran away before we could evrn plant a seed. je had issues with his landlord in the community. The story of drip irrigation just came to fore when we have gone far and thats just a week or two ago.

Please anyone with solution to the leaves and the fruits curling problems?

@itydee forget all this over active self promoted mentors. If u r talking cucumber mentors the best are the practicing ones like pavore, jephito, jethro and some others that are highly recommended and known by everyone read their posts and follow them. Many farmers are making their money silently with the aid of these guys not all this salesmen. From my little experience cucumber curl is lack of water. If the leaves yellow too then it's lack of magnessium which can be corrected by dissolving 1-2 tablespoon of epsom salt in 4 liters and spraying the leaves (Google and confirm the measurements on your own too.) your farm is still relTively young and you can still make something just correct your mistakes. DONT GIVE UP! Instead you can use it as practice to experiment and learn. After all experience pass all this consultation experts. Also I read that curling can be as a result of improper pollination I don't know if it affects hybrid seeds too. When spraying insecticide ensure the sun is not out so as to not harm the useful bees that are attracted to the bright flowers during the day.

Menh, the advice and the guidance on the post is priceless, really love the op zeal as well. I believe you can get better result next time.

Am about diversifying into veggies too, will really need the help of a practicing consultant or a mentor.

Itydee:
Thanks for your advice.
I'm not stubborn. WI'll you be my mentor ? At least you are less harsh and not sarcastic.

I said in my earlier posts that I started with a mentor who bought the land for me and helped with the initial setup. the guy ran away before we could evrn plant a seed. je had issues with his landlord in the community. The story of drip irrigation just came to fore when we have gone far and thats just a week or two ago.

Please anyone with solution to the leaves and the fruits curling problems?

Hi once again,

I still maintain my stands on starting afresh (same as @fluentifor, sorry quoted you on this). The whole setup is faulty. There are lots of reasons why cucumbers curl up, and your present farm setup has all the catalyst for a deformed cucumber fruits on a large scale I.e improper irritating setup, pest and diseases presence, improper stalking of the plants and many more etc.

Experience is the best teacher they say... someone even argued on you experiencing it first hand. But Experience is the best teacher FOR A FOO.L. (You don't need to be one to get it right from the start. Pls no insults intended..my apologies).

Don't do farming the traditional way boss. Use modern practices and reap your rewards 200%.

I once destroyed a whole batch of tomato plants as a result of disease infestation. Not that there weren't fruits on the plants, but it made no sense waiting the planting season out to harvest below 20% of what was invested. A tough decision to make but believe me, it's the best call to make.

If you decide to go ahead, then go with the submission of that post above.

Itydee:
Thanks for your advice.
I'm not stubborn. WI'll you be my mentor ? At least you are less harsh and not sarcastic.

I said in my earlier posts that I started with a mentor who bought the land for me and helped with the initial setup. the guy ran away before we could evrn plant a seed. je had issues with his landlord in the community. The story of drip irrigation just came to fore when we have gone far and thats just a week or two ago.

Please anyone with solution to the leaves and the fruits curling problems?

- You need to start afresh, don't use good money to chase bad one.
- You need to train with a practicing farmer at least for a month and learn the curves.
- Check the Internet and youtube and see best practices on Cucumber farming.
- Look and search for your market.
- Start small by using a plot or 2 plots of land for like two seasons.
- Expansion should come only when you are successful with a plot or 2 plots of land.

domack99:
Menh, the advice and the guidance on the post is priceless, really love the op zeal as well. I believe you can get better result next time.

Am about diversifying into veggies too, will really need the help of a practicing consultant or a mentor.

Thank you for appreciating the efforts of everyone who has contributed. To say most advices given here are by internet farmers is not that bad. At least, the poster is also an internet poster.. We are all internet people. Lol. However, people who have worked on farms are able to give solutions to specific issues. Everything the critic wrote as solution is just a summary of what everyone here explained in details. The name of chemicals to combat the diseases have been listed; hence, I do not know what else the critic meant. Also, it has been stated that irrigation is not good. My question is what new information has the critic dished out? Anyway, we thank God.

To call everyone here salesmen is the perfect word. The truth is that I see myself first as a Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) first before calling myself an owner. So, he is correct and I am happy to have fellow salesmen with practical knowledge here, and they have advised OP well. Comments after the critic say it all, and yours is one.

Also, to ask OP to treat N350,000 as "money waka away" to practice, experiment, and learn is cruel and wicked. The question is can he afford to throw N350,000 into "let me learn and experiment?". If the same person gave OP some of the cash to cultivate the farm, could he accept it like... "OP, I hope you have learned...and I forgo my N100,000 out of the N350,000 you have used. Do not pay me back." Can he do it?

Ask the OP, I was moved. I was the one who sent him email first. When he didn't respond, I contacted him via his phone. I was so willing to assist and I started pouring out facts and remedies. Na so OP say him be engineer oooo. That he needs to know the whatever ....I cannot recollect my people. I was like You be engineer for this time? Ok ooo. Oga engineer, go solve your problem. And his first question that what is the price of drip when we have not even tackled the technical areas sorrounding the technology put me off. But i still managed to get him a price despite i said i do not sell drip and I was reluctant.

So for OP to use sarcastic to define some people here has shown me that many of us need to mind our business, and shut the heck up so that engineer can get it done well.

And the critic telling OP to use Epsom Salt only tells me that he has graduated from the school of criticising without having practical knowledge. Epsom Salt only indeed.

If I decide to train anyone which I do not have the time for, N100,000 is not too much. But I will not do it as at this time because I do not need it. So, let me advertise myself very well since salesmanship is in my blood. ok. That might be on the high side. Really, i do not train people because i do not have the time. And i do not offer any consultation service. (Anyway sir, domack99, I'm not directing this to you).

My brother, it is not so difficult as it sounds or how people make it. You do not need me as your mentor but as a friend. I can show you A to Z of what you need to know without collecting one kobo if you are smart, and you can still consult many other people to get more knowledge. I have many friends who still help me till date. You are always welcome sir.

Sir, I may be strict. I can decide to stretch you in order for you to think and find solutions yourself, if you do not see it as being harsh, you may eventually become my teacher. Lol. Cos I make my friends drive home their points. We discuss. We argue. We compete. But above all, we solve problems together, and we level mountains.

With all pleasure, you are welcome to be my friend.

jidestroud:


Hi once again,

I still maintain my stands on starting afresh (same as @fluentifor, sorry quoted you on this). The whole setup is faulty. There are lots of reasons why cucumbers curl up, and your present farm setup has all the catalyst for a deformed cucumber fruits on a large scale I.e improper irritating setup, pest and diseases presence, improper stalking of the plants and many more etc.

Experience is the best teacher they say... someone even argued on you experiencing it first hand. But Experience is the best teacher FOR A FOO.L. (You don't need to be one to get it right from the start. Pls no insults intended..my apologies).

Don't do farming the traditional way boss. Use modern practices and reap your rewards 200%.

I once destroyed a whole batch of tomato plants as a result of disease infestation. Not that there weren't fruits on the plants, but it made no sense waiting the planting season out to harvest below 20% of what was invested. A though decision to make but believe me, it's the best call to make.

If you decide to go ahead, then with the submission of that post above.

You do not need to apologize before quoting a lovely, inspiring, and motivating post you have here. I have gone through your thread and it is just on point. You are our fellow salesmen ooo.

Your tomato case is even better. If I start narrating the effect of the last fuel scarcity on my farm in December, you will pity me. Who has not had his/her bitter experience? Sir, we move on. We explore more. We conquer more. Why? We do not give up. Victory is sure.

I may insist on drip; however, a lady I met on nairaland convinced me that she will go with manual irrigation and get the job done. Her determination and style was unique. I was flabbergasted. That was when I relaxed, and her choice of crops suit the style she decided to adopt. Recently, she is the one sending me materials to even read to have another perspective of cultivating. And we discussed marketing, and other technical aspects. I have learned so much from her. I showed her where to get some seeds, before I realise what was happening, she showed me where to get some seeds too, and even got me the producer recommendations for the seeds which are what I need at this time. It happened recently to be precised. After all, I do not see myself extremely harsh. If a lady can make me buy into manual irrigation just because of her unique style, it says a lot.

I do not mean to have any element of pride in my posts. And if there is, it is not intentional. Please forgive me.

fluentinfor:


Thank you for appreciating the efforts of everyone who has contributed. To say most advices given here are by internet farmers is not that bad. At least, the poster is also an internet poster.. We are all internet people. Lol. However, people who have worked on farms are able to give solutions to specific issues. Everything the critic wrote as solution is just a summary of what everyone here explained in details. The name of chemicals to combat the diseases have been listed; hence, I do not know what else the critic meant. Also, it has been stated that irrigation is not good. My question is what new information has the critic dished out? Anyway, we thank God.

To call everyone here salesmen is the perfect word. The truth is that I see myself first as the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) first before calling myself an owner. So, he is correct and I am happy to have fellow salesmen with practical knowledge here, and they have advised OP well. Comments after the critic say it all, and yours is one.

Also, to ask OP to treat N350,000 as "money waka away" to practice, experiment, and learn is cruel and wicked. The question is can he afford to throw N350,000 into "let me learn and experiment". If the same person gave OP some of the cash to cultivate the farm, could he accept it like... "OP, I hope you have learned...and I forgo my N100,000 out of the N350,000 you have used. Do not pay me back." Can he do it?

Ask the OP, I was moved. I was the one who sent him email first. When he didn't respond, I contacted him via his phone. I was so willing to assist and I started pouring out facts and remedies. Na so OP say him be engineer oooo. That he needs to know the whatever ....I cannot recollect my people. I was like You be engineer for this time? Ok ooo. Oga engineer, go solve your problem. And his first question that what is the price of drip when we have not even tackled the technical areas sorrounding the technology put me off. But i still managed to get him a price despite i said i do not sell drip and I was reluctant.

So for OP to use sarcastic to define some people here has shown me that many of us need to mind our business, and shut the heck up so that engineer can get it done well.

And the critic telling OP to use Epsom Salt only tells me that he has graduated from the school of criticising without having practical knowledge. Epsom Salt only indeed.

If I decide to train anyone which I do not have the time for, N100,000 is not too much. But I will not do it as at this time because I do not need it. So, let me advertise myself very well since salesmanship is in my blood. ok. That might be on the high side. Really, i do not train people because i do not have the time. And i do not offer any consultation service. (Anyway sir, domack99, I'm not directing this to you).

My brother, it is not so difficult as it sounds or how people make it. You do not need me as your mentor but as a friend. I can show you A to Z of what you need to know without collecting one kobo if you are smart, and you can still consult many other people to get more knowledge. I have many friends who still help me till date. You are always welcome sir.

Sir, I may be strict. I can decide to stretch you in order for you to think and find solutions yourself, if you do not see it as being harsh, you may eventually become my teacher. Lol. Cos I make my friends drive home their points. We discuss. We argue. We compete. But above all, we solve problems together, and we level mountains.

With all pleasure, you are welcome to be my friend.

Will surely contact you soon (as a friend )

I could feel the op pain spending over 350k and people saying he should start afresh is not going to be music to his ears and could see courage in those of you saying the fact to him even when the truth is bitter. Sometimes is better to count your losses and move on and that is easier for those who have alternative income source don't know about op.

@ baldwin84 , please, check your email.

domack99:


Will surely contact you soon (as a friend )

I could feel the op pain spending over 350k and people saying he should start afresh is not going to be music to his ears and could see courage in those of you saying the fact to him even when the truth is bitter. Sometimes is better to count your losses and move on and that is easier for those who have alternative income source don't know about op.

Apart from discussing technical areas with my friends, we discuss entrepreneurship. The first thing I make everyone aware is differentiating assets from expenses. Then after, split assets into fixed and current. When you do that you can easily draw your scale of preference of what to buy first. This is thinking like an entrepreneur and not like a farmer.

Which comes first? To buy land, to buy seed, to pay for workers, or to buy an irrigation set? In just this one question with options to choose from, there is a current asset, a fixed asset, and expenses. So. Which should top ones scale of preference?

Let us look at it like this. Most farm sellers do not invade the land you bought from them if you do the right thing. Why? You must put PEST (political, Economical, Social, Technological) issues into play to make decision. Guys, I am an internet person ooooo. Lol. Ok. That was a joke. But my point is, I am a theorical person who make decision on field with those tools I learned about online or in classroom. I do not make decision like just any farmer.

Let us look at this scenario. You know land grabbers are there and you went ahead to remove all the stomps, so you can use tractor because you want to practice modern farming in the right way. A dey laugh in Japanese. You better find boys who will use cutlass and hoes and get the job done with real pain. When the useless grabbers see the stomps in place, they know that if you leave it for just 3 months, it turns to a forest again. Remove stomps after you are sure no one is going to disturb you. In fact, leave stomps there so they can see it well well. hhhhhmmmm. Can internet teach anyone this? We are internet farmers ooooo. Lol. This is purely a social and political issue. But if you had put this into consideration, you would have put some things in place before purchasing it. So. Leasing might be the better option for you though you might have the money to buy it.

Second scanerio. You decided to buy the land and then you ran short of cash. Does it sound wise? All in the name of buying land, you got broke and could not continue the project. If you had leased the land, you would have had a wonderful experience. The land no dey run away. You can buy later. This is vegetable farming and not cash crops. Biko!

And look at this. You have your irrigation in place. You have your farm set up well. If you spend N350,000 now, if things go south, to try again, you may not spend up to N70,000. But when every activity you did previously is expense, you will spend high again, and it becomes so hard to come back.

I do not argue with people who want to cultivate 10 hectares of watermelon using manual irrigation during dry season. All I do is wish them well but I do not forget to tell them to have tramadol by their side. Everyone of them always crash. It is not a curse. It is the reality. But when you tell them, they become your enemy.

What stops OP from using the money he used to buy new seeds to get irrigation fixed well? If just a system to cover one plot, and then get it done well instead of expanding recklessly. Let us ask ourselves that question. A beg, no be my problem.

The thing is that I do not keep enemies. If OP returns and ask me question again, I will not say because of the past and hold anything against him. I will still attend to him but only and only if i see he is ready to really listen. After all, no one wants to be radio katanga. Just talk talk talk and then you see that he is doing what is in his mind. Ok. Go and consult those who you listen to and leave me out of your business.

Finally my brother, to be well grounded in vegetable production has like just 30% influence on your success rate. The remaining 70% consists: set up pattern, workers management, so many social issues most especially people around your farm, how you handle logistics (to outsource it or not), sales, etc. There is so much to learn. And we keep learning daily.

I quit a farm last month. Yes, last Decemeber I left a farm in a wonderful location because the neighbors were so cruel. I rented an apartment there too, and they were all pain in my butt. I had so much loss but God is in control. I consulted even elderly people to know if I should stay or not. All of them told me to leave and pray to God for restoration. If I tell you the amount I lost, you will all pity me. Farmers near me were annoyed, neighbours at home were annoyed, even workers started getting hostile. I let off all those workers after paying them. Two of them have been calling me and begging. But never will I take them to my new location. Never.

I need more friends too. And I have two popular people here on nairaland who advice me from time to time. I talk to people too.

Thanks for your candid and fact based writing.
You are infeed a rare diamond with a forgiving spirit. You are very much appreciated.. Ride on... [Qquote author=fluentinfor post=64406864]

Apart from discussing technical areas with my friends, we discuss entrepreneurship. The first thing I make everyone aware is differentiating assets from expenses. Then after, split assets into fixed and current. When you do that you can easily draw your scale of preference of what to buy first. This is thinking like an entrepreneur and not like a farmer.

Which comes first? To buy land, to buy seed, to pay for workers, or to buy an irrigation set? In just this one question with options to choose from, there is a current asset, a fixed asset, and expenses. So. Which should top ones scale of preference?

Let us look at it like this. Most farm sellers do not invade the land you bought from them if you do the right thing. Why? You must put PEST (political, Economical, Social, Technological) issues into play to make decision. Guys, I am an internet person ooooo. Lol. Ok. That was a joke. But my point is, I am a theorical person who make decision on field with those tools I learned about online or in classroom. I do not make decision like just any farmer.

Let us look at this scenario. You know land grabbers are there and you went ahead to remove all the stomps, so you can use tractor because you want to practice modern farming in the right way. A dey laugh in Japanese. You better find boys who will use cutlass and hoes and get the job done with real pain. When the useless grabbers see the stomps in place, they know that if you leave it for just 3 months, it turns to a forest again. Remove stomps after you are sure no one is going to disturb you. In fact, leave stomps there so they can see it well well. hhhhhmmmm. Can internet teach anyone this? We are internet farmers ooooo. Lol. This is purely a social and political issue. But if you had put this into consideration, you would have put some things in place before purchasing it. So. Leasing might be the better option for you though you might have the money to buy it.

Second scanerio. You decided to buy the land and then you ran short of cash. Does it sound wise? All in the name of buying land, you got broke and could not continue the project. If you had leased the land, you would have had a wonderful experience. The land no dey run away. You can buy later. This is vegetable farming and not cash crops. Biko!

And look at this. You have your irrigation in place. You have your farm set up well. If you spend N350,000 now, if things go south, to try again, you may not spend up to N70,000. But when every activity you did previously is expense, you will spend high again, and it becomes so hard to come back.

I do not argue with people who want to cultivate 10 hectares of watermelon using manual irrigation during dry season. All I do is wish them well but I do not forget to tell them to have tramadol by their side. Everyone of them always crash. It is not a curse. It is the reality. But when you tell them, they become your enemy.

What stops OP from using the money he used to buy new seeds to get irrigation fixed well? If just a system to cover one plot, and then get it done well instead of expanding recklessly. Let us ask ourselves that question. A beg, no be my problem.

The thing is that I do not keep enemies. If OP returns and ask me question again, I will not say because of the past and hold anything against him. I will still attend to him but only and only if i see he is ready to really listen. After all, no one wants to be radio katanga. Just talk talk talk and then you see that he is doing what is in his mind. Ok. Go and consult those who you listen to and leave me out of your business.

Finally my brother, to be well grounded in vegetable production has like just 30% influence on your success rate. The remaining 70% consists: set up pattern, workers management, so many social issues most especially people around your farm, how you handle logistics (to outsource it or not), sales, etc. There is so much to learn. And we keep learning daily.

I quit a farm last month. Yes, last Decemeber I left a farm in a wonderful location because the neighbors were so cruel. I rented an apartment there too, and they were all pain in my butt. I had so much loss but God is in control. I consulted even elderly people to know if I should stay or not. All of them told me to leave and pray to God for restoration. If I tell you the amount I lost, you will all pity me. Farmers near me were annoyed, neighbours at home were annoyed, even workers started getting hostile. I let off all those workers after paying them. Two of them have been calling me and begging. But never will I take them to my new location. Never.

I need more friends too. And I have two popular people here on nairaland who advice me from time to time. I talk to people too. [/quote]

Hmmmm. Lots of activities here. Thanks all for your inputs. I'm considering all options. God will see us through. I know where my challenges lies. We are working round it. Though we appreciate help we will not accept abuses and sarcastic posturing. I opened this thread in humility and sought help respectfully from friends and mentors. The private discussion with a friend I believe maturity demands be kept private. No one has monopoly of knowledge as God will always raise his army. I'm not being haughty or arrogant. I do not like the picture flentifor is painting of my personality. He was asking about measurements and he was sounding as he was addressing a stark illiterate. I then told him I'm an Engineer to let him knowI have some rudimentary knowledge about dimensions. That was private chats on whatsaap. To bring those chats here to disrespect my person and my profession because of ordinary cucumber farm is very debasing and discouteous. If he had asked for money to mentor me it's his right , I would have weighed the options and agreed or rejected.
Coming to a public thread like this to make me think my decisions to seek help or discuss my challenges is foolish is most hurting. So many have made worse decisions and have walked away with their ignorance and no room for other to learn from.
If they want to mentor or teach , they should choose appropriate and encouraging words. For me farming is good and has been in me all my life and serves as hobby and past time. This does not mean I should throw away good money or waste precious time on wrong methods or foolish directions. I have weighed most of the suggestions here and planning to implement the ones that have been risked as being certain of yield ing positive results. Realise that every decision takes time ,money , knowledge and experienced people to implement otherwise it's going to be a ring of mediocritic mistakes.
That said. All discussions will happen here. All advice given needs knowledge and experience to implement them successfully.
We are sure so many in my shoes are learning from advice and solutions proferred by experts. They will not make my mistakes or if they have they will retreat and change their ways. I don't mind being called the stubborn arrogant guy. I don't mind being the one you hang all your criticism on and say "that's the bad guy".
I thank all who have advised me responsibly. God will continue to bless you. God will continue to bless our effort.
I dont fail. I have never failed. What others call failure, for me has always been a school.

Itydee:
Hmmmm. Lots of activities here. Thanks all for your inputs. I'm considering all options. God will see us through. I know where my challenges lies. We are working round it. Though we appreciate help we will not accept abuses and sarcastic posturing. I opened this thread in humility and sought help respectfully from friends and mentors. The private discussion with a friend I believe maturity demands be kept private. No one has monopoly of knowledge as God will always raise his army. I'm not being haughty or arrogant. I do not like the picture flentifor is painting of my personality. He was asking about measurements and he was sounding as he was addressing a stark illiterate. I then told him I'm an Engineer to let him knowI have some rudimentary knowledge about dimensions. That was private chats on whatsaap. To bring those chats here to disrespect my person and my profession because of ordinary cucumber farm is very debasing and discouteous. If he had asked for money to mentor me it's his right , I would have weighed the options and agreed or rejected.
Coming to a public thread like this to make me think my decisions to seek help or discuss my challenges is foolish is most hurting. So many have made worse decisions and have walked away with their ignorance and no room for other to learn from.
If they want to mentor or teach , they should choose appropriate and encouraging words. For me farming is good and has been in me all my life and serves as hobby and past time. This does not mean I should throw away good money or waste precious time on wrong methods or foolish directions. I have weighed most of the suggestions here and planning to implement the ones that have been risked as being certain of yield ing positive results. Realise that every decision takes time ,money , knowledge and experienced people to implement otherwise it's going to be a ring of mediocritic mistakes.
That said. All discussions will happen here. All advice given needs knowledge and experience to implement them successfully.
We are sure so many in my shoes are learning from advice and solutions proferred by experts. They will not make my mistakes or if they have they will retreat and change their ways. I don't mind being called the stubborn arrogant guy. I don't mind being the one you hang all your criticism on and say "that's the bad guy".
I thank all who have advised me responsibly. God will continue to bless you. God will continue to bless our effort.
I dont fail. I have never failed. What others call failure, for me has always been a school.

@Op. Can you call this number 08050323434 soonest. Perhaps I could be of help in someway.

@Fluentinfor... Is your location in Lagos or any western state in Nigeria.. I need info on how to market cucumber in these areas.. I visited Mile 12 Lagos and noticed that many market women buy cucumber from all these Aboki guys who buy from farms far in the northern part of Nigeria.....I need info or should I say ideas on how to market my cucumbers to these women. Would really appreciate having the contact of you guys who are Marketing experts

jerryadindu123:
@Fluentinfor... Is your location in Lagos or any western state in Nigeria.. I need info on how to market cucumber in these areas.. I visited Mile 12 Lagos and noticed that many market women buy cucumber from all these Aboki guys who buy from farms far in the northern part of Nigeria.....I need info or should I say ideas on how to market my cucumbers to these women. Would really appreciate having the contact of you guys who are Marketing experts

Send me mail via the right channel. I will put you through and give you some contacts. Quite easy. You do not need rigorous marketing. But I do not waste time with people who just talk talk talk. Make sure you are ready to get on board and you are about kicking off or your harvest is near. If you just want to find info for nothing sake, I am not the right person to approach.

I HAVE CLOSED DOWN THE FARM. SECURITY ISSUES AND COMUNITY WORKERS WAHALA.

Deep inside me I feel your pain. I have worked in different parts of Nigeria. I closed one of my farms earlier this month myself. It feels not so good. It is not over.

Just that you are in PH...hmmm. I would have gladly invited you to a colleague's farm in Ogun State to use up to an acre. I know I can make my friend release one acre or more. Expenses will be reduced because water source is a clean river. But I always work with drip irrigation and I can welcome anyone who is willing to fix the farm like a modern farmer. You learn how to reduce cost of production, how to handle farm workers (they are parasites, where to pick up farm inputs, etc.) First trial might be tough, but with second attempt using good workers, one will easily breakthrough. Learn + Make Profit.

What can I say? I pray you recover your loss. AMEN!

@Fluentinfor Sir I tried sending u a mail. Pls have u got signal. I really need a guide on marketing cucumber as I explain to you earlier. Thanks