₦airaland Forum

fayahsoul:
lol. first of all it's difficult to find a practical farmer that will divulge all the secrets of his practice even when paid to do so. Yes humans are innately selfish like that. Secondly, you dont seem to understand that there is always a chasm between theory and practice; not to mention the contradictions in literature. I did a lot of research before starting my farm. I was also aware that grasscutters gnaw on wood like you stated hence the wood ought to be covered by mesh wire. In fact that was why my first cage was made of metal all through but still the grasscutters gnawed on it. And mind you there different types of mesh wire and certain types are suitable. So it's only through practice that the weakness of theory can be exposed and then reformulated to fit a farmers unique situation.

when I say mesh, I dont mean all those chicken mesh oo, i was refering the those ones with square holes and thick gauge. I'll like to say this again - theory is very important bc when u practice or experiment, you put it in writing and that's theory. If u know how to access the right info there will be no much gap b/w theory and practice. Like I said, read wide and deep, and read the right stuffs.
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And when it come to the part of keeping secrets and being selfish, I'll say that's not totally correct bc everyone and every bizness have their secrets, that's how u stay competitive and remain in bizness. Those secrets cost them sth b4 they could get it and it is not selfish to keep it.

world1:
Am so sorry for the delay in posting detail explanation of what Highhill Plantain Village is all about, can I've been banned 2 twice this week based on this thread.
Help me beg them I no know wetin i do them ooooo.
So sit down and relax as I explain in detail the HPV project concept.

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The problem has actually been from antispam bot, the script makes mistakes sometimes.

FarmTech:
Does anyone know the location of any of the following places?
1. Lower Mamu (achalla nando) river project
2. Niger flood plain (umuere-anam oroma etiti) project
3. Uzo-Uwani in Igboeze division nsuka agric zone
4. Lower anambra irrigatn project Omor
how can I visit any of them from Onitsha?

Kobo Ideas later answered this s. Maybe it will help someone someday, so let me post it here:

Going to Omor, l know you can get a Tracas or any other bus going there from Onitsha, You will stop at the last bus stop (the park at omor) the Anambra Imo River basin is just about some minutes walk from the park then you inquire where the Lower anambra irrigation project is.
Then from Omor junction, you can get a bus going to Adani (Enugu state) it will drive through lfite-ogwari umueje. Omasi-uno, Omasi-agu (this is the last community in Anambra before you enter Adani in state) lt is a straight road l recall Peter Obi building it way back in 2009. Most traders from Jos, Lafia etc who go to Onitsha to buy goods, use this route cutting off the old route of plying through Awka heading to 9th Mile before moving upward to Nsukka rather they use the old Onitsha-Nsukka road that cuts through otuocha junction, nando-anaku-omor-ifite-ogwari-umeje-omasi-adani-nsukka. lt is about 40km from Adani to Nsukka town.

When you get Adani which is in Uzo-uwani local government, they will direct you where want to go Then on your return journey you will get a bus going straight to Onitsha there.When l worked around there l know for sure foodstuff happens to be cheap in Adani.
As for Niger flood plain (umuere-anam oroma etiti) project, ask for the place when you get to Otuocha junction.

As for the . Lower Mamu (achalla nando) river project, you will have to get down to Achalla to make enquiries. Take a bus from Onitsha going to Awka and stop at Igbariam junction, cross the expressway and enter a bus going to oye achalla, you will passby the lgbariam campus of anambra state university., at oye achalla where there are many ricemills, make inquiries of what you seek,

Anambrarians, what's happening.

jethro2:
This is true
The N2500 are the official payments for land leasing in Ogun Oshun River Basin
The Project Managers of the Basins has turned it to a personal business. They extort farmers to the last penny. Security pay, Operator pay etc
Even worst when you are using the irrigation system, they overcharge for water without pumping the water.
please take your time in investigating the Basins through the rural farmers within the environment before committing a dime
Writing from experience

Is this true? That would be very bad.

Updates pls.

Lesgupnigeria:
If you are not using tissue cultured suckers, you may never make profit from your plantain farm.

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Pls can u expantiate more on this?

Wonderful happenings, I'm still contemplating how the 3 months old is fruiting, let's watch and see what the size would be.
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And please remind me where u said ur plantation is, I may pay a visit.

Lesgupnigeria:
Boa have few branches in the south eastern part of Nigeria.
Your best bet is to register with a vibrant recognised association to access loan.

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That's interesting, like where can I access list of cooperatives?

justified19:
one bag of ur feed is how many kg?

25kg.

Soloxam:
Thanks so much for sharing with us here on this thread. You have made a good point that A FARMER shld have plan B while practising farming.... It a very good point which is applicable to all area of Agriculture... Sincerely sir you were able to over come this problem because u are financially buoyant, pls what advice will u give to small scale farmer who can not afford to buy feed in such a large qty? Pls what are the alternative source of poultry feeds, pls poultry farmer @ farmtech help us out.

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I'm not into feed formulatn but I have an idea how to go about it. You can either use concentrates, formulate ur feed with ur own machines or through a feed miller. This article will be helpful: http://www.farmersjoint.com/blog/livestock-farming/poultry/formulating-chicken-feed-3-ways-go/

eaglevirus:
We (Myself and my brother) run a layer farm of About 2500birds now. Some time about October - November 2014, there was scarcity of any form of poultry feed in my Uyo, Akwa Ibom state where our farm is located. Our birds were starved so bad that their feeding ration dropped from 13 bags a day to 2bags, some days no bag. We had money but could not source feed. The overall effect we lost more than 1.5million naira on feed money within two months trying to make the birds gain weight and continue production of eggs as they where guzzling feed like no mans business when the feed was eventually available and still not laying eggs. We had to be buying feed as buch as 3,200 naira from 2,250 it used to be before the scarcity. This b#llshit messed up so many of our friends that they had to sell off their layers birds for meet as there was no feed and they birds where dying or not laying egss anymore.
They birds have picked up production now and we can breathe some air. They only reason we culd battle this was cos we could source money (I mean a million plus in naira) to feed this guys for two straight months while not sure if they will pickup production.
Now this is no farmers mistake but a farmers problem.
Lesson: Have a plan B source of feed.

We now buy feed in trucks and sell some. if we hear any sign of scarcity we will quickly readjust. Have your plan B my fellow farmers. I have seen friends loose bigtime, and it was no fault of thiers.

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It affected us also in anambra, but in my area there was growers and finishers, so we have to use those. Since then feed price have jumped and refused to drop. Feed fmlation is the way to go.

cbrass:
The seating room alone have like 5 big windows while other rooms have two windows.Please could you give me the thread link?

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Sometimes in a yr, the heat is so much that ur proposed pen might not be enough, except u want to install fans and burn some fuel when the time comes.

Lesgupnigeria:
Thanks soloxam for creating this thread .
I have learn a lot from the bitter experiences of other farmers on this thread

I have a lot of bitter experiences but i will share one today.
I remember some years ago when i leased some acres of land around ogun state.
The man told me it was 16 acres and i didnot bother to measure
i thought that since the man is a farmer he should be able to know and tell me accurately so i didnot bother to measure.

I gave him the money for the lease for the whole 16 acres and he collected it.
All the labours who work on the farm also charge me based on the 16 acres.
All the chemicals,fertilisers adequate for 16 acres are bought
The tractor man who plough the land also charge for 16 acres.

I began to suspect that all is not well when i was told that some chemicals and fertilisers remained about 7 cartons.

One of the farmer in the area told me to measure the land when i harvest my corn and i discover that the harvest is far below the target yield.

The next day, i came to the farm with the workers and tape rule,measuring acre by acre......no be small stress.

I later discover i was farming just 7acres.

Since then,i dont start farm without measuring the land using a surveyor.

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Bad one bro. What is the cost of surveying?

fayahsoul:
My broda i'm not saying that internet resources are useless rather my point is that it's only through observing the happenings in the farm and then comparing and constrasting with the informate available on the net that the facts can be separated from fiction. For instance, the dimensions of the very first cage i built was based on what i read on the net. The dimensions were appropriate but the materials i used to construct it wasnt because i didnt take into consideration the powerful jaws of grasscutters which can be very destructive. They gnaw on every every. It's really remarkable. It was when i stocked the cages that i realized the inefficiency of the materials i used. So i had to start rectifying the problem and that cost me much. One irony i have noticed is that the best solutions to practical problems are usually also the simplest and cheapest. Happy new year my fellow farmers may we all reap bountifully this year. tanx.

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I understand bro. Another tip I'll like to give is that if u want to start sth and u dont have access to a practical farmer, then u must read a lot about it. Download volumes of pdf and sites and read them. From wot u read u write down further questions to do research on. I did the same when i was researching rabbits and grasscutters. My persistance reading helped me to come across documents that says that these animals will eat up wood. If u must use wood, use something like strong wire mesh or flattened tin cans to protect the woods.

gj22:
Please o, how is living together before marriage bad if any format of fornication isn't involved?

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The problem with some people is that they tend to believe they can't commit a particular sin, so instead of fleeing from temptation as the bible recommended, they pursue the temptation. If there is no reasonable reason why u and ur fiancee shud live together, dont. Even if there is my own advice is that u find an alternative, there is always one when u consider ur church members where u or her can stay. Why not leave temptatn alone now, it has pull down great men of God. It's not a matter of bragging that u can sleep in the same room with the opposite s e x without commiting. Just leave temptation alone, u are not wiser than satan, neither are u wiser than the bible that tells u to flee and to drop every weight that can easily pull u down. There is also fornication of the heart.

dbaptist1:
Secular Christians are already pissed off.
God has a standard n will never on no account ho below his standard.

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Don't mind them, some will never follow Christ until God lowers His standard to their own level.

Pamcrest:
I hear u but they still shouldn't be turned away. God's house is open to all. If she dresses well to church but still wears skimpy clothes outside, she remains your church member, projecting a negative image of her church n pastor...according to u. The Church has a responsibility to continue drumming it into their ears tirelessly until they change or ?God himself touches their hearts. It is inexcusable n inappropriate for the Church to alienate "sinners". Do u cast your disobedient child out of your house?
My humble submission

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The bible said that fornicators shud not be allowed in the church. Read 1 cor 5:11 http://biblehub.com/1_corinthians/5-11.htm.
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But that is not the issue here, the issue here is not driving them away, but simply telling them to comply to a law. If it shud be allowed as u said, what of weak and young christians that may easilly fall back into fornicatn, do u have them in mind? Do u labor to get wealth and then allow rats to eat them up? That's exactly what happens with the theory of "dress and come as u are, God sees the heart". In case u dont know, man is included in the greatest commandment after God, so the way man sees u and ur dressing matters to God. Even the heart can never be pure and the outside filty and naked. If u disagree then u've not start telling urself the simple truth.

dozieihems:
@farmtech pls my oga can i use the normal started,grower and layers mash we hav in nigeria to feed my layers and also achieve maximum output frm them? Waiting 4 ur reply

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If u dont have access to them then u have no other choice than to use what is available. You'll still make profit but result won't be the same - ceteris paribus.

ruggish10:
if you dnt bring sinners/unbelievers close..how can you win souls for God? allow them to cum naked so u teach them the word and they will take learning and dress properly.

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U dont bring sinners close at the expense of believers who might fall back to sin. There are weak and young believers in the church. Another thing, the messages they have been hearing for yrs havent change them, have it? Go to churches that still allow it and see if they're listening to the messages.

dapsoneh:
How wil sinners be. Converted nah?

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Is it better for a sinner to come and deconvert members or that the sinner shud not come at all? Will Christ himself allow a woman who dress like a prostitute to keep coming among his disciples every sunday for yrs? I dont think so. With Christ, it is either u change or perish, that's what he usually tell sinners "repent and sin no more, least something bigger will befall u"

lastchild:
yes ,people should come as they are to churches,the thing you people don't know is that church is a place mainly for conversion of unbelievers,if the person must repent before coming to church then what's the need,do you think that the person would ever go to that church

You have to go to church as you are before you know how you should be,you won't know it from staying at home

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Yes, but not dressed like a prostitute to lead others to sin. Not to go there to find a weak sister you can drag into immorality. The bible says that such people shud be chased out of the church.

Originalsly:
Biblical marriage is different from legal marriage. If you find someone you want to be your wife...she agrees and you both ehmm...become one and start living together...you have become man and wife . That's Biblical. Under man's law...you are not...because you have not signed or have it registered to make it legal therefore according to man's law you are not married but as you said......"cohabitating"....and indulging in "premarital sex"...all because you didn't sign the paper. So is it man's law that can now determine if one is committing a sin or not? Now we can't even tell what is Biblical and what is secular....what is sin and what is illegal.

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Christians are supposed to obey the law. Jesus did that during his days by paying tax and by saying give to ceasar wot belongs to ceasar. Simply agreeing with a lady and her family doesnt make u husband and wife.

MizMyColi:
I am of the mindset that there is no good and bad. There is no secular and sacred. All things are good and sacred, depending on the lens you view these things from.

Granted, all things are permissible for me, but not all things are beneficial.

I have been blessed with all wisdom to discern the above. They come naturally because of who I am, because I am God-Man.

My Humanity, My Divinity.

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Be specific. Does it mean that the following are neither good or bad? Playing secular music in the church, fornication, worldly view of marriage, living together b4 marriage and all those things the op pointed out. Are they neither gud or bad?

Old topic but interesting. I have plans to own farms in remote areas and live there, so I need a gun just in case fulanis or thieves decide to misbehave. Who knows whether multiple-shot pump action is allowed?

I never knew peacocks are this costly oo. Hw much is the day old and hw long does it take them to mature?

fayahsoul:
Farmers learn on the job and making mistakes is not the issue rather it's how readily the problem is identified and tackled that matters. With practice, a farmer will realize that information derived from the internent is like a double edged sword because both fact and fiction are presented persuasively. Likewise seminars and e-manuals tend to be inadequate. I breed grasscutters and the greatest mistake i made was improper housing. The animal house didnt sufficiently protect the animals from cold of which grasscutters are extremely sensitive to. So a lot have died of pneumonia. A true farmer must learn to observe whateva plant or animal culture being grown. For it's through observation that the bulk of know-how is acquired.

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While getting information from the internet, u have to mind the site you get them from. Read about the same topic from various sites and also consider the climate the writer is writing about. All these will help u to make necessary adjustment to suit ur particular situation. I must confess that in my practice as a poultry farmer, the internet have served me greatly and I'll advice every farmer to be a bookworm/internet worm. Combine that with information from offline sources and u'll make a great and unique farm. Also note that the level of ur understanding can influence how u interpret wot u read. That's why u shud write down the link of every source of information u get. Reading things u don't understand well for a second time or more can be very helpful.

Lesgupnigeria:
A lot of farmers on this agric section keep criticizing the Minister of Agriculture that all the youth programmes are propanganda but thank God,i was able to see some witnesses that have enjoyed what the government have been doing in the agric sector.

I have said it more than once that i am not a politician or a card carrying member of any political parties but an agro-preneur and i should be able to say what i am seeing and encourage the doubting thomases..lol to key into the programmes.

I have seen improvement in the agricultural sector during this present administration than any other.

Although a lot of things are still.needed to.be done which have not been done by the federal government and things which are not to be done that are being done but i will not want to distract you by delving into all that.


I.got this SMS this afternoon from BOA:

Your BOA Greencash will soon be funded, part of this fund is not cashable. Contact NCGA for your inputs or call 0808*******, 0816******* Powered by Cellulant

Few hours later,i.got another message;

Dear YUSUF O. A You have been credited with the sum of N320000 for the NCGA Cassava Programme. .Sender:BOA, Ref:1510913300111 Date:09/Jan/2015 13:30:02.Avail Balance:NGN320000.00

About some minutes later,i.got another message;

The money you received is for Cassava Stems, Land prep, Chemicals through the NCGA, contact NCGA for an ATM card to withdraw the cash for chemical application.

Less or bias information will delay your progress,get good information.from only informed people
For youths with little or no resources to venture into agricbusiness,it will do you good to take advantage of this.
Do.not be misled,agricultural revolution is real.

Register at any agric ministry in your local govt area. and also any registered and government recognised cooperative.

I hope this help someone.

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Nice to hear that. I have account with BOA but I find it difficult to operate it bc their branch is very far from my area. I wish they have more branches closeby.

dozieihems:
Hello Great farmers,pls when i saw going tru isa brown layers management i saw four different types of feed,starter,grower,pre layer and layer mash pls do we gav all this type of feed in naija?the only once i kwn ar starter,grower and layer mash bt they advice we giv layers pre layer mash after grower because it contains more of calciums pls advice me where to get the feed.

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I'm not sure they're available in nigeria, unless you formulate urs. U may also give pullets extra calcium while they're still on growers and just before they start laying.

I'm not a fish farmer, but I've seen Coppens, Durantee, vital, zeigler, aquamanna. Somebody once wrote that 2-3mm coppens and Duranttee cost N5.4k, 4mm and above N5.2k. Fish farming will be another big thing for me, but water is my challenge for now.

mercylicious:
my dear, things have changed ooo. I dont know how to cope with it.
Remember i told u am testing on land i bought in a location meant for residential purposes. The location developed faster than i thought. I planned to test plantain farming there for 3years and if its good biz, i will then go for big hectares of land.

The landlord association built good road and buildings mostly residential duplexes are springing up very fast. The monkeys have escaped on their own due to the development.
The landlord association mandated everybody to start developing b4 jan 20th or pay a fine of 100k per plot. You cannot even fence till u finish development or else i would have fenced mine.

The guy i paid to dig well for me is still at large. He keeps giving silly excuses when called on fone. It pains me cos i know if he hits the ground for 2more days, he will get water. For now, i take water to d farm every weekend and fetch from the nearby stream when d one i came with finish. I go with friends dt help me.

The ppl weeding for me have not gone since xmas, its remaining abt 1 plot. I have applied manure and mulched the weeded area.

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The landlords are serious oo. So does it mean that u have to pay the fine per plot if u plant plantains?

Pavore9:
Happy new year my brother.

Same to you. How is Kenya?