Don’t start planting now, don warns farmers

Prof. Michael Uguru, a lecturer in the Department of Crop Science, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, has warned farmers not to begin cultivation with the early rains in the year. Uguru, who gave the warning in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Nsukka, said it was risky for any farmer to go […]

Prof. Michael Uguru, a lecturer in the Department of Crop Science, University of Nigeria, Nsukka, has warned farmers not to begin cultivation with the early rains in the year.

Uguru, who gave the warning in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Nsukka, said it was risky for any farmer to go into cultivation for the new farming season without having a water reservoir in his farm.

“Farmers should not start planting crops because of recent rain unless the farmer has stored water in tanks in his farm to water crops if it did not rain very soon.

“Without water, planted crops may roast in the ground or have stunted growth because of heat,’’ the don said.

“The warning has become necessary as some farmers in the past suffered losses, when their crops roasted crops because they rushed into planting without allowing rain to penetrate deeply into the soil.

“Crops need water to grow well and yield good harvest.

“If you have stored water in your farm, you can go ahead and start planting, even if the rain did not fall very soon, you can use your stored water to water your crops,” he said.

He urged farmers, who did not store water to use the period of the early rain to clear the bush and do other pre-planting work until the rains set in fully.