‘Why we turned to sack farming’

Many farmers are turning to sack farming, making use of every possible area at home. Our correspondent in Niger State reports that farmers are gradually embracing sack farming following the growing scarcity of farmlands due to increasing population and the rising cost of hiring land. It was learnt that many women, unemployed graduates and civil […]

Many farmers are turning to sack farming, making use of every possible area at home.

Our correspondent in Niger State reports that farmers are gradually embracing sack farming following the growing scarcity of farmlands due to increasing population and the rising cost of hiring land.

It was learnt that many women, unemployed graduates and civil servants are also venturing into sack farming as a way to address food insecurity.

Weekend Trust reports that the cost of hiring agricultural land in the state has become increasingly unaffordable for average citizens interested in farming.

• Insecurity: Why forest guards are yet to take off, 2 months after
• Aftermath of vaccine trial: 29 years after: Pfizer vaccine victims speak

Some farmers told our correspondent that the system is more effective in terms of space management and higher yield when compared to traditional farming on heaps and ridges. They also noted that crops planted in sacks were easier to water during drought than those planted in heaps and ridges, making them easier to manage.

Balkisu Ibrahim, a health record practitioner at Minna General Hospital and the manager of Abaya Farms, told Weekend Trust that the cost of hiring land and transportation to the farm necessitated her return to sack farming at home.

She said she could no longer farm on the piece of land she used to hire due to ongoing construction by the landowners.

In a space measuring just 10 feet, she planted sweet potatoes in 50 sacks, with each crop growing well.

“Initially, I had a small farm in Gbadayi village on the Minna-Bida road, where I used to plant yams, but this time around, I have decided to do sack farming at home because I have the space. I plant yam and sweet potatoes.

“The crops grown on the ground may yield more, but you cannot also undermine the yielding capacity of sack farming. In terms of management and maintenance, sack farming is better. I would just step out of my door and I am right in my farm, unlike the other one that I would have to spend N6,000 on transport each time I intended to go to farm. However, there is also the fear of the unknown around the farm, such as reptiles, but this can be easily managed,” she said.

She said the farming was all-year-round, explaining that she also planted potatoes during the dry season and watered them to grow.

Balkisu added that she planned to plant other crops and vegetables, such as ginger, onions, garlic, turmeric and scent leaf, among others.

 “This farming I am doing helps me to save more from salary because I no longer buy yams, potatoes and vegetables. I use the money for other things,” she explained.

Mr Benjamin Victor, a resident of Gidan-Mangoro in Bosso Local Government Area, also used a small space in his compound to grow maize and potatoes in sacks. He said he was introduced to this farming method by a friend who had been practising it since last year.

“I have a piece of land I usually hire to plant maize and potatoes, but this year, land owners did not allow me. They said they also wanted to use it. So a friend of mine introduced me to this sack farming. I planted potatoes in 150 sacks and they are growing well. I was watering them during drought,” he said.

An agronomist and managing director of Jarfathad Farms in Minna, Mr Garba Attahiru Madami, has grown over 2,000 tubers of yam using the sack method. He also grows other plants like ginger, using a small space in his compound.

“Sack farming is a new innovation in agriculture, especially where you don’t have adequate land. Access to land has become a serious challenge, especially in urban centres. So, when you have a small portion of land, even within your house, you can embark on farming. I have planted over 3,000 tubers of yam in sacks in a very small space. If you decide to plant 3,000 tubers of yam on hips, it would occupy more than three times space of sack farming.

“Secondly, if you farm in sacks, you are controlling the nutrients, structure of the soil, and you are taking care of the crops like a baby. It is not competing for nutrients with weeds. If there are weeds, you simply remove them with hand. Even fertiliser application is restricted. There are several other advantages.

“Thirdly, it is better than planting on ridges and heaps because you are putting a mixture of top soil, cow dumps, poultry droppings, refuse dumps and mixing them together. And you have given the crops the best protein and food, especially yam, which will grow and produce big. Also, yams planted in sacks are easily starked. And once you stark yams, they absorb sunlight easily and are able to increase their photosynthesis. The yield performance of yams planted in sacks is twice of those planted in heaps. Even Irish potatoes and ginger can be planted in sacks. And they can be exported,” he explained.

He said sack farming had a higher yield capacity but was more expensive, noting that, “You have to look for top soil and buy cow dumps and mix it. So, you are giving the plant the right nutrients it requires to grow and yield well. But if you look at the performance, despite that it is expensive, the yield is worth it because you would have more money than when you plant on bare ground. And there is a maximum utilisation of land.

“Yams planted in sacks are also easier to harvest. As the yam is getting bigger, the sack will start bursting. So, during harvest you just cut it with a razor blade or knife. And the yams are neat.

“The advantage of sack yam farming is that most of the time, when you harvest in heaps you could injure the yam with a hoe, but the one in the sack is removed neatly. And it has more market value than the one in heaps.”

Weekend Trust learnt that the widespread adoption of this farming method has led to a rise in the price of cement sacks and animal feed sacks, which sack farmers primarily use.

Mr Madami confirmed this, saying, “The price of sacks has gone up. The price increased when people saw that the demand increased. They now sell more as farmers are going into sack farming. Let me tell you that 25kg sack that was N50 before is now N130. So, if you are buying like 1,000 pieces, that’s N130,000.”

Balkisu Ibrahim of Abaya Farms also confirmed that, “The price of sacks in the market has gone up; but fortunately for me, family members and friends know that I am into sack farming, so they usually donate them to me when they do work in their homes.”

Farmers also told our correspondent that sack farming made soil management easier. They simply pack the soil and keep it in one place after harvesting or continue with dry-season farming. The soil can also be moved when relocating and re-bagged.

 

Awareness still low

Farmers who spoke with our correspondent said sack farming could be used to improve food security but awareness among farmers was still low.

Mr Garba Attahiru Madami lamented that awareness of sack farming was still very low among farmers and called on the government to launch sensitisation campaigns to encourage adoption and improve food security.

“When I went to my village, Gawu Babangida and I told them to adopt sack farming, my brothers were laughing at me because they were ignorant of the new system. I told my father that he should remember that I studied agriculture and taught for 33 years.

“Extension workers are not doing their job in teaching farmers new discoveries in agriculture. Government should encourage farmers to adopt modern ways of doing things,” he said.

When our correspondent visited some rural farming communities, including Dago-Dagbe and Garatu to assess the level of awareness, it was discovered that most farmers still found the practice unfamiliar. However, many said they would be ready to try it if it proved advantageous.