In Nigeria, there are different types of farming practices. Cassava farming is one the oldest type of farming practised in Nigeria and other African countries. This article will discuss Cassava farming processes in Nigeria made easy. Cassava is one of the root crops mostly planted by farmers in Nigeria. Cassava itself is a good source of carbohydrates, it is profitable and can serve as a good source of livelihood for farmers. Cassava can be processed both on a small scale and a large scale basis. It is of note that Nigeria is the highest producer of cassava.
Cassava has many things you can use the product to produce. Because of the increase in various use of Cassava products and by-products, there is also an increase in the production level over the years. The major products that can be gotten from cassava farming are garri, fufu, cassava flour and starch etc.
List Of Cassava Farming Processes In Nigeria Made Easy
There are different Cassava farming processes in Nigeria made easy to be followed which include the cultivation and production processes of Cassava. The cassava farming processes are the same thing everywhere except in some places where weather conditions do not support cassava farming. The following are the cassava farming processes in Nigeria Made Easy.
Selection Of Suitable Land For Your Cassava Farming
Selection of suitable land is one of the cassava farming processes in Nigeria. Before you start the cultivation of cassava, you need to select a land that will be suitable for cassava farming processes in Nigeria. It is a known fact that Cassava can be cultivated in any type of soil. But there is some type of soil that when used for cassava farming processes, will bring higher yield than others. Find the best type of soil for cassava farming and utilize them.
Land that is well-drained loamy soil, adequate rainfall and good climate conditions will be good for cassava farming Processes in Nigeria. You can engage the services of soil testers to determine and ensure that the best soil is selected. While trying to select a suitable land for cassava farming, you will also need to consider the vegetation of the soil, because it serves as covering to the soil, if the soil texture is good and if the land is gently sloped to reduce the possibility of erosion.
Prepare The Land To Make It More Suitable For Cassava Farming
Preparation of land is one of the cassava farming processes in Nigeria. After choosing a suitable land for cassava farming, ensure you clear all bushes in the land and around the area immediately to allow sunlight into the land. You can apply fertilizers, and animal manure to increase soil fertility. Ridges or mounds should be built before planting your cassava.
Making ridges and mounds helps the farmers to arrange their farm in such a way that both planting, weeding and harvesting processes can be easily done without stress. It is important to consider mixed cropping, this means planting other crops like maize, vegetables, groundnut etc alongside cassava. Herbicides should be applied on your farmland to control weeds, It should be applied at least ten days before land preparation.
Select The Best Cassava Stem To Be Used In Planting
There are different types of cassava stems used in planting. These types of stems thrive or survive on different soil textures. We equally have a variety of cassava stems with different yield capacities. Some cassava stems are resistant to pest and diseases, have high yield capacity within a short period, It is largely acceptable by farmers, have good food quality, have the good cooking ability, has good ground storability, etc Select the variety of stem that suits your desire, that can also give you what you want.
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Select Healthy Cassava Stem Cuttings
Another means of achieving high yield in cassava production is to ensure you have good and healthy cassava stems for planting. Once you get the right breed of cassava stem from the beginning, it will produce more cassava stems on your farm in such a way that you don’t have to go outside again to look for stems. You need to be in control of where you source your cassava stems will help you to reduce the spread of pests and diseases.
Planting Your Cassava
Once you have your suitable land prepared for the cultivation of cassava, the next step is to determine the type of tillage to be used either in mounds or in ridges, the time of the year to plant, how to cut the cassava stems etc. The planting season for cassava starts around April and runs through October. Ensure you plant your cassava stem during the rainy season when the soil is wet because it needs water to germinate. Cassava can be planted using horizontal, vertical or inclined methods.
Weeding Of Cassava Farm
In cassava farming processing is made easy, how the land is prepared will determine how often weeds can grow on the farm. If you prepare your land using the right herbicides, it will serve as weed control. Having mounds and ridges helps in reducing the growth of weeds unlike when you plant on a tableland. After planting the cassava stem. you need to weed your farm regularly so that the weed will not disturb the growth of your plant. Weed your farm off grasses that grow with your cassava plant as soon as possible.
Apply Fertilizer To Cassava Farm
Due to the continuous use of a particular land in the cultivation of cassava without giving space for the land to regain nutrient, you will notice that the soil nutrients has started reducing. This indicates that you need to increase the soil nutrients. The best way to improve soil fertility is to apply fertilizer or animal manure. At the early stage of your cassava farming, you can apply NPK 15:15:15 which contains Nitrogen that helps in cassava development. Applying fertilizer that contains Potassium and phosphorus helps the cassava to have a good yield with fat and large tubers. Ensure that the fertilizer you use has been certified by the body in charge of doing so. You can check here.
Harvesting
The maturity period for Cassava is between 6 to 18 months before you can harvest. One of the ways to know if the cassava is mature for harvest is the leaves will turn yellow and start falling off the stem of the cassava plant. Before you harvest, you need to cut off the stems of the cassava and pack it well so that it can be used for planting in the next farming season.
The best way to harvest cassava is to do it manually by pulling the remaining lower part of the stem to uproot the cassava, After uprooting, you detach the roots from the stem with care to avoid damaging the cassava roots. The cassava tubers harvested should not be left without processing. This means you only harvest when you are ready to process or when you have a ready market for it.
Conclusion
This article has gone a long way in explaining the cassava farming processes in Nigeria made easy and if followed strictly, you will give a good yield. The processes are easy and understandable.