Farming may feel overwhelming at the beginning, most especially if you start without properly planning, which is why it is usually best to start small and grow as you learn to become a better farmer. If you are just starting a farm or you are experienced, these five quick and useful tips for successful farming will help.
Quick and Useful Tips for Successful Farming
- Do not burn bush when clearing your farm.
- Make ridges when planting crops on your farm instead of flat land.
- Plant cover crops on your farm to enrich your soil with nutrients.
- When Cultivating a Large Piece of Land, Make Use of Agricultural Technology.
- Keep Yourself Current and on top of Latest Farming Trends
Do not burn bush when clearing your farm.
Burning bush in the farm not only affects the soil, it also has adverse effects on climate change. It exposes the land to the effect of wind, water erosion and ultraviolet radiation.
Instead of burning the bush, you can gather them and use them as mulch to protect the soil or manure to provide nutrients to the soil.
You can read this article to learn about climate change adaptation techniques for farmers.
Make ridges when planting crops on your farm instead of flat land.
Ridging is the gathering of soil from the sides, channelling it towards the centre, so as to create a pile of raised soil with a trapezoidal contour.
Ridges help to improve soil health, reduce erosion, runoff and make weeding easier for farmers. Thereby ensuring you have optimal produce during harvest.
Plant cover crops on your farm to enrich your soil with nutrients.
Planting cover crops before your intended planting season or before planting your main crops as a form of crop rotation will do your soil a lot of good.
Cover crops help prevent soil erosion, regulate moisture, attract pollinators, assist in weed and pest management, serve as mulch and the source of green manure and organic matter. They help improve soil health.
Beans, cowpeas, wheat, barley are examples of cover crops you can consider planting in your farm.
When Cultivating a Large Piece of Land, Make Use of Agricultural Technology
Cultivating a large piece of land often means more profit than the average Nigerian farmer, however, if you are using traditional farm tools, it may result in more loss than profit and you may be unable to utilise the land properly. You will also need to employ more hands to work on the farm with you.
However, using farm machinery like a tractor will enable you to get the job done faster for farming activities such as, ploughing, tilling, harrowing and planting. Using an herbicide instead of manually weeding with your hands, will help you weed your farm efficiently.
A soil and plant health monitoring system will ensure you can monitor your soil and plant health efficiently using a simple smartphone.
Keep Yourself Current and on top of Latest Farming Trends
It is important to keep yourself updated about the latest farming news, technologies and trends that can possibly impact your farming activities.
Associate with other farmers or join a farmers’ association related to the type of farming you are into, it is especially useful when there are special grants, seeds, fertilisers and other farming inputs that may be supplied by the government, NGOs and or other corporate bodies. You will also get to learn from other farmers when you run into challenges.
