Firm trains Imo farmers on maize production to fight food insecurity

Innocent Dike, Chief Executive Officer of Smart Farms Services, has given maize farmers in Imo State some guildlines on how to achieve bumper harvest amid the food insecurity staring Nigerians on the face, explaining that if they should strive to follow the guidelines strictly, there would be much improvement in their agricultural productivity.

Dike, who is also the President of the Cocoa and Plantain Farmers Association (CP-FAN) Imo State , in an interview with BusinessDay in Owerri, said that “to achieve maximum potential yields in maize farming, several factors needed serious confederation “, by maize farmers, more especially those engaged in commercial farming.

Dike stated that a commercial maize farmer should know about the health of the soil on where he wants to plant maize seeds.
“As farmers ,we sometimes plant without understanding our soil, leading to poor crop performance. Conducting soil tests can help to understand the soil’s nutrients and the necessary organic matter to improve maize growth”, he said.

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The farmer, he said, should properly be aware of the planting time, variety and spacing because, it is proper “to plant at the right time with the appropriate spacing, and selecting a high yielding variety for successful maize farming and bountiful yields “.

While recounting the advantages of being a farmer including his roles in food security in the Country, Dike noted that the farmer should be aware of how to control weeds, saying, weeds hinder the proper growth of crops by competing for nutrients with the crops. He said there should be “vigilance in controlling weeds, and it is essential to avoid future growth stage pressures”.

Informing that as the planting season is coming, that a serious farmer who wants his or her farm to have a very good yield, should also observe in time when pests have started to attack the farm.
Noting that armyworms and termites could be very disastrous to crops if not controlled or checked in a timely manner.

According to the Smart Farm Services CEO, timely appropriate fertilizer application during critical growth stages is vital for successful maize farming.

He also noted that knowledge of the weather conditions are important because a “favourable weather, including a good rainfall pattern, play a significant role in achieving the potential yield”.

And addressing these factors by the farmer, Dike noted that it would significantly improve a farmer’s chances of reaching and even surpassing the target yield.