It might appear that we aren't doing much or are seen as people in the lower class of life, but on a closer look, farmers are the ones holding people up, just like food is the one keeping body and soul together.
The blessings of the fruits of the earth are the Lord's, and He has created varieties for us to eat. No one feasts on a particular meal for a lifetime; soon enough you will have cravings for food, grains, or seeds. The tongue is always willing to explore. In that regard, we seek to eat different kinds of food and fruits.
Been a farmer that is passionate about growing foods and fruit, I have equally enjoyed the varieties over the years. And as I continue to explore passionately, I have gradually been able to grow different crops. The knowledge needed to grow one type of food is often different from the one needed to grow another; they all have their times and seasons for growth and food production.
Agricultural knowledge is like an asset that has been passed on from one generation to another, and it is a beautiful thing to know that the knowledge has not been static but continually grows as we explore different means of growing foods with the advent of science and technology. These new findings are good in many ways, but we have to be weary and work with moderate application of this new knowledge in order not to create more harm than good for our earth.
I am always willing to try new adventures as a farmer, grow newer varieties of crops I have never done before, and think of the measures I can put in place to create a massive agricultural/farming sector that can feed my people. It is a dream, and I hope to see it come to pass someday. The great scientists, industrialists, and producers of our times also started small, and in this very many years back. If they can grow and establish the sectors they are in, I can equally do the same with farming.
While at the farm yesterday, I noticed that this cashew tree is at the fertilization stage, producing flowers already, and almost on the verge of giving us new cashier fruits for this season.
I realized the possibility of having a plantation farming some varieties of fruits, starting with cashew and palm fruits. Knowing fully well that these are cash crops and assets, just like the cocoa and coffee tree grown by my grandparents.
Nigeria has a rich agricultural history and background that has almost gone into extinction ever since the discovery of crude oil in the country. The impact of the reduction in the production of food and cash crops has been felt, and the ever-increasing price of commodities has now left a lot of people hungry.
The sooner we realize the way out and trace back our origin, the better for all of us. My granddad had a plantation farm in palm fruits, and over the years this has been a source of the palm oil eating in the family. I haven't been able to taste the oil ever since we moved to the city.
There is a possibility sooner than later I will advance into this kind of plantation farming, as it became a reality within this year that I was able to explore commercial farming.
While some crops need an abundance of rain for fruit production and maturity, all of these fruit trees are the categories of plants that produce their fruits in the dry season when there is no rain.
Having a few bunches of these trees scattered across our farms, we are able to eat cashews and mangoes starting in December.
I bet that the children can hardly wait to climb and devour these fruits.
The modalities needed go into plantation farming and growing plants. It starts with the plan for location/site for our farms, the financial details for renting/buying such lands, the purchase of quality seeds, cultivation, planting, and nurturing of plants until fruit production. This is a plan or tasks that can run into years, and it's good if the ideas we conceive today can come into reality tomorrow.
While working at the farm that is the cashew, we often take shade under to shy away from the heat of the sun, and yesterday was just another day to spray our beans with herbicides as they continue to grow and produce more seeds by the day. Harvest of beans and rice are the next agenda item on our farming timetable.
I hope that you haven't been bored by my rants and homestead blog for today. Thank you for stopping by.