PRACTICE GOOD CROP MANAGEMENT, NTABO URGES FARMERS

A FARMER can have good yields even on a small piece of land only if he or she practices good crop management, agriculture expert Matthew Ntabo has said.

Speaking to The Scoop, Mr. Ntabo said good crop management was an important aspect that farmers needed to put into perspective if they were to record a very good success in their farming business career.

“As important as this aspect is, most famers do not pay serious attention to have this implemented in their cultivation of various crops which in most cases results in poor yields being recorded,” Mr. Ntabo said.

Mr. Ntabo, who is also a sweet potato farmer based in Kapiri Mposhi, noted that most farmers faced a challenge of the market which was not to their advantage adding that finding a market for their produce was the biggest problem facing most farmers across the country.

“Without quality or the right produce, the farmer should expect to have trouble with the market. To help my fellow farmers understand and practice good crop management, I organized an online training session on sustainable agriculture where we tackle different topics on tomato, onion, cabbage, watermelon, beans, butternuts, maize, soya, and poultry production,” he said.

He explained that the session was aimed at making farmers appreciate sustainable agriculture and also offered them an opportunity to learn the fundamentals of horticulture.

“The training session was presented to farmers in a bid to have them start doing the right thing. I have heard a lot of farmers saying markets are not good. This is very true but in my humble opinion, I think it is much better to fight market issues as a sole problem,” he said.

He advised farmers to always ensure they practiced good crop management to have high quality crops which did not compromise the market.

“If you have good quality crops, the market will not be a problem. If a farmer fails to produce high quality crops, then definitely expect to be in trouble with the market as well. The elephant in the house is poor productivity caused by poor management,” he said.

He noted that high productivity compensated for lower price adding that with good management, farmers would never complain of market linkages.

“We therefore advise our farmers to work towards having quality crops which will enable them to have market linkages and improved business,” he said.