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In less than six months from now the rains will come by in approximately every part of Nigeria. So I guess you are already preparing to produce your maize as usual.  maize farm While I may not know the approaches that you have been using to produce your maize, I hope you are not doing what most persons are doing out there which are: farming (growing maize) on the same piece of land year after year... without adding manure/fertilizers... And using not or less improved seeds.. Well, if you have been doing these or simply want to venture into maize production as a complete beginner then this article is certainly for you. In this guild we are going to strictly deal with the use of organic manure (specifically poultry droppings). You may also want to read through the importance of fertilizer application in maize production . How to use organic manure in your maize farm Firstly and obviously you have to clear your land. After clearing, pack your debris away  from the far...

Hi everyone, you are all welcome to today's guild on how to care for your tomato plant. Are you a gardener? A commercial tomato farmer? Or maybe you are simply interested in having a broad knowledge of tomatoes? if yes, then stick around and read to the end because this article is for you. Two weeks ago I publish an article on how to grow tomatoes at home. You can read it here . A bunch of tomato fruits All that been said, let's quickly delve into the business of the day. Tomato being a very important and a highly consumed vegetable worldwide, comes with numerous challenges which includes climatic, pest, diseases, soil types and so on. How you can better care for your tomato plants to minimize the effect of the above named challenges are what I will be talking about today. How to care for your tomato plants in the nursery The nursery is the place where your tomato plants are raised from seeds.  As a beginner you may not have the much needed knowledge to raise your t...

Are you tired of the high cost of tomatoes in your area? Or maybe tired of cooking with not so fresh tomatoes? Or....? Well, which ever way you feel I will teach you how you can actually grow tomatoes at home or in your backyard garden, so relax and read to the end. First of, you have to know that tomatoes are propagated (grown) by seeds as explained below  before transplanting them to their permanent location where they develop till fruiting and eventually die off. A tomato plant How to grow tomatoes by seeds at home Firstly, ensure that you purchase viable and high quality seeds from reliable producers or you can use seeds extracted from the fresh tomatoes you bought from the marked (note: they may not be as highly prolific as those from known producers). Now get a plastic bow and fill it with soil mixed with a moderate amount of fertilizers (preferably organic fertilizers) Thereafter, apply water on the soil to keep it wet but not water logged (full of water). Furthe...

 Did I just heard you right? did you asked why should you apply fertilizers in your maize farm? Well, maybe that's because you haven't read through the factors that increase profitability in maize farming .  If you have, then let me walk you through the importance of fertilizer application in maize production, but before then, let me give you a quick introduction of what I experienced last year. Last year, I cultivated lands and grew maize in two different locations. In one of the plot, I applied Fertilizers and in the other I didn't. After 3 - to - 4 days, I noticed that almost every seed grew in the plot where I applied Fertilizers while in the other almost about 30% didn't grow on time. Furthermore, I noticed that there were uniformity in the growth of the maize in the plot with manure/fertilizer because there was a uniform distribution of manure/fertilizer in the entire plot, while in the other there weren't. In fact, many of the maize plants in the plot withou...

As a farmer or a gardener, you may have heard of the word blossom end rot or tomato rot if you probably don't know what this really means or you want to further increase your knowledge about this physical dysfunction them this article is for you.  Read through to the end to get the best out of it. What is blossom end rot? Being a farmer or a gardener, you may have once or twice notice a depressed water-soaked effect on the blossom end of your tomato fruit (like in the image below), this is know as blossom end rot .  Source: shutter stock. It occurs when the tissues in the blossom end of your fruit breaks down typically due to calcium deficiency in the plant which may be as a result of insufficient calcium in the soil or there is lack of or excess water in the soil which hinders calcium uptake by the plant. Blossom end rot affects the fruit when dey are still green or at their early stage of ripening. After affecting the plant, the later stage  results to a bla...

Tomato with the botanical name Solanium   lycopasicum , is a fruit vegetable which can be grown in a well drain loamy soil with a moderate proportion of organic manure.  Tomato is an important fruit vegetable and growing it comes with a number of challenges, among which are diseases, pest control, adequate manuring to mention a few. In today's article we are going to talk about one of the most important disease of a tomato plant. Bacterial wilt Bacterial wilt (also known as Southern bacterial blight) is caused by a bacterium know as  Ralstonia    solanacearum  ( formally,  Pseudomonas solanacearum). Ralstonia solanacearum is a soil-borne microorganism which gets into the plant through wounds caused by cutting, pest attack and transplanting. Bacterial wilt is a dangerous disease. Its development is favoured by high moisture (water in soil pores) as well as high temperature.  The bacterium  Ralstonia solanacearum  which causes bacteri...

Plant disease is an abnormal condition that effects the plant and either slows down its growth, reduced its yield or kills the plant in a severe case. When plant diseases are not effectively controlled or prevented the farmer may end up earning little or nothing from his/her farm. With this it is necessary to know the causes of plant diseases so as to be able to counter the outbreak of these diseases.  A diseased avocado plant Factors that causes plants diseases are divided into two, which are: Biotic factors Abiotic factors Read also>> factors necessary for high profitability in maize farming Biotic factors These are living organisms (pathogens) that attack crops plant, they can be transfered from one plant to another. Pathogens that causes diseases in plant are  bacteria ,  mycoplasmas , nematodes and fungi. Other living organisms which may also causes plant diseases are insects, rudents  etc. Abiotic factors These are nonliving factors...

Maize is a widely used staple food from across the globe. The global demand for maize has always been on a increase, this has made maize marketing a relatively easy affair. In this article I will be outlining the various factors necessary for high yield in maize farm, as well as its lucrativeness or profitability. So stay through and read to the end to get the best out of this article. You can also read>> How to grow maize plant Factors necessary for increase yield in maize farm Proper land preparation proper land preparation is key to maximum harvest not just in maize but any agricultural crop. proper land preparation has to do with deep ploughing, harrowing and if possible ridging. Those activities helps in ensuring proper yield. For instance if the land is not well ploughed and harrow, it may hinder the movement of the crops root and the rate at which they absolve water as well as nutrients which can adversely affect the crops. In addition, ploughing and harrowing al...

Maize is one of the most widely consumed staple food from across the world. It can be process into varieties of things such as Pop Corn, Cornflakes etcetera and can also be processed into feed for livestock. Maize is a monocot plant (that is, it has one seed leave), with fibrous root system and grows up to about 3 meters tall. It is highly nutritive thus contribute immensely to the diet of both man and animals. In this article we are going to be focusing on the processes involved in the cultivation/growing of maize. These processes are divided into three(3) operations which are: Pre planting operation Planting operation Post planting operation Pre planting operation In growing maize there are some activities you do before actually sowing the seeds. These activities are: Ploughing: This has to do with the mechanical manipulation of the soil with the use tractors or in some cases animals such as cows are used with a plough been attached to them. Ploughing is very import...