After all the hard work from the team of men and myself too. We don clear and ploughed the fields. No more weeds; we are ready for planting.
Good news! Planting of cassava started yesterday, and I am torn between planting maize as well. Learned wisdom from the farmers says it is too late to plant maize now.
I already bought special maize seeds that mature in 2 months; should I chance it? It rained heavily again today. Will the rain last for another 6 weeks?
With global warming & climate change, anything is possible. We saw what happened with floods in Maiduguri, Ondo, & elsewhere. Always remember most farmers are glad for the rains except at harvest time.
I’m going to be experimenting to reduce weed growth & reduce the need for herbicides by planting sweet potatoes along side the cassava.
Sweet potatoes are a crawling plant that will create great cover, and I hope it will suppress the growth of weeds. Within 3 to four months, it should be mature for harvesting.
I will have to dig some wells on the farm and put up some reservoirs to sprinkle the fields as the rains stop. If I dig the wells, I may plant a few maizes near the wells to see how it goes.
Time is getting on, & we have work to be done. Im expecting the sweet potato vines tomorrow, then we shall start planting them straight away.
I want to give a special shout out to Abiodun & Alaye, both Okada riders, who transported me to & from the farm and also helped out in the cutting of the grass and hoeing the fields.
I have met many hardworking young Nigerians who volunteer to assist and are not lazy like we often read on social media. Many young Nigerians are quite versatile. This is good. I try to encourage every one of them I meet to take up farming too.
I hope my experiences will encourage others. I will be talking to the Ogun & Oyo state ministries of agriculture to see how they can assist. I’ll keep you posted. The numbers of people I meet who express an interest in following in my footsteps in farming are increasing daily.
This week there is a special festival in Igboora, Oyo State, not far from my farm called the Odun Ibeji Twins Festival, starting on the 10th day of the 10th month of October every year. 10/10/2024
Igboora has the highest incidence of twin births. Nigeria also has the highest incidence of twin births in the world. As a granddad of twins, I think it would be nice to attend and make a report on the festival.
They say it may be something in the water or the yam that they grow there. If you seriously want to have twins, maybe you should attend and see if you can find yourself a partner. Good luck. lol 😂😃😀
What do you think? Please share, thanks
Femi Oke
Betta9ja
