Assessment of Land Management Practices Among Arable Crop Farmers in Yenagoa LGA of Bayelsa State
Chapter One
Objective of the study
The main objective of the study was to assess land management practices among arable crop farmers in Yenagoa LGA of Bayelsa state. The specific objectives were to
(1) describe socio-economic characteristics of respondents;
(2) identify land management practices prevailing in study area;
(3) determine the crop yield and level of utilisation of land management practices; and
(4) identify constraints associated with utilization of land management practices in the study area.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE TWO
Good land management is a key to sustainable farming practices. Generally, there is close link between good and profitable farming; improving/maintaining soil fertility and good environmental management. Baskin, J. M., (2006) opined that what a farmer can achieve is highly dependent on good soil management and climate of the area.
It is clear that good soil management can drastically reduce the value of land for agriculture and lead to environmental problems which invariably results into soil degradation and this is termed unsustainable use of land. It has ascertained that about 2,145 million hectares out of 2,900 million hectares total land area in Africa, 72% are problem soils with different production constraints (soil acidity, steeply sloping soils, low fertility, shallow and stony soils, saline and poorly drained soils FAO (2005). This shows that the level of sustainability of land management practices in Africa. Sustainable land management has been defined as the use of appropriate soil management practices that enables land users to maximize the economic and social benefits from the land while maintaining or enhancing the ecological support functions of the land resources FAO (2005).
Human activities have either direct or indirect effects on the sustainability of natural resources like land, thereby threatening its continuous productivity. This consequently, affects agricultural production. Also, ever increasing population in the developing countries which result in continually rising of demand for agricultural produce is contributing to the intensification of land use and adoption of technologies that would enhance constant supply of agricultural produce. Attempt by man to meet his food, wood and other resources requirements have destroyed the biodiversity and in order to expand agriculture and forestry, over cropping of some crops has resulted more often, to adoption of appropriate technologies and farm practices which further worsen sustainable land use among farmers. Loss of biodiversity, climate change and land degradation due to population pressure in developing countries, poverty and poor performance of extensive agriculture are such factors that make farmers to have problems in sustainable production activities Segun-Olasanmi A (2010). Soil is therefore managed in order to conserves agricultural land, biodiversity and food security for the country. Sustaining soil fertility and food security cannot be separated. In addition, it is sometimes noted that some farmers have no or little knowledge about soil management, hence they abandon certain farmland when found unproductive due to some factors which can be controlled provided they are well equipped with knowledge on soil fertility. Baskin, J. M., (2006) opined that if some of the currently used soil management practices are continued, groundwater and food contamination will increase and jeopardize the sustainability of the current land use systems Sustaining soil fertility has become a major issue for agricultural research and development in rural areas of Africa Tarawali, G., (1998). Sustaining soil fertility is an essential component in achieving food and livelihood security for the present and future generations FAO. (2014). In the past, most research efforts focused on trials to determine the appropriate amount and type of fertilizer needed to obtain the best yields for particular soil types and specific agro-ecological locations. This approach emphasized the use of external inputs and expensive technologies, and often disregarded farmers’ knowledge and the resources at their disposal. Since then, research has gradually shifted towards an approach based on Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM), which combines various existing soil fertility management techniques with external inputs. This combination is based on a thorough scientific understanding of the underlying biological processes of ISFM and aims to promote options that make the best of locally available inputs, and that are tailored to suit local agro-ecological conditions, and farmers’ resources and interests.
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