Common crop production challenges

To think about growing crops in the next rain season should be to think about the various crop production challenges that farmers face.

One of the first considerations must be seeds. Simon N Groot’s World Food Prize laureate,  said: “The real enemy of farmers is lousy seeds. And the best way to become the friend of the farmer is to give them tools to make more money — high quality seeds and the knowledge to make use of them.”

Make sure you have clean seeds and other planting materials --- free from diseases and high yielding. 

Planting should be at correct depth and spacing. Put the right number of plants per unit area of the garden to avoid undue crop competition for light, water, and nutrients. 
You need uniform germination for your crops and sufficient space for you to walk about in the garden doing inspection and weeding. 

Remember weeds consume soil nutrients, and water besides harbouring pests and diseases that may be passed on to your crops.

It is advisable to have the soil in your garden checked by the agricultural extension officer for you to have an idea about its fertility and capacity to sustain successful crop production. You may have to apply fertilisers, organic or inorganic, and you must ensure you have a budget for such inputs. 

Good husbandry practices will further improve production and these include protecting the crops from insect damage and diseases. This may require pesticide use which must be done according to manufacturers’ guidelines.
It is important to plant in time especially when you have no capacity for irrigation. 

Crops such as beans and maize generally yield less if they don’t receive sufficient rain on time. 
Make a good estimation of when to harvest the crops because they may get spoilt or eaten by birds and rodents if they take too long in the field after maturing.

You risk losing all harvested crops if you do not dry them properly and protect them from weevils and rats. 
Your store should be leak proof. Drying them on the bare ground may introduce strange smells and foreign objects into the crops.

Mr Mischael Ssali is a veteran journalist and a farmer 
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