By Gilbert Azeem Tiroog
Gane-Asonge (UE), Oct. 5, GNA – Women farmers at Gane-Asonge in the Nabdam District of the Upper East Region have lauded the Sustainable Soya bean Production in Northern Ghana (SSPiNG) project and pledged to adopt intercropping their indigenous crops with soya beans.
This was after the women were taken through a demonstration farm of maize-soya intercropping on a piece of farm in the area which showed high yields of both maize and soybeans as compared to the same piece of farm, which was given to the farmers to employ their traditional way of intercropping.
The SPPiNG project, being implemented by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), is aimed at building the capacities of farmers to enable them to adopt the strategy of intercropping by ensuring proper site selection, adequate land preparation, ploughing, the use of certified seeds, and employing good sowing techniques, among others.
The project, with support from Yara Ghana and Excellence in Agronomy, employed the within-row method of sowing, using panea maize and soybeans with the application of NPK fertilizer and Inoculant, living organisms applied to the soil to improve crop health and increase productivity.
Mrs Esther Kpelinworah, a lead farmer, said, “This initiative is an eye opener, and we welcome it wholeheartedly, in fact it has given us a clue on how to do proper intercropping. Apart from the high yields as seen in this farm, it has a way of mitigating the impact of drought on the crops, which is common in this area.”
“While we hope that this project continues to educate other farmers, we want to assure all stakeholders that we are adopting this intercropping henceforth with keen interest in following all the instructions given us by the Agric Directorate,” she added.
Mrs Matilda Noah, a farmer, attested that there was a vast difference between the yields recorded.
“The difference is clear, though we used the same seeds and fertilizer, while we were given much space, and putting five to six soyabeans in one hole, they were putting two with little space, and this has shown why the same piece of land that was producing one bag of soyabeans would now produce two or more,” she noted.
Mr Rasheed Imoro, the Nabdam District Director of the Department of Agriculture, addressing the farmers, indicated that soya bean was a cash crop that had the potential to strengthen the financial capacity of farmers, but the failure of farmers to embrace new technologies and improved agronomic practices was depriving them of high yields.
He noted that farmers mostly ploughed without harrowing to make the soil ready for the best sowing technique, sow without following the recommended time of sowing, and expect high yields with no certified seeds or use of inoculant or legume fertilizer, and that needed to be corrected.
Mr Imoro advised the farmers to adopt new technologies, ensure early planting depending on the regularization of rainfall, use recommended inputs, and ensure timely application of inputs and appropriate methods.
The project also offered men the opportunity to learn about the need for proper intercropping and the application of inoculant and Yara fertilizer to increase soybeans grain and maize yield.
GNA