Successful Plantain Farming: Choosing the IDEAL LAND
You want to be a successful plantain farmer, isn’t it?
To succeed as a farmer, the importance of a good soil cannot be overestimated. In this society of super-abundant land due to farm inheritance — father passing down land and landed properties to children and relations, it is highly important for us to highlight and emphasize the qualities and characteristics of a soil suitable for plantain farming. Some, but not all of the most important attributes off a suitable land for plantain farming include:
FERTILITY
The best type of soil for plantain is loam. Loamy soils are the best producing soils for plantain farming because they contain a large percentage of organic components, compared to the inorganic parts.
Organic materials, such as decaying plants and insects, provide soil with air, nutrients and water-retaining matter. This combination of ingredients, when combined with mineral particles, allows soil to remain loose and fertile.
In tropical rain forests part of Nigeria, organically rich soils are shallow. i.e. they are easily depleted by deep feeding crops. Plantains are heavy feeders, i.e. they easily deplete soil nutrients. Plantains will thrive for one to three years but later wilt and die due to the depletion of the layer of organic matter. To avoid depletion, it is necessary to provide soils with compost and mulch.
A soil’s fertility can be improved by adding chicken manure, compost, wood ash (for extra potassium) and mulching. The chicken manure will not only increase the soil fertility, it will increase its water-retaining capacity.
Most Nigerian soils, especially those of the southern part, are naturally rich in humus (loam). So if you have such a land, you are good to continue. On the long run, fertilizers would be needed to tremendously boost soil fertility.
DRAINAGE AND IRRIGATION
They both involve water but in opposing means. While drainage refers to the removal of water from the soil, irrigation means the addition or supply of water to a farmland.
Land used for agriculture must be properly drained and irrigated. The amount of water supply should be fairly greater than the amount of water removed such that the soil contains moisture at any point in time. This is because too much water supply can result in water logging — which reduces the amount of air available to plants’ roots.
When the water supply is insufficient, it can lead to desiccation. Consideration must be made for planting in dry season in terms of the availability of good, quality water for irrigation. In addition, plantain farm must have a good drainage system.
Spread a thick layer of mulch on the soil to help conserve moisture and protect the shallow roots. The huge soft leaves evaporate a lot, and you have to keep up the supply. Plantains also need high humidity to be happy.
CLIMATIC FACTORS
Plantain cannot thrive in an environment that is too hot or too cold. The ideal climate for plantain is the tropical climate with temperature ranging from 26 to 30 degrees Celsius. But below 14°C (57F) they just stop growing and die. The plantain would die.
They thrive in tropical regions where the warm temperature, bright sun and adequate moisture create optimum growing environments. They grow best in hot and humid climates, require a rainfall of at least 1000 mm (39.4 in) per year to survive and have a high light requirement. Plantains will grow optimally at 27°C (98.6°F)
Bananas can handle extreme heat (if they have enough water), but they don’t like it. They can handle cool weather for a short while, but they don’t like that either.
If the temperatures drop any lower the fruit suffers (the skin turns greyish) and the leaves can turn yellow. Frost kills the plant above ground, but the corm can survive and may re-shoot.
Again, the ideal temperature range for banana growing is around 26–30°C (78–86F). The plants will grow optimally in soil with a pH between 5.5 and 7.0.
SIZE
Land tenure has always been one of the major bane to agriculture because of fragmented lands. The recommended spacing is 3 m between the plantain rows and 2 m within the row (in other words. 3 m x 2 m). An alternative is 2.5 m x 2.5 m. If spaced 3 m x 2 m, 1 hectare should contain 1667 plants, but with a spacing of 2.5 m x 2.5 m, it should contain 1600 plants.
Rows should be straight in flat fields to give plants the maximum amount of sunlight. However, on sloping land, rows should follow the contour lines in order to decrease soil erosion. The desired pieces of the plant are usually planted 30–60 cm (11.8–23.6 in) deep in the soil.
It is worthy of note at this point that agriculture has long left the idea of a hobby. It must now be taken seriously, as a business. So if you really want to succeed in this plantain business, you need a considerably large portion of land.
Take adequate cognizance of the above characteristics so as to greatly boost your farming success.
Now that you have some ideas about how to select the ideal land for your plantain farming, why not share with your friends who are also interested?