Teach Farmers To Adopt Soil Water Conservation Techniques, IAR Director Tasks Journalists

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By; SANI ALIYU, Zaria

The Executive Director Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR/ABU) Zaria, Professor Muhammad Faguji Ishiyaku has called on journalists to join hands with the institute in enlightening farmers on the need to adopt soil water conservation techniques like mulching, water harvesting and supplementary irrigation to mitigate the effect of dry spells.

He made the call when executive members of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Zaria Unit paid him a courtesy visit at his office, led by Comrade Muhammad Sagir Auwal.

Professor Faguji Ishiyaku said that partnering journalists will assist farmers in knowing what IAR is doing particularly in the area of research and development.

The Executive Director maintained that farmers in the areas expecting late onset should go for early maturing and drought resistant crop varieties for optimum yields.

He advised farmers to limit mechanical disturbance of the soil for effective conservation.

According to him, dry spell or drought of different degrees of severity ranging from mild to severe are predicted for different parts of the country from May to August, 2022.

Professor Faguji Ishiyaku alerted farmers that several dry spells for about 20 days may likely occur around June in most Northern states, while moderate will be around 15 days, is anticipated in July and August.

” Temperature forecast for the year indicates warmer day time temperature and cooler than normal average night time temperature in most parts of the country. However, most of the coastal areas are expected to be slightly cooler than the long term average but night temperatures are expected to be slightly warmer than the long term average,” he explained.

Earlier in his remarks, Comrade Sagir Muhammad Auwal sought collaboration between the institute and journalists in the area of enlightenment and disseminating new farming techniques to the grassroots farmers on the success stories the institute has achieved.

He requested that journalists should be involved in organizing the centenary celebration.

Comrade Sagir Muhammad Auwal assured the director of maintaining a cordial relationship with the Institute.

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