Cassava is of considerable importance to Sub-Saharan African, especially Nigeria, where it is an important source of carbohydrate. Therefore, a pedological study was conducted on the soils of Ishiagu Ebonyi State, South-eastern, Nigeria to assess their suitability for sustainable cassava production. A total of 500 hectares of land were surveyed using the rigid grid format. Three mapping units were delineated based on similarities and differences observed in the morphological properties from the augered points and profile pits were dug in the identified mapping units. The pits were sampled according to genetic horizons and taken to the laboratory for analyses. The results showed that soil texture/class ranged from sandy clay loam to clay, soil pH ranged from 4.6 to 5.2, organic carbon ranged from 0.19 to 2.68 %, total nitrogen ranged from 0.01 to 0.34 % and available phosphorus ranged from 1.40 to 5.43 mg kg^_1. Cation exchange capacity ranged from 6.19 to 13.70 cmol (+) kg^_1, base saturation ranged from 20.60 to 50.70 % and available Iron (Fe) ranged from 12.00 to 52.80 mg kg^_1. Land Suitability classification was evaluated by slightly modifying the Productivity Index method. The results indicated that the actual productivity index of the soils ranged from 53.20 to 59.06 %. Therefore, all the mapping units studied were moderately suitable for production of cassava.

Parkia biglobosa is an important and high value tree in Nigeria. The tree is capable of enhancing crop and livestock productions, through soil fertility maintenance and increased availability of high quality feeds respectively. This study investigated the effect of mulching materials on the growth performance of Parkia biglobosa seedlings in the nursery unit of Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria. Four treatments including T1- Control; T2-Chromolaena odorata; T3 – Rice bran and T4 – Sawdust were formulated. The treatments were arranged in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with 6 replications. The mulching materials were carefully spread on the soil surface. Plant height, leaf production (leaf count) and stem girth were all monitored for twelve weeks. Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) was carried out and the means were separated using Least Significance Difference (LSD). The results showed that the mulches evaluated only have significance effects on the seedlings height of Parkia biglobosa. However, the mean values obtained for all the parameters considered revealed the sawdust as the best performing mulching material. For the plant height, mean value ranged between 23.04cm and 28.04cm, a range from 0.30cm to 0.34cm was recorded for stem girth while the mean values between 23 and 26 were obtained for number of leaves among the treatments. It may be concluded from the study, that sawdust should be used as mulch in the nursery for the production of Parkia biglobosa seedlings.

The study examined the factors affecting garden egg production in Ringim local government area of Jigawa state. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire. Descriptive statistics was used for the analysis. The finding revealed that farmers in the study area were all male and the ages of producers within 19-26 years were the highest (34.3%), while 51-58 years were the lowest (6.2%). Majority of the producers (62.5%) were married and 7.8% were divorced. The result also showed that the 32.8% of the producers attended primary school, and 12.5% had tertiary education. Producers with farming experience within the range of 2-7 years were observed to be the highest (39%) and those within 26-31 years were the least (4.6%). Majority of the farmers (92.1%) cultivated a land size of less than one hectare. This study showed that most of the producers were into small scale farming. The garden egg farmers identified constraints such as lack of government support, inadequate capital, lack of improved varieties, high cost of input, pest and diseases incidences, lack of organized market and storage facilities.

Nigeria is one of the largest producers of okra; however, the genetic improvement of the crop has not been intensive in the country. In this study, 52 okra accessions were characterized in 2018 and 11 selected accessions were assessed for crossability in 2019. The two studies were carried out at the Teaching and Research Field, Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi. The okra accessions were grown in a Randomized Complete Block Design with three replicates. The 11 parental lines were crossed in a Line x Tester Mating Design. Data were recorded on growth and yield parameters among the germplasm and number of successful crosses was recorded for the crossability study. Significant variations were observed in the growth and yield parameters, except for pod girth (PG). The pod yields of the accessions coded 328-B (774.0g), 359 (590g), Lafia (470g), 396 (426.67g), 297 (380.67g) 304 (377.67g), 376 (372g), Zuru (400.33g) and 361 (364.33g) were higher than the population mean (243.17g). The highest percentage success (93.3%) was recorded in crosses between accessions 304 and 326. This was followed by a cross between 396 and 326 which recorded 90.0% crossing success. Mean number of seeds per pod was highest (122 seeds) for the cross between 396 and 326.This was followed by cross 396 x 452 and 297 x 326 with the same number of seeds (108) per pod. The observed adequate variability and high percentage of successful crosses (68.0-93.3%) among the okra accessions evaluated could be exploited for the improvement of okra in Nigeria.

Agriculture remains the mainstay of the Nigerian economy with rice being one of the major food crops grown in the country. This study is aimed at analyzing the technical efficiency of female rice farmers in Adamawa State, Nigeria. Primary data were collected from 180 randomly selected female rice-farmers in Adamawa State. The data were analyzed using both descriptive statistics and stochastic frontier function analysis. The socio-economic characteristics of female rice-farmers in the area were identified. The result of maximum likelihood estimates revealed that the outputs of rice produced by the women farmers were significantly influenced by the farm-size, level of fertilizer used, hired labour and family labour. Also, the factors which had a significant influence on the technical efficiency of the female farmers include the educational status, farming experience and access to credit facilities. The study, therefore, revealed that the technical efficiency of female farmers in Adamawa State is affected their educational status, farming experience and access to credit facilities. Thus, it is recommended that government policy should encompass measures that promote female farmers’ access to education and credit facilities raise the level of productivity of female rice-farmers in Nigeria.