Things to consider in choosing cultivation of crops as a business plan

[Deleted member 62875]

There are a couple of options when starting an agricultural business. You can either be a livestock or crop farmer. The interesting thing about agriculture is that you can start on a small scale and grow the business with time. Also, availability of land isn’t necessarily a constraint because there are many options especially in animal farming that don’t require much space.
When it comes to crop farming, some of the largely consumed crops include rice, cassava and yam. Currently, Nigeria is one of the highest consumers of rice in the world. Over 300 billion naira is spent each year importing rice.
Interestingly, the imported rice has lesser nutritional value when compared to the locally grown rice. A bag of rice sells for about N15 000. Yet, if a commercial rice farmer in Nigeria can produce up to 10 000 bags in a year, s/he can easily earn N150 million in revenue. However, you’ll need some ample investment in equipments and land area to pull this off.
Generally, there are certain things to consider when you’re starting a crop farm. One rule of the thumb is to try to cultivate crops that have a huge or at least reasonable market demand. These types of crop are very lucrative and some of these include yam, cassava, plantain, rice and maize.
If you’re interested in starting a crop farm, the steps below should be considered and properly implemented.
SITE SELECTION
There are certain things to consider when selecting your ideal farmland. Some of these include exposure to adequate sunlight, the pH of the soil, the fertility as well as its water retaining capacity.
LAND PREPARATION
Once you’ve selected the land, the next step is to prepare it for planting. Usually, commercial farming goes beyond manual labor. Heavy machineries for ploughing and land clearing should be employed. If you land is an open space, you may need to fence it to prevent intruders such as thieves, herbivorous animals like cows and goats that can eat up your crop.
Preparing the land also involves addition of manure. This could be inorganic or organic. Usually, the soil’s nutritional need is mainly in the form of potassium, phosphorus and nitrogen. However, the ratio of these nutrients is dependent on the type of crop you are planting.
SEED SELECTION
The selection of the seed variety to be used in planting is dependent on certain features. Some of these include high yield capacity, disease and pest resistance.
PLANTING
There are different dimensions for planting and they are based on the type of crop being cultivated. These include spacing between plants, planting depth, space between rows and so on. Also, you can plant in the nursery, on flat land or on ridges. There are also post planting activities which include application of fertilizers, weeding, mulching, irrigation, pests as well as disease control.
HARVESTING
This is the final process in cultivation. A good harvest almost certainly means a great return on your investment as a farmer. Prior to harvesting, plans should already be in place on how you would distribute your harvest to your target market. This is very important because many of these crops are perishable and any delay in distribution could lead to loss of yield and income.
I am a farmer from the Northern lady of Nigeria, I made so much income through cultivation of crops, if you have a chance try it

 

[Jasz]

The first question you should ask yourself before starting a crop cultivation business is "why are you doing this?"

Cultivating crops is a business that will likely require significant education, training, and experience in order to become successful. You will need to learn about soil health, plants, weather patterns, labor regulations and laws, and business practices. There's a lot to learn!

If you have the knowledge and skills needed to cultivate crops, ask yourself: Do I have access to land? Will I need to buy or rent land? Do I have the capital required for buying or renting land? Will I need to hire workers? If so, what kind of workers will be needed? What type of labor laws do I need to follow? How much space do I need for cultivating crops? Can I get the space needed at an affordable rate?

If you want to start a crop cultivation business but don't think you can answer some of these questions at this time, consider finding a mentor who has experience in this area.

 

[TOZZIBLINKZ]

The practice of Agriculture is considered to be as old as man . Agricultural practices include the planting and the rearing of farm animals and farm crops either for the purpose of selling or for the purpose to satisfy human wants and need . Farmers are responsible to carry out agricultural practices and although being a farmer is considered as a crude or a local business a lot of people still indulge in it today , some of the reasons why they farm could be to enable them feed how to enable them acquire money by the selling of farm output .

Yet , to become a farmer is a profitable business but requires hard work except your farm activities are more done with capital intensive method that is the use of farm machines and equipment to carry out farm activities or practices . Weather condition is one of the factors that consider how effective you will be in being a crop farmer . This is so true because most areas all regions of the country have low rainfall leading to toughness or hardness of the soil , to be a farmer you must find an area with soft soil or better still provide sprinklers and your family and so as to water and soft on the soil for farm produce .

 

[Kingsley]

Agriculture is doing so well in Nigeria at this current time, either crop farming or livestock farming. Onncrop farming I can single pin point some farmers in my environment that has done extremely well mostly under this current regime. Ever since this administration came on board they have focused more on locking the borderline in Nigeria and ensured that foods items are not coming into the country mostly from neighbouring countries as it has always been the case.


The only area I see that is not too right with that decision is that the government did not make a provision for the people that will give them either the comparative or absolute advantage over those countries where things like rice and chicken are been imported from. Hence this lead to a high level of food shortage and at the same time it lead to a high rate of inflation, I bag of edible foreign rice goes for as much as N30,000 plus I stand to be corrected, then the prices of livestock are equally very expensive. So investing in farming will grant one the advantage of providing food for yourself and also making money. And now is the time because the borders are still locked.

 

[funmi]

I think one major thing one must look out for is the seasons when that planting is done and when the harvesting will be done and how scare that farm produce is in one locality. When you realise that the produce is an essential product then you stand a very good chance of making very good profit from the farming activities. On the issues of seasons, I could remembered sometimes two years ago I did a farm work and I planted form on a four hectares of land and when it was time for me to harvest my uncle advised me to allow the corn to get dried on it cobbs rather than harvest them fresh and I wondered why because I was thinking the price of the fresh one was more profitable at that time. But I helded to his advise and I waited two extra months for it to get dried. And when it got dried I now did the harvest and the corn really sold very well when they were very dried . so it will be helpful if one can also put the season into considerations before harvesting. Then always farm things that are very essential in your locality.

 

[Rachael]

This is one business idea I have always nurtured but it goes way beyond just cultivation of crops. The real estate business has been one investment I would have a piece of its taste. Through purchasing of landed properties in most preferably sub-rural areas, I would engage in planting of crops and rearing of all kinds of livestock like; goats, rams, chickens, fishes, rabbits, snail farming amongst others. Agricultural business is one very profitable business that has yielded positive dividends within a short timeframe. In choosing a business such as cultivation of crops, first of all, there is no individual that does not eat food, this is because in order to survive and forge ahead with life's challenges, it is important to eat food which gives energy in return.

The best place to situate this venture would be in the sub-rural areas, where you can get large hectares of lands at a cheaper cost but the place should also be free from insecurity because this is one factor that impedes the success of this business line. Again, the suppliers of all your crops products should be trusted to give you the best products which would yield within a short time. The soil for planting should be worked on to have some nutrients which would enhance healthy plants growth and your merchandise should be already established.

 

[Sotherefore]

Thank you for sharing , your own point of view might be quite different from my own point of view because all these things are being considered based on your own personal research . well for me based on my own personal research the most important thing I will also need is the capital which is the most and the main priority that should be put in place before thinking of starting a business.

Then another thing is the availability of farm tools and machines because these are needed especially if I am interested to operate a commercial farming system , you will obviously not be able to engage in this business nowadays if you don't have all the necessary materials and equipment such as tractors and others.

The location is also very important and even if I am interested to engage in large farming system the location will preferably be the rural settlements because that is where I can be able to get chips lands to rent for a complete farming season because that's what most people are doing.

It won't really be profitable for you to buy a huge land for farming but renting it is quite easier and even the most profitable.