Identification of Skills Needed by Women of Agriculture in the Production of Amarantus Cruentus for Economic Security
Chapter One
Objectives of the study
- Describe the socio-economic characteristics of vegetable farmers.
- Determine the costs and returns of vegetable production.
- Identify the problems affecting vegetable production in the study area.
CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEW
Background on Amaranth
The word ‘amaranth’ originated in 1550’s from French amarante taken from Latin amarantus that evolved from Greek amarantos which means never-fading or everlasting, while anthos in Greek means flower (“Online Etymology Dictionary” 2017). Coincidentally, even in Sanskrit, ‘amaranth’ can be seen as composed of the words amar (immortal) and ant (end) meaning immortal. The term was associated to the plant for its ever-lasting vibrant colours of flowers. Interestingly, even the native Americans at the centre of origin of the plant believed that amaranth grains provided them with supernatural strength and immortality (Matt et al. 2009).
Plants belonging to the family Amaranthaceae are very interesting and they span a wide range of life forms including edible, ornamental and weedy species with many agronomically desired traits. Grain amaranths have high-quality protein, are gluten-free and have an equitable yield in a wide variety of growing conditions. Further, they do not need much upkeep and require low water, fertilizer and energy compared to traditional cereals like maize, wheat and rice (Santra and Schoenlechner 2017). For growing, the seeds can be loosely dispersed and mixed in the soil and germination typically happens within 48 hours. The seedlings require regular watering for up to two weeks beyond which the plants can survive without much attention. Amaranth has a shattering type of seed dispersal and is mostly self (up to 90 %) or insect pollinated but cross-pollination (up to 30 %) may be possible (Lehmann et al. 1991; Gupta and Gudu 1991; Hauptli and Jain 1985; Mlakar et al. 2009). Flowering happens in two to three months’ time and the entire life cycle extends up to four months. Grain amaranth can grow up to seven feet tall and produce a heavy inflorescence with 40,000-60,000 seeds per plant (National Research Council 1984). These plants, as discussed in the subsequent sections, display numerous characters that can be utilized for human health and benefit. Despite this, grain amaranths are among the most neglected crops in the human history.
Amaranthus cruentus
Amaranthus cruentus is one of the amaranth species commonly used as a vegetable and grain. The amaranth species is highly nutritious and rich in nutrients such as proteins. According to a study on Amaranthus cruentus leaf meal for broiler starter diet, the composition of crude protein was 23% (Fasuyi et al., 2007). Amaranthus cruentus is a flowering plant species that yields the nutritious staple amaranth grain. It is one of three Amaranthus species cultivated as a grain source, the other two being Amaranthus hypochondriacus and Amaranthus caudatus. In Mexico, it is called huautli (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈwautɬi] and alegría ([aleˈɣɾi.a] and in English it has several common names, including blood amaranth, red amaranth, purple amaranth, prince’s feather, and Mexican grain amaranth.
Amaranthus cruentus is a tall annual herb topped with clusters of dark pink flowers. The plant can grow up to 2 m (6 ft) in height, and blooms in summer to fall. It is believed to have originated from Amaranthus hybridus, with which it shares many morphological features. The plant is usually green in color, but a purple variant was once grown for use in Inca rituals.
This species was in use as a food source in North America and Central America as early as 4000 BC. The seeds are eaten as a cereal grain. They are black in the wild plant, and white in the domesticated form. They are ground into flour, popped like popcorn, cooked into a porridge, and made into a confectionery called alegría.[2] The leaves can be cooked like spinach, and the seeds can be germinated into nutritious sprouts. While A. cruentus is no longer a staple food in North and Central America, it is still grown and sold as a health food.
It is an important crop for subsistence farmers in Africa. In Maharashtra, during month of Shravan, a stir-fried vegetable with just grated coconut is served during festivals. The stem is used in curry made with vaal hyacinth bean.
Among the Zuni people, the feathery part of plant ground into a fine meal and used to color ceremonial bread red. The crushed leaves and blossoms are also moistened and rubbed on cheeks as rouge.
CHAPTER THREE
METHODOLOGY
The Study Area
Jalingo is one of the 16 Local Government Areas in Taraba State and also the state capital. The local government area is geographically located at latitude 8o, 89| to 8o, 53|North of the equator and longitude 11o, 37| to 11o, 22| east of the prime meridian on the world map. The LGA has population of 140, 318 people (NPC, 2006). The topography consists of valley, mountain with large concentrations of streams which serves as source of water for irrigation. The soil is predominantly sandy and loamy in nature. It experience two distinct seasons year in year out, that is rainy and dry seasons, the dry season commences from November to March while rainy season commences from April to October. The average temperature of the area is about 30oC to 44oC.
The major indigenous ethnic groups of the area include: Jukun Kona, Mumuye and Fulani while other minor tribes are Wurkun, Jenjo, Hausa and Yandang. The major occupation of the inhabitants is farming and petty trading.
Sampling Technique
Dry season vegetable (Amaranthus Cruentus) farmers constituted the study population. Purposive and simple random sampling technique were employed to draw respondents accordingly: five wards out of the 10 wards in the LGA were selected based on their prominence in vegetable (Amaranthus Cruentus) production and the availability of streams as source of water for dry season farming namely: Kona, Majidadi, Yelwa Abbare, Kachalla Sembe and Sarkindawaki. In each of the five wards 20 vegetable (Amaranthus) farmers were selected using simple random technique to give rise to 100 respondents for the distribution of questionnaire, out of which 90 were retrieved and used for data analysis.
CHAPTER FOUR
RESULT AND DISCUSSION
The results of the physico-chemical analysis of the soil samples are shown in Table 1 which indicated that the soils were sandy-loam. It also showed that the soil were acidic (pH 6.9 – 7.24) in both locations the soils recorded low organic carbon (0.22 – 0.37), low total nitrogen (0.10 – 0.07), and moderate available phosphorous at BUK (9.41) while that of Bagauda appeared very low (0.18). The concentrations of (Ca, Mg) increased with soil depths at BUK and Bagauda except (Na, and K). The soils of the experimental sites were sandy in nature. Plant height of amaranth was significantly different at 3 and 6WAS sampling stage at BUK (Table 3). In all cases significantly taller plants were recorded with application of GA3 at 200ppm, 400ppm and 600ppm that were statistically different with the zero application of GA3 (0ppm) (Table 2). These supported the findings of (Davis and Namez, 2009; and Abbas 2010) that variations in plant height are largely due to GA3 concentration as it has the ability to increase shoot system when applied by foliar application to plants. However, Khan and Tewari, (2003), revealed an increase in height on the stems at different concentrations.
CHAPTER FIVE
CONCLUSION
This study was carried out on the identification of skills needed by women of agriculture in the production of amarantus cruentus for economic security. Based on the results obtained it can be concluded that the application of GA3 at 400ppm and can be more beneficial to farmers and resulted in better growth and development, The increase in fresh and dry weight might be due to the increase in growth parameters such as plant height, number of leaves leaf area and number per plant. It has been suggested that farmers in the Sudan Savanna zone should adopt the use of GA3 application at 400ppm or 200ppm for maximum yield of Amaranth.
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