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Soil Scientist Cautions Farmers On Chemical Fertiliser Usage
A soil scientist with the National Centre for Remote Sensing in Kano, Dr Ibrahim Yakubu, has advised against the indiscriminate use of chemical fertiliser on farm lands.
Yakubu, who gave the advice in an interview with newsmen last Thursday in Kano, said that it was necessary to test the texture and condition of the soil before applying chemical fertilisers to it.
“The failure to test and determine the condition of the soil makes it difficult to ascertain the quantity of the chemical fertiliser to apply, thereby leading to what he called “blind application’’, he said.
Yakubu likened the application of chemical fertiliser to farm land to the treatment of a patient without proper diagnosis and prescription.
The soil scientist explained that the corrosive nature of the various chemical fertilisers could have disastrous effects on soil fertility when applied in excess.
To butress his point, Yakubu cited the example of beans production which, he said, does not require nitrogen, the main component of both NPK and Urea fertilisers.
He, therefore, advised farmers to always take precaution and consult experts to determine the quantity of fertiliser to apply to their farms.
Our correspondent reports that chemical fertilisers especially NPK and urea, are very popular farm inputs among farmers who scramble for it and apply the input indiscriminately.
Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.
Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.
The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.
Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.
“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.
“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”
Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.
In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.
Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.
Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.