Hi commnunity name is Ovey Charles with the username @Ovipraise. Am a part time and subsistence farmer. I share with you a little on the joy that comes with this season of harvest.
It’s about harvest time of the year, a season of bye-bye to hunger. As famers after planting and tending your crops, your expectation is to have a pumper harvest and to the glory of God it’s the season again. Harvest period is a period where food is made available all nation’s.
The level of hunger is reduce at harvest period to a minimal level. It’s a season where food crops are consume but raw and cooked some of which you don’t need to put on your gas of firewood before you quench hunger. It’s a season where famers smile home from farm except for the lazy once. Even for those who do not farm get the opportunity to get new and fresh farm produce at a cheaper rate.
In this season you get to eat fresh farm produce at it’s natural stage which is more nutritious and boost your body immunity. Some of the Food crops notably availabl at this period are;
Groundnuts: this is a legumes that is very rich in protein. It can be consume but raw and cooked. While in the farm for harvest, you may not need to carry food along. All you need may be water because while harvesting, you may pause at some point to break and eat which satisfy your hunger a little bit especially when you accompanied it with water.
It can be harvest for large scale farms but for us the peasant farmers , we harvest it manually by simply pulling the stands from the soil. Although it can be tedious but the joy of harvest overwhelm the famers knowing that food is ready.
Sweet potatoes: This is one popular food crops available this season. It is one of the first to have been in the market for the early planting. Sweet potatoes is commonly in the market right now and it seems to be poor man’s helping hand.
It’s a root crops who’s root is eating as food. It s can also be eaten raw or cooked which makes it a solution to hunger within a short while. It is harvested by simply using small hoe to dig out the roots from the soil.
Maize : Maize is another food crops readily available in the market and is at harvest though some still not mature but for the early planting it’s already been harvested.
Maize is a grain rich in carbohydrate. The corn is consume while still soft when it’s not yet fully matured by either roasting or cooked. It’s is not eaten raw except for pest such like monkeys but for human it’s has to be roasted or boiled before eaten.
It is one food crop you can get within and around you with just one hundred naira( N100 ) at a cheapest cost making it famers and Poor’s man’s friendly. With just one or two roasted corn, you can say to hunger bye-bye without undergoing through a rigorous process of processing it to flour or other product.
Cassava: Another root crops readily available in the markets and at harvest right now is the cassava. It’s availability and readiness at market and harvest had made it cheaper for buyer and generating income for the farmer.
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There are various varieties of cassava ; the Bitter cassava and Sweet cassava. The bitter one can not be eaten raw unless when processed but the sweet cassava can be eaten raw for some people. With just a token you can afford few tubers for consumption. Cassava is processed into many forms such as Garri, fufu or Agbu.
The availability of this produced has made some of this product cheaper . Just yesterday I bought abgbu also known as fufu on Nigerian native language, I was surprised at the hand full of wrap I received which significantly show the benefits of harvest season.
Melon: Melon is one farm produce at harvest or had been harvested. It’s one crop that is of economical value to famers. Farmers earn much income by selling this produced after harvesting.
It’s empowers famers at this period to settle many financial challenges. Many home use this seeds to prepared a delicious soup. And for a long time in some homes egusi soul is prepared at ease and on regular bases.
Challenges; Challenges that comes with harvest period of harvest is storage facilities. This season is characterize by shortage amount of sunlight thereby making it difficult for crops to dry leading to it’s perishability. But with Government intervention and the support of NGO's, it will go long way in solving this challenges. It is with hope that this season bring solutions to famers, family, community society and nations at large.
In summary, this period of harvest is beneficial to the famers, homes, community, society and nations at large by empowering famers through sales of produced at the same time making food available to nation’s at a reduced cost. This period has help and is helping reduce hunger in homes , community and nation at large. It’s a period with an abundant food supply .
Some use this season to buy and store for sale at later days p. Some store for consumption in the days ahead.