Good News: I Harvested My Maize, Take A Look At Them

Hello everyone in the homesteading community. Once again, I welcome you all to my farmland. I hope you are also doing a great job taking care of yourself. Today, I’m going to talk about how my cousins and I harvested my maize.

Maize, also known as corn, is cereal grain grown by almost every farmer in Nigeria. I’m bold to say it is the most popular type of crop cultivation in Nigeria. Maize is a well-known food consumed every day. Some Nigerians prefer their corn boiled, while others prefer it roasted. I’m among the large percentage who enjoy boiled corn more than roasted corn. Personally, I feel the reason why most farmers like growing corn is because it is a productive and versatile crop. Plus, it is among the top foods consumed by Nigerians.

[Screenshot of the update I shared one month ago]

About one month ago, I posted an update about some of the crops on my farmland; including my corn. A day before yesterday, my cousins and I decided to harvest them. Although the weather wasn’t pleasant, but we managed and did what we had to do.

I remember four months ago when my cousins and I planted corn on our farmland. We did a lot of hard work that day, it is really nice to see that all our hard work finally paid off. There’s always this smile on my face when I see my efforts, time, money, and all the other things I put in didn’t go in vain. It is impossible to forget the hard work my cousins and I put in. Before we planted the seeds, the farmland was filled with weeds, so we had a hard time preparing the farmland site by clearing the weeds and removing stumps (this part wasn’t easy at all).

I know the result you see now is very impressive, but trust me when I tell you we faced a lot of difficulties.

Here’s a list of some of the difficulties we faced when growing corn on my farmland;

Weeds

I call weeds crops’ worst enemies because they compete with our crops for sunlight, water, and nutrients. Weeds grow rapidly during the rainy season. So, we had to battle with them before they destroyed our crops. Although there were times, we were too busy to clear the weeds.

Invasion of thieves

This is the worst thing that could ever happen to farmers. Not only farmers, but anyone who struggles and puts in efforts to do something. Imagine laboring for days, clearing, making, ridges, under the hot sun, then someone comes to take advantage of what you’ve labored for. It is very annoying and yet, ridiculous.

My mom used to say “if a person takes just two or three of your crops, the person must’ve been starving, and that we should not worry about it. But when the person becomes greedy and takes more than he/she should, then the person is a big THIEF.

Our farmland isn’t very secure, so it was very easy for the person to have his/her way in.

Rodent attack

It would’ve been very nice if all the rats on earth were like Remy in Ratatouille (a rat that aspires to become a renowned chef). Weeds are not crops’ only enemy. Rodents dig up sown maize and seedlings in the farmland. How did I get rid of the rodents? Well, traps and poisoned food items did the trick.

The first thing we did after harvesting was to boil and eat some. (We had to be the first people to taste it)

If you’re planning on going into maize farming, here are some tips for you;

Farmland site selection is very important

Maize can grow well in a variety of soil types. However, the best soil for growing maize is the maize soil. Make sure you don't plant your maize in a waterlogged area.

Timing

Timing is also very important when planting maize. The best time to plant maize in Nigeria can start from March/April.

Variety of seeds to grow

To obtain a good yield, choosing the variety of seeds to grow is very important. Most Nigerians just go to the market and buy dried maize; resulting in a low yield in the future. To obtain a good yield, I advise you to plant hybrid maize.

NOTE: ALL IMAGES ARE MINE.