Analysis of Leguminous Crop Waste (LCW) Utilisation by Farmers in Selected Rural Communities of Ekiti State, Nigeria

Abstract

The study assessed the utilisation of leguminous crop wastes by farmers in Ekiti State, Nigeria. A structured questionnaire was administered to 120 farmers who were randomly selected from 12 communities using multistage random sampling procedure. Findings revealed that 68.3 per cent of the respondents were male. The average age of the respondents was 53 years. Majority (71.3 per cent) had formal education and 65.0 per cent had farming experience of more than 10 years. The findings also revealed that among the three leguminous crops examined, only husks (50.0 per cent), haulms (48.3 per cent) and vines (35.0 per cent) were fairly utilised. Major areas of utilisation include fodder preparation (66.7 per cent), erosion control (65.0 per cent) and composting (48.3 per cent). The perceived benefits of enriching the soil (x=4.52) and as important feeds for livestock (x=4.42) were ranked 1st and 2nd, respectively. Perception of farmers on the introduction of leguminous crop waste conversion technology as a good idea (X=4.12), as technology will generate more income (x=3.50) and as technologies are reliable (X=3.35) were rated 1st, 2nd, and 3rd, respectively. Hypothesis testing revealed that farm size (r=0.232, p=0.011) and farming experience (r=0.180, p=0.049) were positively and significantly related to the extent of utilisation of leguminous crop wastes by farmers at 0.05 level of significance. It is concluded that farmers use leguminous crop wastes but do not maximise the full potential of these wastes as they only have the traditional knowledge of their usage. Suitable technologies on leguminous crop waste conversion should be made available to farmers at affordable rates to enhance adoption for better results.