With aspirations of scaling up production through land tenureship, 40 year old Earl Jones has decided to become a full-time farmer. Jones, who currently propagates 1.3 acres of family land in southern St.Andrew, said he developed a passion at an early age.
“For me it was only a passion; when I became more active, I decided to turn it into a business venture.”
Earl supplies watermelons, pumpkins and sweet potatoes along with other varieties to a number supermarket in St.George, along with market vendors.
He believes his yields are as a result of his hard work and soil type, attributing his success to the development of good agricultural practices and research. “Land preparation is key, for me I understand that my soil is very dry and I have an issue with irrigation; so if I have to plant I ensure that I put in organic matter and fertiliser. This is an important stage for me in planting,” he added.
Jones also owns a number of animals, mainly to get manure. “I have cattle and goats, they help me to get organic matter, pen manure; that’s basically a hobby; you know growing up there was a competition to have the biggest ram or bull.”
Farming for him is an important career. He said”It is a good venture, a way of life. It is just like the man working in the bank or even a teacher, you have to educate yourself. That’s why I invest a lot of time researching.”
Encouraging the involvement of youth in agriculture, Jones said he is supporting one of his two children to be involved in agriculture at the business level. “I don’t want my son to be a farmer like me; I want him to be more than a farmer, an entrepreneur in Agriculture; although he might be quite young, I believe young people can play their role and take agriculture to the next level.”
Things to note about Earl:
Farming is his livelihood.
He does bother crop and animal farming.
He sees land preparation as an important stage in crop production.
He farms on family land and aspires to obtain his own property.
Maximising Cash Inflows (Part 1)
Information Provided by the Grenada Development Bank.
- Know the approximate amount you can make each month.
- Monitor the market – understand the demand for your product and plan accordingly.
- Manage growing cycles
- Invoice immediately you deliver goods
- Record your cash takings (pass your money through the bank or credit union)
GUIDE FOR THE PRODUCTION OF DASHEEN IN GRENADA -Prepared by:
Troy Augustine, Agronomy Division, Ministry of Agriculture ,Edited by Chief Agronomist et al . May 2012
➡️ PLANTING
Dasheen: Planting usually coincides with the beginning of the rains (May/June ), but the crop can be planted any time of the year once water is available. Adequate water is necessary for efficient growth. Plants are spaced about 2 ft apart giving a density of 7-10,000 plants per acre.
➡️ PLANTING MATERIAL
Tops and sprouted cormels (suckers) can be used as planting material. Planting material should only be taken from healthy, vigorous plants. Damaged corms and material showing signs of decay should be discarded.
Planting material should be cleaned of all roots and disinfected in a mixture of 6 tablespoons (90 ml) bleach in 1 gallon water. Disease-free planting material produced by tissue culture, results in higher yield.
Hurricane Season Tips Part 1- Tips provided by the Extension Division of the Ministry of Agriculture.
FRUIT TREES
Fruit trees should be pruned at the end of the bearing season. Shade trees and windbreaks should be pruned at the end of the dry season. Cut off all low- hanging, dead, and unproductive limbs and branches. The greater the resistance of a tree to high winds, the easier it is for that tree to be uprooted. All overhanging trees should be removed.
BANANA, PLANTAIN AND OTHER MUSA SPECIES
Once a hurricane warning has been issued, farmers should chop down all banana, plantain and other musa plants (main stem) two feet from the ground level as possible. It is cheaper to lose a few bunches and farms will be back in production sooner than if the whole cultivation is damaged by hurricane force winds.
ROOTS AND TUBERS
All roots and tubers can be left in the ground during the passage of a hurricane. If the plot(s) is/are in an area that is proned to landslides or flooding , the crop can be harvested or the planting materials removed and stored.
