Plateau ACReSAL Greenhouse initiative to Tackle Land Degradation, Desertification

Bennett Oghifo

In tackling the challenges of land degradation and desertification faced by farmers and as part of efforts to enhance food security in Nigeria,  the Agro-Climate Resilience in Semi Arid Landscapes (ACReSAL) has ushered in a new technology driven approach for local agriculture with its innovative Greenhouse.

The greenhouse farm is a type of farming in which crops are cultivated under-protected and enclosed environment, it enables farmers to cultivate because of climate conditions

The greenhouse technology farming has become a major player in the global agriculture market as it plays a safe role in food security and sufficiency in food production. It boosts sufficiency in crop farming, even as it allows the crop to grow under a conducive space that regulates temperature and cooling systems.

It enables the farmer experience prolonged and multiple harvest within a planting cycle and simply put, it helps to reduce post-harvest losses.

Built by the Plateau State ACReSAL Project in Vom, Plateau state, this ground-breaking harvest experiment includes a first-of-its-kind hybrid cucumber cultivated in Greenhouse. This not only proved successful but also marked a pivotal game-changer in agricultural practices, yielding exceptional harvest. 

Garba Gowon Gonkol, Project Coordinator Plateau State ACReSAL explains that utilizing a combination of advanced breeding techniques and Drip technology which is a cheaper and smart method of farming capable of giving high yield that will improve the living conditions of the farmers.

According to the State ACReSAL Project coordinator, the plants were grown inside controlled environment “Green  House” structure  designed  specifically to optimize growth conditions like temperature, humidity and light exposure. 

The inaugural harvest of these cucumbers demonstrated extraordinary performance, both in terms of yield and quality. Each vine produced a considerable number of uniformly-sized cucumbers which were visible appealing, vibrant green and smooth textured. 

Mr Gonkol pointed out the many advantages of Greenhouse cultivation. One of them is the significantly shortened growth cycle. Traditional cucumber cultivation methods generally take weeks  longer to  produce a mature crop.

Upon hearing the news, some uptakers and local markets around Jos South have expressed excitement about the prospects of having a constant supply of farm produce.

He pointed out the Profitability in Green House technology. According to him, a greenhouse farmer would make more money than an open field farmer on same portion of land, even though their cost of farming will differ. Farmers and experts alike see Green Houses as a game-changer in the agricultural sector.