ABSTRACT
Watermelon is an emergent crop that farmers in Delta State have been exploring. However, maximizing interventions in this enterprise will require an understanding the characteristics of those engaged in its production. The study thus examined the socio-economic characteristics and constraints of farmers engaged in watermelon production in Delta State. Data were collected from 163 watermelon farmers from 4 local government areas in two agricultural zones using snowball sampling technique. The data collected were analysed using descriptive statistics and Chi-square. Result showed that persons involved in watermelon cultivation were young (average age = 43 years), mostly male (73.01%), generally literate (64.42% had formal education), married (74.14%), and with an average household size of 5. The average cultivator operated a farm size of 1.11 ha, produced 278.3kg of watermelon per hectare, and realized an average income of ₦59,877 per annum. The major constraints faced by respondents were lack of preservative/storage facilities (mean = 3.87), lack of extension services (mean = 3.80), high cost of farm chemicals (mean = 3.67), inadequate credit/finance (mean = 3.58) and pest and disease problems (mean = 3.50). Higher income from the enterprise was significantly associated with respondents’ sex (χ2= 22.81), educational level (χ2= 41.426), household size (χ2= 19.118), membership of associations (χ2= 26.499), age (χ2= 12.36) and farming experience (χ2= 10.995). Friedman test result (χ2 = 683.70) showed that there were significant differences among the production constraints associated with watermelon production in the study area, with the most significant being lack of preservative/storage facilities. It was concluded that watermelon production in Delta State was operating at small-scale level, and that producers were faced with diverse constraints. It was recommended that extension agencies should develop training programmes for watermelon farmers and link them to sources of farm inputs. |
