Level of Agronomic Practices Adopted and Yield of Sorghum in the Tempane District of the Upper East Region, Ghana

Abstract

Sorghum is a food security crop for millions of people in regions where it is a staple food. It forms a significant part of the diet in northern Ghana; however, the regions are challenged with adverse climatic conditions, prolonged drought, and poor agricultural practices, making drought-tolerant crops like sorghum a food security crop. The study aimed to identify the agronomic practices adopted by the farmers in sorghum cultivation in the Tempane District of the Upper East Region of Ghana. A purposive sampling technique was used to obtain a sample size of 90 individual farmers in three communities of the District. A questionnaire was used to collect data and analyzed using SPSS and descriptive statistics were used to obtain frequencies and percentages. The study showed that 54.4% of the farmers use the bullock ploughing method in land preparation,  as most farmers could not afford the cost of tractor ploughing. Of the farmers, 90% practice continuous cropping without improved fallow periods, and 60% control weeds only once. Most farmers cultivate one acre of land, and 84.4% planted local varieties which are low-yielding.  66.6% reported yields of 9-10 bags per acre while 83.3% obtained 31-40 bags on 3 acres. Planting time impacted yields; early June planting resulted in higher yields (10-15 bags) per acre compared to lower yields (5-7 bags) when planted in July. It was recommended that there is a need for targeted training programs aimed at educating farmers on improved agronomic practices in sorghum cultivation in the Tempane district.