Page:Niger Delta Ecosystems- the ERA Handbook, 1998.djvu/133

The Resources of the Niger Delta: Agriculture

13.1.3 AGRICULTURE IN THE NIGER DELTA IS CHARACTERISED BY LIMITED DRY LAND AND SANDY SOILS: FARMING IS NOT EASY.

Before we go any further, it must be stressed that outside the LEM ecozone of the Niger Delta, land that is naturally dry all year is found only on the ridges of the sand-barrier islands, on the levees of the Fresh-Water ecozone, and on reclaimed land. This limits areas available for dry-land agriculture (for instance for growing Cassava, Yams, Plantains and Bananas). Nonetheless, farmers make the most of planting annual crops during the dry-season on the margins of seasonal lakes, swamps and flood plains, and also on the deposits of alluvium exposed when the rivers are low. Moreover agricultural potential is extended in the Fresh-water ecozone and sub-ecozones because the areas are very well suited to growing Rice.

But, farming is not easy in the Niger Delta where farmers are caught between the devil of the waterlogged Inceptisol Aquept soils and the deep blue sea of the sandy Udic Oxisol soils. Making the most of these soils requires a great deal of skill.

13.1.4 AGRICULTURE BY ECOZONE

Because agriculture is determined by soil conditions and because soil conditions are an expression of ecozones, the agriculture of the Niger Delta is considered in terms of each ecozone. In this chapter general agricultural conditions are considered; more detailed descriptions of agricultural activity appear in the later chapters about the human ecosystems of the Niger Delta.

SOME IMPORTANT ARABLE CROPS OF THE NIGER DELTA

CASSAVA - Manihot esculenta: a high starch tuberous root crop used to produce Garri which is the staple food of Nigeria (and which tends to be known in Europe as Tapioca). The root is peeled and washed, and then grated or ground. The resulting pulpy flour is partially fermented and pressed (in porous bags), and then fried on steel plates or dishes which creates a dry, powdery substance of small pellets which has a sharp vinegary smell. The dry Garri is white or, where small amounts of palm oil are added during frying, yellow. When this dry Garri is mixed with hot water a soft pasty lump of food is formed (which may be called Garri or Eba) which is the energy base of most Nigerian meals. Garri may claim to be the world's first instant food.