THE country’s projected yield output is being threatened by incessant rains currently being received nationwide with crops in Mashonaland West having been affected.
Provincial Advisory and Rural Development Services director, Mrs Evelyn Ndoro said while the early maize crop was doing well at the grain-filling stage, the incessant rains that the nation has been receiving threatened the late crop.
She said other crops that are threatened by the continuous downpours include soya beans, tobacco and cotton.
“We are finalising the crop assessment exercise which will give us the actual area that has been planted.
“The crop situation is, however, good for early planted crops like maize but the later crop has been affected by rains in some sandy soil areas of the province. These areas include Mhondoro-Ngezi, Zvimba and Lions’ Den,” she said.
The rains have also seen tobacco farmers that have a rain-fed crop failing to cope with the rate at which the crop was ripening.
The farmers are failing to cure all the tobacco in time owing to limited barn capacity.
She however added that the rains had improved the quality of pastures bringing cheers to livestock farmers.
