Page 52 - Agriculture_Form_3

Agriculture for Secondary Schools

Activity 3.8
Carry out the following activities relating to harvesting management practices in
sorghum production.

1. Construct a raised platform for drying sorghum through the following steps
FOR ONLINE READING ONLY
(a) Design by sketching a simple raised platform for drying sorghum.

(b) After finalising the design, choose materials available in your area
and construct the platform. You can get assistance from a carpenter or
metalworker to construct it.

(c) Try it out and check how well it works for drying.
(d) Then answer the following questions:

(i) Why did you choose those materials?

(ii) Does the platform keep the sorghum clean and dry?

(iii) How can you improve your design?
(iv) Which criteria were used to select the areas for constructing the
drying platform?

2. Visit a sorghum field at your school farm /home /nearby farm and carry out
the following tasks:

(a) Observe the sorghum grains and leaves to check if the sorghum is ready
for harvest.
(b) Under the supervision of your teacher/parent, take part in harvesting
sorghum in the field.

(c) If there is a combine harvester, observe it in operation and compare it
with manual harvesting.

(d) Write a report of the activities in the portfolio.

Sorghum, like other cereal crops, needs proper handling once harvested, as
shown in Figure 3.4. The grains are dried on mats or raised platforms in the sun
to prevent mould. Threshing can be done by hand using sticks, which is slow
and tiring. Alternatively, small threshers can be used. These machines are faster
and more efficient. After threshing, the grains are cleaned by winnowing. This
process involves the removal of chaff and dust using winnowing baskets. Once

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