Page 12 - Agriculture_Form_Three

Agriculture for Secondary Schools

Chapter

One

Production of crops

Introduction
In Form Two, you learnt about general principles of crop production, thereafter
practised the principles in producing cereal and pulse crops of choice in your area.
In this chapter, you will learn about production of horticultural, oil, starchy root
and tuber, and perennial crops which are suitable to the agro-ecological zone where
your school and home are located using the principles you have already learnt in
Form Two. The competencies developed from this chapter will enable you to make
profitable income in producing such crops.

Production of horticultural crops
Horticultural crop production involves cultivation, management, utilisation and
improvement of a wide range of horticultural crops mainly vegetables, fruits, spices
and flowers. It also includes post-harvest practices such as handling, processing and
packaging of the harvested crops so as to increase storage life, availability as well as
maximisation of income and profits. Horticultural production may further involve
landscaping which is the art of beautifying a piece of land using garden designs,
methods and plant materials.

Categories of horticultural crops
Horticultural crops can be grouped as vegetable crops, fruit crops, spice crops and
ornamental crops. These groups of crops are briefly outlined in the following sub-
sections.

Vegetable crops: These are crops for which the whole plant, root, seed or pods
are used as food especially in savoury dishes. They include crops such as okra,
amaranth, tomato, African spider wisp, sweet potato leaves, black night shade,
beetroot, radish, onion, spring onion, leek, sweet pepper, eggplant, carrot, cabbage,
cauliflower, broccoli, kale, zucchini, cucumber, butternut squash, pumpkin, lettuce,
chinese cabbage, spinach and swiss chard. Some of these crops are shown in Figures
1.1 to 1.22.

Student’
Student’s Book Form Twos Book Form Three
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AGRICULTURE FORM 3 9.11.2022.indd 1 10/01/2025 12:30