Agricultural field machinery selection and utilization for improved farm operations in South-East Nigeria: A review

Abstract

A review of agricultural field machinery selection and utilization for improved farm operations in South-east Nigeria was conducted. Proper selection and utilization of machinery effortlessly would boost up and optimize farm production by minimizing unnecessary breakdown/failure, energy and power losses and mismatching of implements to prime movers. These could only be achieved with the aid of performance data of the various field machinery. The review indicated that average performance efficiency of disc plough in South–East Nigeria was 87.11 %, whereas harrow, ridger, rotovator and planter were 86.32 %, 86.78 %, 87.14 % and 86.81 %, respectively. The review further revealed that most studies were focused on a few soil types with few field implements. It was also observed from the review that data obtained for performance of various field machinery vary from one region to another and from one soil type to the other due to variation in ecological soil conditions. Most studies reviewed did not consider the energy and power requirements of the machinery in operation. More so, variations in agro-ecological soil types and conditions require studies of different agricultural zones/areas to obtain data of the performance characteristics of agricultural field machinery that would guide farmers and users of agricultural field machinery in the selection of appropriate machines for their agricultural field operations in order to increase their production at reduced costs. Field test results of some farm machineries were also presented. Prospects for future work were suggested.