51 questions. Try each one, then open the answer to check yourself and read the explanation.
Which of the following animal products is used in the production of buttons?
Answer: C (Bone.)
Bones (like horns) are cut and polished to make buttons; skin and fur are used for leather and clothing.
Subsistence farmers mostly practice
Answer: C (mixed cropping.)
Subsistence farmers grow several crops together on small plots to feed the family and spread risk.
A piece of land is said to be on lease to a farmer when it is
Answer: C (rented for a period.)
A lease lets the farmer use the land for an agreed period in return for rent.
Which of the following equipment is a farm implement?
Answer: C (Mower.)
Implements are attached to and pulled or driven by a tractor, like a mower, plough or harrow.
A periodic maintenance activity carried out on the farm tractor is
Answer: C (changing of engine oil.)
Engine oil is changed after a set number of working hours; the others are daily checks.
Farm surveying equipment include the following except
Answer: D (spade.)
A spade is a digging tool, not a surveying instrument.
The system in which a farmer uses a piece of land for a period and abandons it for another land is called
Answer: C (shifting cultivation.)
In shifting cultivation the farmer moves to new land when the old plot loses fertility.
A socio-cultural factor affecting land availability for agricultural includes use of land for
Answer: D (building religious houses.)
Churches, mosques and shrines are social and cultural uses of land.
Organisms which may be beneficial to crops include
Answer: B (bacteria.)
Bacteria fix nitrogen and decompose organic matter, which helps crops.
Which of the following rocks is sedimentary?
Answer: A (Limestone.)
Limestone forms from deposited sediments; granite and gabbro are igneous and marble is metamorphic.
Soil profile is important in agriculture because it
Answer: C (gives indication of the types of crops to grow.)
The depth and nature of the soil layers show which crops (deep or shallow rooted) will grow well.
A soil sample with a pH of 4.5 is said to be
Answer: A (acidic.)
Any pH below 7 is acidic.
The property of soil which cannot easily be changed by a farmer is the
Answer: C (texture.)
Texture is the proportion of sand, silt and clay, which a farmer cannot practically change.
If a farmer continuously applies sulphate of ammonia to his farmland for many years, the resultant soil solution is most likely to
Answer: B (change blue litmus paper to red.)
Sulphate of ammonia is an acid-forming fertilizer, so the soil becomes acidic and turns blue litmus red.
Application of water to the subsoil through perforated pipes is known as
Answer: B (subsurface irrigation.)
Water released below the surface through buried pipes is subsurface irrigation.
Which of the following statements describe the impact of land degradation?
i. Increased availability of fuel wood.
ii. Reduction in livestock production.
iii. Decrease in agricultural productivity.
iv. Pollution of water bodies.
Answer: C (II,III and IV only.)
Degraded land produces less crops and pasture and pollutes water; it does not increase fuel wood.
Tobacco belongs to the group of crops called
Answer: C (stimulants.)
Tobacco contains nicotine, a stimulant (drug) crop.
Maize is a popular crop in west Africa because it
Answer: B (has multiple uses.)
Maize is used as human food, animal feed and industrial raw material.
If the spacing of maize is 0.9m by 0.3m and one seed is sown per stand, what will be the population of maize plants on a hectare of farmland?
Answer: C (37,037.)
Plant population = area ÷ area per stand = 10,000 ÷ 0.27 = 37,037.
The following crops require shade trees at the seedling stage except
Answer: D (Oryza sativa.)
Rice (Oryza sativa) is a field crop grown in full sun; cocoa and coffee seedlings need shade.
Crops which are primarily grown to provide food for farm animals are
Answer: C (forages.)
Forage crops are grown mainly to feed livestock.
Crop selection is advantageous because
Answer: A (seeds are collected from stands with desirable traits.)
Selection keeps seed from the best plants, so good traits are passed on.
A fungus known as phytophthora palmivora is responsible for
Answer: C (blackpod disease of cocoa.)
Phytophthora palmivora attacks cocoa pods and turns them black.
Viral diseases of crops can best be controlled through
Answer: B (planting resistant varieties.)
Viruses cannot be killed by chemicals, so resistant varieties are the surest control.
Piercing and sucking insect pests possess
Answer: D (probosces.)
Sucking insects have a needle-like proboscis to pierce plants and suck sap.
Callosobruchus maculatus is a common pest of
Answer: D (cow pea.)
Callosobruchus maculatus is the cowpea (bean) weevil.
The digestive function of the rumen in ruminant nutrition is enhanced by the
Answer: B (presence of micro-organisms.)
Rumen microbes break down cellulose in roughage.
The duration of the oestrus cycle of a sow is
Answer: A (14-28 days.)
A sow comes on heat about every 21 days, which lies within 14–28 days.
Natural immunity to diseases in calves is acquired through access to
Answer: B (colostrum.)
Colostrum, the first milk, carries antibodies from the mother.
If a sow conceives on the 5th of June in a particular year, it will probably farrow the same year on
Answer: C (28th September.)
Gestation in pigs is about 114–115 days (3 months, 3 weeks, 3 days), which from 5 June ends about 28 September.
The act of parturition in rabbit is known as
Answer: D (kindling.)
Rabbits kindle, cows calve, sheep lamb and pigs farrow.
The extra oyster shell meal supplied to breeding hens
Answer: C (aids in hardening egg shells.)
Oyster shell supplies calcium, which forms hard egg shells.
Iron is important in the diets of livestock for
Answer: D (blood production)
Iron forms haemoglobin, so lack of it causes anaemia.
Established pasture cannot be harvested by
Answer: C (using combine harvester.)
A combine harvester is for grain crops, not for cutting grass.
The mating of a White Fulani bull and an N'dama cow could be termed
Answer: D (cross breeding.)
White Fulani and N'dama are different breeds, so mating them is cross breeding.
Which of the following organisms is not an endoparasite?
Answer: C (Tick.)
A tick lives on the skin, so it is an ectoparasite.
Which of the following compounds can be used to seal soil pores and prevent loss of water in a fish pond?
Answer: C (Calcium carbonate.)
Calcium carbonate (lime) flocculates the clay at the pond bottom and helps seal it against seepage.
The demand for cassava is not affected by
Answer: A (cost of production.)
Cost of production affects supply, not demand.
A farmer obtained a loan of N250,000 at a simple interest rate of 8% per annum to be paid in two years. What would be the interest the farmer will pay on the loan?
Answer: B (N 40,000.)
Interest = 250,000 × 8/100 × 2 = N40,000.
A farmer bought a farm implement for N12,500 in 2007. At the end of the fourth year, he sold it for N4,300.
Calculate the total depreciation of the implement.
Answer: B (N8,200.)
Total depreciation = cost − sale value = 12,500 − 4,300 = N8,200.
A farmer bought a farm implement for N12,500 in 2007. At the end of the fourth year, he sold it for N4,300.
The annual depreciation of the implement is
Answer: C (N2,050.)
Annual depreciation = 8,200 ÷ 4 years = N2,050.
Which of the following methods is inappropriate when introducing a new variety of rice to farmers?
Answer: B (Circular letters.)
Farmers need to see a new variety; letters alone don't show it and many farmers can't read them.
The term fingerling refers to a young
Answer: B (fish.)
A fingerling is a young fish about the size of a finger.
The effect of fertilizing a fish pond with compost manure on phytoplankton population and fish yield is such that
Answer: D (phytoplankton population increases as fish yield increases.)
Manure feeds phytoplankton, which is food for fish, so both increase.
Which of the following developments could result from deforestation?
Answer: A (Increase in soil erosion.)
Removing trees leaves the soil bare and easily washed away.
(a) Differentiate between land ownership by leasehold and land ownership by freehold.
(b) Mention five ways in which non-governmental organizations contribute to agricultural development in West Africa.
(c) State four ways in which rural-urban migration has hindered agricultural development in West Africa.
(d) Mention three socio-economic uses of land.
(e) Explain two ways by which each of the following environmental factors affects agricultural production: (i) soil organisms; (ii) soil texture
(a) Leasehold: land is held for a fixed period on payment of rent; permanent crops/structures usually not allowed; cannot be sold or easily used as collateral. Freehold: land is owned permanently; owner can plant tree crops, build, sell it or use it as collateral.
(b) Any five: fund research into better crops and breeds; provide credit/loans; run extension and training for farmers; supply inputs (seeds, fertilizers, drugs, tools); provide processing and storage facilities; provide rural amenities; organise farmers into groups.
(c) Any four: shortage of farm labour; high cost of labour; ageing farm population slow to adopt innovations; fall in food production; less raw material for agro-industries; fewer exports.
(d) Any three: building houses/estates; roads, railways and airports; industries and offices; schools and hospitals; markets; mining; recreation; religious buildings; cemeteries.
(e)(i) Soil organisms: earthworms improve structure and aeration; microbes decompose organic matter and release nutrients; bacteria fix nitrogen; some (nematodes) damage crops.
(ii) Soil texture: decides water-holding capacity and drainage; decides aeration and ease of tillage; affects root penetration and the crops that can be grown; affects nutrient retention.
Give both sides of each difference in (a); two effects for each factor in (e).
(a) State two advantages and two disadvantages of using biogas as a source of farm power.
(b) Mention eight simple farm tools.
(c) List two common storage structures and two processing structures that could be found on a farmstead in West Africa.
(d) Explain the term denitrification.
(e) Describe the following components of the soil: (i) mineral matter; (ii) organic matter.
(a) Advantages: cheap, uses animal and farm waste; reduces pollution; easy to control; can heat brooders, cook, light and dry produce; leftover slurry is manure. Disadvantages: needs technical know-how; expensive digester to build and maintain; only practical where there is plenty of dung; not widely available.
(b) Any eight: cutlass; hoe; spade; shovel; rake; sickle; secateurs; hand trowel; hand fork; garden fork; watering can; wheelbarrow; axe; mattock; pick-axe; dibber; budding knife; head pan.
(c) Storage (two): barn; crib; silo; rhumbu; warehouse; cold room; bins. Processing (two): rice mill; cassava/garri processing shed; oil mill; smoking kiln; abattoir; tobacco curing barn.
(d) Denitrification: the conversion of nitrates in the soil into nitrogen gas (or nitrous oxide) by denitrifying bacteria, especially in waterlogged, poorly aerated soil, so nitrogen is lost to the air.
(e)(i) Mineral matter: the inorganic part of soil from weathered rock (sand, silt, clay particles and mineral nutrients); forms the bulk of soil and supplies nutrients.
(ii) Organic matter: decayed and decaying remains of plants and animals (humus); dark, holds water and nutrients, improves structure and feeds microbes.
Name the bacteria's role and the waterlogging condition in (d).
(a) Describe the cultivation of cowpea under the headings: (i) soil requirement; (ii) method of propagation; (iii) spacing.
(b) Name one disease and two field pests of cowpea.
(c) State four cultural methods of controlling crop pests.
(d) State four human activities that promote deforestation in West Africa.
(e) Describe each of the following agro-forestry practices (i) alley cropping. (ii) ley farming.
(a)(i) Well-drained sandy loam soil of moderate fertility, pH about 6–7; avoid waterlogging.
(ii) By seed, sown directly, 2–3 seeds per hole, about 2–5 cm deep, thinned later.
(iii) About 60 cm × 30 cm (or 75 cm × 20–30 cm).
(b) Disease (one): cowpea mosaic; anthracnose; leaf spot; rust; damping off. Pests (two): pod borer (Maruca); aphids; thrips; pod-sucking bugs; leaf beetles.
(c) Any four: crop rotation; early planting/harvesting; clean weeding/field sanitation; resistant varieties; tillage to expose pests; burning crop residues; trap crops; correct spacing.
(d) Any four: bush burning; logging/timber felling; shifting cultivation/farming; building and road construction; fuel wood collection; mining; overgrazing; urbanisation.
(e)(i) Alley cropping: arable crops grown in the alleys between rows of leguminous trees/shrubs (e.g. Leucaena, Gliricidia) whose prunings are used as mulch, manure or fodder.
(ii) Ley farming: land is put under crops for some years and then under grass/legume pasture (ley) for livestock for some years, in rotation.
Give a spacing figure and two pests by name.
(a) In an incubator, 1,500 eggs were arranged on the trays for incubation. During candling, 25 eggs were discovered to be unfertilized. At hatching 475 chicks were male and the remaining were female. Calculate the percentage of: (i) unfertilized eggs; (ii) fertilized eggs; (iii) male chicks; (iv) female chicks
(b) State four signs that indicate the approach of parturition in a cow.
(c) Mention four vegetative materials that could be used in propagating ornamental animal plants.
(d) State four advantages of grafting.
(a)(i) 25/1,500 × 100 = 1.67%.
(ii) Fertilized eggs = 1,475; 1,475/1,500 × 100 = 98.33%.
(iii) Male chicks: 475/1,500 × 100 = 31.67% (assuming all fertile eggs hatched).
(iv) Female chicks = 1,475 − 475 = 1,000; 1,000/1,500 × 100 = 66.67%.
(b) Any four: restlessness; enlarged, swollen udder with milk/colostrum; swollen, reddish vulva with mucus discharge; slackening of pelvic ligaments (sunken tail head); frequent urination; isolates herself; loss of appetite; water bag appears.
(c) Any four: stem cuttings; suckers; bulbs; corms; rhizomes; layers/runners; leaf cuttings; buds/scions.
(d) Any four: combines good qualities of stock and scion; plants mature and fruit early; preserves desirable varieties true to type; scion benefits from a disease-resistant or hardy rootstock; can repair damaged trees; propagates plants that do not root easily from cuttings.
Show each percentage working against the 1,500 eggs set.
(a) Mention three functions of a farm manager.
(b) Use the information in the demand schedule below to answer the questions that follow.
Price of Cowpea (Le): 200, 160, 120, 80, 40
Quantity demanded (kg): 5, 10, 15, 20, 25
(i) Draw a demand curve from the schedule. (ii) Use the demand schedule to explain the relationship between quantity and price.
(c) State three advantages of the wholesaler in marketing of agricultural produce
(d) Discuss the rinderpests disease under the following headings: (i) two farm animals affected (ii) causative agent; (iii) two symptoms; (iv) one mode of transmission; (v) one preventive measure.
(a) Any three: plans farm activities and budgets; organises labour, land and capital; buys inputs and markets produce; keeps farm records and accounts; supervises and directs workers; makes decisions on what and how much to produce.
(b)(i) Price on the vertical axis, quantity demanded on the horizontal axis; plot (5,200), (10,160), (15,120), (20,80), (25,40) and join: a straight line sloping downwards from left to right.
(ii) As the price of cowpea falls, the quantity demanded rises (and vice versa): price and quantity demanded are inversely related (law of demand).
(c) Any three: buys in bulk from many farmers, giving them ready cash; breaks bulk for retailers; stores produce and steadies supply/prices; transports and grades produce; gives credit to retailers; bears market risks.
(d)(i) Cattle, sheep, goats (also buffalo, pigs).
(ii) A virus (rinderpest virus, a morbillivirus).
(iii) Any two: high fever; discharge from eyes and nose; mouth sores/ulcers; severe diarrhoea (bloody, foul-smelling); loss of appetite; dehydration and death.
(iv) Contact with infected animals or their discharges, contaminated feed/water/equipment.
(v) Vaccination; quarantine of new/infected animals; slaughter and burning of infected animals.
Label both axes and show that the curve slopes down to the right.
(a) State four reasons why the prices of most agricultural produce are unstable in West Africa.
(b) Explain the following agricultural extension methods: (i) method demonstration (ii) agricultural shows.
(c) Discuss the cercospora leaf spot disease under the following headings: (i) crop affected (ii) causative agent; (iii) mode of transmission (iv) two symptoms; (v) one preventive measure
(d) State four advantages of selection as a method of cropping improvement.
(a) Any four: seasonal production (glut at harvest, scarcity later); poor storage and processing facilities; perishability of produce; weather changes affecting output; poor transport and marketing information; activities of middlemen; changes in demand/world prices.
(b)(i) Method demonstration: the extension agent shows farmers step by step how to carry out a new practice (e.g. budding, spraying) and farmers practise it themselves.
(ii) Agricultural shows: exhibitions where farmers, research bodies and firms display improved crops, animals, machines and products for farmers to see, with prizes for the best.
(c)(i) Groundnut (also cowpea, banana).
(ii) A fungus, Cercospora (C. arachidicola / C. personata on groundnut).
(iii) Spores spread by wind, rain splash, insects and infected crop debris/seeds.
(iv) Any two: brown to black circular spots on leaves, often with a yellow halo; leaves turn yellow and fall early; reduced yield.
(v) Resistant varieties; crop rotation; destroy infected residues; fungicide spraying; early planting.
(d) Any four: simple and cheap; uses locally adapted plants; maintains and improves desirable traits; increases yield and quality over time; no special equipment or expertise needed; can produce disease-resistant lines.
For a disease, give crop, cause, spread, symptoms and control.