February 2019 Vol. 7 No.2

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Chikezie NP
Godson-Ibeji CC

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Original Research Article

Application of Indigenous Knowledge in Weather and Climate Forecast for Planning Farm Activities by Farmers in Imo State, Nigeria

^*1Chikezie N.P., ²Odoemenam E.F and ²Godson-Ibeji C.C

¹Department of Agricultural Extension and Rural Sociology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Abuja
²Dept. of Agricultural Extension, Federal University of Technology, Owerri, Imo State, Nigeria.

*Corresponding Author’s Email: akjamin2010@gmail.com
 
Accepted February 11, 2019

Abstract

The study assessed the application of Indigenous Knowledge (IK) on weather and climate forecasting for planning farm activities by farmers in Southeast, Nigeria. Questionnaire was used to elicit information from a total of 360 farmers, complement with oral interview. Mean (M) was used to analyze data. Results showed that IK indicators commonly used for weather and climate forecasting fall into 3 categories namely trees, animals and atmospheric indicators. The IK indicators used to predict the dry season and harmattan were-fruits drying/falling off from trees, increase occurrence of termites, shedding of tree (M=2.40), appearance of rainbows (M=2.53) among others. The indicators for onset of the rains included flowering of trees (M=304), heavy budding of acacia tree species (M=300), dormancy breaking in certain tree/fruit species, Others were appearances of large number of ants, frequent sounds of frogs, appearance of ant hill, appearance of millipedes, appearances of army worms, dark clouds appearance, body feels heat at night, increased body pain, mist covering hilly areas among other signs. As a recommendation, the knowledge of indigenous peoples should be included when designing climate change adaptation strategies in SSA.

Keywords: Weather, climate change, planning, forecast, indigenous knowledge