Effect Of Precipitation Effectiveness Indices On The Yield Of Some Selected Cereal Crops

Agriculture in Nigeria is mainly dependent on rainfall which is variable in nature. Therefore, the need to have a full knowledge of its pattern and trend is pertinent in order to achieve food sufficiency. This study examined the effect of precipitation effectiveness indices: Onset date, cessation date, length of rainy season and occurrence of pentad dry spells (5, 10 and ≤15) days on the yield of millet, sorghum, rice and maize in Sokoto State, between 1993 and 2008. Walter‟s 1967 method was used to derive the selected precipitation effectiveness indices while dry spell parameters, was derived…