Tobacco crop area and yield forecasts are important in stabilizing tobacco prices at the auction floors. Tobacco yield estimation in Zimbabwe is currently based on statistical surveys and ground-based field reports. These methods are costly, time consuming, and are prone to large errors. Remote sensing can provide timely information on crop spectral characteristics which can be used to estimate crop yields. Remote sensing application on agriculture in Zimbabwe is still very limited. Research should focus on identifying suitable reflectance indices that are related to tobacco growth and yield. Varietal yield response to fertiliser and planting dates as well as suitable temporal windows for spectral data collection should be identified. The challenges of the different tobacco land sizes have to be overcome by identifying suitable satellite platform, with sufficient spectral resolution to separate the tobacco crop from the adjacent competing crops and noncrop vegetative surfaces. The identified suitable index should be strongly correlated with tobacco in season dry mass and yield. The suitable vegetative indices can be employed in establishing tobacco cropped area and then apply the long-term area yield relationship from government and nongovernmental statistical departments to estimate yield from remote sensing derived cropped area. BackgroundZimbabwe is the largest producer of tobacco in Africa and the world's fourth-largest producer of flue-cured tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum), after China, Brazil, and the United States of America. Tobacco production has been the leading driver behind the 34% growth in Zimbabwe's agriculture and one of the major sources of foreign currency [1]. Tobacco crop plays an important role in the economy of Zimbabwe and in the 2012/2013 marketing season, 144 million kg of tobacco was sold, earning the country $525 million [2].Crop area and yield forecasts play an important role in stabilizing tobacco prices at the auction floors. Crop forecasting is the art of predicting crop yields and production before the harvest actually takes place, typically a couple of months in advance [2]. Zimbabwe mostly relies on crop statistical forecasting/estimation, crop reports/field visits from extension officers, and statistical crop forecasts for crop yield forecasts [3]. However, data from crop estimates, which are obtained through surveys conducted after harvests, are in most countries available quite late for early warning purposes.Crop yield estimation in many countries is based on conventional techniques of data collection and ground-based field reports [4]. A variety of mathematical models relating to crop yield have also been proposed in recent years for many crops [4,5]. In Zimbabwe crop surveys are mostly used in estimating crop yield [3]. The method is costly, time consuming, and prone to large errors due to incomplete ground observations, leading to poor crop yield assessment and crop area estimations [4]. Remote Sensing Applications in Crop Area AssessmentRemote sensing is defined as acquirin...

Bank credit availability in the agricultural sector empowers farmers to adopt modern technologies and inputs that are vital for breaking poverty in developing economies like Zimbabwe. This study sought to establish the determinants of credit demand among farmers in Hurungwe District of Mashonaland West Province in Zimbabwe. A questionnaire survey was conducted on a sample of 354 farmers selected by stratified random sampling. The Direct Elicitation Approach was applied to comprehend the credit demand constraints faced by farmers using frequency statistics. Logistic Regression Analysis and Thematic Analysis were also used for analysing data. Farmers in Hurungwe District face price (95%), risk (79%) and transaction cost (58%) constraints. Interest rates, collateral and fear of debt have a negative and significant (p<0.05) effect on credit demand. Loan processing time emerged as another key determinant of credit demand among farmers. Policy should curb hyperinflation to ensure the affordability of loans and production inputs by farmers. Interest rate ceilings must also be restored, and financial markets literacy campaigns intensified to shield farmers from predatory lenders. Banks are challenged to improve communication with farmers, swiftly address their needs and relax collateral demands to enhance credit demand among farmers. Investments in irrigation and other weather resilience technologies should be prioritized to enhance agricultural sector performance and reduce credit uptake fears among farmers.

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Crop response to fertilizer application depends on the physiological and morphological characteristics of the cultivars, thus causing cultivar differences in growth rate and final yield. A study was carried out in the Zvimba smallholder farming area of Zimbabwe, from November 2016 to February 2017, to investigate the performance of two rape (Brassica napus) cultivars under different nitrogen fertilizer management levels. An experiment was set up in a randomized complete block design, replicated three times, with two rape varieties, Hobson and English Giant, and 5 ammonium nitrate (AN) (34.5% N) fertilizer application rates (200 kg/ha, 300 kg/ha, 350 kg/ha, and 400 kg/ha) as factors. Nitrogen fertilizer rates had a significant (p<0.05) effect on leaf length at 6 WAP and 7 WAP. Nitrogen fertilizer application levels had significant effects on both in-season and total fresh leaf yield. There were no varietal effects on the leaf length (p>0.05), in-season yield and total leaf yield (p>0.05), and there were also no variety ∗ fertilizer application level interaction effects on leaf length, in-season yield and total leaf yield (p>0.05). From the results of this study, English Giant rape would maintain a longer leaf length than Hobson up to the end of the season, but the two cultivars have similar yield response to fertilizers’ application rate. Both the English Giant rape and Hobson rape cultivars can, therefore, be recommended for production in the Mhondoro smallholder farming area of Zimbabwe and other areas with similar climatic and soil characteristics.

The experiment sought to establish the vegetative indices for assessing tobacco float seedling varieties' response to different fertilizer rates. A factorial design, with 3 variety × 4 fertilizer management treatments, was used. The N : P : K treatments were applied at 7, 21, and 35 days after sowing, while N treatments were applied at 42 days. Radiometric measurements were taken at 49, 56, 64, and 79 days after sowing on 8 tray plots, using a multispectral radiometer. Mature seedling samples were harvested at day 79 and stem lengths were determined before processing for total N analysis. All the five channels of the radiometer, the NDVI, and the SRI had a strong relationship with fertiliser rate. Both the NDVI and SRI for T66 were greater (P < 0.05) than those for KRK26 and KE1. The SRI had a stronger relationship with seedling dry mass, seedling count/tray, and stem length than the NDVI. The NDVI also showed a stronger relationship with total N than the SRI. The minimum threshold SRI and NDVI values and optimum growth (100% fertilser) were 0.72 and 6.1. This information is useful in identifying and estimating tobacco seedbed area and seedling vigour using remote sensing and, therefore, is important in forecasting potential tobacco crop area and yield.