(a) The law of diminishing returns as it apply to agricultural production states that as one factor of production increasingly applied in equal amounts to a fixed factor of production, e.g land, a stage will be reached where the add( application of the same factor adds less to the production output.
(b)
Size of farm (ha) | Qty of fertilizer used (bags) | Yield of maize (bags) | Change of Qty of fertilizer | Change in yield of maize (bags) |
2 | 0 | 8 | - | - |
2 | 8 | 24 | 8 | 16 |
2 | 12 | 48 | 4 | 24 |
2 | 26 | 80 | 4 | 32 |
2 | 20 | 120 | 4 | 40 |
2 | 24 | 150 | 4 | 30 |
2 | 28 | 170 | 4 | 20 |
2 | 32 | 180 | 4 | 10 |
2 | 34 | 180 | 2 | 0 |
2 | 36 | 170 | 2 | -10 |
(c)(i)
ii) The curve reveals that: (1) with increase in fertilizer( yields increase at an increasing rate to the 20th bag of fertilizer; (2) further increase in fertilizer beyond the 20th bag results in increase at a decreasing rate to the 32nd bag of fertilizer; (3) after the addition of the 32nd bag of fertilizer, further increase in fertilizer fails to increase the yield of maize, i.e, yield remains constant; (4) beyond 34 bags of fertilizer, the yield of maize begins to decrease (5) the whole concept explains that beyond a certain stage (20 bags of fertilizer), addition of more fertilizer elicits less increase in maize yields, until yields begin to actually fall.