FIELD CROPS PRODUCTION

A Training Manual for Agricultural Field Staff

PREPARED AND COMPILED

BY

Mike R. Ching’amba
TRAINING CONSULTANT

NATURAL RESOURCES COLLEGE

October, 2006
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

Introduction …………………………………………………………………………3

Maize production……………………………………………………………………8

Groundnuts Production………………………………………………………….22

Soybean Production……………………………………………………………...28

Rice Production……………………………………………………………………34

Paprika Production………………………………………………………………..43

Cotton Production…………………………………………………………………57

Cassava Production ……………………………………………………..............61

Sweet potato production…………………………………………………………66

Bean Production…………………………………………………………………..69

Tobacco Production……………………………………………………………...72

Appendix/References…………………………………………………… 93

2
INTRODUCTION TO FIELD CROP PRODUCTION
Origin of cultivated Crops
All cultivated crop plants came into domestication from their wild species. These species
were adaptable to specific climatic zones and were introduced to new areas by migrating
human populations in both prehistoric and recorded times.

Alphonse de Candolle was the first scientist to engage in an elaborate task of tracing the
origin of the cultivated plants. In his publication of 1882 (Origin des plantes cultivees) de
Candolle concluded that in areas or regions where a species is abundant is not necessarily
the centre of its origin. According to him, agriculture came originally from three great
regions namely;
 China
 The vast region which stretches from Ganges to Armenia and the Nile (South-
West Asia and Egypt)
 Tropical America (the highlands of Mexico & Peru)

After de Candolle, another scientist Nicolai Ivanovic Vavilov (1926) concluded that a
centre of crop origin is characterized by dominant alleles. In the periphery of the centre,
there is an increased frequency of recessive alleles but decreased genetic diversity.

Classification of Crop Plants

There are two major methods of classifying crop plants i.e. botanical and economical
a. Botanical Classification: this classification looks at the morphological similarities
of plant parts. It is a more useful classification when relating plants to their
climatic conditions for growth.

b. Economical classification: this is largely based on the plant usage. Depending on

usage, certain crops may belong to more than one category. Such economical
classes include
i. Cereal/grain-such crops belong to the grass family (Graminaea) and are
grown for their edible seeds e.g. rice, wheat, barley, maize, sorghum and
millet.
ii. Grain legumes-these belong to the family leguminosae. Are also grown
for their edible seeds e.g. cowpeas, groundnuts, Field peas, beans and
pigeon peas.
iii. Root and tuber crops-grown for their enlarged roots or tubers e.g. cassava,
sweet potatoes, yams,
iv. Fibre crops- grown for fibre and include jute,cotton, hemp, and sisal
v. Sugar crops-grown for table sugar e.g. sugarcane and sugar beets.
vi. Drug crops-these crops are smoked or chewed for stimulating effect e.g.
tobacco and bhang (Cannabis sativa)
vii. Beverage crops- grown for stimulation e.g. tea, coffee and cocoa

3
Basic crop management practices
The first step in managing crops is to look at a crop plant as an individual and as a
community since crop growth and production depend on several factors i.e. Genetic
constitution and Climate in which the plant grows. Climate is briefly defined as the
aggregate of all the external conditions and influence affecting the life and development
of organisms. It has an influence on the natural vegetation, the characteristics of the soil,
type of crops to be grown and the farming system to be practised in any region.

The phenomenon can best be illustrated as follows:

P(Y) = G + E.

Where: Y = yield
G = Genotype (crop variety)
E = Environment (management practices)

Major elements of climate affecting crop growth

The climate of any particular region is composed of a great variety of elements. Such
elements will determine crop adaptability and as such, they are often regarded as limiting
factors to growth and development of any plant.

Concept of limiting factors: It states that: If Growth, Development and Yield of any
plant depend on so many factors, then that Growth, Development and Yield will be
limited by the factor in the minimum. (Depend on least quantity factor)

These limiting factors include:

1) Rainfall
Rainfall normally influences agriculture in the tropics since it helps in determining the
type of crop to be grown, farming system, sequence and timing of operations. The rainfall
is not only defined in terms of total amount of rainfall per annum but rather, its seasonal
distribution, variability, reliability within and between seasons, its intensity, rate of
infiltration into the soil and the balance between rainfall and evapotranspiration (ET).

In Malawi, the main source of moisture is rainfall. And normally this rainfall ranges
from 600- 3000mm/yr. However only 30% of this is regarded as effective rainfall (for
plant use).

Effective Rainfall is the minimum amount of rainfall occurring on a single occasion

which assures of some storage under favourable soil conditions. Such rainfall ranges
from 15-20mm per single occasion. However this is often affected by distribution and as
such there is need to supplement moisture through irrigation.

4
Relationship between plant nutrients and water
With constant water movements there is continous uptake of minerals and nutrients
known as Transpiration Stream. This stream creates what is known as soil-plant-atmos
continuum which helps in the translocation of assimilates produced during
photosynthesis.

The relationship between fertility and transpiration stream is that in situations where
there is enough moisture, there is complete transfer of nutrients but where moisture is
under minimum;
 The applied fertilizer is used less efficiently due to less uptake which may
sometimes result in plant scorching.

 There is rush vegetative growth ending in low yield since there is no moisture to
support flower initiation.

 Normally, water use efficiency or water uptake is directly related to

photosynthesis. As the plant grows, more and more water is required for
supporting and maintaining growth. Plant require little energy to extract
water from the soil at field capacity than at wilting point.

2) Humidity
Humidity is the water vapour in the air. Relative Humidity (RH) is the vapour pressure in
the air as percentage necessary to saturate that atmosphere at a particular temperature. A
saturated atmosphere that causes fog, dew or rain has a theoretical RH of about 100%

Where there is no transpiration stream, it means the Relative Humidity is equal to RH in

the Ambient and this may result in no net movement of nutrients and water hence no
photosynthesis. It is important that the leaves should therefore have lower temperatures
than the atmosphere to ensure continuous water flow within the plant body as demanded
by photosynthesis.

3) Temperature
Cardinal temperature, often referred to as indicating temperatures enables crop scientists
to distinguish between warm and cool season crops. The cool season crops include most
temperate crops with temperature range of 25-31oC while warm season crops are mostly
tropical crops of temperatures ranging from 31-37oC.

However each individual crop either of temperate or tropical origin has its optimal
temperature for its normal growth and development. In most cases plants do not
experience their optimum temperatures per se but rather their ability to respond to
fluctuating temperatures (Thermoperiodism) will help them in processes of germination,
serminogation (stem elongation & flowering), and fruit formation.

5
On the other hand diurnal temperatures are vital to avoid excess loss of carbohydrates
(CHO) because if temperature content during day and night were to be the same, then
plant would require more energy for respiration thereby using all the available CHO.

Soil Temperature
soil temperatures are often affected by colour, texture and slope.
i. Colour – soil colour will determine the amount of light to be absorbed which
will eventually reach out the plant roots thereby making them active for
nutrients uptake. Mostly dark soils absorb more heat as opposed to red
brown soils.

ii. Soil texture- if the soil is well aerated, it allows more heat to be transferred
down the soil

iii. Slope- configuration and position of the slope will determine the amount of
sun light getting down the soil. It is important to change the cropping
pattern and ridge alignment in order to capture as much light as possible.

4) Light Duration
It is important to take note of different light duration required by different plants. Such
light durations are described as below:

Long day plants- these require a minimum of 13hours of day light. Days have to
be longer to facilitate flowering. Very common in temperate areas.

Short day plants- they require a maximum of 12hours of day light. Days should
be shorter than night. Common in tropical areas.

Day-Neutral plants- these do not respond to either long or short days but are in
between e.g. cotton and tobacco. Most crops grown in Malawi are
of such group.

5) Wind
Referred to as movement of the air normally originates either over the oceans or deserts.
In summer, the desert region becomes heated and the heated air rises causing an
indraught of winds from neighbouring regions. During winter, the desert areas are cooler
than adjacent areas and the wind blows from the desert.

Wind affects both the soil and the plant. It causes crop losses through lodging of plants,
stalk breakage and grain shuttering. The heavier sand particles carried by wind may cause
erosion through scouring of the soil surface. It may also induce evapotranspiration

6
thereby affecting water balance while hot dry winds affect photosynthesis by making the
stomata to close up.

However, wind has some beneficial effects particularly the moderate wind which
enhances photosynthesis by continuously replacing CO2 absorbed by leaf surface.

7
MAIZE PRODUCTION
Common names: Corn, Indian corn

Botanical name: Zea mays

Introduction
Maize is the main staple food in Malawi. About 1.2 million hectares are annually grown
to maize thereby accounting for 70% of the total land under cultivation by smallholder
farmers.

National policy
Maize nutritionally provides about 80% of the much needed carbohydrates in Malawi.
And since the country’s population is still rising (approximately 3.6 per annum) so is the
demand for maize which must increase at a much higher rate than the population itself.
The national policy therefore is to increase production per unit area from the present
2,000 – 3,000kg/ha. for hybrids; 1,400 – 2,400kg/ha for composites to more than
6,500kg/ha and 4,500kg respectively through improved cultural practices. This will
ensure that the nation is able to:
 Sustain food self sufficiency
 Build up grain reserves for use in bad seasons
 Release some land currently underutilised in maize to other enterprises i.e. cash
crops and livestock.

Origin
Maize is said to have originated in either South or Central America. It was spread to
North America, Asia and eventually Africa through traders.

Botanical characteristics
Roots
At germination stage, maize seed develops into 3-4 seminal roots. Later on fibrous
adventitious roots develop which are used for water and nutrient absorption from the soil
and also to support (anchor) the plant. Prop or aerial (brace) roots which are special
adventitious roots develop at a very late stage and these develop above ground for
anchorage and in rare cases for photosynthesis and nutrient absorption.

Stem
The stem is normally straight and non-branching. It ranges in height from 0.6-4.5m and
in diameter from 1.4-5.0cm. the stem usually consists of 8-21 internodes with a leaf
developing at each internode. Under excessive nutrients, maize tillers are developed .
These tillers have significant effect on yield and should be ignogred.

8
Leaves:
Maize leaves are elongated and narrow with parallel veins. They are alternately arranged
and they themselves to a stem through a sheath. The number of leaves ranges from 8-44.
and typical leaf may be 80cm long and 9-10cm wide. At the base of the leaf, the two
edges extend to form two auricles. The leaf often tapers down to a point at the tip.

Flowers:
Maize flowers are monoecious (both male and female flower parts are present on the
same plant but borne on different sections of the plant). The male flower (Tassel) is
located at the tip of the plant and appears first. It sheds pollen for about a week. The
female flower (ear or cob) is ready to receive pollen through the silk when the tassel
sheds off pollen. This natural arrangement encourages cross-pollination and maize is 95%
cross-pollinated.

Fruit:
The maize fruit is the cob. Most varieties produce one cob per plant and each cob bears
several rows of kernels (the rows are always of even number) normally 8-18 rows with
large seeded varieties having fewer rows than small seeded varieties.

Seed (kernel):
Maize is monocotyledonous and one of the major ways of its classification is on the basis
of the kernel (caryopsis) characteristics. Below are some of the common characteristics:

Maize Class Features Use

Pod corn (Zea mays tunicata) Primitive form. Each seed breeding
covered in its own bract

Waxy corn (Zea mays ceratina) Glossy and high starch content Starch extraction

Flour corn (Zea mays amylaccea) looks like flint corn but of larger For flour
size

Pop corn (Zea mays everta) Small, outer hard endosperm with Chimanga pops
Interior soft endosperm which
Explodes when heated

Sweet corn (Zea mays saccharata) Glossy, transluscent endosperm As a vegetable

Containing monosacharides.
Wrinkled when dry. Sweet taste

Dent corn (Zea mays indentata) Soft central endosperm up to tip food varities
of kernel with hard endosperm on sides i.e. MH12, 18,
The Tip sinks in when dry (dent) NSCM 41, 91…

Flint corn (Zea mays indurata) hard endosperm all round the seed food i.e. local
With smaller soft endosperm in the cultivars,
Centre. Good storability and poundability composits
Oher MH
like17& 18.

9
Environmental Requirements
Although maize can be grown everywhere in Malawi , it will give best yields under the
following environment conditions.

Latitude: maize is essentially a tropical crop but it is known to grow between latitude
500N to 400S.

Altitude: In Malawi maize grows best below 1,800m above sea level. Areas higher than
this will expose maize to a lot of pest problems. Growth tends to be limited at higher
altitudes. Generally maize grown worldwide does well up to 3000 above sea level.

Temperature: the minimum germination temperature for maize is 100C but optimum
temperature for maximum growth is 21-300C.

Rainfall: rainfall requirement for maize can be described in three areas

a) Total precipitation: depending on variety maize grows best in areas with annual
totals of 600-1000mm in the tropics.

b) Duration: most maize varieties mature between 100-150 days. Areas with shorter
rain seasons require supplementary irrigation. Growing an early maturing variety
in an area with a long wet season is dangerous because the maize gets rotten due
to excessive moisture after drying.

c) Distribution: maize requires sufficient moisture through out the growing season. It
is more drought tolerant for the first five weeks of germination. The critical stage
is during tasselling. Any dry spell at this stage can effect pollination and nutrient
translocation for grain filling and consequently yield is lowered.

Soils: Ideal soils are those which are deep (at least 100cm) well drained and aerated soils
of pH 6-8. Maize yields are high on rich soils since it is a heavy nutrient feeder.

Agronomical practices

Land preparation
Adequate preparation should start as soon as rains have stopped or after harvesting the
previous crop (i.e. around May). Plough the land to 30cm deep to facilitate complete
organic decomposition and to enhance aeration. Ridging should follow but where ridges
are available, make new ridges in the farrows of the previous ones.

Ridge spacing : the recommended spacing for maize ridges is 90cm and 75 cm apart and
should be aligned on the contour following the marker ridge for soil conservation
purposes.

10
Seed prearation
Since seed is very expensive, it is recommended that high potential varieties are used in
the next growing season. Farmers should be encouraged to grow improved maize
varieties in order to realise maximum returns per unit area. Several companies and
organizations have taken greater initiative in providing these improved maize varieties
either as selling agents or breeders or indeed both. Such companies/organizations include;
Monsanto Malawi, ATC, Pannar Seed, Farmers Union, Farmers World, SEEDCO,
ADMARC and many more. The improved varieties are currently recommended at a seed
rate of 25kg/ha.

Note: MH = Malawi Hybrid (e.g. MH 16, 17, 18 , 91 etc)

NSCM = National Seed Company of Malawi (changed to Monsanto)
UCA = Ukiriguru Composite A (Tanzania)
CCA = Chitedze Composite A
CCC = Chitedze Composite C
CCD = Chitedze Composite D
DK = Dekalb. ( DK 8031, DK 8071, etc)

Seed source
Hybrid seed: Such seed should be bought every season. Field selection is
discouraged since they lose viability and vigour quite easily.

Composite seed: Farmers are encouraged to buy every season but they can equally
select from the yield for two consecutive seasons after which they must buy new
seed to maintain yields.

Unimproved maize (local): Field selection is the only way of maintaining the
variety.

Maize seed selection procedure

Step 1: determine the amount of seed required per unit area. For example shelled
maize, the farmer needs about 25kg per hectare while unshelled it is about
200-250 cobs per hectare.

Step 2: identify disease-free cobs from the centre of the field to avoid varietal
pollution. Mark these plant by tying a tug or rope onto the plant.

Step 3: harvest the cobs separately, treat with actellic and store them in dry areas .
Planting

Time : it has been shown that maize yields can be reduced up to 25% by delaying
planting by just two weeks. Reasons to this are as follows:

11
  seed germination potential is at its highest when the balance between well aerated
and warm soil is achieved at the start of the season. Later into the wet season , the
soil becomes cooler and aeration is reduced because of the increased moisture
content.

 weeds, pests and diseases become more prevalent as the wet season
progresses.

Early planting also utilizes the “Nitrogen flush”

To achieve planting in good time, make sure you;

-Dry plant (one week before expected the area
-Plant after 100mm or more has been received
-Follow recommended planting dates for the area
-Radio meteorological advise.

Spacing & Plant population.

Spacing:
This will depended on the system of cultivation. Conventionally, ridges are spaced at
90cm and plant stations are also at 90cm apart with 3 seeds per station. However, this
method has proved to be ineffective resulting in low crop yields.

The modern system referred to as Sasakawa uses ridges at a spacing of 75cm and
planting stations spaced at 25cm with 1 seed per stations. It produces more yields per
hectare and it also minimises intra-nutrient competition.

Plant population
The plant population will depend on ridge and plant spacing of the particular crop
variety. It is determined using the formula:

Plant population = A x S x R = plants /ha

RS x HS

Where A = plot Area

S = Number of Seeds/station
R = Number of Rows/ridge
RS = Ridge Spacing
HS = Hill Spacing (spacing between planting stations)

Example:
a) Conventional method

A = 1 ha. (10, 000m2)

S = 3 seeds per station

12
 R = 1 row per ridge
RS = 90cm
HS = 90cm
Plant population = .10, 000m2 x 3 seeds/station x 1 row
90cm x 90cm

= 37, 037 plants/ha.

b) Sasakawa method
A = 1 ha. (10, 000m2)
S = 1 seed per station
R = 1 row per ridge
RS = 75cm
HS = 25cm

Plant population = 10, 000m2 x 1seed/station x 1 row

75cm x 25cm

= 53, 334 plants/ha.

Planting depth
Plant to a reasonable depth otherwise germination will greatly be affected. Planting too
deep will result in late germination while shallow planting exposes the seeds to sunlight,
birds, rodents and insect attack. Use the recommendation below;

Clay Sand

Moist soil 5cm 7.5cm

Dry soil 7.5cm 10cm

Supplying
All ungerminated seed or obviously dying seedling must be replaced within the first week
after seedling emergence. Delay will result in low performance and uneven growth in the
stand and shading each other.

Weeding
Weeding is a very important operation in crop production to reduce the competition for
nutrients, sunlight and moisture. It also help in checking the occurrence of pests and
diseases which are harboured in the weeds.

Time of weeding
One of the basic extension message in crop production is timely weeding. This implies
removal of weeds as soon as they appear and as practically as possible. It is also
important to know that effective weeding is achieved under dry, sunny conditions to
avoid re-growths.

13
Types of weeding.

(a) Physical:-weeds are commonly removed using a handle-hoe by small scale farmers.
Ox-drawn or tractor drawn cultivator are often used by large scale farmers and estates.
However, hand weeding is very effective especially in light weeding and very wet
conditions. In maize weeding can be done 2 to 3 times.

(b) Chemical:- there are herbicides (weed killers) available on the market. Roundup and
Bullet are the commonly used herbicides that MONSANTO is promoting in the maize
fields. Roundup is used as a pre-emergence herbicide while bullet and atrazine may used
as post-emergence herbicides.
Steps followed in applying roundup
 Cut stalks and lay them on the ground as mulch
 Spray roundup (as pre-emergence) on actively growing weeds at 400mls in 20litre
of water using the knapsack for 0.25ha.
 You may plant seed as per recommended spacing
 Finally apply bullet + 400mls atrazine in 20litre of water.

Witchweed (Striga asiatica)

This weed is commonly known as Kaufiti because of its destructive effects to maize
plant. The roots of this weed get attached to the maize roots for feeding purposes, a
process referred to as allelopathy. However the maize roots are deprived of nutrients and
water thereby leading to wilting and death of the maize plant as a whole.

The following methods can help to control the effects of witchweeed

 Plant early so that by the time the witchweed seeds germinate, maize will have
developed and attained good growth
 Uproot the plant as it appears (although it have done the damage already in that
season)
 Practice crop rotation to ensure starvation to the weed in that season
 Apply sufficient organic manure to suppress the effect of witchweed on maize
yield.

Banking
This is an operation which aims at rebuilding the crop ridge to avoid loss of nutrients and
exposure of plant roots to the outside environment. Banking should be done soon after
top-dressing the maize crop. Banking in very wet condition should be discourage as it
results in cementing the soil creating insufficient aeration. In termite prone areas, banking
should be done before the plant reaches knee high and soils should not be put close to the
base of the plant.

14
Fertilizer Application
Maize is a heavy feeder in as far as nutrients uptake is concerned. For normal growth and
high yields it needs; Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium. The importance of each of
these elements is outlined below:

Nitrogen (N)
 It is a constituent of chlorophyll
 It promotes vegetative growth
 Lengthens maturity period

Deficiency symptoms
-Leaves turn yellow and dry from the midrib (chlorosis and necrosis respectively)
-There is low yield

Source of N: Urea, C.A.N, S/A

Phosphorus (P)
 It promotes root growth
 It is constituent of enzymes and nucleus
 It hastens maturity
 It facilitates cell division and meristem development

Deficiency symptoms
-the plant easily succumbs to draught
-in young maize, the leaves turn purple/pink
-the plant develops short root system

Source of P: 23: 21: 0 + 4S

Potassium (K)
 It helps in calcium intake
 The plant becomes resistant to draught and several diseases
 The plant develops a very stiff stalk

Deficiency symptoms
-enhanced susceptibility to disease attack
-frequent lodging
-leaves turn yellow and die from edge inwards

Source of K: Mixtures of A,B,C,D & S.

15
NB: Phosphorus is normally required soon after germination (approximately within a
week after germination) to assist in root development. Nitrogen is particularly
important for plant growth and grain formation.

Organic manure
Application of organic manure is important in maize production because:-
o It helps to build up soil structure which results in improved water holding
capacity, infiltration and permeability.
o Regulates soil temperature
o Increase the availability of nutrients (NPK and S)

Types of organic manure

a) Compost manure – decomposed grass or crop residues
b) Khola manure – droppings of cattle, goats, sheep, chicken etc.
c) Farm yard manure – home sweepings, food residues mixed etc.
d) Green manure - green vegetative material particularly from fodder
legumes like leucaena which can be applied directly in the soil.

Amount of manure to be applied

Amount of manure to be applied to maize depends on both soil type and nutrient status.
In practice, however, 12.5 tonnes per hectare is recommended.

Methods of application
Three methods are common
1. Dollop – apply a double handful at each planting station
2. Banding – apply in the farrow of the previous (old) ridges and then ridge over.
Apply at least 1.5-2.0kg per 2 metre ridge
3. Broad casting – spread evenly over the land before ploughing at the rate of 1.5
kg/m2.

Time of application
To ensure complete decomposition for maximum effect, manure must be applied at least
4 weeks before expected planting dates.

Inorganic manure (Fertilizers)

Fertilizers have a much higher ratio of the required elements such as Nitrogen to the
carrier than organic manure.

Types of fertilizers
Basal Dressing fertilizers- this type of fertilizer is applied at planting or soon after
germination. They are phosphotic in nature (they supply P) and are not mobile in nature.

When applied at planting, place fertilizer at the base of hill then cover about 2-3cm
before placing seed (as in Sasakawa planting method). But when applied after emergence,

16
place fertilizer in dollops which are made 10cm away from the base of a plant and 10cm
deep.

Top Dressing fertilizers- these fertilizers are essentially carriers of Nitrogen to facilitate
vegetative growth and fruiting. They should be applied 2-4 weeks after basal dressing or
seedling emergence or when the maize reaches 45-65cm high (below knee height). They
include Calcium Ammonium Nitrate (C.A.N), Urea and Sulphate of Ammonia (S/A).
placement is just the same as in basal dressing i.e. 10cm away from the planting station.

Amount of application

Fertilizer type Hybrid variety Composite variety Local variety

(Kg/ha) (Kg/ha) (Kg/ha)

23: 21: 0 + 4S 200 100 100

Urea 175 150 75
CAN 200 200 150
S/A 200 200 150

Note: 23: 21: 0 + 4S = 23% N

Urea = 46% N
C.A.N = 26-28%N
S/A = 21% N & 26%S.

Pest and Disease Control in maize

Pests
High losses are experienced in maize yield due to various pest attack. The common pests
include:
(a) Stalk-borer or stem-borer (Busseola fusca)
The adult is a moth which lays eggs into funnel of a young plant and later on
hatch into a larva. The larva feeds on the growing points and then the cob.
Best control is by :
- early planting
- destruction of infected growing plants and plant redues
- practice crop rotation
- in excessive attack spray Dipterex 2.5% right into the funnel of the
maize plant at knee-high. (8kg/ha is required).

17
 (b) Army worm (Spodotera exampta)
the adult insect is also a moth whose eggs hatch into larva which feed on maize
leaves. It is referred to as army worm because they attack in large numbers. Its
infestation is serious under dry conditions. It is recommended as a precaution to
all agricultural centres and institutions that there should be frequent forecasting
about the pest and conduct on going training for agricultural staff on
identification, reporting and control of army worm.
Control is by spraying Carbaryl 85% WP (Sevin) dissolved in 14 litres of water.

(c) Red locust (Nomadaeris spp)

This is a brick red grasshopper. They always move in large numbers. They form
clouds and migratory in nature capable of crossing international boundaries.
Control is done by an International body called Red Locust Control Service
(RLCS) based in Zambia. This monitors the movements of red locusts in the
whole southern part of Africa.

(d) Maize weevil (Sitophilus spp)

This is a post-harvest insect which eats stored maize grain. It is more destructive
on dent maize. Control is by dusting maize with Actellic Super dust at the rate of
40g per 90kg bag. For larger scale spray Actellic E.C at 10mls per 10litre of
water.

(e) Termites
These are area specific. In certain areas they tend to be very critical than in others.
They attack maize stalks causing lodging. Fallen cobs are also attacked in the
process.
To reduce the damage, banking should be done when the plants are still young
and remove all the fallen stalks

(f) Rodents
very common in storage. It is important that storage containers should be rodent
proof.

diseases
There are several diseases of maize but non of them is of economic importance (non of
them causes serious damage) to warrant use of expensive chemicals as a control measure.
Some of the diseases include
(a) Leaf blight – caused by a fungus called Helminthosporium turcicum. It seldom
seen before tasselling. There boat-shaped, greyish lesions on the infected spots.
The lower leaves are infected first and those heavily infected may eventually die.

The young the plant, the greater the will be reduction in yield. Control is by use of
improved certified seed. At a larger spray of some fungicides might be necessary.

18
 (b) Rust- maize is susceptible to several rust diseases but the most common one is
called Puccinia sorghi. It is characterised by the appearance of brown to black
powdery pustules on both sides of the leaves. The spores are often carried by the
wind. There is no serious damage to the crop but should be controlled by planting
resistant varieties.

(c) Smut – it is attacked by two types of smut :

-Common smut caused by fungus Ustilago maydis
- Head smut caused by Sphacelotheca reiliana.
Smut is first seen as greyish lump but when the fungus spores are mature, it turns
black and releases the spores as it bursts open. The disease may attack every part
of the plant above ground. This is more prevalent in drought conditions or where
there are many barren stalks. Most hybrids are resistant to this disease.
(d) Root rots- fungus such as Diplodia and Gibberella. The affected plants tend to
lodge. This is more common in compacted, poorly-drained soils. They can be
controlled by use of resistant varieties or use of chemicals in treating seed before
sowing.

(e) Stem rots- also caused by Gibberella and Diplodia fungi.

Gibberella stem rot causes plants to break at the internodes (joints)
Diplodia stem rot causes breakage at the nodes ( between joints)
When the attack occur at an early stage, there small ears with shrunken kernels
Control by planting hybrid seed which are resistant to lodging.

(f) Ear rot- it is a wind borne disease. The spores are trapped between the husks of
the ear. When moisture conditions are favourable, they penetrate into the
developing earon which develops greyish-white mould. Can be controlled by
rotation and seed treatment.

Harvesting
When maize is mature, the cob turns into a brown/khaki colour and in some varieties the
dry cob drops down. If the harvesting is delayed beyond this then losses occur due to
insect and bird attack.

a) Stooking :
This involves cutting the plants at the base and leaning them against each other
for further drying. This has an advantage of :
(i) Allowing the farmer to plough and prepare his garden early.
(ii) Checking the stalk-borer from hibernating in the standing or lying stover
(iii) Reducing the risks of fire, termites and rodents from destroying the crop. The
smaller the stooks the much easier it becomes to check any damage to it.

b) Stripping
This involves detaching the cob from the rest of the plant. The maize can be put in
storage (Nkhokwe) and can stay for a longer period if treated by Actellic EC.

19
 c) Shelling
This is the process of removing the grain from the cob. The ratio between the
weight of grains to that of the cob is referred to as Shelling Percentage

Shelling % = Weight of Grains x 100

Weight of the cob (de-husked cobs)

 Recommended Shelling percentage is often between 70 – 80%.

 Shelling percentage assist in estimating value of grain although it can be
done with unshelled maize. It is also a good indicator of variety quality
since the higher the shelling % the superior the variety.

d) Storage
Once maize is shelled, it can be put in a sack and make it is treated with Actellic
dust i.e. 40g per 90kg bag. It can also be stored as cobs in the nkhokwe but the
floor of the nkhokwe should be treated with actellic dust and do the same to every
layer of the cobs up until the nkhokwe is full. The nkhokwe should have rat-
guards as well.

When maize is properly managed from the beginning up to harvesting and storage, high
yields can be realised as outlined in the table below.

20
 YIELD /ha
VARIETY
Current Target Potential (Ideal)

(Kg/ha) (Kg/ha) (Kg/ha)

MH12 & MH17 3000 7000 8000

MH15 3000 7000 78000

MH16 3000 7000 78000

NSCM41 & MH18 3000 7000 8000

UCA 2000 5000 75000

CCA 2000 5000 75000

Local 1000 3000 73000

Marketing:
Farmers used to sell maize to ADMARC but with current liberalisation policies, maize is
sold anywhere at any price as determined by the producer.

21
GROUNDNUTS PRODUCTION

Botanical name : Arachis hypogaea

Common names : peanuts, monkey-nuts, earthnuts.

Origin :
The crop is said to have originated in the upper Plata basin of Bolivia at the foothills of
Andes. The Portuguese navigators introduced it from South America to Africa, India and
some parts of the world.

National aims
The aim is to improve yield and quality of both confectionery and oil nuts to meet the
local and export demand while at the same time providing raw materials to the domestic
oil industry.

The present production levels for shelled nuts are 450kg per hectare for Chalimbana and
Chatembana, 750kg per hectare for Manipinter and Mawanga and 350 kg per hectare for
Malimba and RG 1. There is need to increase production levels of these groundnut
varieties towards potential levels of 2000kg, 2400kg and 1500kg per hectare respectively.

Botanical Characteristic

Roots
Groundnut has well developed tap root with some lateral branches. Some adventitious
roots develop from the hypocotyls and aerial branches. The smaller roots are found
within the depth of 10-25cm for shall soils while primary roots may grow up to 90-
120cm.

Stem
It has a central, upright stem with many lateral branches. In runner types, these lateral
branches are prostrate while in bunch types, they are erect in early stages but become
prostrate at a later stage.

Leaves
Groundnuts has pinnate compound leaves which are usually composed of two pairs of
leaflets. Leaves are dark green in the growth stage but they turn yellow and eventually
grey-brown when the crop has matured.

Flowers
Flowers are small and yellow in colour. Such flowers may grow singly or in clusters of 2-
4 close to the ground or indeed under the ground. Flowers develop 4-6weeks after sowing
but they reach a peak period at 10-12weeks after sowing.

22
Fruit
The fruit is a pod and often consists of a shell which normally contains 1-3 seeds though
sometimes the seed may be up to 6. The shell is generally reticulate and shows
constrictions between seeds. It constitutes about 30-40% of the total weight of the fruit.

Seed
The seed is pink, red or brown in colour. It has papery seed coat which is extremely thin.
It has two plump cotyledons.

Types of groundnuts
Depending on the growth habit, groundnuts are categorised into two main types:

A. Runner/Spreading type
In this type, the gynophores (pegs) are distributed from the basal to the terminal
region of the branches or may occur in clusters along these branches up to 40cm
from the base of the plant. As the branches grow more or less prostrate on the
ground, the pods are scattered underground in a relatively larger area around the
base of the plant.

Cultivars of this group are known to be very productive and with large kernels
(seeds). The only drawback with this group is that harvesting is difficult since
many pods are left underground.

B. Bunch type

Such cultivars grow erect. The pods are clustered around the base of the plant and
mature the same time. The pods and kernels are small and individual plants are
not very productive. They mature early about three to four months. Harvesting is
very easy and are suited for inter-row cultivation.

Ecological Requirements:

Altitude and latitude

The crop is able to grow well within latitude range of 500 North and South of Equator.
It grows well within areas of about 1000m above sea level. However, specific varieties
have been developed to suit specific area for maximum results.

Temperature
Groundnuts is a warm season crop that requires enough sunshine for normal
development. For optimum results temperature range of 18-25oC is essential.

Rainfall
Annual rainfall requirement for this crop is about 1000mm or more. Half of this should
be received during the growing season to be followed by a distinct dry season during
which the pods ripen and mature.

23
Soils
The crop favours loose, friable sandy soils of poor fertility. Well drained sandy loams are
the most favourable.

Recommended varieties in Malawi

1. Chalimbana :- it is a confectionery nut recommended in all plateau areas with

altitude range of 1000-1500m above sea level. It has large seed size and often
matures within 140-150 days after sowing.

2. Chitembana :- is a confectionery nut with well shaped seed and larger size than
Calimbana. It is recommended in plateau areas as is the case with chalimbana
and maturity is within 140-150 days.

3. CG7:- a confectionry nut with medium seed size. Recommended for plateau,
lakeshore and Upper Shire Valley areas of the country. It matures in 130 to 150
days.

4. Malimba:- a confectionery nut recommended for Shire valley and Lakeshore

areas of altitude 200-300m above sea level. It matures in 110-120 days.

5. RG1:- a confectionery nut recommended for production in all area where rosette
is a problem such as Phalombe. Maturity takes 130 to 140 days.

6. Mani-pintar:- an oil nut recommended in lakeshore areas of Nkhotakota, Salima,

Mangochi, Upper shire Valley, Bwanje Valley and Balaka. Such areas are within
the latitude of 500-700m abve sea level. Maturity takes 130-140 days .

7. Mawanga :- oil nut which also does much better if grown in areas where mani-
pintar is grown. Howver it can also grow in plateau areas. It is 3% higher in oil
content than mani-pintar.

8. Nsinjioro (ICGV-SM 90704) it is a confectionery nut recommended in all

plateau areas. It is tolerant to Rosette with a potential yield of up to 2000kg/ha.
Matures within 120-140 days after planting.

9. Kakoma (JL 24) – it is a confectionery nut. It is recommended for low lying

areas of altitude 200-500m above sea level. It is good for dimba cultivation (under
irrigation). It matures around 90-120days. It is small seeded with potential yield
of up to 1500kg/ha

10. Baka (ICG 12991)- it is a confectionery nut recommended for low lying areas
and good for dimba cultivation. Matures in 90-100days. It is bunch type and
requires more calcium to avoid pod pops.

24
Field management

Production systems
Farmer need to know that groundnut is good crop to be put in rotation system. The crop
by nature is an extremely soil exhausting and yields decline so fast if continuously grown
on the same land. The crop uses the fertilizer residues left in the soil from the previous
crop for effective nodulation. There is also a build of organisms causing root-rots and
pod-rots if grown successively on the same piece of land.

Land Preparation
To achieve loose and friable soil into which the peg (gynophores) can easily penetrate
and also to avoid excessive loss during harvesting, land should be thoroughly ploughed to
a depth of 25-30cm. Remove debris and other stubble from the previous crop.

Time of planting
In Malawi, planting is done with the first effective rains which normally comes around
the second half of November in the southern part and about first half of December in
Central and Northern parts.

Planting and spacing

For optimum plant population and maximum yields, it is important to use the
recommended ridge and plant spacing for various varieties. Below is a guiding table for
reference

Variety Ridge and Hill spacing Seed Rate

(cm) (Kg/Ha)
80
Nsinjiro (ICGV-SM 90704) 90cm x 15cm x 1seed
75cm x 15cm x 1seed 100

Kakoma (JL 24) 90cm x 10cm x 1seed 50

75cm x 10cm x 1seed 60

Baka (ICG 1291) 90cm x 10cm x 1seed 50

75cm x 10cm x 1seed 60

Chalimbana 90cm x 15cm x 1seed 90

75cm x 15cm x 1seed 110

Chitembana 90cm x 15cm x 1seed 100

75cm x 15cm x 1seed 120

CG7 90cm x 15cm x 1seed 90

75cm x 15cm x 1seed 110

25
Malimba 90cm x 10cm x 1seed 35
75cm x 10cm x 1seed 40

RG1 90cm x 15cm x 1seed 70

75cm x 15cm x 1seed 80

Mani-Pintar 90cm x 15cm x 1seed 70

75cm x 15cm x 1seed 80

Mawanga 90cm x 15cm x 1seed 70

75cm x 15cm x 1seed 80
*source: Ministry of Agriculture : Guide To Agricultural Production in Malawi (1996)

Higher yields have been realised in the fields where ridges are constructed at 75cm apart.
It is also important that supplying should be done within the first week after seedling
emergence.

There need to treat groundnuts kernels with appropriate fungicides such as Aldrex T
(aldrin and thiram) or Fernasan D (thiram). These fungicides prevent initial losses and
ensure a full stand.

Pests and Diseases Control

Diseases.
The major diseases that cause a serious damage in a groundnut field include the
following:

1. Cercospora leaf spots (Cercospora personata & Cercospora arechidicola). Such

disease are also known as tikka, viruela or brown spot. It is a fungal disease and
the most common in Malawi is the Cercospora arechidicola referred to as early
leaf spot. This affect the crop soon after emergence and cause defoliation. The
defoliated leaves if not removed may act as a source of the disease in the
following season.

The following control measure are recommended :

 Using resistant varieties or strains
 Removing or burying debris of the previous crop
 Practising rotation
 For larger scale chemical control with sulphur, a mixture of copper & sulphur or
other organic fungicides

2. Stem rot (Sclerotium rolfsii). It is a fungal disease and is commonly known as

white mould, sclerotium rot, sclerotium blight, sclerotium wilt, root rot or foot

26
 rot. The disease is more pronounced in the warmer climates causing stems to rot
close to the ground level.

Control is by using resistant varieties, deep ploughing , constructing raised ridges,

avoid throwng the soil to the base of the plant and practising crop rotation.

3. Rosette:- is a serious virus disease characterised by condensation of the plant. The

petiole and internodes are shortened giving the plant a typical rosette or clumped
appearance.

The best control is early planting at correct spacing. In areas like Phalombe plain
where the disease is endemic plant RG1 which is resistant to the disease.

a) Termites: (Amitermes evuncifer)

Termites cause two kinds of damage:

1) Scarification of the pods. This weakens the shells and makes them liable
to shattering or cracking during harvesting.

2) Penetration & hollowing of the tap root. Termites are capable of reaching
upper parts of the plant inside the stems. This is common in wet periods
of the growing season and pass unnoticed until the plants wilt and die.

Control
 Use uniform cultivars to ensure even ripening and single harvesting.
 There is need to have repeated mechanical cultivation to reduce termite
population
 For termite prone areas, aldrin or dieldrin can be used at a rate of 500g a.i. (active
ingredient) per hectare. Seeds can also be dressed with aldrin at 28.5g a.i per kg of
seed.

b) Leaf-hoppers (Hilda patruelis)

These hoppers are 0.5cm long with green brown markings.
They have a sucking habit and as such, they cause plants to wilt and collapse. Can
be controlled by using dieldrin dust at 1.12kg a.i. per hectare sprayed before
planting.

c) Cut-worms (Agrotis ipsilon)

The worms cause young plants to be completely or partially severed at the ground
level. It also attack developing pods of older plants causing yield reduction.

Worms can be controlled by using 450g of 50% dieldrin of Wettable

(Water) Powder plus 50kg of maize meal which is then wetted crumbly. Apply

27
 this mixture per hectare as a chemical bait and should be broadcasted in the
afternoon so that they are able to feed on it before it gets dry.

Harvesting
Check the crop by lifting a few pods to see if they are mature. Timely harvesting of
groundnuts is essential to avoid discolouration and germination of nuts. Some pods may
also be left in the ground if harvested late. Dry the nuts after lifting them from the
ground. During lifting, the pods contain 50-55% moisture and should be dried to 25%
moisture content before storage.

Storage:
Store the nuts under a very dry condition since wet conditions enhance fungus
development particularly the fungus that causes Aflatoxin referred to as Aspergillus
flavus.

Shelling:
Shelling is done by either hand or machine. However, it is not a good practice to wet the
pods before shelling as this may attract fungus development.

SOYBEAN PRODUCTION

Botanical name: Glycine max (Glycine spp)

Common names: Nyemba za Soya, Mtedza wa Soya, Soya bean, Soybean

Origin and Distribution

Soybean originated from South East Asia (China in particular) in as early as 2800 BC. It
was an important food plant in the Orient (China, Manchuria, Korea and Japan) since the
earliest times and was carried to Europe by French missionaries in 1740

Soybean Utilization

Soybean requires an educational campaign on preparation and utilization methods.

Soybean seeds contain anti-quality factors trypsin that must be neutralized by proper
processing, to obtain nutritional benefits and make it easier to digest. The anti-quality
factors make the soybean to taste bad. Processing technologies such as toasting, soaking
and boiling are also required to facilitate the use of soybean in local foods. If small
ruminants take unprocessed soybean, they die.

28
It is an excellent source of plant proteins that has essential amino acids (compounds
which form proteins) and is usually used as a substitute for animal protein.

Importance

1. It is a source of proteins
 Has a high protein value more than other pulses and meats (When one takes
soybeans, she/he gets the highest value of protein as compared to the one who
takes meat).
 Leaves have high Nitrogen value, making the crop an alternative to fertilizer if
grown intensively.
 Has all essential amino acids needed for growth especially in children and small
ruminants.
2. Used to generate cash by selling either the crop raw or processed product of soybean.
3. It is used to improve fertility in the soils by growing it in rotation or as an intercrop
with another crop (nitrogen fixing, falling leaves or crop residues add fertility to the
soils).
4. Stabilizes and improves the soil structure by making a ground cover.

Some Food-stuffs made from Soybeans include;

Coffee, Milk, Fritters, Porridge, Fried Soya nuts, Meat and vegetables with Soya sauce,
Cheula, Kadyaubwerere, Chikondamoyo (Local bread), Nsima, Thobwa, etc.

National Policy
The objective is to encourage the growing and utilization of the crop in a bid to increase
yields from the present 400 to 800 Kg per hectare to potential levels of up to 3,500 Kg
per hectare.

Botanical Characteristics

Roots
Roots can grow up to 2 meters deep. Most roots will develop from the first
20cm of the soil. Nodules begin to form on the roots in 10-15 days after
emergence and continue forming throughout the life cycle of the plant. Active
nodules are pink inside.

Stems
The epicotyl develops into main stem. However in the event of hail or hazards
to epicotyl, axillary buds may also develop into stems. The axillary buds are
often used for plant food for the first 5 – 8 day after emergence.

Leaves
The first two leaves are unifoliolate but the additional leaves are trifoliolate.
These may number from one to six or more.

29
 Flowers
Has small white and purple flowers borne in axillary’s racemes on peduncles
arising at the nodes

Seed
Is composed of two cotyledons, radicle, testa, hypocotyls and epicotyls. All
except testa are considered to be part of the embryo.

Ecological Requirements
It is a rain fed crop that grows under a wide range of climatic conditions like maize and
has an average growing period of 75-150days

Soils
Grows well in heavy soils with sufficient drainage. However, soybean plant
improves the soil by fixing nitrogen into the soil. (Nitrogen fixation is done
through the root nodules of the plant. Rhizobia, a bacterium which lives in the
root nodules converts nitrogen in the air into a form which can be used by the
plant. The Rhizobia usually lives together with a fungus, mycorrhizae.)

Temperature
Soybeans will withstand short periods of drought after the plants are well
established, but combinations of high temperature and low precipitation are
unfavorable. Temperatures of between 20-25oC are considered essential.

Rainfall
A wet season does not seriously retard plant growth, but soybeans are
sensitive to over-irrigation. The crop can be grown under a wide range of
climatic conditions with marginal rainfall of less than 700mm up to 2000mm.

VARIETIES
There are over nine varieties of Soybeans as follows; Ocepara-4, Santa-rosa, Duocrop,
Geduld, Hardee, Davis, Bossier, Impala, Kudu, 427/5/6, 501/6/12, 491/6/7, Magoye and
Solitaire. Magoye provide the largest soil fertility benefit to maize compared to other
varieties.

1. Ocepara 4
Ocepara 4 is an indeterminate variety with a high yield potential of over,
4000kg/ha. It well adapted in medium plateau areas characterized by a prolonged
rainfall season. It is resistant to root knot nematode which is prone in sandy loamy
soils. Ocepara 4 is also resistant to lodging.

2. Santarosa
It is determinate variety with a yield potential of over 3,000kg/ha. This variety is
suited in medium altitude areas. If grown in high altitude areas characterized by

30
 cool moist conditions will cause the stems to remain vegetative while the pods are
ready for harvesting. It has high lodging and shattering resistance.

3. Davis
It is a determine variety and early maturing. It has yield potential of over
3,000kg/ha. It is best cultivated in marginal mean rainfall areas of between 700-
900mm such as Salima, Bwanje Valley and Shire Valley. Has medium resistance
to lodging.

4. Bossier
Bossier is a determinate variety of early maturing i.e 110-120days. It has yield
potential of about 3,000kg/ha. It grows well in the same climatic conditions just
like Davis. It has medium to strong lodging and shattering resistance.

5. Duocrop
It is indeterminate variety with very high potential yield of about 4000kg/ha. It is
more adapted medium plateau to upland areas characterized by prolonged rainfall
season. However, this variety has a very short seed viability and this affects the
required seedrate.

6. Impala
The variety is indeterminate with high yielding potential of over 3,500kg/ha. It is
adapted for cultivation in medium plateau to upland areas with prolonged rainfall
season. Has good lodging resistance.

7. Kudu
It is indeterminate variety with very high potential yield of over 4000kg/ha. The
variety is also well cultivated in medium plateau to upland areas of prolonged
rainfall. It has good lodging resistance.

8. Hardee
An indeterminate variety with yield potential of over 2,500kg/ha. It is adapted in
areas where kudu can grow. Has some resistance to shattering and lodging.

9. Geduld
Indeterminate variety with yield potential of over 2500kg/ha. It has strong
shattering and lodging resistance.

10. Magoye
Indeterminate variety with yield potential of over 3500kg/ha. Has high biological
Nitrogen fixation capacity compared to all other varieties. It can grown in a wide
range of climatic conditions and has strong resistance to lodging and shattering.

31
RECOMMENDED CULTURAL PRACTICES
1. Field preparation
Field preparation should be done with the first planting rains. Ridges should be spaced at
75 cm or 90 cm.

2. Seed Inoculation
Seed should be inoculated with Rhizobium bacteria called Rhizobium japonica which is
used by leguminous plants. An Inoculant is an additive to the seed of some species that
helps speed up germination. The Rhizobium strain is available at all Research Stations
and arrangements can be made to send the inoculum to any ADD’s. When inoculating
seed, prepare 200-300 ml of a 5% sugar solution by dissolving one matchbox full of
sugar into water contained in a bottle of fanta. Mix one satchet of inoculant (50 g) into
this solution to form a thick liquid (slurry). Pour this thick liquid over 25 kg of seed and
mix until all the seed is evenly coated. Leave to dry in the shed for 30 minutes. Plant seed
within 24 hours of inoculation.

3. Time of Planting
Plant with the first rains and not later than end-December. Plant in two rows spaced at 30
cm on the ridge and place one seed per planting station 5 cm apart or plant one seed per
station spaced at 2.5 cm apart on a single row on the ridge. Seed rate is 70 to 90 kg per
hectare. Soybean grown under residual moisture in dimbas or irrigation schemes should
be planted between second week of June and second week of July.

4. Weeding
Planting soybeans in narrow rows restricts weed growth by shading. Rotary hoeing when
the soybeans have 2 to 3 leaves is effective. Chemical weed control can be done before
planting the crop or before emergency of the crop.

5. Fertilizer application
Soybeans, just like groundnuts, have the ability of utilizing fertilizer residues that are
normally not available to other crops. The plant excrete special enzymes that help in
breaking down soil-fertilizer complexes holding essential minerals in a form that most
plants can not use them. However to ensure good yields, soybeans do best on soils of
high fertility. Basing on soil tests, the application of 50kg P2O5 and 60kg K2O per
hectare may be recommended. Calcium and Magnesium are usually applied to acidic
soils to raise the pH to 6.0 or 6.5. Sulfur or certain micro-nutrients are not usually applied
except on strongly weathered, coarse-textured alkaline or organic soils.

6. Pests and Their Control

(a) Nematodes
Nematodes are a major problem in soybean production. Root knot nematode
causes knot-like swellings or galls on the roots. This results in stunted growth
which wilts during dry weather and show marginal firing of the leaves.

32
 Rotation with unsusceptible crops such as small grains and sorghum may be
the best control.

(b) Insects
Velvet bean caterpillars, armyworms, beetles and grasshoppers are the major
problems in soybeans. One insecticide application is usually sufficient to control
insect attacks. Control can also be done by applying Tephrosia vogelii (Fish bean)
seeds and leaves which are a good local insecticide.

(c) Rabbits
Rabbits have a great fondness for the soybeans. Where rabbits are numerous
they will completely destroy small isolated fields of soybeans unless they are
excluded by a tight fence.

7. Diseases and Their Control

Soybeans once considered a disease-free crop, but since it has been grown long enough
several diseases have become a potential problem. About 50 diseases attack soybeans.
Some of the common diseases are:-

(a) Bacterial Blight

It is a bacterial disease caused by Pseudomonas glycinea It occurs on the leaves
of the soybean plant as small angular spots which at first are yellow to light
brown, but later they become dark brown to almost black. Diseased tissues of the
leaves may finally become dry and drop out. The spots sometimes spread to the
stems and pods.
Control
-Crop rotation.
-Turning under of crop residues.
-Some varieties are partly resistant.

(b) Downy Mildew

Downy Mildew is a fungal disease caused by Peronospora manchurica. The
disease is seed borne as such its occurrence is when the infected seed are
planted.

The first leaves to unfold are frequently covered with the characteristic mildew
growth.
Control
-Crop rotation
-Ploughing (plowing) under of residues
-Planting disease-free seed

33
 (c) Mosaic
-Mosaic is a viral disease transmitted by aphids.
-infected leaves show puckering or wrinkles
- the disease causes greater reduction in number of seeds in the pod.
- control is by practicing field hygiene

(d) Target Spot

-caused by fungus Cornespora casucola
-leaves show encircled reddish brown spots
-controlled by planting resistant varieties

(e) Brown Spot

-caused by fungus Septoria glycines
-it attacks leaves, stems, and pods causing early leaf defoliation.
-shows small reddish brown angular spots on leaves.
-can be controlled through crop rotation.

RICE PRODUCTION
Botanical name:

Genus: Oryzae

Species: sativa and glaberrime

Origin:
There are about 25 species of rice but only two (O. sativa and O. gaberrime) are
commonly cultivated.

Oryzae glaberrime is known as of African type since it originated around Niger.

O. barthii is the progenotype of glaberrime.

Oryzae sativa is said to have been domesticated in India and Thailand as early as 400 BC
O. perennis is a progenotype of sativa.

Eco-geographical Rice Species

With diverse cultivation of a rice crop, two major races of O. sativa have evolved around
centuries and these are ; Sub spp. Indica and Sub spp. Japonica.

34
 Sub-spp. Indica.
o Commonly cultivated in warm and humid climate
o Grown in poor and flooded soils
o Tall cultivars which tend to lodge easily
o Are photoperiodic test standing (flowers at specific calendar period)
o Low response to N- levels
o Easily separate when cooked.
o Grains are of about 9mm long

Sub-spp. Japonica
o Have cultivars both sensitive and insensitive to photoperiod
o High response to N- levels
o Stay vegetative for a long period of time
o Have grains of less than 7mm long

National Aims
The national aim is to increase both irrigated and rain-fed rice to meet the domestic and
export demand. The present production of rain-fed rice (especially Faya) is in the range
of 1000 -1500kg/ha. This should be improved to 3500kg/ha. For the irrigated rice i.e
Senga, curremt production is around 4000kg/ha and Changu is 2000kg/ha. There is need
to improve production of these two cultivars as well towards potential levels of
6000kg/ha and 4000kg/ha respectively.

Systems of Culture
Rice is a semi- aquatic crop and as such, it can either be rain-fed or irrigated for optimum
results. In Malawi, over 80% of the crop is cultivated under rain-fed. Irrigated crop is
mainly concentrated in the government managed schemes and other research sites.

Relating Water Management to Type of Rice

Depending on different water requirements for different varieties coupled with systems of
cultivation, rice is categorised as follows;

(a) Up-land rice

-Usually grown like any other cereal (no need for standing water)
-It is generally referred to as dry-paddy rice
-Produces very poor quality rice.

(b) Low-land (Wet-paddy) rice

-Grown in standing waters of 5-10cm
-Bunds (levees) are constructed all around the plot to capture water for a
long period
-Very good quality rice is produced

(c) Deep water (Floating) rice

35
 -Adapted where water is so deep
-Commonly grown around deltas, oceans where water control is a problem
i.e Cambodia and Thailand
-The stem internodes elongates until it comes above the water surface

Rice Grain Characteristics

Amount of starch present in the grain distinguishes rice as being soft or hard rice.

(a) Soft rice

-contains a lot of amylase (dextrin) protein
-it is glutinous and opaque
-chocky appearance of the broken grain
-cooked rice is sticky
-commonly liked those who eat with a chop-stick.
-usually used for porridge, cakes and or confectionery
(b) Hard rice
-contains 75% amylopectin and 25% amylase
-it is non-glutinous and translucent.
-has grass like structure
-not sticky when cooked

Botanical Characteristics
Morphologically rice can best be described in two distinctive parts
(a) Vegetative Parts (roots, culm (stem) and leaves)
-culm/stems grow in an alternate fashion
-the roots allow a plant to stand in water logged condition for a longer
period
-roots are able to oxidise to certain extent to release poisonous elements

(b) Reproductive Parts

-a flower referred to as a panicle contains the shoot
-the spikelet (unit of a panicle) form the florets
-once the floret is filled then becomes a grain

Growth and Development of rice

Unlike many other cereals, rice has well defined growth and developmental stages or
phases with clearly marked characteristics at each phase.

(a) Active Vegetative phase

-increased tillering due to presence of Nitrogen
-increased above ground biomass
-increased plant weight
-requires enough supply of N (1.7% of DM should be N of dry-weight)

36
 (b) Vegetative Lack phase
-is a phase between maximum tillering to panicle show
out
-increased plant weight and height but reduced tiller weight
-length of this phase is determined by variety type.

(c) Ripening (flowering –maturity) phase

-in short photoperiodic varieties it takes 125-130 days when under rain fed
and 158 days when irrigated (winter) e.g Blue bonnet.
-in long duration photoperiodic , maturity goes up to 150days i.e Faya.
-growth at this phase can be defined in respect to appearance of the
panicle and number of days taken for the initiation of that panicle.

Dry Matter ability on the other hand depends not only on the leaves but
also source of Carbohydrate (CHO) for deposition and the capacity of
spikelet to receive this CHO.

Size of the sink where CHO is deposited depends on;

-Number of tillers and panicle
-Number of panicles per unit area
-Percentage of the filled spikelet
-Size of the spikelet

Morphological characteristics associated with high yielding cultivars

Leaf
-Thick ,short and erect for easy capture of light for photosynthesis.
Photosynthesis plays a bigger role since rice require more deposition of CHO about 78%-
80% CHO is laid out during photosynthesis

Culm/Stem
Short and stiff culm to prevent lodging . It is also recommended not to excessively add
Nitrogen which causes stems to be weak and prone to lodging effect.

Tiller
-Should be upright and compact
-Should have high tillering capacity and of early tillering
-It should permit fast leaf area development.

Panicle
High ripening percentage at high N levels. This promotes high quantities of starch to be
stored in the grain which will determine the Harvesting Index (HI). Average panicle

37
bears 100-150kernals

HI = Grain Quantity X 100

Grain Quantity + Biological Factors

Environmental Requirements
a) Temperature
-the crop requires a moderate temperature range of 20-30oC.
-at seedling stage it is recommended that temperatures should be 25-30oC. to
improve tillering up to 31%.
-during anthesis (panicle show-up) and ripening, temperatures should be 25-30oC.
-rice grown in Winter under irrigation, suffers a lot from cold temperatures which
tend to prolong maturity.

b) Solar Radiation & Day Length.

For rain fed crop, day length sensitivity is very critical since flowering takes place
at the same time irrespective of variations in planting dates. However, planting
late will reduce flower establishment.

c) Latitude and Altitude

This crop grows best within the latitude of 50o N and 50o S of Equator.
It also does much better within the altitude range of 0-200m above the sea level.
However, areas around Lake Chilwa and Phalombe are said to be as low as 400m
below sea level but rice is extensively grown in these areas.

d) Rainfall
The average rainfall of between 800-1000mm per annum is adequate for the crop.
For optimum production, rainfall of about 1500-2000mm is essential. It is
advisable to construct levees where rainfall is inadequate.

Variability in rainfall onset affects transplanting while early or late ceasation of

rain will affect maturity of the crop

e) Soil
Rice can grow on a wide range of soils. However heavy soils are recommended
since such soils tend to have high water retention particularly where flooding is
done and also to avoid leaching down of phosphorus, potassium, and calcium.

38
Field Management
Land Preparation
Should be done when the soil is still workable i.e. soon after last crop is harvested (for
irrigated crop) or after the rains for a rain fed crop. However, labour size and implements
to be used will determine the potential in rice production

-The field should be made flat and levelled for even water distribution
-Where levees (bunds) are to be constructed, water inlets and outlets have to be properly
sited to ensure efficient and sufficient water supply and distribution within the plot.

Sowing & Transplanting:

Optimum planting dates for a rain fed crop are mid-December to mid-January when
temperatures are still medium and mid-June to mid-July for the irrigated crop.
For the irrigated crop sowing can sometimes be done in good time but there can be a
delay in transplanting for favourable conditions.

Prepare flat nursery beds measuring 20m by 1m and should be 5cm high. Twenty beds of
this nature are capable of producing seedlings enough for a hectare of land (10, 000m 2).
Sowing on the nursery is by broadcasting. However if sown directly in the field, sow 6
seeds per station spaced at 23cm by 23cm.

Transplant seedlings after 15-20days of sowing and plant 2-3 seedlings per station. For
direct sowing, thinning should be done after 20 days and leave 3-4 seedlings per station.

Seed-rate for rain-fed crop is 63kg per hectare while for that of the irrigated crop is 75kg
per hectare

Weeds and Weed Control

Aquatic weeds reduce efficiency in terms of planting, harvesting as well as irrigation.
The most prevalent weed in Malawi and other tropical countries is Nadanga (Echnochloa
crusgalli).

Flooding
Emergency and type of weeds are closely related to soil moisture content. With
moist, un-flooded and ample light, weeds are favoured than concentrated
flooding.

Flooding may improve or hamper soil nutrients depending on the soil type. In
irrigated rice flooding helps in ensuring that Nitrogen loss due to denitrification is
minimised.

Sometimes flooding causes chemo-effect reduction of minerals like Mgn, Fe, and
organic acids i.e. Sulphide and Methine. These are toxic in nature and do affect
root development and nutrient absorption.

39
FERTILIZER APPLICATION

It is recommended that varieties that are susceptible to lodging should not have
much nitrogen.

For basal dressing, apply 100Kg of 23:21:0+4S in combination with 10Kg S/A
per hectare at the time of transplanting or two-three weeks after emergency of the
directly sown seed.

Top dress using Ammonium Nitrate or UREA about two-three weeks after the
first application.

At times application of Hydrogen Sulphide (H2S) is recommended to protect the

crop from the effects of high levels of Zinc (Zn) and Manganeze (Mgn).

VARIETIES

1. Faya (14M69)
-it is a highly favoured but low yielding variety.
-grains are of various sizes.
-it is susceptible to lodging especially if flooded soils as such it is commonly
grown under rain-fed conditions
-attempts have been to improve its yield performance since many people like it.
-it takes 150-155 days to mature.

2. Blue-Bonnet
-it has a good taste and smell
-the variety is suitable for both rain-fed and irrigation
-it matures early and high yielding
-the crop takes 120-130 days to mature.

3. Senga (IET 4094)

-recommended for irrigated schemes
-it takes 116 days to mature

4. Changu (IRI 1561- 250- 22)

Recommended for irrigated schemes
The variety matures within 119 days (wet season) and 145 days (dry season)

However, some farmers still prefer other unimproved varieties so extension staff just
need to encourage them to use recommended cultural practices for optimum results. Such
varieties include; Kilombero, Kalulu, Mwasungo and Singano.

40
Pests and Diseases

Rice is best adapted to warm humid environment where there is proliferation of insects.
Usually insect pests tend to cause greater damage to the crop while in the field thereby
reducing the yield so much.

Pests
Major rice pests include; rats, rice weevil, green grasshoppers (Bwanoni), leaf hoppers,
whorl maggots, stem borers and birds (Quelea quelea and weaverbird).

Control: -plant resistant varieties

-boiological control
-cultural control (rotation and field hygiene)

Diseases
1) Rice Blust (Pyricularia oryzae)
-It is a fungal panthogen
-The disease is common in Nkhata Bay
-It produces so may pathogenic races which tend to differ in terms of varieties
-It can best be controlled by planting resistant varieties

2) Brown Spot (Helminthosporium oryzae)

-Commonly found in soils suffering from K in balances, saline soils and low fertile soils.-
excess shading aggravate the disease as intercropping rice in rice is not recommended

Other diseases include;

-Sheath Blight
-Bacterial Blight
-Bacterial streak.

All the above disease can be controlled by;

-Planting resistant varieties
-Applying fungicides and bactericides
-Rotation and hygiene

HARVESTING & THRESHING

Rice is harvested when the ear is nearly ripe and the straw is still slightly green. This
stage is reached in early and late maturing cultivars normally at 4 and 6 weeks after
flowering respectively. This is the time when the moisture content of the grain is about
18-25%.

Harvesting is done by hand using a serrated sickle. You may the whole plant or just the
heads together with the straw. Leave them in the field for 3-4days for further drying.

41
Threshing is done by beating the plant against the hard floor or surface. Machines like
foot-operated pedal thresher or operated drum type thresher are used for time saving
especially in large scale production.

After threshing, winnowing is done to separate the grains from the husks and chaff. With
a combine harvester, harvesting (cutting), threshing, winnowing and bagging are done in
a single operation after which the grains are dried to 12.5-130% M.C in a dryer.

(f) Brown Stem Rot

-caused by soil inhabiting fungus Cephalosporium gregatum that
decays the interior of the stem.
-it attacks the plant early in the season but symptoms are seen later in
the year.
-the diseased plant will show reddish brown colour in the centre of the
stem.
-can best be controlled through rotation.

(g) Stem Canker

-caused by seed borne fungus Diaporthe phaseolorum.
-it girdles the stem and kills the plant.
-brown lesions are found at the base of a branch or leaf petiole
-control by planting resistant varieties

8. Harvesting
The crop is mature when pods have turned brown or gray depending on variety.
Harvesting should be done when leaves of the crop have fallen off and pods rattle when
shaken. This is normally from April to late May. Late harvesting increases shattering as
well as splitting of the over-dried beans in threshing. After harvesting, winnow and
remove all immature and broken grain so that the crop is clean, and free of trash.

9. Storage
Soybeans should be stored in a cool and dry place for not more than nine months. It
normally looses viability if stored for a longer period.

PAPRIKA PRODUCTION

42
Botanical name: Capsicum annuum

INTRODUCTION
Paprika (Capsicum annuum) was first introduced in Malawi in 1994 to Press Agriculture
for easy production technology. Very few farmers took up the challenge to grow. By
1996 the number of farmers was slightly over 100. By 2002 the number of farmers was
over 60, 000.

Paprika is a pepper in a group of spices and herbs. According to botanical classification

paprika belongs to a family called Solanaecae. Solanaeceaous plants include tomatoes,
tobacco, brinjals, eggplants, irish potatoes, Nicandra physallodes (a weed), gooseberry,
etc.

Paprika is a Hungarian word for sweet pepper and the name has been adopted by many
languages. Paprika grows on a shrub that is a native to South America. The color and
flavor vary depending both on the type of paprika used and whether only the flesh is
used, or the flesh, stem, core and seeds. The more seeds present when the paprika is
ground, the sharper it becomes. It has however become known that it is an excellent food
colorant.

In Africa the crop is produced in Malawi, Zimbabwe, South Africa and Morocco. On
world scale it is produced in Israel, Peru, Spain and United States of America. Zimbabwe
produces more than 20% of the world’s production. Malawi produces about 0.8%. The
biggest importer is Spain and it follows all recommended standards. The biggest
consumer is USA.

Soil and Rainfall Requirements

Paprika does well in sandy loam soils. Sandy loam soils are rich in humus that is they
contain some nitrogen in it; therefore the farmer will need just to top up with fertilizers in
order to meet the requirements. Since the soils are readily available the crop does well in
most parts of the country. Rainfall required for paprika is within the ranges of 900 to
1500 mm in Malawi. But it grows over a wide range of rainfall ranges (650 to 1500 mm)
as it also grows well in Chitipa.

Difference of Paprika to Pepper

 Paprika is sweet (non pungent).
 Paprika is red.

Why Paprika is an important crop

 The color that is contained in the paprika is measured in units called ASTA
(American Spice Trade Association) which is an analytical procedure used to
measure the density of color. ASTA is determined by;
1. Variety
2. Maturity of crop
3. Nutritional status of the crop (that is, P, K, Ca, Mg, etc)

43
 4. Storage procedures
5. Disease incidences
6. Temperatures (A crop that matures late when temperatures are low does
not mature well.)

Paprika is ground to very fine particles, mixed with acetone and the mixture is put
into a shaker for 18 hours. After shaking the mixture is left to stand for some hours so
that it settles. The suspension is put on a Photospectrometer where light penetrates
into the liquid that has settled. The color which is absorbed is metered and the reading
is thus in ASTA. In Malawi the average is 260 ASTA while in Zimbabwe the average
is 370 ASTA. Zimbabwe paprika has more ASTA.

 Paprika is nontoxic. Toxicity can come from chemicals that are used to kill pests and
diseases especially if the crop is harvested before the safe period. It can also come
from moulding (chuku) which attacks the paprika due to inadequate drying and poor
post harvest handling.

Uses of Paprika
1. Color is extracted through a process that gives Oleoresin, a precious oil that is very
expensive. The extraction is a very long process. Oleoresin is used in the food
manufacturing industries.
2. It is ground into a powder that is used for table use (to garnish food whilst cooking or
on the table).
3. Paprika has a lot of Vitamin C, that is, it is used in manufacturing livestock feed so
that when the Oleoresin is absorbed the animal fresh becomes red when cooking.
Seeds are also eaten raw by livestock.
4. It is also used in pharmaceutical industries.
5. Etc.

Varieties of Paprika
The majority of the varieties that are grown are sweet and develops a high color content.
Both the flavor and the color depends on variety, the availability of sufficient water and
nutrients and the temperature. The most common variety of paprika grown is CPS 133.

Challenges faced in the Paprika Industry

1. Malawi is still undergoing primitive farming systems characterized by organizations
who are still working with smallholder farmers who are resource poor; therefore they
do not have sufficient inputs and no food for themselves. In Zimbabwe, a paprika
farmer makes more money than a tobacco farmer.

2. Pest and disease problem. In most areas, paprika is grown where tobacco is also
grown; and considering that they both host the same pests and diseases, paprika crop
suffers most.

3. Inadequate research has been done in Malawi for the crop; therefore, there are no
varieties that can tolerate diseases and pests.

44
4. Inadequate extension services to farmers who grow paprika. Only a few officers
know the technical know-how on the crop. Therefore these few officers cannot reach
to all farmers.

5. Lack of reliable markets for the crop.

NURSERY MANAGEMENT
1. Site selection and preparation.
For 1 hectare of paprika, 5 beds of 1 m by 30 m (30 m2) are needed. Clear the land
and till. Break the clods. Construct beds 30 m long and 1 m wide. Water the beds,
after 2 weeks fumigate. Fumigate by heaping maize stalks 1 m. Burn the stalks; start
burning against the wind direction so that the heat should go down into the soils so
that all pathogens are killed. Wait for two days after burning in order for the soils to
cool down. Rake and apply fertilizers at the rate of 2 to 3 kgs per 30 m2 (1 bed). Drill
furrows of 5 cm apart.

2. Sowing
Sow one seed/station at 2.5 cm between planting stations. The planting depth should
be 1.25 cm (or half the diameter of a coca-cola bottle top). The amount of seed
required for a half acre is 250 grams. Do not grow paprika from seed you kept from
last year. This is because the seed sold by Cheetah is sterilized and pre-treated with
chemicals to prevent diseases.

First Week
3. Mulching
Mulch using pine-needles, saw dust, kamsichi grass, etc. This should be done before
we start watering.

4. Watering
Water three times a day giving attention to the type of soils in that respective garden.
In light soils, water retention capacity is low unlike in heavier soils.

5. Germination
In eleven days time, at least 90% are supposed to germinate. Germination starts at 5
days period.

Second Week
During the second week, water 3 times a day to enhance growth of the germinated
seedling.

Third Week
Remove mulch in the third week. If temperatures are moderate one can remove mulch at
once but if it is in low areas (hot areas), the mulch should be removed little by little and
finish by end of the third week.

45
Fourth Week
Start hardening off by watering once a day. Avoid watering during noon hours because
the steam from the first watering might scotch the young plants and as such can be a
source of infection. Water in the mornings because the time when photosynthesis takes
place is during the day, and the water plays an important part.

Week Five and Six

Do not water in the nursery. Hardening off is extremely important because:-
 Roots do not grow deeper thus good for out planting.
 For the plant to produce more lateral roots in search of water; which is advantageous
to the field as all roots help the plant to establish fast.
 It familiarizes the plant with field conditions.
 A well-hardened root has well-established stomata for evapotranspiration and
diffusion of Carbon dioxide into the leaf.

Transplant after 6 weeks. Therefore it is important to know the rainfall history/pattern in

the area in order to know when to sow in the nursery. Transplant within 2 hours because a
paprika plant looses water quickly. To be done late in the afternoon especially if it is
showering. Transport seedlings in a horizontal position to prevent J-rooting.

PEST AND DISEASE CONTROL

A farmer should practice preventative control measures. Spray seedlings against pests
and diseases in Week 3. The seed from Cheetah Malawi is sprayed with chemicals which
control the seed for 2 weeks. Therefore the farmer should start spraying in Week 3.

For diseases:-
 Copper oxychloride against all bacterial diseases at 25 g per 10 litres of water. Spray
every other week.
 Dithane (M45) against all fungal diseases (chuku) at 15 g per 10 litres of water. Spray
every other week.

A farmer can mix Copper oxychloride and Dithane to prevent both diseases. When the
chemicals are mixed, they should be sprayed every other week (skip one week).

For pests:-
 Decistab – mix 1 tablet in 10 litres of water and spray after every two weeks; the
chemical works for 14 days.
 Karate can also be sprayed (following instructions on the label).
 Confidol protects plants termites for 6 weeks. The problem is that Confidol is very
expensive (1 litre costs about $150.00).

Too much watering causes Damping off disease.

46
How to know if Paprika is ready for harvesting
1. The plant should be 15 cm to 20 cm tall.
2. Should have pencil thickness.
3. Should have 10 to 15 leaves.
4. Roots should be 7.5 to 10 cm long.

If the seedlings are thin with spindly stems, it is because of overcrowding in nursery. If
stems are spindly it means water holding capacity is low.

OUT PLANTING
Site selection and planting
1. Consider history of the land in terms of crop rotation; always grow paprika on land
that has stayed 3 years or over after another Solanaenae crop. Do not grow paprika
close to chillies to prevent cross pollination and thus the paprika will inherit the chilli
pungency.

2. For every hectare, there are 70, 000 to 74, 000 plants of paprika. In order to know the
size of land where the paprika seedlings shall be transplanted, count nursery seedlings
to get a rough idea on the size of the field.

3. Prepare land 2 weeks before transplanting.

4. Ensure that the land is cultivated to a depth of 25 cm. Make ridges 25 cm high and 90
to 100 cm between ridges. Therefore the cultivated depth plus the ridge will be 50
cm, refer to drawing below (from the ground level; 25 cm going down and 25 cm
going upwards).

Note that the distance between ridges is more so that the farmer should be moving
freely in the field so as to prevent plant defoliation.

ridge
25cm
ground level

25 cm

5. When the seedlings are ready for transplanting, select the seedlings with the
following criteria:-
a. Plant height
b. Healthiness of the plant.
c. Number of leaves the plant has. If it has few or no leaves it will take time to
establish because it cannot evapotranspire. Therefore it is necessary to
transplant seedlings that have more leaves (10 to 15 leaves).

47
 Plant selection helps the farmer to plant good seedlings only. The farmer should
leave all diseased seedlings at the nursery.
6. Plant paprika seedlings at 15 cm apart between planting stations.
If ridges are broad, plant two rows per ridge. This system has problems in that when the
plants are overcrowded, diseases are a menace because when spraying the chemicals do
not reach all areas especially where branches are tangled. The most common problems
are fungal ones. It is thus recommended to plant one row. If the farmer is practicing
mechanized farming, two rows per ridge can be planted. Plant at 7.5 to 10 cm deep so
that the tap root is free in the soil thus avoiding the bent or J-root.

Problems if tap root is bent (J-rooting)

1. If roots have clusters where they bend when the plant is in fruit, it lodges because it
has insufficient anchorage.
2. When there is drought or no water the plant becomes under stress due to the bent root
that does not suck water; and this results in wilting.
3. When the root points upwards it becomes unable to use the fertilizer fully hence this
affects production since the fertilizers accumulate at the bend.
4. Affects food transportation and thus no plant development.
J-rooting can contribute 40% to 60% of yield loses.

FERTILIZER
Apply the fertilizer between planting stations. D Compund is the recommended fertilizer
because of the NPK composition.
Nitrogen is good for:-
 Green leaf manufacturing
 Branching of the plant because at every branch it flowers.
 Maintaining flowers on the plant (prevents falling off of flowers).
 For growth of the plant (vegetative).
Phosphorus is good for:-
 Helps in branching (less P few branches).
 Root growth enhancement; less Phosphorus, few branches.
Potassium is good for:-
 Strong stems.
 Enhancement of vigorous leaves (thick).
 Enhancement of paprika quality (fruit maturity,
 Fertilization (pollination).
 Prevents flower abortion.
D Compound is important because of the Potassium. If D Compound is not available, a
farmer can apply 23:21:0: + 4S because it might happen that the soil has Potassium in
sufficient amounts. Potassium regulates the uptake of nutrients in the soils because the
osmoregulatory factor of the crop is Potassium. Potassium plays a big role in the
regulation of opening and closing of the stomata in leaves. It (Potassium) plays a bigger
role even when it is available in small quantities.
Rate of Fertilizer Application
Apply 400 kilograms (8 bags) of D Compound per hectare using cup # 8 between
planting stations. Apply within the first 3 days in order to give the plant a boost and to

48
establish and organize the structure of the plant with the Potassium. If you apply late the
plant is slow to catch up which results into flower abortion.
Paprika gives about 5 flashes of flowers.

FIELD CROP MANAGEMENT

Fertilizer Application
When transplanting apply Basal Dressing with D Compound fertilizer. For Top Dressing
consider the following nutrients which are also important:-
Nitrogen
 When plants are growing its demand is high because of green leaf color, for
photosynthesis.
 For root growth.
Amount needed per hectare is 180 kilograms (for both Basal and Top Dressing).
CAN or UREA = 4 bags per hectare. Use cup # 5. The 4 bags should be applied in the
second week (top dressing) because demand is very high. It also determines the number
of flowers to be produced by the plant.
D Compound = 8 bags per hectare

Commercial farmers should also apply 50 to 100 kgs of Potash. Uses of Potash include:-
 Prevents plants from lodging.
 Prevents plants from being tolerant to diseases.
Where Boron is deficient, apply 300 grams of Boron per year per hectare. Apply 100
grams in Week 6, 100 grams in Week 10 and the last 100 grams in Week 13. Lucky
enough, soils in Malawi are rich in Boron. If Boron is more than the quantities required
or if a farmer applies more, soils become toxic. When applying Boron mix in sprayers.
Mix one sprayer of water with 20 grams of Boron per time.

Paprika also does well with organic fertilizers especially manure. Apply manure during
land preparation. Apply in furrows and bury when making ridges. When a farmer uses
fertilizer, he is advised to only apply Top Dressing fertilizer. Paprika can be a biannual
crop especially in irrigated fields.
Supplying
Supplying should be done within 3 days after transplanting. If a farmer waits for too long
the moisture might not be there and crop establishment is delayed especially when
undergoing ‘transplanting shock’. It is therefore better to supply early.

Weeding
A farmer can lose up to 60% of the yield if not weeded. Competitors of most crops in
Malawi are the grasses. Tsekera can have up to 15 km of total length of all roots. So
underground competition is high. Tsekera will have more advantages on nutrients unlike
paprika.

Banking
Banking (also called re-ridging) provides more anchorage to the plant. Importance of
banking include:-

49
 If our seedlings are of the ‘palm tree type,’ that is where stems and root system are
not good the plant needs more support to protect it from lodging. If the plant lodges,
fruits touch the ground. Fruits will not have sufficient coverage of leaves and they
thus scotched by the sun and one side is affected. When rains come, the splashes are
thrown back to the fruits and they leave pathogens thus causing diseases. Therefore
all fruits touching the ground should be removed.

Staking
Ensure that the farmer uses termite resistant materials for staking. ‘Palm tree’ seedlings
should be staked. Stake where plants are lodging using horizontal and vertical stakes.

If fruits are on the ground, before staking, unbury them so that they hang up.

CROP PROTECTION
The basis of crop protection is the use of good seed, transplanting healthy seedlings and
practicing crop rotation.

a) PESTS
Use the following the pesticides:-
 Decistab – 1 tablet/10 litres of water. It controls thrips, aphids, red spider mite, etc.
 Sevin, Cypermethrin – check application rates on labels.
 Karate – 18 ml/10 liters of water.
It is better to rotate the chemicals used because not all chemicals can remove all the pests;
the rotation will assist to get rid of most of the pests. Apply pesticides every 14 days.

Control of Aphids
 Use healthy seed.
 Spraying aphidicides.
 Do not plant close to where plants that are alternate hosts to aphids, thrips, etc. For
instance, sorghum hosts aphids, therefore inter-planting with sorghum will enhance
aphid infestation on paprika (minimize crop inter-planting with plants that are hosts).
 Plant paprika early. Most farmers plant paprika after planting all other crops; hence
the paprika becomes a best crop for aphids.

b) DISEASES
Paprika is prone to more diseases; that is, the same diseases that attack tomatoes, tobacco,
brinjals, etc. Three types of diseases attack paprika crop; and these are Bacterial, Fungal
and Viral diseases. Aphids cause viral diseases; therefore, it is good to get rid of aphids
so that the field crop is protected against viral diseases.

Spray after every 14 days the following:-

 Copper oxychloride at the rate of 25 g/10 litres of water (25 g is equivalent to 2 match
boxes).
 Dithane at the rate of 15 g/10 litres of water (15 g is equivalent to 1 match box).
Dithane and Copper oxychloride can be used together or one chemical on its own.
Copper oxychloride protects mainly Bacterial problems (spots or Blight). Dithane works

50
on fungal problems. If a farmer uses incorrect measurements (more chemicals) there will
be wastage.

When spraying ensure that a pressure or mist is created that will make the chemical to
stick to the leaves. Therefore it is important to use a sprayer. Most farmers use a broom
(tsache or cheyo) for spraying which a waste because the chemical slides down the leaves
instead of sticking to the leaves. It is therefore better for a farmer not to spray than to use
a broom. The recommended time for spraying is not in the morning hours because of
dew. Spray when there is no dew as the dew sticks to our clothes and thus can assist in
spreading pathogens.

When crops are growing, the canopy grows hence the coverage increases also. Therefore
there is need to spray underneath the leaves. Speed and coverage when spraying should
also be considered. When a farmer moves very fast the coverage is large and the chemical
is thus not enough to work as required. When the farmer moves slowly the area covered
will be small, thus the chemical will be concentrated on one area.

Paprika is mostly attacked by the following diseases:-

BACTERIAL DISEASES
Bacterial diseases appear early in paprika crop production.

1. Bacterial Spot (Chiwawu)

Affect all above ground parts of the paprika plant but does not affect the pod unless
sucking insects have been a problem. It appears on the lower leaves but it spreads to
upper leaves. At first leaves have circular to irregular water soaked areas 1/8 to 1/4 inch in
diameter. These spots later turn brown and the center leaf turns yellow or brown and
drops. Brownish areas appear on stems of pods that cause the pod to drop and rot on the
ground. The disease may not be noticed until plants start producing pods when extensive
rains occur. Severe cases lead to defoliation. Effects of defoliation include:-
 No flower production if leaves fall off.
 No branching.
 Fruit abortion.
 Sun scalding for fruits remaining on the plant as the sun heats directly to the
fruit.
 Poor coloration – fruits do not have a good color at the end.
At a later stage Bacterial Spot appears on the stems and branches. Complications of
Bacterial Spot is that when it appears on green fruits for a long time it leads to Bacterial
Soft Rot. If a farmer is not controlling the spread of Bacterial Spot it leads to Bacterial
Soft Rot.

Control
a. Purchase good quality seed only.
b. Treat seed with household bleach (Jik, etc)using 1 part to 4 parts of water. Use 1
gallon of the solution per pound of seed. Wash seed in the solution and when it
becomes dirty, prepare a new solution. After washing the seed, spread it to air dry

51
 promptly. Seed can then be treated with Captan or Thiran to control seed rots and
seedling diseases. For green house transplants only, apply Streptomycin at 200
ppm when the first true leaves appear; continue spraying every 4 to 5 days until
transplanting.
c. If the disease organism threatens to spread in the field, spray with Copper
oxychloride or Copper hydroxide using label instructions. Use a sticker spreader
with the copper fungicide. Additions of Mancozeb fungicide to the Copper
fungicide may give improved results. Good spray coverage of plants is essential
by ground equipment. Fungicides can be applied in overhead sprinkler systems.
The overhead system must have a metering device to dispense the fungicide, and
controls that prevent the chemicals from entering into the ground water.
d. Keep workers out of the field when plants are wet.
e. Practice crop rotation. Plant peppers no more often than once in three years in the
same field.

2. Bacterial Soft Rot

Pods that have a soft, watery appearance are nearly always caused by the bacterial soft rot
organism (Erwinia carotovora). It frequently occurs after the bacterial spot organism has
invaded the stem (peduncle) of the fruit. Heavy fruit drop in the field is common.

Field losses can be minimized by controlling bacterial spot and insects. Poor harvest
decay can be controlled by picking pods when they are almost dry. Washing may
increase the incidence of rot but losses can be reduced by chlorination of the wash water.

3. Leaf Sun Scald

Terminal leaves that have a bleached appearance and die quickly are the typical
symptoms of Sun scald. Only the terminal leaves exposed to direct sun rays on one side
of the plant are affected. Sun Scald is often misdiagnosed as spray burn caused by various
chemicals.

FUNGAL DISEASES
Fungal diseases appear late in paprika crop production.
1. Cercospora Leaf Spot (Frog-eye)
This is one of the most common diseases of Paprika. Symptoms include:-
 Circular with white patches like frogs eye.
 Leads to severe defoliation which has effects just like those of Bacterial Spot.
 Sometimes Cercospora is caused by more than one agent.

2. Phytophthora Root Rot (Phytophthora capsici)

Phytophthora Root Rot is caused by a soil borne fungus (mould) that spreads rapidly
when the humidity and temperatures are high and the soil is wet. It causes wilting (and
withering) of the plant. The fungus grows mainly on the roots and eventually causes them
to rot. When the disease is severe, the fungus may attack main stems and branches,
causing brown or black spot which eventually kills that portion of the plant.

52
A farmer can prevent this disease by growing plants on the ridge, thus avoiding excess
water. Do not allow the water to stand in the furrows for more than six hours. Provide
drainage at the lower end of the field. The fungus may also invade pods which cause
them to shrivel and rot.

3. Phytophthora Pod Rot

The same fungus that causes Phytophthora Root Rot is responsible for Phytophthora Pod
Rot. The pods infected shrivel and rot. A white mould can often be found inside the pod
when it is broken open. The disease can become severe following periods of heavy
rainfall and high humidity, especially when plants are crowded or over fertilized with
nitrogen.
Control
By using same practices used to control Phytophthora Root Rot.

VIRUSES
Paprika may have numerous viruses depending on the location. They include Pepper
Mottle Virus, Tobacco Etch Virus, Alfalfa Mosaic Virus, Tobacco Mosaic Virus, Tomato
Spotted Wilt Virus and others. Viruses generally cause distorted, off colored leaves.
Some viruses can be controlled by eliminating nearby host plants. Tobacco Mosaic Virus
is a potential problem where workers use tobacco. Viruses are carried by various insects,
however, good insect control will not control viruses.

1. Pepper Mottle Virus

This aphid-transmitted virus is common in fields whenever peppers are grown. The virus
causes misshapen (twisted) leaves that become quite puckered (bending of leaf edges in a
cuplike way). The leaves also have light and dark patches that give them a mottled
appearance; and hence do not produce food/nutrients (do not photosynthesize). Thus
causing stunted growth. The fruit is misshapen and smaller than normal. It also causes
stunting of plants and yield reduction.

The virus dies within the plant when the plant dies; however, the virus survives in the
roots of perennial, solanaeceous weeds such as Datura spp.

2. Alfalfa Mosaic Virus

As the name implies, this virus is also found in alfalfa fields. It is spread to pepper plants
by aphids. This virus causes mild stunting and whitish, blotchy leaves, and is often
referred to as Calico Virus. The leaves are very green and small because the plant fails to
photosynthesize; therefore, it cannot make more food to support;
 Growth of fruits
 Production of flowers
 Growth of the plant
The virus may cause distorted fruits. It is only a problem when peppers are planted in a
field where alfalfa plants were grown in the field, or when peppers are planted next to an
alfalfa field. Aphids carry the virus from infected alfalfa plants to peppers.

53
Control
No controls are known, other than planting away from alfalfa fields.

3. Cucumber Mosaic Virus

Symptoms of this virus disease included elongated, narrow leaves, stunting and reduced
yield. The disease is often misdiagnosed as 2,4-D injury because of the elongated leaves.
The virus is carried by aphids, and is spread to pepper fields by aphids that have fed on
virus-infected perennial plants commonly grown around homes. There is no practical
control for this disease other than to avoid planting near urban areas.

HARVESTING
Harvesting if not done properly e.g. not timely, reduces color content and thus affect
market. When harvesting use baskets, polythene bags but not plastic sheets or bags. For a
mature green pod to turn to dark maroon color (the required color), it takes about 2
months.

When To Harvest
1. Ensure that the matured pod has withered completely with moisture content of less
than 12%. It should wither in away that when you touch the pod it should wither in a
way that when you touch the pod it should be as if there is nothing inside.
2. The color must be red wine to maroon (Even after harvesting color changes continue).
3. The pod should not feel fleshy. It should look as if there is nothing inside
(chiphwafu).
4. If you wrap the pod around your finger, it should not break or snap. (If it breaks or
snaps, it is not ready).
5. If you feel it, it should feel like leather. After squeezing it in the hands, it should
retain its original shape (mukakwinya mmanja, chidzibwerera).

What to do with harvested pods

1. Selection
Selection should start from the field . Some pods are diseased, some unclean while some
have color differences. Therefore farmers should select in a proper way during
harvesting. This will ease grading.

2. Washing
After selection, the farmers should wash all pods which are not clean. Unclean pods
include those that are soiled, or with chemical residues (Copper oxychloride normally is
visible even after harvesting). A farmer should use one tea cup ( a normal size) Jik or
Chlorine in 200 liters of water. Leave pods in the water for 2 minutes (because the pods
are waxy). Start washing the pods that are not diseased and finish with the diseased ones.
This prevents other diseases e.g. Anthracnose also appear even in stored paprika. Change
water if it becomes dirty.

Do not wash destalked pods. If you wash diseased pods ensure that drying is done
properly, otherwise the pods rot (due to insufficient drying).

54
3. Destalking
This is the removal of stalks (that attach to the pod) from the pods.

4. Drying
Dry paprika on drying racks. Dry according to what you have selected to ease grading.
Racks enhance air circulation as air assists in drying. If dried on mats chicken droppings
might contaminate the paprika and they can bring problems of Salmonella and aflatoxins,
thus making the paprika toxic.

Avoid sand and dust on paprika. Put up one or two layers only on a rack. If the number of
layers is increased rotting may occur. If the paprika is dried on a grass roof of a house, it
can have grass or trash in it which is also not recommended.

Cover racks of paprika with a plastic sheet to avoid rains at night and also to prevent any
contamination. Most farmers remove the paprika at night in fear of thieves. Racks should
be 1.5 m high from the ground. It takes 3 to 5 days on racks to dry completely especially
for the deseeded pods. It is advisable to face the split pods upwards (to the sun). I acre of
paprika requires 3 racks of 50 m by 1.5 m and 1.5 m high. This ensures comfort in drying
without putting more than 1 layer on the rack.

Signs of Dryness
 Moisture content should be about 8% by feeling.
 Paprika should crackle when shaken (produce a crackling sound).

5. Packing
Once the paprika is dried, it should never get into contact with water again. Paprika is
hydroscopic thus it draws more water especially in humid areas. Pack paprika in
polypopylene bags.
Pack graded paprika separately according to grades. Compact the bags so that no air
circulates as well as no light passes through because by doing so it will lose color.
Paprika loses 4% of its color every month thus lowering its grade. Keep the bags on a
dry, dark place on a rack (chiphaka) to avoid moisture from the ground. If the farmer is
using hessian bags, he should also use tobacco paper to avoid contaminating the paprika
with the hessian threads.

Take note that that 100 kilograms of non-deseeded paprika makes about 30 kilograms of
seed.

6. Grading
Grading should start when the farmer is harvesting his/her crop. The crop should be
graded again after drying before packing.

Cheetah Malawi has the following grades for both deseeded and non-deseeded paprika as
well as for the paprika seed:-

55
 A - dark maroon color; as it is assumed it is high in color value; disease free,
thick skin (wokhuthala) and oily. Should not see the sun through the pod.
B -maroon color, disease free, thick and oily skin. Color is the only
difference with Grade A. these color differences come about because of
harvesting mishaps.
C -dark red paprika, no diseases and the skin is not thick but thin.
D -red color, 15% of disease spots with thin skin. Not more than 15 % of
diseases.
S1 - for clean seed.
S2 - for dirty seed which is not rotten.
Grades S1 and S2 are for seeds, while Grades A to D are for paprika pods.
Pods that are damaged (broken) but meets the other requirements should be put into the
required grades.

MARKETING
Cheetah Malawi is currently the main buyer of paprika in Malawi. Marketing will thus
be based on what Cheetah. Spain is the main buyer but RSA also buys. There are
standards which should be met by Cheetah when exporting paprika.

Every farmer puts her/his registration number on the bales; when one wishes he/she may
put his/her name. The name helps especially if the number is not written properly because
the name can assist to identify the farmer.

COTTON PRODUCTION

Generic name : Gossypium

Species : G. hirsutum
G. barbadense

56
 G. arboreum
G. herbaceum.

Introduction
Cotton is one of the most important vegetable fibres used for may purposes but the major
one being for making textiles use for the manufacturing of large proportion of man’s
clothing. In early times, cotton was the principal fabric in India and some parts of the
world.

Origin and Distribution.

The various species of Gossypium have originated in different centres.
Gossypium barbadense is said to have originated Brazil. This is most commonly grown
specie and is often known as G. barbadense var. brazileae. In Malawi it is grown wild and
is called Thonje Manga.

G. Arboreum originated in India. In Malawi the G. arboretum var. indicum was

discovered in 1860s and is believed to have extinct. Locally it was known as Thonje
Kaja.

G. hirsutum is believed to have originated in southern Mexico and the commonly grown
is G. hirsutum var. latifolium. In Malawi it is grown in some parts of Ntcheu.

G. herbaceum was in South Africa. It is bushy perennial and common ancestor for the
diploid cultivated cotton. The commonly grown specie is G. herbaceum var. African.

National aims
As a national aim, there is need to increase production and improve quality to meet local
demand and then export any surpluses. Average seed cotton yield range from 700 to
800kg per hectare. However, with good management, yields of between 2500 to 3000kg
per hectare can be realised. There is need therefore to improve production towards
potential levels.

Ecological requirements.
Altitude
It grows well up to 1200m above sea level. Most cotton varieties however will show their
yield potential 60-80m above sea level.

Temperature
Cotton is a photoperiodic sensitive crop. In low temperatures, there is increased
vegetative growth with less fibre. This extends the maturity duration. On the other hand,
high temperatures increase fruit branches and hastens maturity. That is why in areas
around lakeshore it matures within 145days and in upper areas it may go up to 175days.

Rainfall
The crop requires 28days of frost free period. The crop is capable of growing in low
moisture conditions and as such rainfall of between 600-700mm is adequate.

57
Soils
The soils should be well drained and free from lodging. Heavy clays are not suitable
since they are impervious and cause ponding. Shallow soils are not suitable as well since
they don’t return moisture. The soils should have pH range of 7-8.

Botanical characteristics
Cotton is a weak perennial plant but it is grown as annual plant to prevent diseases and
pests. Vegetative buds and reproductive buds are produced at the same time.

Roots
It has a tap root system which can grow up to 2.4m deep. After emergence elongation of
roots is faster than stem and this may continue to about 3-6days. Later on lateral roots
may develop from the tap root.

Stems
In this crop there is what is referred to as dimorphic branching
a) Monopidia (vegetative branches). One or more may develop from the base of the
tree which may bear secondary sympodia
b) Sympodia (fruiting branches): these develop from the stem.

Leaves
They are palmately lobed with 3-5 lobes with a long petiole. Leaves are hairy underneath
making it resistant to jassid.

Flowers
They are self pollinated. The petals (corolla) are white the first day and then turn pink
and eventually shed to reveal the young boll. There are 5 petals and 5 calyx on each
flower.

Bolls
4 to 5 locules or chambers or capsules with 9-10 seeds in each capsule.
Lint grows on seed. Each lint is a single cell which elongates for about 18 days from
opening of flower and form a fibre. The fibre thickens about 3weeks later.

he most common producing areas of cotton in Malawi include; Shire Valley, Phalombe
plain, Zomba West, Machinga, Mangochi west, Bwanje valley, lakeshore areas of Dedza,
Salima, Nkhotakota, Karonga, Henga valley and Rumphi.

Field management

Land preparation
Practice deep ploughing to break the soil pan. This must be done before planting. There is
need to prepare land early to facilitate early planting.

58
Ridges should be made at 90cm apart and construct box ridges at every 3.6m to hold the
first rains

Planting
Plant 8-10 seeds per station spaced at 60cm. For mechanical planting 3-5seeds are used at
a spacing of 20-30cm.

Deadline for planting is 7th January except in Karonga where it may continue up to end
January. Upland cotton should be planted earlier to enable the crop mature before cold
season which causes an increase in boll drop.
The required seedrate is 22-28kg/hectare non linted and 15-20kg/hectare delinted.

Supplying & Thinning

Supply should be done 2-3days after emergence. Once the plants have attained 4 true-
leaves (15-21cm high) then thinning will be necessary and leave 3 plants per station.
Make sure the conditions are not too dry.

Weeding
Weed early and where necessary. Banking may not be necessary except where rains have
seriously reduced the ridges.

Fertilizer Application.
Basic fertilizers apply 100-150 kg of 23 : 21 : 0 + 4S three- fourth after emergence. This
should be followed by 100kg S/A after three weeks. However it is recommended that
Nitrogen fertilizers should be applied during flowering when the crop respond positively
to nitrogen up-take.

Boron should be applied particularly in areas where there boron deficiency. Apply at the
rate of 0.6kg/ha using 71g of product in 13.5litres of spray mix and spray with the first 6
sprayings.

Pests and Diseases control.

Pests
General Spraying
This exercise normally starts as soon as thinning is completed and when the level of pest
attack justifies the spraying.

Spray weekly up until 3-5 bolls have opened and thereafter spray when necessary.

Scouting (assessment of the insect attack)

Purpose: to determine the period when spraying should having assessed the occurrence of
the pets.

Scouting Techniques
Boll worm egg counting:- inspect 24 plants at equal intervals selected at diagonals of the
field

59
General scouting :- inspect 24 plants random while making a zig-zag tour of the garden.
Inspect damage and the actual insects themselves.

The most common are Bacterial blight, boll rot and Angular leaf spot
Control by:
 Using resistant varieties
 Use certified seed
 Crop rotation
 Early planting
 Burning of residues after harvesting

Harvesting
When 3-5 bolls have opened on most plants. Picking is a continous process every 10-
14days
Pick a grade at a time to serve time when doing the final grading.

Cassava Production

Scientific name(s) Manihot asculenta

Manihot utilissima

60
Other names Manioc, mandioca, yuca, tapioca, m’bedu and sagu.

Origin
Cassava is believed to have originated in Central America. It was introduced to Malawi
by the Portuguese traders in around 16th and 17th century.

National Aims
The average national yields range from 2000kg to 3000kg dry weight per hectare.
However, the government policy is to increase production towards potential yields of
6000kg to 7000kg dry weight per hectare.

Botanical Characteristics
Cassava is a decidous, perennial herbaceous dicotyledonous plant. It is however
commonly grown as an annual crop.

Roots
It has fibrous roots which under ideal conditions will grow up to one-metre deep.
An average of 5-10 of these roots experience secondary thickening and become
tuberate. They stop functioning as normal roots.

Stems
Stem height varies between 1-4 metre depending on the variety. Under adverse
conditions, the internodes become shorter.

Leaves
It has lobed leaves with 5-9 lobes and long petiole of either green or red.

Flowers
Cassava has monoecious type of flowers. Female flowers become ready to receive
pollen before male flowers can start producing pollen. This makes it to be a cross-
pollinated plant.

Tubers
5-10 of the fully developed roots thicken due to increased deposition of starch i.e.
about 30% starch.
The tuber comprise of the following;
Periderm – a thin outer cork layer

Rind - an inner thick cortex which is underneath the periderm

Pith/core- a mass of parenchyma cells in which are embedded few xylem
strands and lactiferous tubes.

*Tubes are relatively rich in calcium and vitamin C (Ascorbic acid). A mature
tube may be of 15-100cm long with weight range of 0.5- 2kg.

61
Environmental Requirements
Altitude
It is a low altitude crop and does well below 1500m above sea level. It is mainly
concentrated around lakeshore areas.

Temperature
The crop requires temperature range of 25-29oC and should be free from frost.

Rainfall
Cassava grows well with as little rainfall as 500mm up 1500mm per year. More leaves
are shed during dry season or drought conditions to reduce water loss. This makes crop to
be drought tolerant.

Soil
It grows well in poor soils as long as Potassium (K) is available. Sandy, loam soils which
are free draining are the best since water logging in clay soils causes tuber rotting and
also reduces tuber development.

Excess Nitrogen (N) on the other hand is known to increase tuber bitterness despite being
a variety phenomenon as outlined below;

Sweet Cassava -it has low hydrocyanic/prussic acid but more cyanogenetic
glycoside (linamarmin) concentrated in the skin and cortex
of the tuber whereas as the pith (main storage region) is
free.

Bitter cassava -it has high hydrocynic acid content distributed throughout
the tuberous root. This can be destroyed through cassava
processing i.e. boiling, roasting fermentation etc. Such
type of cassava is usually grown because it give better
yields e.g. Gomani.

Common Varieties in Malawi

The recommended varieties include: -Chitembwere
-Gomani
-Manyokola (Mbundumali)
-Nyasungwi.

 Gomani - (bitter variety)

 -it takes 9-12 months to mature

 Chitembwere -(sweet variety

 -it takes 15-18 months to mature

62
  Manyokola & Nyasungwi -sweet varieties and takes 12-15 months to mature.

Field management
Planting material
It is recommended that the planting material should be free from pests and diseases.
Fresh cuttings should be used by first removing the base and the most tender top part.

Planting
Use cuttings of 20-30cm with at-least 5-8 nodes per each cutting. Space ridges at 90cm
apart but for water logging conditions, they should be spaced at 100-120cm.

If cassava is being produced for processing (bigger tubers), 90cm by 90cm is

recommended but for slender tubers, plant at 90cm by 45cm.

Cuttings should be placed vertically at an inclined angle to a depth of 15cm.

Fertilizer Application
Fertilizer may not be necessary for this crop except in exceedingly poor soils then apply
200kg of 23:21:0 + 4S when planting to be followed by 50kg Sulphate of Potash (K2SO4)
after 3 months.

Weeding
Continue weeding more especially the first 3 months up until the crop establishes full
canopy.

Cassava Pests & Diseases

Diseases
a) Cassava Mosaic Virus Disease (CMVD)
A major cassava disease and is commonly transmitted by whiteflies. It is
also spread by planting infected material.

Symptoms- light ,green yellow or white chlorolytic patches on leaves

followed by leaf distortion. The disease can reduce yields up to 90%.

Control- use clean planting material but where there is severe attack, spray
carbarlyl to control the vector.

b) Cassava Brown Streak Virus Disease (CBSVD)

63
 The disease is found countrywide but is pronounced in Karonga around
Kaporo Area.

Symptoms- there is yellow mottling of leaves particularly with a green

background leaf.

Control- planting disease free planting material. There is also need to

rogue all the plants having the symptoms of the disease

c) Bacterial Blight (Xanthomonas compostris)

There is wilting of the tips which eventually leads to dieback conditions as
its main symptom.

Control- plant disease free materials. Burn or burry all the infected
materials.

Pests
a) Cassava Mealy Bug (Phenacoccus manihot)
It is a flat, waxy mealy bug which can measure 3mm. The adult is white or
pink in colour

The pest is capable of causing serious damage on terminal shoot leading to

stunted growth, leg curls or death of the plant.

Prevention/control- biological control using wasps (Epidinacarsis lopez)

has proved successful. The wasps feed on the bugs. It can also be control
by planting early using (clean planting materials) so that the plant
establish tubers before dry season.

b) Cassava Green Spidermite (Mononychellus tanajo Bondar)

The pest is commonly found on buds, leaves and stems near the growing
point.
Infected leaves have yellow chlorotic spots and are stunted or deformed.
Usually they drop off.

Control- use clean planting materials but for severe attack, spray Rogor
(Dimethoate)

c) White flies (Bermisia Spp)

These have a sucking habit and often transmit cassava mosaic virus.
As a control, use clean planting material.

64
 d) Cassava Scales (Aonidomytillus albus)
These are sucking insect pests. Often they cause leaves to turn yellow and
defoliate.
Can best controlled by the use of clean planting material

Harvesting
Harvest once it matures by digging around the tubers or by uprooting where the soils are
soft. It should be known that delaying harvesting will enable the lignifying of tubers and
eventually become fibrous.

Sweet Potato Production

Botanical name: Impomoea batatas

65
Other names Mbatata, Chimungulu

The crop is widely grown as one of the food security crops. It is good source of vitamin
A and protein more especially its leaves.

The crop contains 70% water ( H2O), 27% carbohydrates (CHO), and about 3-6% sugar
and starch.

Origin
Sweet potato is said to have originated in Central America and its spread to Asia and
Africa is by the Portuguese Traders.

National Aims
The government aim is to improve production levels from the present 7,000-12,000kg per
hectare to 30,000kg per hectare.

Botanical characteristics
Sweet potato is perennial herb but often cultivated as an annual crop.

Stems
It has prostrate stems which are sometimes twinned and are light green to purple in
colour.

Leaves
Leaves are spirally arranged which are either simple or deeply lobed.

Tubers
Tubers are globular and smooth or ridged. The surface of the tuber may be white, yellow,
orange, red purple or brown. The flesh (inside) ranges from white, yellow, orange, red to
purple.

Flowers
The is either developed in single form or as clusters (cymes). The calyx is 5-lobed and
the corolla is funnel-shaped or tubular and petals are purple with pale margins.

Varieties
The recommended varieties so far include, Babache, Kenya, Kakoma, Lunyangwa,
Yoyela and Kamchiputu (Kajoni).

Environmental Requirements

66
Temperature
The crop is limited to hot, moist regions of the tropics and sub-tropics where average
temperatures are more than 190C. it requires a warm sunny climate since photoperiod of
less than 11hours induces flowering.

Altitude
It can successfully be grown in area as high as 2750m above sea level more especially in
the tropics.

Rainfall
Sweet potato grows even under residual moisture conditions so long as the soils are
moist. However well distributed rainfall in the range of 750-1250mm can give good
results.

Soil
It can grow in a wide range of soils so long the soils are not water logged. However, well-
drained sandy loam with pH of about 6.0 is more preferable. To achieve maximum
drainage, it is advisable to make ridges or mounds .

Field management

Planting
Planting using seedlings is not yet practical since seedlings tend to vary in performance
for different varieties. On the other hand tubers and tuber shoots is also a rare case in
tropical countries. Stem cuttings (vines) are therefore most recommended planting
material.

Cut the stems 25-30cm in length and should be from the terminal shoots since they
produce high yields as compared to those from basal or mid-stem cuttings.

Spacing
Ridges should be spaced at 90cm apart. Plant the potato vines at a space of 30cm between
stations and 15cm deep.

It can also be inter-planted with maize at a spacing of 30cm apart and 15cm from the
maize station as one way of maximising land productivity.

Pests and Diseases

Potato Insect Pests
a) Sweet Potato Weevil (Cylas formicarius)

67
 The weevil is very common during dry season. It causes the crop to produce bitter
and toxic substances not fit for consumption
Control- by practising crop rotation and planting resistant varieties.

b) Potato Tuber Moth (Agrius convolvuli)

Very common in soft tuber varieties like Kenya. The moth feed the epidermis of
the tuber thereby creating deep incisions on the tuber surface. These incisions are
the entry point for moisture and other pathogenic substances which eventually
cause rotting and poor quality tubers.

Control- it can be controlled by crop rotation and covering of any openings

created by mice or due to tuber enlargement in size.

Diseases

a) Sweet Potato Virus Disease (SPVD)

The main symptoms include mottled and curled leaves. The disease is transmitted
by aphids and whiteflies.

Control- use clean planting materials and resistant varieties like Yoyera, Babache,
Lunyangwa and Kakoma.

b) Soft rot (Rhizopus nigricans and R. stolonifer)

There soft watery storage rots which normally occur only on damaged tubers.

Control- avoid tuber damage when harvesting. Cure/treat tubers before storage
and destroy all the infected tubers.

c) Black rot (Ceratocystis fimbriata)

It affects the growing plants and stored tubers. Young plants turn yellow and the
underground stem blackens. There dark hollows formed on tubers which dry
shrivel.

Control- plant resistant varieties and follow crop rotation

Harvesting
Kenya, Kamchiputu and Kakoma should be harvested after 4 moths while Babache,
Yoyera and Lunyangwa after 5months.

Bean Production

Botanical name: Phaseolus vulgaris L.

Phaseoulus (legume vegetable)

68
 Vulgaris (common)

Common name: kidney beans

Family : Leguminoceae (Pulse family)

Common or field beans are in broad context interpreted to all field beans and kidney
beans of any colour, size or indeed shape. However bean is the most predominantly food
legume grown in the tropics and subtropics. It is mostly grown for its dry seeds and
immature edible pods (zitheba) and to a very rare case for green shelled beans.

Origin
The crop is said to have originated in the South America where it was being cultivated as
an intercrop to maize in what is referred to as cereal-legume farming system in much
similar way to associations of cowpeas with sorghum and millet in some parts of Africa.
The crop is now being grown in most cooler tropics except in hot semi-arid or wet humid
regions.

Botanical characteristics
Root system: it has fibrous root system with bacterial nodules where nitrogen fixation
takes place.

Stem: has short and branched stem which is hairy. The stem size is the one used in
differentiating dwarf from tall beans. The dwarf (dwarf) type grows to a height of 50-
60cm where as the tall (climbing) type may go up to 2-3m tall.

Leaf : the leaf develops into leaflets (3 of them) and they are of alternate arrangement.

Flower: flower type known as papilionaleous is typical for this crop. It has three forms of
petals, keel, wing and standard. The flower inflorescence occur at an axil. It is white,
pink or purple in colour.

Fruit: produces a legume fruit with yellow or purple pod. The seeds are kidney shaped
and of various colours i.e. green, yellow, black, red variegated e.t.c. the cross-section of
the pod may be flat, ovate or orbicular.

Ecological Requirements

Temperature: bean crop is a warm season crop with optimum growing temperature of
150C - 250C. High temperatures say, 300C will cause low yield.
Soil: sandy loam soil with good drainage is ideal for beans. It should have pH range of
5.3 – 6.3. Poor drainage soils cause root rotting diseases.

69
Rainfall: it requires rainfall amount of between 300 – 600mm per annum. Some small
amount of rain is required during flowering and pod setting stages. However there should
be dry weather conditions during harvesting, drying and threshing.

Varieties
The commonly cultivated varieties in Malawi include the following
Dwarf (Bush or determinate) type
 Nasaka – it is kidney shaped with tan seed coat-colour
 Bwenzilawana- is round shaped and yellow seed-coat colour
 Kamtsilo – blue seed coat and kidney shaped
 Saperekedwa / sapatsika – red seed-coat and kidney shaped

Climbing (Tall or indeterminate) type

 Kanzama – red seed-coat colour and round shaped
 Namajengo – red seed coat colour and kidney shaped

Semi-dwarf type
 Maluwa – round shaped with red and white patches
 Nagaga- Khaki colour and kidney shaped
 Nanyati- khakhi brown and kidney shaped

However there are some varieties which are grown by many farmers worldwide and
which have proved successful in some areas. Examples of such varieties include;
 Blue lake (tall type)- pods are 13-15cm long and 1-1.2cm wide. The pod is round
to oval with a medium green colour. The seed is white in colour and good for
processing i.e. freezing or canning.
 Black valentine (bush type)- pods are 16-17cm long and 1.0cm wide. Produces
oval pods, straight and dark green in colour. The seed is black but of high
yielding.
 Pencil-pod wax (bush type)- pods are slightly curved. It has excellent quality
often used in home gardens.
 Kentucky wonder (tall type)- pods are 20cm long and 1.0cm thick, flat and or
round curved. The seeds are white or brown in colour The variety is known to be
rust resistant.
 Tender green (bush type)- produces pods of 12cm long and 1.0cm thick which are
round dark green. The seed is variegated in colour i.e. light yellow to brown

Field management
It recommended that field beans be grown in long rotation with other crop more
especially cereals such as wheat, maize and sorghum to avoid soil-borne diseases. In
Malawi and other tropical African countries, it is seldom to find beans in a pure stand.
Farmers are used to interplanting them with crops such as maize, sweet potatoes, cotton
and coffee.

Land preparation

70
Since beans are commonly interplanted with maize, this means that ridges prepared for
maize planting are the ones to be used for beans. Time of however is dependent on the
soil temperature. There is need to sow beans when soil temperature has gone down to
18.50C (approximately 4 – 5weeks after sowing the maize).

For dimba cropping, construct flat, raised or ridged beds more especially in rainy season
to avoid water logging conditions.

Sowing
Sow seeds by dibbing 2-4seeds per hole. The seeds are normally sown in rows spaced at
60-75cm apart and to a depth of 2-3cm.

For field production, dwarf cultivars should be sown at 8-10cm apart in the row, while
climbing (tall) cultivars should be spaced at 15-30cm within the row.

For dimba cropping, dwarf varieties should be at a spacing of 50cm by 25cm and tall
(climbing) ones at 60cm by 30cm.

Seed requirement for the bush type with an average spacing is about 60kg per hectare and
30-50kg per hectare for climbing (tall) varieties.

Watering.
There is need to maintain adequate moisture during the early stages for the crop and
immediately after flowering and pod filling stages. Water stress during flowering and pod
filling causes shedding of flowers and pods thereby resulting in low yields.

Emphasis on irrigation during flowering and pod filling is important as this will enable
the crop to develop bigger pods and seeds.

Weeding
Regular weeding is recommended to reduce competition for sunlight and water. Small-
scale farmers heavily rely on hand weeding while commercial farmers depend on
mechanised implements. However, with the introduction of herbicides (as weed control
measure in the farming industry), has made life simple for both small-scale and large-
scale farmers.

Pre-emergence herbicide (1.5kg metolachlor + 1.0kg prometryne) per hectare

or

( 1.5kg metolachlor + 0.8kg diuron) per hectare

Common pests and disease

71
Diseases
1) Anthracnose (Colletotrichum lindemuthianum)- it is a seed-borne disease
particularly in seed from wetter regions. The symptoms for the disease include;
elongated dark red cankers on the stem and leaf-veins. The pods develops sunken
spots with pink centres and darker borders. Can be controlled by planting disease
free seed.

2) Fusarium wilt/ root rot (Fusarium oxysporum) - it is a soil-borne infection which

attacks the root vascular system. Root cortex and stem base turn black and
eventually rot. The leaves are stunted, yellow or curled (chlorotic). The best
control is to remove and burn all the infected leaves.

3) Common bean mosaic virus – a seed-borne disease transmitted by aphids from

diseased to healthy plants. Causes leaves to be mottled and of stunted growth.
Control by planting resistant varieties

4) Halo blight/ Foliar blight (Pseudomonas phaseolicola)- caused by bacteria. The

plant develops brown water-soaked leaf spots which eventually develop chlorotic
halo. The infected pods contain shrivelled seed. The stem has reddish lesions
which make the plant to collapse and there is slimy cream exudes. Control by
practising rotation and use of clean seed.

Pests
Beans are prone to attack by many insect pests which some of them act as vectors or
carriers of some diseases. Some of the pests include; bean weevils (Bruchus spp), bean
beetles (Acanthoscelides obtectus), and cowpea beetles (Collosobruchus spp) that feed
on the beans. There are also insect pests that feed on leaves like leafhoppers, aphids and
bean fly (Melanga gromyza phaseoli) which tend to transmit viruses.

Control of been weevils is planting weevil free seeds and practice of sanitation and
fumigation especially in storage.

Prevalent of beetles and aphids can be reduced by treating the crop with carbarlyl and
malathion dust.

Harvesting
Once the pods lose their green colour, the crop is then considered to be mature. However,
harvesting non-shuttering cultivars should only be done when seed moisture content is
well below 10%. The crop should be allowed to dry for about a week for easy threshing
by sticks.

TOBACCO PRODUCTION.

72
Common name: Tobacco, Fodya

Botanical name: Nicotiana tabacum

: Nicotiana rustica

Introduction:

Tobacco originated in Central America. Nicotiana tabacum was commonly cultivated in

Southern Mexico while Nicotiana rustica was grown mainly in Northen Mexico.

The genus Nicotiana was derived from the name of the French Ambassador to Portugal
Mr. Jean Nicot who first extracted nicotine from tobacco.

In Malawi N. rustica (Labu) is known to have been grown by local people long before
Europeans came to central Africa and can still be seen todate sold locally in rolls or balls
in quest for snuff.

Virginia tobacco was introduced around 1876 by Mr. John Buchanane, a Scotish
Missionary in Blantyre. In 1893 he moved to Zomba and started growing Virginia
tobacco where he started growing this Virginia tobacco (Flue-cured).

From 1899 steady progress was made in tobacco production and export. In 1908,
Imperial Tobacco Group (I.T.G) opened the first tobacco factory in Limbe. This gave an
encouragement to tobacco industry such that production spread within the districts of
Zomba, Blantyre, Chiladzulu, Thyolo and Mulanje.

Western tobacco was introduced in central region around 1920 whereas the northern
region started producing Oriental Burley tobacco soon after independent (1964).

ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE
A. Economic Consideration
Tobacco has a unit value such that it is sold basing on both quality and quantity. The
quality is defined through different grades depending on the variety and type of
tobacco. Each of the very any grades has particular use value to a manufacturer for
customer satisfaction.

B. Production Principle
A buyer or manufacturer is under normal conditions very much concerned with the
welfare of the specific producing areas from where the raw materials come from.
That is why the producer (farmer) can not dictate to the manufacturer on what
products need to be produced for the factory. So the type of leaf produced should
meet manufacturer’s demand without trace of Non Tobacco Materials (NTM).

C. Valuable Attributes

73
 The production of tobacco leaf demands that the saleable leaf should posses some
attributes which are subject to change from year to year depending on the tobacco
market policy. For example in cigar making, the attributes include;
i. Sweetness of the leaf
ii. Nicotine content
iii. Delicacy and strength of the texture
iv. Glossy appearance

However, under normal circumstances, the market policy may demand grading of the
processed leaf. This aims at general determination of the content of the valuable attributes
like:
 Good Bodied tobacco:- leaves falling under this category
are high in sugar content, relatively high in nitrogen and
petroleum, and low in acids and ash content.

 Heavy Bodied Tobacco:- in this category, leaves are low

in sugar but high in total nitrogen and acids.

 Light Bodied Tobacco:- Leaves are low in sugar and

nitrogen but high in acids.

Environmental Requirements
1). Soils:
Tobacco requires well drained, moderately fertile, well aerated soil with a high
moisture-holding capacity. It does not tolerate waterlogging and strongly acidic and
alkaline soils. Flue cured tobacco grows best on light soils while fire cured and dark
air cured tobacco prefer heavier silt and clay loam soils.
2). Temperature:
The optimum mean temperatures for the growing season are 25-30°C.
3). Rainfall:
Tobacco requires a moderate rainfall of around 500-1000mm during the 3-4 months
growing season followed by dry weather when the leaves are maturing. Continuous
rain during the growing season leads to disease and thin lightweight leaves. A
prolonged dry period during ripening causes secondary growth and deficiency of
gum on the leaves. Hail and strong winds cause severe injury.

Botanical Characteristics
Tobacco belongs to the genus Nicotiana, which belongs to the family Solanaceae. The
genus Nicotiana contains over 50 species, of which only two; Nicotiana tabacum and
Nicotiana rustica are cultivated. Nicotiana rustica has high nicotine content and it is
grown for nicotinic acid used in insecticides.

Tobacco is grown as an annual crop, but it is potentially a woody shrub like short-lived
perennial.
1). Roots:

74
 It has a shallow fibrous root system which often provides poor anchorage for the
much more extensive above ground development. The seedling has a single main
tap root, but this is generally broken during transplanting.
2). Stem:
When young it has a rosette-like growth habit, but later produces a stout erect main
axis about 1.5 m tall. The stem is unbranched, but after topping (removing the
inflorescence at a later stage) each axillary bud grows out to produce a branch or
sucker.
3). Leaves:
The stem bears large, simple, ovate leaves arranged spirally. The leaves vary greatly
in size, thickness, texture, and in prominence of their veins, depending upon
variations in cultivars. They are about 50 cm long. The number of leaves, 20 – 30, is
usually fairly constant in each cultivar.
4). Flowers:
The inflorescence is terminal on the stalk and multiflowered. The anthers dehisce
and the stigma is receptive when the flower opens so that self-pollination occurs.
Only 4% of the flowers are cross-pollinated. This is because bees and other insects
visit the flowers for nectar.

TYPES OF TOBACO GROWN IN MALAWI

1. WESTERN TOBACCO
a. Northern Division Dark Fired (NDDF)- commonly grown in Lilongwe,
Dowa, Ntchisi, Dedza (Thiwi/Lifidzi) Kasungu (Chambwe area), South
Mzimba, Rumphi (Nkhamanga plain) and Chitipa plain.

b. Southern Division Dark Fired (SDDF)-grown in Blantyre (Lirangwe

area), Chiladzulu, Phalombe, Mulanje West, Zomba South and Namwera
in Mangochi.

c. Sun/Air Cured Tobacco- grown mainly in Mchinji, Kasungu, Bwanje

Valley, Nsipe and Chitipa.

Current Production Trend

Tobacco type Average yields Potential yield

75
NDDF 400 kg/ha 2000 kg/ha
SDDF 400 kg/ha 2000kg/ha
SUN/AIR CURED 300 kg/ha 1000 kg /ha
ORIENTAL 500 kg/ha 4000kg/ha
BURLEY 1500kg/ha 4000kg/ha
FLUE CURED
1600-1800 kg/ha 3000 kg/ha
VIRGINIA

Production management

Nursery management

Site selection:
The nursery should be located on a piece of land that has good surface and
internal drainage. The soil should be loamy sands and light sandy loams that
are easy to manage and work with. The site should be away from curing and
grading facilities.

Tillage:
The site should be dug deeply, as early as possible while soils are still moist.
Large soil clods should be broken down to obtain a fine tilth. Seedbeds
should be 30 m long and 1 m wide and 15cm high. The tops of the seedbeds
should be convex above the level of the surrounding path to provide good
drainage. Three beds of this size provide enough seedlings for one hectare.
Nursery sites should be fenced to ensure protection from stray animals and
other pests, strong wind, and airborne diseases

Hygiene:
Avoid smoking in and near the nursery. Soap and water should be made
available at the entrance for hand washing. Provision should be made for
disinfecting feet at the entrance.

Nematode control:
1. Chemical control:
Nematodes should be controlled by Basamid or by burning. Basamid is
a chemical that comes in granular form, white in colour. It is applied at
the rate of 1.5kg for a standard seedbed of 30m by 1m.The seedbeds
should be watered for 12 days to activate the organisms before applying
the chemical. Leave the seedbeds for two days for the soil to reach field
capacity. On the 14th day, apply the chemical and thoroughly mix with
soil to a depth of 20 cm. The seedbeds should immediately be covered
with plastic and should remain in place for 7 days. On the 21st day
plastic should be removed and seedbeds should be aerated in order to

76
 release some toxic gases that may injure the seed. The second aeration
should be done on the 26th day and after 2 days sowing can be done.
Basamid does not leave any harmful products after breakdown thus the
chemical is ozone friendly.
2. Burning:
Maize stalks should be piled on the nursery site and burnt. After this,
the ash should be removed from the bed to reduce the chance of
seedling damage from excess salts. Seedbeds should be watered for at
least 5 days before burning is done to ensure control of weeds,
nematodes and other soil pests.

3. Floating tray method:

Nematodes can also be controlled using the floating tray system. The
method uses soil material to raise seedlings with the aim of preventing
soil-borne pathogens and nematodes.

Materials:
compost pine bark and rice husks
polysterene trays with 200 cells, bricks and black plastic
sheets with 150-200 microns thick
Method:
Pond:
A pond is constructed from a well levelled surface with bricks
that are stuck on top of each other width-wise. A standard pond
is 22.5 m long by 1.05 m wide. Each pond needs approximately
420 bricks; placed 2 m high and 1 m wide around the perimeter
of the pond. The pond can be cemented or be covered with a
black plastic sheet 2.4 m wide by 25 m long (150 –200 microns
thick).

Tray filling:
Pour composted pine bark on to the cells of a tray and fill them.
Tap the trays to firm the media in the tray. The trays can then
be floated on the water in the pond. A 50:50 combination of
compost pine bark and river sand is recommended. The results
are almost the same with filling trays with 100 % pine bark.
However, the sand should be washed and sterilised before use.

Sowing:
Floating tray system uses pelleted tobacco seed. If this is not
available, sowing should be done with a water can or sowing
boom. The seed rate should be increased slightly to increase
the chances of dropping a seed in each cell. After germination,
when seedlings have reached a good size thin to leave one
seedling per cell (hole).

77
 Fertiliser application in the trays:
A formulation of 20:10:20 (NPK) should be applied at the rate
of 2.36kg ten days after sowing.47g of micronutrients should
be added. The fertiliser is dissolved in a water can and the
solution is added to the pond. Plants absorb the nutrients
through capillary rise. This fertilizer application should be
repeated 4–6 weeks after germination.

Watering:
Watering is only required when the level of a tray goes below
the brick level.

Clipping and hardening:

Clipping is done normally. The first clipping is important for
uniformity of seedlings. Water removed from the pond is only
added when seedlings have wilted when checked at around
10 am each day. Pour water to a depth of 10 cm in the pond
and make sure that there is no leakage.

Seed and seed rate:

Use certified seed from ARET. Farmers should always sow certified seed
from ARET. The correct seed rate is 5g/ha. For each bed of 30m x 1m, 1.5g-
2g (one fanta bottle top level without removing the plastic lining) is enough to
achieve the recommended seedling population of 45-50 seedlings per 30cm x
30cm area.

Fertilizer:
‘S’ mixture (6:18:6) fertilizer applied before sowing at 1kg/seedbed of 15m x
1m.

Sowing:
Use 0.7g or ⅓ fanta bottle top of seed per 15m x 1m seedbed. Put the seed in a
14litre watering can ¾ full of water to ensure even sowing. 8 seedbeds of 15m
x 1m will produce enough seedlings for a hectare. A seedling density of 45-50
per 30cm x 30cm is ideal. Sowing should be done twice at 2 week intervals,
to ensure that suitable seedlings are available for planting even if rains are
late.

Mulching:
Immediately after sowing the mulch grass (cut into about 22cm lengths)
should be scattered on the seedbed and not laid on thatch-wise. The aim of
mulching is to protect the sown seed from the sun and to prevent excessive
drying of the soil surface. Mulch grass should initially cover the entire
seedbed in a haphazard fashion including sides and pathways then rearranged
and pinned with thicker pieces of the grass as anchors. The mulch should be

78
 progressively thinned and should be completely removed by the third week
after germination.

Water management:
Watering should be done 3 times per day between sowing and emergence (6-7
days) to keep the surface of the beds continually moist ( but not too wet, as to
wash away the seeds). More watering may be done under conditions of
extreme heat and wind.

When seedling emergence is completed, the frequency of watering should be

reduced to twice per day but maintaining the same amount of water. Two
weeks after emergence, further reduce watering to once per day depending on
prevailing conditions. Watering is now done less frequently to harden
seedlings in readiness for field conditions. Stop at 7-8weeks.

Hardening off
Seedlings should be hardened for at least 21 days before transplanting. This
prepares them for the shock of transplanting. Watering should be reduced
gradually, and then stopped completely.

Clipping:
Clipping should be done to achieve uniformity of seedlings at 4 weeks after
germination and to delay development of seedlings at 8 weeks so that they
don’t over grow.

Top dressing:
Apply Nitrate of soda at the rate of 10g/m2 as a drench to yellow stunted
seedlings when the first two leaves are 1.5 to 2cm in diameter. Seedlings
should be ready for transplanting by the end of November to the beginning of
December.

The best seedling for transplanting is 15-20cm high and of standard pencil
thickness. It should be well hardened with a strong vigorous root system and
should have not more than 8-10 leaves below the bud. The seedling should be
free from diseases and nematodes.

Pest control in nursery:

Aphids (Myzus persicae) and White flies (Bermisia tabaci) on the seedbed
should be controlled by drenching with Dimethoate 20 WP or 40 EC to
prevent bushytop. If using 40 EC, mix 19ml with 10litres of water and
apply at the rate of 1litre of the mixture per square metre of seedbed once
every 2 weeks starting from 2 weeks after emergence. The drench should
immediately be followed by a light watering to wash the liquid off the
leaves as scorching may occur. If using 20 WP, mix 4 level match boxes
(measures 40g) with 14litres of water in a watering can. This is enough to

79
 drench one seedbed of 15m x 1m. Drench 2 weeks after emergence and
repeat at fortnightly intervals after transplanting.

Ants, cutworms and leaf eaters should be controlled using Orthene (Acephate)
75 SP. Mix 6.5g of Orthene in 10litres of water and drench the seedlings at
the rate of 1.5litres of the mixture/m². Orthene should be drenched on
seedbeds once pests are observed but not earlier than 3 weeks after
emergence. A mixture of 16.5litres is adequate for a seedbed of 15m x 1m.

Two days before pulling the seedlings for transplanting, spray or drench with
Dimethoate 40 EC or 20 WP using a knapsack sprayer. Mix 360ml of
Dimethoate 40 EC with 14litres of water and spray or drench at the rate of
50ml of the mixture/m² of seedbed to protect seedlings against sucking
insects in the field. If using Dimethoate 20 WP, mix 40g in 14litres of
water. A mixture of 6.5litres is adequate for a 11m x 1m bed.

Disease control in nursery:

Wildfire (Pseudomonas tabacum) is controlled by spraying Copper
Oxychloride 80 WP starting from 4 weeks after germination and repeated
every week until transplanting. Mix 42-70g in 14litres water and spray at the
rate of 200-300ml per m². When the disease is seen use the higher
concentration. Copper Oxychloride also controls damping off and angular leaf
spot.

Field management
(a) Crop rotation:
 A minimum rotation of 4 years should be followed to avoid a build up of
diseases, particularly nematodes. Soya beans are an alternate host for root
knot nematodes and wildfire in tobacco. Soya beans should not follow
tobacco or be grown just before tobacco in rotation.

 Where both cotton and tobacco are grown, great care should be taken to
avoid insecticides used on cotton drifting onto tobacco. This would
jeopardise tobacco quality. Cotton must be 100m away from tobacco.

(b) Field preparation:

 tobacco fields should be prepared from July to September so that
transplanting can start in November and be completed in December.

 both ridges and plants should be spaced at 90cm.

(c) Transplanting:

80
 Transplanting should be with the first rains so that the operation is
completed before Christmas except for Oriental tobacco which can be
transplanted in January. Late transplanting (after December) increases the
risk of bushy top disease. If transplanting is done in January, a routine spray
of Dimethoate 40 EC at the rate of 53ml mixed with 14litres of water should
be done once per week for up to 5 weeks after transplanting or for as long as
the risk of infestation persists. This, however, is not economical. The best
thing is to transplant early. If water resources are adequate, transplanting
should be done 2-3 weeks before the first rains. If all subsequent operations
are done correctly water planting tobacco gives the best results. Plants
should be spaced at 90cm for SDF, NDDF, Oriental and 60cm apart for
Burley. Flue Cured is spaced at 52-60cm on ridges 105 to 120cm apart.

(d) Fertilizer application:

A yield of 1000kg leaves/ha removes approximately 90kg Nitrogen, 22kg
P2O5, 120kg K2O, 78kg Ca, 11kg Mg and 4.5kg S/ha. K:Ca ratio in the
leaves affects the rate of burning and ash quality. The ratio should be 1:1. P
deficiency leads to dark green, lower quality leaves. Excessive N leads to
high nicotine content of the leaves. Nitrate forms of nitrogen are more
desirable for high yields and leaf quality than ammonium forms. Cl lowers
leaf quality so fertilizer with excess Cl (such as KCl) should be avoided.

Lower fertilizer rates generally increase leaf quality but may decrease crop

yield. The type and rate of fertilizer depends on the kind of tobacco and the

soil on which it is grown. Fertilizer for Flue- Cured tobacco should be low

in nitrogen but high in P and K. Excessive N produces a strong flavour and

an undesirable dark green leaf that cures with dark colours. For other types

of tobacco, the fertilizer should contain N, P and K in the ratio 1:2:2 or

1:2:3. The phosphate content is needed to stimulate root development, and

high potash for leaf quality and ‘burning’ properties.

Types and rates of fertilizer for Fire and Sun-Air Cured Tobacco

81
Type
Basal dressing First top dressing

Rate Rate
Cup Cup Remarks
Kg/ha Remarks Kg/ha
No. No.
Bags/ha Bags/ha
(50 kg) (50 kg)

Super C 1.5 Cups/plant

150 3 8 - -
2 Cups/plant
Ordinary
200 4 8 or 16 - -
1 Cup/plant
Animal Chibuku
- -
manure* Packet
2 Cups/plant
CAN
- - - 200 4 8 or 16
1 Cup/plant

* = packet cut at the top folds and heaped.

(e) Weed control:

Tobacco fields should be kept free of weeds to reduce competition for soil
moisture, nutrients and sunlight. It is necessary to do banking 3-4 weeks
after transplanting to encourage root development.
(f) Topping:
Topping is the removal of the flower buds. This should be done early at the
extended bud stage. This operation should be done when 10 to 20% of
plants have reached this extended bud stage. Topping should be done with a
sharp knife which should be disinfected. The stem should be cut at an angle
to prevent water collecting on top. 12-15 leaves should be left per plant on
healthy plants and less on poor plants for SDF and NDDF, 28-30 leaves for
Burley, 18-20 leaves for Flue Cured tobacco.

(g) Priming:
Priming is the removal of leaves at the bottom of the plant. 4-5 leaves
should be primed in order to have well expanded main leaves.

(h) Desuckering:
Desuckering is the removal of suckers whose development is induced by
topping on leaf axils. These could grow into branches if left. They use up
plant nutrients and if left, could lead to poor quality tobacco leaves.
Removal of suckers should be done at least once every week or when the
suckers can easily be handled, that is, before they are 3cm long. Chemical
suckerides e.g. Antak and Tabamex can be used to ensure early and almost
complete suppression of suckers.

82
 (i) Reaping (harvesting):
Tobacco should be reaped when the leaves are just ripe. Bottom leaves are
normally ready for reaping 7-10 days after topping. These leaves do not
mottle but they look shinny and leaf tips are yellow. The leaves on the upper
plant position are ripe when they thicken and mottle with paling of the green
and give cracking sound when squeezed inward. 2-3 leaves should be reaped
at a time. Reap when the leaves are dry.

Management of Individual types of Tobacco

MALAWI WESTERN TOBACCO

This is one of the most important cash crops mainly grown on customary land.
Export market prospects remain good provided high quality is maintained, at a
steady level of production.

Recommended Varieties
Malawi Western and MW86-57 are resistant to Alternalia and Tobacco Mosaic
Virus (TMV) disease. There are three types of Malawi Western Tobacco:

(I). Northern Division Dark Fire-cured Tobacco (NDDF)

This type of tobacco is traditionally cured in pisemouli or brick barns
with smoky hot fires made in open or partly covered fire pits using
semi-dry firewood during lamina curing, and very hot fires to dry
midribs using dry firewood. The final product is dark brown in
colour hence the name dark-fired tobacco. NDDF is grown in
Lilongwe, Dowa, Ntchisi, Dedza (Thiwi-Lifidzi area), Kasungu,
South Mzimba, Rumphi (Nkamanga Plain) and Chitipa Plain.

(a) Curing:
Curing space should be adequate and also adequate fuel wood as
these affect the final quality of tobacco. 12 standard barns of
3.6m x 2.4m x 2.4m with 3 to 4 tiers and 2 bays are required to cure
leaf from 1 hectare. Two fire pits 30cm x 30cm x 60cm deep.
♦ tie the tobacco leaves back to back with a string
♦ hang the tied leaves over a stick 1.2m long. Space the tied leaves 2-
3 fingers apart.
♦ the sticks once filled should be packed along the barn’s racks
spaced at 25cm apart.
Curing Process:
►Wilting and Yellowing (6-8 days)

83
 When leaves are put in the barns they contain 85-95%
water. Slow respiration reduces the water content to 10-
25%. Chlorophyll is broken down. Starch is converted to
sugars. When the leaf becomes yellowed with brown
patchness near the tip, wilting is complete. If the leaf is
found to be sweating, open ventilators otherwise rotting
will occur.
►firing: browning of the leaf (3-7 days)
Aimed at preventing the oxidation of sugars that would
lead to weight and quality loss. Small fires using half dried
wood should be used. If the leaf becomes cool and clammy
or excessively wet rather than warm and moist, open the
ventilators and doors. If necessary, make bigger fires using
drier wood. Avoid raising the temperature too high
otherwise premature drying will occur. At night the fire
should be extinguished.
►midrib drying (5-8 days):
Larger fires using dry wood should now be used. Keep the
ventilators and doors closed until the barn has warmed up
to around 49°C, then they can be opened to let the moist air
out. At night keep ventilators closed in order to retain as
much heat in the barns as possible. The midribs must be
dried out before the leaf is put on bulk. Wet midribs will
turn a bulk mouldy.

(b) Leaf conditioning:

Dried leaf should not be handled as it will break. It should be
conditioned to make it soft and pliable before handling. This is done
by sprinkling water on the floor of the barn. NEVER sprinkle water
onto the tobacco leaf directly.

(c) Bulking:
Tobacco leaf is put on a raised platform to allow air circulation
around it. This is done to mature the tobacco by removing the tinged
greenness. Tobacco butts should be towards the outside of the bulk.
Inspect the tobacco and turn it regularly to avoid heating up which
would lead to moulding.

(II). Southern Division Fire-cured Tobacco (SDF)

This is lighter in colour than the NDDF. It has milder flavour and aroma.
Recommended areas for SDF tobacco production are Blantyre (Lirangwe
area), Mulanje West, Phalombe, Chiradzulu, Zomba South and Namwera
are. Mwanza and Shire Valley can also grow this crop.

Cultural Practices

84
 The same cultural practices recommended for NDDF tobacco should be
followed except for curing.

■ Curing:
 Wilting and yellowing process as for NDDF.
 Browning of the leaf:
Dry wood only should be used with the aim of producing
heat and little smoke which is required to flavour the leaf
without necessarily making it dark brown. Fire should be
light in order to have a light coloured leaf. After 3-6 days
of firing, depending on weather conditions, the fires should
be drawn for the last time.
 Mid-rib drying:
The cured leaf should be hung in the shed for the final
drying stage of the midribs with tobacco leaves placed at
least 22.5cm apart on tiers to allow adequate air circulation.
While drying check that midribs have not started rotting.
The drying sheds should be 10m long, 3m wide, 3m high.
Tiers should be 75cm apart.
 Conditioning, bulking and grading as for NDDF.
(III). Sun-Air Cured Tobacco
This is Malawi Western Tobacco whose laminas and midribs are dried with
the help of the sun and air circulating through the leaf in open sided sheds
with adequate thatch to prevent leaking. Recommended areas of production
areas are Mchinji, Kasungu, Bwanje valley, Nsipe, Katema and Chilipa.
Other areas can also grow this tobacco provided recommendations are
followed.

Cultural Practices
The same cultural practices recommended for NDDF tobacco should be
followed except for curing.

■ Curing sheds:
These should be 55m long of 2 bays with two tiers, each tier 75cm
wide, and the bottom tier to be 90cm from the ground. The shed
should be constructed along the direction of the prevailing wind
with the windward side cladded. The roof should be leak proof
with the thatch extending over the side of the shed to prevent rain
blowing in.

■ Curing:
Wilting and yellowing should take place in a wilting and yellowing
barn in the same manner as NDDF tobacco. When wilting and

85
 yellowing are completed, the leaf should be hanged on tiers in a
sun air shed. After about 3 days the leaf will be partially brown. At
this stage the leaf should be put on open-air racks for sunning and
should be returned to the shed in the evening. The top of the racks
should be lightly covered with grass to prevent direct sunlight from
scorching the leaf. This process should be repeated until the brown
colour is fixed in the leaf. Midrib drying should take place in the
shed and not on racks. Check the leaf for moulds. If mould is
observed, sun the leaf.

■Grading:
Reapings should be graded separately first sorting the leaf into the
following basic types irrespective of length:
◙ thin well textured whole clean leaf
◙ thick well textured whole clean leaf
◙ tinged green well textured whole clean leaf
◙ thin or thick well textured slightly spotted or torn leaf
◙ any heavily diseased perished pole burnt or torn grass green leaf

Leaf should then be graded according to length. A 53cm stick

marked at 41cm and 48cm lengths to measure off leaf in each
category into various grades.

Tobacco of one grade should be tied into hands of 15-20 leaves (3-
5cm diameter) using a tobacco leaf or a string to bind the hand
around the butts end of the leaves.

Hands of one grade and length should be carefully packed into a

basket and properly covered to avoid the top leaf becoming dry.

Grades for Malawi Western Tobacco

(a) Lower leaf grade (4 grades):
 L1-good quality lower leaf, well fired, fully ripe, without
perish or disease, over 48cm in length
 L2-good quality, lower leaf, fully ripe without perish or
disease, under 48cm in length
 LX1-substandard quality, lower leaf, either not well fired,
greenish filler, sooty, perished, diseased or mouldy, over
48cm in length
 LX2-substandard quality lower leaf, either not well fired,
mottled, greenish filler, sooty, perished, diseased or mouldy,
under 48cm in length
(b) Main leaf grades (13 grades):

86
  D1-good quality, fully ripe, medium bodied without much
oil, well fired, without perish or disease, over 53cm in
length
 DH1-good quality, fully ripe, heavy bodied, oily, well
fired, without perish or disease, over 53cm in length
 D2-good quality, fully ripe, medium bodied, oily, well
fired, without perish or disease, 48-53cm in length
 DH2-good quality, fully ripe, heavy bodied, oily, well
fired, without perish or disease, 48-53cm in length
 D3-good quality, fully ripe, medium bodied, without much
oil, well fired, without perish or disease, 40-48cm in length
 DH3-good quality, fully ripe, heavy bodied, oily, well
fired, without perish or disease, 40-48cm in length
 D4-good quality, fully ripe, medium bodied, without much
oil, well fired, without perish or disease, 30-40cm in length
 DH4-good quality, fully ripe, heavy bodied, oily, well
fired, without perish or disease, 30-40cm in length
 D5-good quality, fully ripe, medium bodied, without much
oil, well fired, without perish or disease, under 30 in length
 DH5-good quality, fully ripe, heavy bodied, oily, well
fired, without perish or disease, under 30 in length
(c) Substandard main leaf grades (3 grades):
 DX1-substandard main leaf, either not well fired, mottled,
greenish filler, sooty, perished, diseased, under 30cm in
length
 DX2-substandard main leaf, either not well fired, mottled,
greenish filler, sooty, perished, diseased or mouldy, 30-
48cm in length
 DX3-substandard main leaf, either not well fired, mottled,
greenish filler, sooty, perished, diseased or mouldy, under
30cm in length
(d) Strip and scrap grades (2grades):
 DA - STRIP
 DB - SCRAP

BURLEY TOBACCO
It is air-cured in open iron roofed or grass thatched barns. The cured leaf is
predominantly pale yellow to light brown. Burley is currently grown by both estate and
smallholder sub sectors and can be grown in all suitable areas where other tobacco types
are grown in the country. Soils should be sandy loam and sandy clays with pH 5.3 to 5.5.
Avoid water logged and very light sandy soils.

Recommended Varieties
Banket A 1, KBM 20, KBM 33, B84-1652 (on limited release). Seedbeds as for Flue
Cured tobacco. Sow in September where dry period planting is recommended.

87
Field management
Land Preparation
Sandy clay loams or heavier soil types. Early ploughed and ridged. 90cm between ridges,
45cm, 52cm or 60cm between plants. The closer spacing is used when low yield is
anticipated. Transplant with the first soaking rains of 50mm or more.

Fertilizer
Basal dress with:
‘D’ compound at 600kg/ha, apply 43g/planting station using cup No.22 2 cupfuls (one on
each side), OR Super ‘D’ compound at the rate of 450kg/ha, apply 32.4g/planting station
using cup No.16 2 cupfuls, or cup No.30 one cupful (½ on each side), OR 600kg of ‘C’
compound, apply 43g/planting station using 2 cupfuls of cup No.22 one on each side.

Top dress with:

400kg/ha CAN. Split the application at two weeks interval. Apply 200kg CAN using one
cupful of No.16/planting station 3 weeks after transplanting, and the second application
of 200kg CAN should be done 2 weeks after the first top dressing using the same cup.

Topping
Topping should be done at the extended bud stage leave 28-30 leaves per plant.
Desuckering may be done by hand but it is more effective using chemical suckercides
e.g. Antak

Reaping
Reaping should be done as soon as leaves are ripe to prevent them from getting over-ripe.
Over-ripe leaves are light hence low yields and quality.

Curing
Burley tobacco curing is done in open barns and relies on natural weather conditions for
the curing and drying process (Chigafa). As with the other tobacco types, burley too
undergoes the stages of yellowing, lamina drying and midrib drying. Because of reliance
on natural weather conditions (relative humidity and air movement) for drying, the
process takes longer, sometimes up to 5-6 weeks if the weather is also a straight forward
mechanical drying process. The most important stages are colouring and lamina drying.
The rate at which these stages proceed will eventually influence quality. If humidity is
too high and drying is slowed down, barn rot may occur and if drying is too fast, quality
is affected. Visually, this appears in the form of yellow mottling exhibited in different
degrees. If drying is done extremely too fast, green colour may be exhibited. The aim of
burley curing in open sheds is therefore to manipulate the barn environment in order to
achieve high quality cures. It is important that adequate curing and holding sheds should
be available to minimise yield losses. These should be 100m long of 4 bays and 4 tiers,
75cm between tiers and the first tier to be 1.25m from the ground. This size of a barn is

88
adequate for a hectare of tobacco. A two bay and 2 tier barn can also be used and should
be 250metres long for a hectare of tobacco.

Conditioning

Leave dry tobacco over night in an open curing shed. It picks up dew therefore becomes
conditioned.

Grading
Grading should be done carefully as indicated below. However, expert advice should be
sought from ARET.

Grades
Flying grades (10 grades)
1 Colour/Buff (C) in colour
 FC 1 – Sound Flyings, coloury (buff in colour) over 48cm
in length
 FC 1S - Sound Flyings, coloury (buff in colour) over 48cm
in length and spotted
 FC 2 - Sound Flyings, coloury (buff in colour) below 48cm
in length
 FC 2S - Sound Flyings, coloury below 48cm in length and
spotted.

2 Tan (T) in colour

 FT 1 – Sound Flyings tan in colour over 48cm in length
 FT 1S – Sound Flyings tan in colour over 48cm in length
and spotted
 FT 2 – Sound Flyings tan in colour below 48cm in length
 FT 2S – Sound Flyings tan in colour below 48cm in length
and spotted.
3 Flying with undesirable styles
 FX 1 – Flying over 48cm in length but with defects like water-
staining, greenish or set green, mottled, diseased or blemish,
mouldy
 FX 2 – Flyings of below 48cm in length but with defects such
as water-staining, greenish, or set green and mottled or
diseased, blemish, mouldy.

Main leaf grades (26 grades)

1 Colour/Buff (C) in colour

 MC 1 – Sound Main Leaf coloury (buff), over 48cm
 MC 1S – Sound Main Leaf coloury (buff), spotted over 48cm
 MC 2 – Sound Main Leaf coloury, 40-47cm
 MC 2S – Sound Main Leaf coloury, 40-47cm and spotted

89
  MC 3 – Sound Main Leaf coloury, 30-39cm
 MC 3S – Sound Main Leaf coloury, 30-39cm and spotted
 MC 4 – Sound Main Leaf coloury, 23-29cm
 MC 4S – Sound Main Leaf coloury, 23-29cm and spotted

2 Tan (T) in colour

 MT 1 - Sound Main Leaf tan in colour, over 48cm
 MT 1S - Sound Main Leaf tan in colour, over 48cm and
spotted
 MT 2 - Sound Main Leaf tan in colour, 40-47cm
 MT 2S - Sound Main Leaf tan in colour, 40-47cm and spotted
 MT 3 - Sound Main Leaf tan in colour, 30-39cm
 MT 3S - Sound Main Leaf tan in colour, 30-39cm and spotted
 MT 4 - Sound Main Leaf tan in colour, 23-29cm
 MT 4S - Sound Main Leaf tan in colour, 23-29cm and spotted

3 Red (R) in colour

 MR 1 – Sound Main Leaf Red in colour over 48cm in length.
 MR 2 – Sound Main Leaf Red in colour, 40-47cm in length.
 MR 3 – Sound Main Leaf Red in colour, 30-39cm in length.
 MR 4 – Sound Main Leaf Red in colour, 23-29cm in length.

4 Main Leaf with undesirable styles

 MCX 1 – Main Leaf, coloury, over 48cm with defects such as
water-staining
 MCX 2 – Main Leaf, coloury, under 48cm with defects such
as water-staining greenish tinge, set green, mottled or diseased
or blemished mouldy
 MTX 1 – Main Leaf tan in colour, over 48cm with defects
such as water-staining greenish tinge, set green, mottled or
diseased or blemished mouldy
 MTX 2 – Main Leaf tan in colour, under 48cm with defects
such as water-staining greenish tinge or set green, mottled or
diseased or blemished mouldy
 MRX 1 – Main Leaf red in colour, over 48cm with defects
such as water-staining greenish tinge or set green mottled or
diseased or blemished mouldy
 MRX 2 – Main Leaf red in colour, under 48cm with defects
like water-staining greenish tinge or set green mottled or
diseased or mouldy

Strip and Scrap (2 grades)

1 BA – STRIP
2 BB – SCRAP

90
(IV). Flue Cured Tobacco
This is mainly an estate crop recommended for medium to high altitude
areas. This type of tobacco is normally cured in brick barns in which hot
air is conducted through metal pipes (flues) heats up the barn. Smoke does
not come in contact with the tobacco. The cured leaf is lemon (yellow),
orange or mahogany (brown) in colour.

This type of tobacco is highly capital intensive and high management is

required to realise good returns. Market prospects for Malawi Flue Cured
tobacco are not limited.

Agronomic practices

Seedbeds
Nursery site should be ploughed early, fenced and treated as for NDDF.
Adequate clean water should always be available nearly for watering
seedbeds. Seedbed size is 30m x 1m (3 beds/ha).

Prior to sowing, broadcast and incorporate 3.2kg to 4kg of ‘S’ mixture

(6:18:6) fertilizer on the seedbed. Use 1.5g of seed on 30m x 1m
seedbed and sow the same way as before. Beds should be evenly
mulched using love grass or any fine non-leafy combed grass such as
tsichi or wanje. Yellow and stunted seedlings should be drenched with
Nitrate of Soda at 10g per m2 when the first 2 leaves are 1.5cm in
diameter (2 tambala size).

Watering
Adequate water is essential for seedling growth. Seedlings should be
hardened by watering less frequently during the last three weeks of
seedbed life. This prepares the seedlings for the shock of transplanting.
 observe hygiene in seedbed
 control pests and diseases by spraying Dimethoate 40 EC or
20 WP and Copper Oxychloride 80 WP to control aphids and
wildfire respectively. Thiram 80 SP or Anilazine should be used
to control anthracnose. Acephate (Ozthene) 75 SP should be used
to control cutworms, leaf eaters, ants and other insects as
observed.

Field Management
The field should be deeply ploughed and properly ridged to allow for
good drainage and good root development.

91
Topping and desuckering
Leaf quality is enhanced by topping and desuckering the plant. When the
flower buds are formed, the inflorescence and the top most leaves are
removed. This is topping which improves the yield, quality and type of
leaves produced. The time and height of topping depends upon the class of
tobacco grown, the type of soil and the spacing. Low topping causes an
increase in the size and thickness of the leaves.

Tobacco plant has a determinate growth form terminating in flower head,

which by apical dominance, checks the growth of axillary buds. Topping
allows the axillary buds to grow. These lateral buds are called suckers.
The removal of suckers is called desuckering. This is done weekly as more
and more suckers develop. This can be done by using hands and by using
chemicals such as Antak.

Topped and desuckered plants exhibit an increase in the growth of the root
system and the thickness of the laterals, and show greater response when
topping is done early. Topping also increases the thickness and dry weight
of leaves.

Weeding
Weeds reduce quality and yield of the cured leaf and hence the market
price. Weeds should be removed while still small repeated cultivation
sometimes 5 times during a season.
Ridges 105-120cm apart and plants 52-60cm apart depending on varieties.

Top Dressing
Management of Nitrogen levels is important. Too little Nitrogen leads to
low yields, while excess N reduces quality and may increase incidence of
insect pests and diseases. Generally apply 24-50kg Nitrogen per hectare,
P2O5 and K2O to at least 108kg and 90kg per hectare respectively. Use
compounds B, C and D or Super Mixtures B, C and D. CAN, Potassium
nitrate and Nitrate of Soda may only be used for top dressing where need
arises.

Transplanting
Transplanting is done in 2 periods. Dry period (October-November) and
wet period (November-December). Higher yields are obtained from dry
period (water) transplanting.

Reaping
Reap when leaves are ripe just when they start turning yellow (mellow-
yellow). Over-ripe leaves are light and so reduce yield whereas unripe
tobacco cures green.

92
Appendix
References:
Kochhar S.L (1989): Tropical Crops , A textbook of economic botany

MOAI (1996) : Guide to agricultural production.

Annecke D.P (1982) Insects and mite of cultivated plants.

Onwueme I.C (1991) Field Crop Production in Tropical Africa

93