Cassava is a climate resilient food and cash crop that can grow through any season. In Uganda, it grows well in over 80% of the arable land however, majority of farmers decide to settle for less, and grow it basically for home consumption.
Many of them are reluctant to grow the crop for cash or sale because of its high production risks constrained by pests and diseases such as whiteflies.
Gerald Adiga an agronomist at National Crops Resources Research Institute (NaCRRI) however, says commercial cassava farmers can yield big from its production in case they apply the proper agronomic practices.
Adiga defines good agronomic practices as the proper farming methods that farmers need to adopt to be in position to more than double their cassava production.
With proper farming skills, a farmer on one hectare of land can produce about 12 to 15 tonnes of cassava at the time of harvest as Adiga explains.
He says commercial farmers must ensure they put land aggregation and monocropping into practice such that they can have a chance of maximising all the necessary profits.
Adiga however, warns farmers before planting the crop they must first ensure the soils on their land are well drained because cassava does not thrive well in extremely sandy, salt affected, clayey or waterlogged soils.
‘’Most farmers here in Uganda like intercropping that is why cassava is still grown on a small scale and many forget it comes with problems like reduced yields and also it is not viable for large scale production.”
Adiga tips they should also plant disease resistant stems, free from diseases such as the cassava mosaic and cassava brown streak but also he says they should before planting, ensure they first spray to kill the spear grass because it leads to rotting of the leaves.
“Also you need to select or cut stems from cassava that is between 10 to 18 months, if it goes to two years, then that stem is too old and will not germinate properly,” Adiga says.
In addition, he says farmers should put into consideration planting earlier during the rainy season to allow the plants enough time to grow quickly before any pests can attack and stunt their growth.
Adiga adds they should also do constant weeding after planting to enable the cassava plants to have access to enough soil nutrients without competition from unwanted and unnecessary plants.
“Cassava farming requires water, it is best for farmers to start planting early usually immediately the rains begin to ensure rapid growth and maximum yield. With proper preparation and planting, one hectare of land can produce about 12-15 tonnes of cassava depending on the variety,’’ he adds.