PRODUCTION OF MINOR FOOD CROPS

TAPIOCA
Manihot esculenta

Prepared by :
Mohd Ridzuan Abdul Rashid
Wan Aminuddin Wan Aman
Amir Afuan Nordin
PRODUCTION OF MINOR FOOD
CROPS

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 IMPORTANCE
Cassava is a major staple food in the developing
world, providing a basic diet for around 502 million
people.

 It is one of the most drought-tolerant crops,

capable of growing on marginal soils. 

Nigeria is the world's largest producer of cassava.

A predominantly cassava root diet can

cause protein-energy malnutrition.

Cassava root is a good source of carbohydrates,

but a poor source of protein.

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 IMPORTANCE
 Most common food crops grown and consumed
in many parts of Africa.

The crop grows well in various soil types and

ecologies.

Growing cassava is not very labor intensive from

land preparation to harvesting.

 Cassava leaves – nutritious vegetables.

Cassava is the third-largest source of food

carbohydrates in the tropics

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 USES
Food Raw manufacture of
human food –
ingredient fructose-glucose syrup
chip or boiled
livestock high content

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 Family:
Binomial name:
Euphorbiaceae
Manihot esculenta

Source of
Edible starchy,
carbohydrates
tuberous roots
CASSAVA

Origin:
South America

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 TYPES
• Divided 2 types :

1) Sweet types 2) Bitter types

The type of cassava can be identified by certain characteristics; based on

morphological characteristics such as leaf shape, leaf size, petiole color, plant height,
stem and peel potatoes and hydrocyanic acid content.

•Important : Hydrocyanic acid content was used to classify the type sweet or bitter
cassava.

Cassava varieties classification based on the content of hydrocyanic acid must be

careful as hydrocyanic acid content in certain varieties may vary according to the
environmental conditions they are grown

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 DIFFERENCE
Sweet types
 contain hydrocyanic acid content of
less than 100 ppm.
 Hydrocyanic acid content is
available only on the skin and in the
flesh tubers can is relatively low.
 Used : food (edible)
 Petiole: red coloured
 Varieties : Sawah, Medan, Kabu,
Betawi , Pulut
Maturity : 6-10 months after
planting.
Harvesting : Roots easily damaged if
harvesting
delayed.
Bitter types
 contain hydrocyanic acid content of 100
ppm to 400 ppm based on the weight of fresh
root.
 Used : starch production & animal feed
 Petiole : yellow or green coloured
Varieties : Black Twig, Perintis, MM 92, Sri
Kanji 1, Sri kanji 2
 Maturity : 12-18 months after planting.
Harvesting : Roots not easily damaged if
harvesting
slow done because have high fiber content.
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 VARIETIES SWEET CASSAVA
 Sawah

 The variety was recommend by Jabatan Pertanian.

 These varieties are suitable to be eaten when boiled.
 Also used to make a cake cassava-based.

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 VARIETIES SWEET CASSAVA
 Putih

 The variety was recommend by Jabatan Pertanian.

 These varieties are recommended as tapioca chip.

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 VARIETIES BITTER CASSAVA
 MM92

 The variety was recommend by Jabatan Pertanian.

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 VARIETIES BITTER CASSAVA
 Perintis

 The variety was recommend by Jabatan Pertanian.

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PRODUCTION OF MINOR FOOD CROPS

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 SITE SELECTION
 Soil : loamy sandy soils
 pH : 5.5 - 6.5
 Rainfall : 100 – 150 cm
 Temperature : 25oC to 29oC.

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 PREPARATION OF PLANTING MATERIAL
 You should handle cuttings carefully during transportation to prevent
bruises and damage to the nodes. This can be done by packing them on cushions of dry leaves.

 Cuttings should be obtained from the stems mature enough the central stem.
-Part of young stems not suitable to be used because it is easy to dry.
-The base of the trunk should be avoided because this always attacked
by mosaic virus.

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 PREPARATION OF PLANTING MATERIAL
 Prepare and handle stem cuttings properly:
1. Choose healthy, disease free planting material from vigorously growing plants 8-15 months
old.

2. Select cuttings from the middle stem portions, 30 cm long with an average of 9-12 nodes.
Cut using a handsaw or clean, sharp cutlass sterilized in a 1% Sodium hypochlorite
(commercial bleach) solution.

3. Bundle and dip in a fungicide/insecticide solution for 10-15 minutes.

4. Allow the solution to drain off before planting.

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 PLANTING
 Planting distance : 1 m x 1 m

 Planting density : 10,000 cutting

 Cutting will start to grow more or less a week after planting

 Cassava stem cuttings may be planted ;

(a) Slanting method (condong)
- Farmer usually planted this method
- Cutting planted about 10 cm stem on surface soil with tilt 40O - 45O.

(b) Horizontal method (baring)

- Suitable planted area less rainfall or dry climate (area).
- Cutting usually planted using machinery.

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 PLANTING
 When planted horizontally, the storage roots develop more closely to the surface and are
more likely to be exposed and attacked by rodent and birds. Also, in horizontal planting several
weak stems develop from the stem cutting. Horizontal planting, however, has the advantage of
killing insect and mite pests which occur on the surface of stem cuttings. In loamy soil it is
probably best to plant at an angle.

When planted vertically, the storage roots develop deeper in the soil, more closely together,
and are more difficult to harvest by pulling. Vertical planting is best in sandy soils. In such soils,
plant stem cuttings vertically with 2/3 of the length of the cutting below the soil.

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 Cassava growing
on mounds

Planting
cassava on
the flat

Cassava growing
on ridges
 FERTILIZING
1. When soil tests are not done, a general recommendation for fertilizing cassava can be:
a. NPK (12:24:12) applied at the rate of 336 kg/ha at 6 weeks after planting followed by
16:8:24 at 16 weeks after planting
OR
b. Mixtures of single fertilizers such as Calcium Nitrate, Muriate of Potash and Triple Super
Phosphate at 114-209 kg/ha N, 25 - 37 kg/ha P and 240 - 335 kg/ha K also applied at 6 and
16 weeks after planting

Place fertilizers 15cm to 45cm from the base of the stem in drill holes. Drill holes should be
10cm to 15cm in depth. Placement of fertilizers in drill holes reduces fertilizer loss through
runoff water.

Fertilizing plants 16 weeks after planting enhances tuber bulking.

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 WEEDING & WATER MANAGEMENT
Weeding

 Use a contact and/or pre- emergent herbicide to control weeds for the first
three months of growth.

 Hand-weeding using hoes are normally recommended after 3 months,

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 PESTS OF CASSAVA

The common cassava pests are :
1)cassava mealybugs,
2)cassava green mites
3)spiraling whitefly
4)white scale insect

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 Cassava Mealy bugs

 Scientific name: Phenacoccus manihoti

 Occurs : cassava leaves, shoot tips, petioles, and

stems.

 The mealy bugs are covered with white waxy

secretions.

 Damage symptoms : shortened internode lengths,

compression of terminal leaves together into “bunchy
tops”, distortion of stem portions, defoliation

 The insects survive on cassava stems and leaves and

are easily carried to new fields in this way.
 Cassava Green Mites
 Scientific name:
Mononychellus tanajoa

 Occurs : undersurfaces of young leaves,

green stems, and axilliary buds of
cassava.

 The mites appear as yellowish green

specks to the naked eye.

 Damage symptoms: yellow chlorotic leaf

spots on the upper leaf surfaces, narrowed
and smaller leaves appearance of the
shoot tip, and stunted cassava plants.
 Spiraling whitefly
 Scientific name:
Aleurodicus dispersus

 Occurs: on the undersurfaces of cassava

leaves and are covered with white waxy
secretions similar to those of the cassava
mealybug. Spiraling whitefly eggs occur in
spiral patterns of wax tracks, mostly on the
undersurfaces of leaves.

 Damage symptoms:
By sucking sap from the leaves, black sooty
mold on the upper leaf surfaces, petioles, and
stems, and premature leaf fall of older leaves.
 White scale
 Scientific name:
Aonidomytilus albus

 Cassava stem surfaces with

conspicuous white waxy secretions

 The insect sucks sap from the

stem and dehydrates it. Stem
cuttings derived from affected stem
portions normally do not sprout.
 DISEASES OF CASSAVA

The common diseases are :
1)Cassava mosaic disease,
2)Cassava bacterial blight,
3)Cassava anthracnose disease, and
4)Cassava bud necrosis.

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 Cassava mosaic disease
 Caused by a virus
 which occurs inside cassava stems.
 Symptoms : patches of normal green leaf
color mixed with light green and yellow
chlorotic areas in a mosaic pattern
 Control method:
- Reduce cassava mosaic disease problems
by selecting stem cuttings from cassava
stem branches and not from the main
stems.
- Stem cuttings from the branches are more
likely to sprout into disease-free plants
than stem cuttings from the main stems.
 Cassava bacterial blight
 Caused by a bacterium
 which occurs inside cassava stems.

 Damage symptoms: leaf spots on the

under leaf surfaces, leaf blighting
and wilting, and shoot tip die-back.

 Control method:
-Avoid selecting stem cuttings from
plants with these symptoms
 Cassava anthracnose disease

 Caused by a fungus.
 which occurs on the surface
of cassava stems.
 Damage symptoms: cankers
(“sores”) on the stem and
bases of leaf petioles .The
disease reduces the sprouting
ability of stem cuttings.
 Cassava bud necrosis
 Caused by a fungus

 which grows on the surface of

cassava stems. Covering the
axilliary buds.

 Damage symptoms:. The

affected buds die, and the
sprouting ability of stem
cuttings is reduced.
 HARVESTING
 Cassava matures between 6 to 18 months after planting (depend on varieties).
- sweet types : 10 months after planting
- bitter types : 12 month after planting

 Cutting back plants 2 weeks before harvesting should cause tubers to mature and
increase yields by 10%. Do not weed before harvesting.

 Excess soil should be removed from the harvested tubers and tubers carefully packed
in crates or bags for transport.

 Bagged cassava tubers prior to sale can be covered with moist jute bags. This reduces
vascular (blue) streaking. Contract farmers should follow guidelines for harvesting,
sorting, storing and transportation of tubers as directed by the contractor.

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 Harvesting of sweet cassava types
 select and cut a healthy stem to be used as planting
materials
 cut stems about 30 cm from the base of the tree and use
the remaining stems to pull tubers
 remove all residues of the tree to prevent the re-growth
 potato brush to clean it from the ground, wrap and put
in baskets or sacks and store in a cool and shaded
before being marketed
 marketed within 2-3 days
 Examples : Medan, Sri Pontian, Ubi Kuning, Ubi Putih
 Harvesting of bitter cassava types

 select and cut a healthy stem to be used as planting

materials
 cut stems about 30 cm from the base of the tree and
use the remaining stems to pull tubers
 remove all residues of the tree to prevent the re-
growth
 use implentation a tractor mounted on 4 wheel
 send cassava immediately to the processing factory
 
 Examples : Sri Kanji 1,Sri Kanji 2, Black Twig
 SUMMARY
 To select a good site for a cassava farm, look for an area with dense vegetation, cover, good soil
texture, fertile soils, and flat or gently sloping land; also examine the field history to plan for
plant protection measures.

 Improve the soil by manuring, mulching, and intercropping to encourage cassava plants to grow
vigorously and offset damage by cassava diseases.

 To select good cassava varieties for planting, look for varieties with high dry matter, good
mealiness, good ground storability and which are well adapted to your area; the variety should
also bulk early and be easy to process.

 To select healthy cassava stem cuttings, choose healthy cassava plants as sources of planting
materials; use stem cuttings taken from the middle, brown portions of the stem and free of stem-
borne pests and diseases.
 SUMMARY

 To prepare cassava stem cuttings for planting, cut each stem cutting to a length of at least 20–25
cm; use stem cuttings with about 5–8 nodes; treat stem cuttings slightly infested with stem-borne
pests by immersing them in heated water for 5–10 minutes, dipping them into a dilute pesticide
solution, or by planting them horizontally.

 To plant cassava stem cuttings properly consider the type of soil; prepare ridges
 and mounds in areas where soil gets waterlogged; use minimum tillage in sandy soil; plant
cassava stem cuttings vertically in sandy soil; plant cassava stem cuttings at an angle in loamy
soil; plant cassava stem cuttings 1 meter apart from each other in sole cropping; and in cassava
intercrops make sure there is enough space for the plants.
 THANK YOU
* ALL THE BEST *

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