Papaya Exporting Countries

At present papaya has become a major commercial plantation in some of the countries. They export papaya to many countries and European countries and USA are the largest importers of papaya. below graph shows the export quantities of some of the countries which produce papaya as a commercial fruit. 

Papaya, not only as a fruit but also can be used as a vegetable. Papaya curries are popular in Asian countries. Rather exporting raw papaya, there are many value added method for papaya which can enhance the market value of the papaya. These details will be discussed in future posts.

Papaya Plantation 2

Varieties of papayas

Among the many varieties of papayas found in almost every region of the world, here are some of them which are common and lead the market.

• Mexican Red / Yellow papaya
• Hawaiian Sunrise / Sunset papaya
• Bettina papaya
• Guinea Gold papaya
• Hortus Gold papaya
• Kamiya papaya
• Kapoho papaya
• Peterson papaya

Mexican and the Hawaiian papayas are the most common varieties in the  world at the moment as well as in the south asian region. 

What is the best time to plant papaya?

Papaya can be grown in all over the year. However, there are scientific proven season times that favors the plantation which have less pests and diseases problems to the plantation.   Hence these seasons have a potential of giving you better yield.  There are basically three (3) seasons which papaya can be planted. 

•          During spring season, between February and march.
• ·      Monsoon season between June and July.
• ·      During autumn season between October and November.

It is not recommended to plant during the winter. but in south asian countries, there is no considerable temperature drop during the winter and so papaya can be planted during any time of the year. 

Fertilisation

For steady growth, plants required necessary and appropriate organic substances. Manure are simply waste products of cows, goats, pigs etc or you can use fertilisers. Nutritional and mineral contents like Boron, Magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, calcium which are essential for the crop’s growth and strength. Manure can be done just near to the root of the plant, the by making a pit or any other suitable arrangement. 
Realistically, it takes five month from plantation to a point where a plant begins producing flowers. fertilisers should be applied at frequent intervals to build a strong and healthy plant. Main content in fertilisers are nitrogen which formulates a strong lignin tissue, potassium which formulates plant cell walls and phosphorus. Annually a single plant takes a dose of 400g, 250 g, and 400g of nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium respectively. Always remember the fertilisation should be done with a proper water supply.

Boron and calcium play a important role in papaya plantation, as the papaya yield might be wasted if these minerals are not sufficient.

Boron and calcium deficiency 

 

Pests and Diseases

Like any other crops, papaya plants face a lot of diseases. pest and insects are among some of them. Some common pest and insects which attacks the plants are, stem borers, aphids and mealybug. The pest and insects may also cause to spread the diseases unless control at the beginning. 

Mealybug attack

Treatments for Diseases

Neglecting to treat the plants may lead to unpleasant results. there are few actions to be taken at the beginning of the disease. 

• Destroy the diseased plants (Burn)
• Introduce natural enemies / predators such as plantation friendly ants. 
• wash with high speed water flow
• Cover the yield by using some bags
• spray soap water
• Use Organic Insecticides 
• Use suitable chemical

These chemicals are different from country to country by their name. so it is advisable to seek advice from professional before spray chemicals / poisons. 

Harvest Time

Nothing makes a farmer happy other than harvesting time. Papayas are left on the tree until they fully mature. When the appropriate harvesting time comes, the papayas are carefully pluck and sorted on the basis of weight, size and colour.The readiness of the fruit can be seen when the papaya’s colour changes from green to pale green or yellow. The more yellowish the colour is, the ready it is to be reaped. Proper care need to be taken when packing the fruits because they be easily distorted.

It is recommended to wash the papaya with slightly hot water soon after plucking to remove sap and use plastic buckets to store and transport. 

Global market price and ratings

Papayas are cultivated mainly for domestic consumption and commercial export. According to reports large boxes of papaya goes at 6 Euros per box whilst small sizes goes at 4  Euros per box, making  a price of  two (2) papayas  at 1 euro. On average 50_70   thousand tons of papayas are exported to European countries and the price of 1kilo in south asian countries is average 0.25 USD to 0.5 USD. 

Thanks...

Papaya Plantation

Papaya has lot of benefits, not only nutritional wise but, also in medical aspects. Papaya is widely cultivated in Mexico, CostaRica and India, Sri Lanka and most of asian countries.  

Planting papaya is not as complicated and complex as it may seem to be. Trees can be grown in any time of the seasonal year though there are optimal precise seasons which gives you relatively high amount of harvest.

Papaya can be used as a "Fruit" as well as a "Vegetable". 


Health Benefits of Papaya


Papaya Nutrition composition is listed below. 

Nutrient	Composition for 100 edible portions
Water	90.8 g
Energy	32.8 k cal
Protein	0.6 g
Fat	0.1 g
Carbohydrates	7.2 g
Calcium	17.0 mg
Phosphorus	13.0 mg
Iron	0.5 mg
Carotene	666.0 g
Vitamin C	57.0 g

Papaya is better known as good medication for; 

• Various types of Cancers
• Gastritis
• Rich in fiber which is good for Constipation
• Vitamin Deficiency 

Land preparation and suitable atmospheric conditions

When it comes to land preparation, a farmer must ensure that the field is well prepared before the plantation of seeds or plants. All weed and remains of the previous farming season must be carefully removed from the field. Alternately, some farmers burn the residue which enhances the fertility of the land since the ashes act as manure.After removing weeds, the farmer’s next step is to start making seed beds. These are carefully made with a drainage channel where water should be naturally flow since water logging may result root rot or stress in plants. Also papaya grown in high moisturized soil are not much tasty, because the sweetness of the papaya dissolve with the water.   

normal standard spacing between plants is 10 to 20 foot depending on the the variety you use. the concept here is there should be enough space for plants to grow the leaves without disturbances and sunlight should not be covered from other plants. 

Correct Spacing between plants

Seeds can be germinated in any type of soil except the sandy and sticky clay soil. During the formulation of seed beds, it is highly recommended to make a sloppy or slant from a plant to the respective drainage paths to prevent water collect near the root of the plant. 

If the field expose to high wind condition during the year, wind may damage to the plantation as the papaya has very weak bole. In such areas it is advisable to grow,  plants called “wind breaks“  surrounding the papaya field to protect the plantation from high wind.

Papaya plants grow at their optimal pace when the temperature range is between 25—35 degrees Celsius with the average humidity conditions. Same as the moisture content in the soil, low temperature results less metabolic reactions inside the fruit and produce less tasty fruits.

Papaya Propagation

Though there are many propagation methods. Papaya is basically propagated from the seeds. Use seeds from healthy Papaya tree to propagate. choose ripe, pale green or yellow fruits to extract seeds, Wash the seeds later with fresh water and let them dry. These seeds are well enough to propagate papaya plants as you want. 

Ripe Papaya Seeds can be used for propagation

Papaya Plantation 2...

Cassava / Manioc Plantation 3

Harvesting of cassava

Cassava takes completely 9 -12 months to harvest. Cassava is mainly harvested with hands by lifting the base of the stem. harvesting after the right time ( 9 -12 month depend on  the variety ) will lead to poor quality harvest and market price will be less. 

After harvesting, the tubers are washed for market or consumption purposes.Cassava can be preserved by drying. it can go for another year when dried without experiencing any decay.  

Cassava Harvest

It is important to harvest cassava carefully as it the damaged cassava tubers can not be stored long time and very likely to get spoiled. therefore the market price for the damaged cassava tubers also is very low. Rough, hard ground condition will result more damages to the corps. Therefore it is adviceable to wet the ground before harvesting or start harvesting just 2-3 days after the rain. 

Cassava tube without damage

However the cassava tubers which are harvested without any damaged to the tubers have good market and can be export to many countries which does not grow cassava. 

Global market price

Growing cassava for commercial exportation is a good business in the world. Cassava farming can lead to lot of revenue benefits if you are able to manage wisely. According to global reports, market price of the good quality cassava is mentioned in the below table. 

Period in years	Price / Ton (US $)
2015	400 - 450
2016	325 - 375
2017	300 - 350

Global Demand

On average, each American consumes about 132 pounds of cassava wheat / cassava  flour per year.

The production volume of cassava has reached to 8 million tons in 2018 and latest analytical review further predicted that by 2024 the market demand will reached to 10 million tons of consumption.

Also cassava is used for many other productions as mentioned in the first post and hope to explain about those value added product in a future post. 

Thanks. 

Cassava / Manioc Plantation 2

Cassava Field

How cassava is planted

The cassava is mainly planted by planting stems. The stem of the mature cassava plant is cut and plant on the loosen soil. These stems grows and forms other cassava plants. There are few precautions one must follow in order to successfully transplant the cassava. Farmers must ensure that they doesn’t plant an immature stem. This may result unsuccessful plantation when planted. 

Three mostly common types of plantation

In most of the places, farmers have three common ways of cassava plantation. 

1. Upright stem positioning. This method is preferably for growing cassava in the monsoon season.
2. Straight line stem positioning. It maintains watery content on the field, preferably in summer.
3. Sloppy stem positioning. Preferably in between summer and monsoon.

Cassava is cultivated throughout the year and if the farmer supply enough water during the first half of the year, it can survive the next half.

Essential minerals for cassava growth

In order to healthy grow, fertilizer is also one of the major contributor. The common types of fertilizer used are the D compound (nitrogenous), and urea fertilizer (potassium). alternately farmers use manure. The main component of fertilizer are nitrogen, phosphorous and potash. Though the fertilizer is important, it has some negative effects on the land if it is over used. Therefore best way to supply the required fertilizer is to use organic or compost as it is natural product. in general 300 tons may approximately required for a hectare but it may differ on the soil condition and other various factors. Fertilization normally do twice a year near the root of the plant.

Pests and insects and diseases

Cassava plantation also has to fight with different pests and insects which may affect its productivity even causing its death. Some common pests and insects are;

• Locusts
• Beetles
• Aphids
• Rot ants
• Termites

These pests and insects can diverse diseases on the crop such as root rot, mosaic disease, anthracnose and, bacterial blight, linear decay and many others. Therefore, proper and precise treatment is best approach in combating the situation. If the necessary treatment is not taken as an emergency call the harvest can be highly affected.

Cassava / Manioc Plantation 3 .....

Cassava/Manioc Plantation

Cassava also called as Manioc or tapioca roots is a very popular food among many and can be cultivated as an economically viable crop.

Cassava is one of the most grown crops in the world, especially in West Africa and South America. It is also known by the scientific name "Manihot Escalante". According to reports Nigeria is the top producer and owns 40% of all West Africa. While land preparation and treatment of cassava may seems complicated or threatening, it is a simple, step-by-step process, this article will take you through the high plantation procedures that will help to make your cultivation a success.  

The use of  Cassava

There are many benefits and nutritional benefits. In fact, it is used as a staple in many African countries and Asian countries. This clearly indicates that they make up about 60% of their daily diet. Below are some of the benefits of manioc.

• As a main meal.
• In the making of alcohol
• As an ingredient in animal feed.
• Fried Cassava To make Chips and Snacks.

The manioc can be classified into two main types, one with a bitter taste called "bitter manihot" and one with a sweet taste called "sugar manihot". It has been clearly demonstrated that both varieties can be grown using the same techniques.

Benefits of manioc

There is no doubt as to why manioc is grown in many parts of the world. Not only for export and revenue collection, but also for nutritional purposes. There are many benefits to the crop. The cause of heart attacks is the presence of cholesterol in the coronary arteries. This causes blockage of the vessels and therefore reduces blood flow. In this situation, a person may suffer from a heart attack. The manioc has a mineral content that can cleanse the depletion of cholesterol from your blood vessels. It also helps the digestive system and the kidneys.

Land preparation and environmental conditions

       

Manioc plants can survive on any type of soil, but sand and loam are the most favarable for optimal growth. This is due to the high soil moisture storage capacity of the two soils and the nutrients required for cassava tubers and leaves.

This crop grows well in acidic soils. pH range 4 - 6.8. Excessive alkaline soil can cause unwanted damage and impact on plants, including their products. Therefore, farmers check their fields for acid content to prevent this happening. They are interested in knowing what the acid range of their land is and so farmers test pH readings by using litmus papers or any other suitable method and apply lime to their fields to reduce the percentage of alkaline. This is done to regulate the alkalinity of their field, as lime contains acid.

At the end of the season, the key to a good harvest is temperature. The manioc works best when the temperature range is between 27-39 degrees Celsius. This growth can be supported by warm weather conditions and a humid climate.

Before planting, weeds should be completely removed from the field during the pre-planting season. This is often done by plowing the field two or three times to make sure every weed is gone. The amount of lime added to the field can be estimated at about 5.5 kg per hectare in some areas. The recommended spacing between plants is 1 m.

Cassava / Manioc Plantation 2 ......

Rice Production - Ground Preparation

Ground Preparation

Ground preparation is a very important activity in the rice production. Proper land preparation will ensure proper supply of nutrients to the soil, weed management and harvesting.

Ground preparation can be done from mopping up the floor or mowing the soil completely, depending on the environment. First, Soil can be divide into parts of the soil, secondly the soil into smaller parts and finally the leveling.

Generally the soil preparation takes 3-4 weeks and the most common soil preparation method is as follows.

• Adjusting toes as needed.
• Application of glyphosate to control weeds
• Water the glyphosate for 2-3 days.
• Leave the water for 3-7 days (2-3 centimeters high)
• Sewing with machine tools or plows.
• Leave it under water for about 14 days.

If necessary, the soil can be re-weeded according to the condition of the weeds.

Rice Production

Paddy Field 

World rice consumption has been increasing by 10 million metric tons per year since the last decade. Therefore, it should be borne in mind that rice production is a good profit-making business.

Rice production is a somewhat more diligent process / job than other crops, and it is a business that can produce good yields and profit with good understanding.

According to the past average data on harvest, one hectare of well cultivated paddy fields can yield a harvest of 4300 - 6000 kg per season.

Agriculturists show that she main stages of rice production are carried out under several stages.

• Seed selection
• Preparing the ground
• Plants / Paddy Planting
• Water Supply
• Provision of nutrition and protection for cultivation
• Harvesting
• Yield insurance

Each of these phases will be discussed separately in the future posts.