Zambia Agribusiness Society

Planting dates ·          All year round in frost free areas or greenhouse. Days to Harvest ·          80 to 120 days depends on cultivar. Harvesting duration ·          60 Days Yield ·          20 000 - 60 000kg. Soil requirements ·          pH 5.0 to 5.5, ·          Sandy loam soils, ·          Soil testing is key. Seed ·          120 - 160g in a nursery seed bed of about 60m 2 . ·          7 - 10 days emergence. ·          Floating seed trays can also be used. ·          Ensure free drainage to avoid damping off. Transplanting ·          6 - 8 weeks after emergence. ·          Harden seedlings when they have 3 - 5 true leaves. Spacing ·          In-row : 300 - 500mm. ·          Inter-row : 1000 - 1500mm. Fertilizer requirements Soil testing is key. ·          Basal Dressing : Compound S, ·          Top-dressing : Ammonium Nitrate and Potassium Sulphate 100kg/ha split into 2 or 3 applications. Weed management ·          Annual

Now, this is where the task begins. A chick surviving the chick phase partially signifies that the pullet and egg-laying stage will be an easy ride all things being equal. So, here is a guide that will enlighten you on how to care for your day-old chicks until they mature. For clarity, we have split this process into stages to help you know what to do at each given time. Days 1-2 Prevent the chicks from getting chilled by setting the pen temperature adequately. In other words, ensure they are warm enough. Ensure you check on the baby chicks several times in a day. At night, ensure all the chicks make it back under the brooder. Also, leave the lights on all night. This will provide illumination for the baby chicks to see to eat and drink. Keep your eye open for sick or dead birds. Ensure they are taken away from the environment to avoid scare and smell. However, keep in mind that high mortality of chicks occurs within the first 48 hours. But if the chicks make it out during this period,

General Requirements ·          Onion requires cool conditions during vegetative growth and hot, dry conditions nearing maturity, in early summer. Optimum temperatures for growth are 12ºC to 24ºC, with minimum temperatures of 7ºC and maximum 29ºC. ·          Popular Onion varieties are Texas Grano, Red creole and Caledon Globe. ·          A well-managed Onion crop should yield 750 to 1000 x 10kg pockets/ Lima. Land Preparation/ Soil Type ·          Deep well-drained Sandy to loamy soils with a pH range from 5 to 6.5 is ideal for Onion. ·          Effective rooting depth is 20cm. ·          Plough and disc to 45 to 60cm depth of fine tilth seedbed. Planting and Transplanting ·          Sow directly by drilling in farrows 5mm deep or raise seedlings in nursery beds and transplant 4 to 5 weeks later. Ideal sowing time is February to June. ·          Transplant during the cool part of the day (early morning or late afternoon) to avoid wilting of the plants. ·         

‘Rainfast’ refers to the time it takes until a chemical cannot be washed off by environmental factors such as rains. Oftentimes farmers have challenges with chemical wash off due to failure to understand or apply the rainfast of crop protection products (herbicides, insecticides and fungicides). In many instances, farmers have applied these chemicals immediately prior to rainfall or whilst it showers. Thereafter, the failure of these chemicals to yield the expected results has been attributed to chemical suppliers and companies. In actual fact this chemical failure is due lack of adherence to rainfast time. What exactly is Rainfast Time? For herbicides or weed killers, generally, chemicals must be applied 3 to 6 hours prior to rains. However, reference must be made to the chemical labels for these times vary. For instance herbicides like Paraquat only need 30 minutes to be fully absorbed and any rains after this will not adversely affect the herbicide. Likewise, reference must