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Best agronomic practices
According to Agroking Uganda limited, poor agronomic practices play a big role in low productivity.
Groundnuts do well in semi-arid tropical regions, below 1,500 meters above sea level with a temperature requirement of about 30°C.
“All soils, other than very heavy ones are suitable for growing groundnut, but the best are deep, well drained sandy, sandy loam or loamy sand soils where the plant can easily peg its pods,” Fertilizers should be applied during land preparation. Although a soil test is the best way to determining the type of fertilizer required. Agroking advises against using potassium fertilizers after plants have germinated. Deeper furrows should be dug with the fertilizer covered to avoid seed burning.

Land preparation and seeding
Agronomists recommend preparing land before the rains start by removing all crop residues and weeds. The recommended time is usually three to four weeks before planting. In low lying areas, a farmer is advised to use ridges to prevent water logging. After preparing land, seed selection follows. Experts warn against using seeds from diseased plants. “If you are not sure of the history of the seeds, look out for disease and drought resistant varieties from accredited seed multipliers,”

Weeding
“Groundnuts do not tolerate weed competition especially three to six weeks after sowing,” Agroking quips. Like any crop, groundnuts compete with weeds for moisture, nutrition, light and space.
This calls for proper weed management. Weeding can be done three to four times with the first coming before flowering and during pegging.

Pest and disease management
Groundnuts are susceptible to several infections and pests which reduce yield and quality. Most attacks are fungal, viral or bacterial related. The most common disease include rosette, early leaf spot, late leaf spot and rusts. Aphids, leafminer, thrips, termites and beetles are the ravaging pests.bSpraying with insecticides, timely cropping and harvesting, intercropping, field sanitation, planting resistant varieties and proper storage are recommended.

Harvesting
Since they can be flowering even at harvest time, a farmer must scout his garden on a regular basis. Hand pulling is one of the most used and suitable forms in sandy and loam soils while ox-drawn ploughs or hoeing can be used when drought sets in at harvesting time. Damage to pods should be avoided as this can lead to aflatoxin contamination. When pods are damaged, moulds will enter and produce aflatoxins. The situation becomes worse when drying takes place on bare ground. Inadequately dried pods are another source of aflatoxins. Since aflatoxins are becoming a major healthy concern, Agroking advises commercial farmers to measure moisture content.

Storage
Since market prices keep fluctuating, most farmers tend to keep their groundnuts either as pods or in shelled form. Storing in shells offers more protection against moulds yet shelled ones are easily invaded by moulds, insects and rodents.

Recommended practices
Climate: Rainfall: 450-1250 mm per year. Temperature: 24-30°C
Soils: Sandy or sandy loam, or loamy sands
Fertilizer: 60 kg/ha of NPK
Rotation: With cereals or cassava, sweet potato, sunflower
Land preparation: Before on-set of rains
Planting: When moisture is adequate and stable in soil. Sow 5-6 cm deep
Seed dressing: With fungicide
Spacing: Semi-erect types: 45X10-15 cm such as Igola 1, Serenut 1R, Serenut 2, Serenuts 7T, Serenut 8R. Bunch types like red beauty, Serenut 4T, 5R, 6T, 45cmX7.5-10 cm
Weeding: 2-3 times
Irrigation: Where possible and necessary

Citrus fruit is considered among the highest value fruit crop found in both tropical and sub-tropical countries of the world, Uganda inclusive. The fruit plays a key role in human diets as a high source of vitamin C and other important nutrients, including folate a water-soluble vitamin, potassium and fibre. In a 2018 publication in Journal of Entomology and Zoology Studies by a team of agriculture scientists about distribution, abundance and severity of citrus pests in northern Uganda, it is stated that Brazil, United States and China continue to be the three largest processed orange producing regions in the world, taking up 85 per cent of the market.
It is stated that in East Africa, citrus is an important crop and production is estimated at 10 tonnes per hectare below the demand and the expected yield of 50 to 70 tonnes per hectare.

Common diseases
The most common disease experienced by farmers growing citrus fruit in eastern Uganda is the pseudocercospora fruit and leaf spot, which destroys the fruit and leaves. There is also altrenario brown spot, which usually causes a dark spot on the fruit, and anthracnose, which causes hard black spots on the fruit. The pests include aphids which attack the tree by sucking the sap out of the leaves, scales insects which cause leaves to yellow, leaf miners where the larvae feed by creating shallow tunnels in young leaves, as well as orange dogs which affects the fruit. The fruit flies, accompanied with diseases, will cause 100 per cent losses. The pest and disease challenge may arise due to climatic conditions, including water stress in the fields and poor management practices.

Crop management
Farmers have also been trained on nursery management and in the entire crop management they have been sensitized on pesticide use, timely pruning, identification of soil fertility and spacing. Other measures include thinning, scouting, correct planting period, proper sanitation, fertilizer use and cover cropping.

Soil management
Farmers are expected to carry out mulching, dig ridges, shallow trenches/channels to absorb water in the fields during dry seasons. They must also practice roadside water harvesting, use water basins for trapping rain water in the soil and also the application of manure at the appropriate time.

Fruit performance
Farmers who are adopting these management practices are realizing better performing citrus crops with more green leaves, bigger fruit observed in their farms. All the fruit sampled depending on the variety performed above the normal fruit. The acidity level in the juice was generally low rated and one percent and the pH within the optimum range of 3 - 4.5.

Farmer engagement
A total of 93 farmers have so far been trained in disease management and 337 in soil water management. This is through practical illustrations on demonstration fields, provision of disease calendars, including disease management manuals.

Challenges
They established that farmers focus on one approach at a time resulting in disease managed field seriously affected by drought and vice versa, there is need for using integrated approach. Farmers have challenges accessing inputs and this calls for intervention of cooperative unions. There is the challenge of poor market and marketing arrangements.

 

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