CABBAGE – VARIETIES, PEST CONTROL & REQUIREMENTS

CABBAGE – VARIETIES, PEST CONTROL, ECOLOGICAL REQUIREMENTS & DISEASE CONTROL

Cabbage is a leaf vegetable related to other brassica crops such as kales, cauliflower, Chinese cabbage and Brussels sprouts. Cabbage leaves may be eaten raw in salads, steamed, boiled or cooked in a variety of ways. The leaves can also be fed to livestock.

Ecological Requirements

Altitude:

  1. Those with small heads: 900-15o0m above sea level
  2. Those with Large heads: 1800-2700m above sea level.

Temperature: require cool condition.

Rainfall:

  1. 750-2000mm per annum.
  2. Should be well distributed throughout the growing period.

Soils:

  1. Deep
  2. Fertile
  3. Well drained.

Varieties

Early maturing:

  1. Brunswick,
  2. Sugarloaf,
  3. Earlyjersey,
  4. Copenhagen market,
  5. Chinese cabbage,
  6. Celerycabbage,
  7. Cafesplits kool
  8. Gloria, mukuki,
  9. Golden acre.

Late maturing:

  1. Drumhead,
  2. Savoy,
  3. Perfection,

Nursery Practices

  1. The beds should be raised, dimension 1 m wide and any convenient length (usually 2 3m in length).
  2. Make drills of 15-20cm apart.
  3. Sow seeds by drilling and cover to a depth of 1cm.
  4. Provide shade or mulch material.
  5. Apply phosphatic fertilizers and mix thoroughly with soil during planting.
  6. Water twice a day.

Seedbed Preparation

  1. Cultivation should be done during the dry season so that all the weeds are killed.
  2. Dig holes at the spacing of 60cm x 60cm.
  3. Incorporate farm yard manure in the soil.
  4. Transplanting
  5. Water the seedlings before uprooting.
  6. Seedlings are ready for transplanting after one month that is when they are 10-15cm in height.
  7. Select healthy and vigorous seedlings.
  8. Transplant the seedlings with balls of soil to prevent root damage.
  9. Plant to the same depth as they were in the nursery.

Field Maintenance

  1. Apply fertilizers during planting and top dress later.
  2. Control weeds to reduce competition.

Pest Control

Diamond Black Moth

  1. Damage: Eats the underside of the leaf making windows or holes in the leaf.
  2. Control: Spray recommended insecticides.

Cutworms

Damage: Attacks the stem at the ground level causing he plant to fall. > Control: Spray recommended insecticides.

Disease Control

Black Rot

  1. Cause: Bacteria
  2. Symptoms: Leaves turn yellow and rotting of the stem giving an offensive odour,
  3. Control: Closed season, crop rotation, use certified seeds and spray appropriate chemicals.

Black Leg

  1. Cause: Fungus
  2. Symptoms: Brown to black spots on seedlings and dark canker on the stem.
  3. Control: crop rotation, destroy infected materials.

Harvesting

  1. Cabbages are ready for harvesting 3-4 months after transplanting.
  2. The heads are cut when they are solid and compact.
  3. Harvested cabbages are sold immediately.
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