Diseases of tea cultivation

Primary Diseases	Secondary Diseases
i) Leaf diseases
Blister blight	Grey blight
Black rot	Brown blight
Red spot
Black spot
ii) Stem diseases
Fusarium	Red rust
Dieback (Seed decay)	Poria branch canker
	Thorney stem blight
iii) Root diseases
Charcoal stump rot	Violet root rot
Brown root rot	Diplodia disease
Red root rot
Black root rot

 

Blister Blight

Blister blight is a seasonal disease and can spread very rapidly by means of air borne spores. Mature tea in general and teas recovering from pruning in particular suffer from blister blight. The fungus attacks young succulent growth on all teas especially when the environment is foggy, moist and cool. A single spore can produce a blister when deposited on tender shoots in about 10-21 days from the time of infection.

Tea growing areas	Periods of outbreak
Darjeeling	July to September
Assam	March to May and November to December
Dooars	September to November

 

Control measures

This disease can be controlled by adopting chemical as well as cultural control strategies simultaneously. Some of the predisposing factors are dull, humid, cloudy and cool weather prevailing for several days, heavy shade etc. In such conditions prevails, monitoring of blister prone sections should be thoroughly undertaken. The shades should be thinned.

Normally 4-6 rounds Copper are necessary in Darjeeling. In Assam and Dooars, the spraying can be discontinued once the damp weather condition is over and it becomes hot and sunny for a few consecutive days. The order of priority for chemical treatment is:

nurseries > pruned young tea > early medium pruned tea > light pruned tea > unprune tea.

Black rot

The disease is caused by fungi Corticium theae and Corticium invisum. Both the fungi produce similar effect on the bush and some times occur together. They attack the maintenance leaves, causing gradual deterioration in the health of the bush and consequent loss of crop. The disease is first noticed in May/June/July although germination from the sclerotial stage starts in March/April. The fungus remains active right up to September and then over winters in the sclerotial form in the cracks and crevices of the stem. Transformation in to sclerotial stage is a means for survival during the unfavourable weather condition. When favourable condition prevails, they germinate and re-infect.

Cultural control :

1. Pruning or skiffing of the severely affected sections.
2. Improvement of aeration by lopping side branches and ‘matidals’.
3. Thinning out of the dense shade.
4. Improvement of drainage.
5. Alkaline wash after pruning.
6. Adoption of shorter pruning cycle in chronic and severely affected sections.

Chemical control :

Thorough drenching of all the stems and decomposing pruning litters below the bush with copper oxychloride (COC) one week after the first spell of rainfall in February/March. Spray two blanket rounds of COC or Copper hydroxide or Hexaconazole at 15 days interval during May-June. Spot spraying of these two fungicides should continue till September if the disease incidence is severe. Application of two monthly rounds of COC or Carboxin during winter will inhibit sclerotia formation.

Control by bioagents:

Two fortnightly rounds of 10% Bacillus subtilis broth can be applied in lieu of chemical fungicide during both active and dormant phase of the disease. Spraying should be directed towards small stems and under surfaces of the leaves, which bear fungal pathogens.

Branch canker and Thorny stem blight

Branch canker and Thorny stem blight are important stem diseases of tea prevailing in plains of Assam and Darjeeling hills, respectively. Branch canker is caused by Poria hypobrunnea and the causal organism of thorny stem blight is Tunstallia aculeata. These pathogens are typical wound parasites and enter the tea plants normally through heavy pruning cuts. Hence it is necessary to protect the fresh wounds with protective paints to stop the entry of these pathogens.

Control measures

For an effective control of these diseases careful removal of all dead wood at each pruning and subsequent protection of the pruning cuts with protective paints/sprays is necessary. These protective paints may be bituminous paint, COC or Trichoderma bioagents. During recent times Trichoderma treatment has been found to be the best method of protecting the pruning cuts from the damage of both Poria and Tunstallia. For painting of large pruning cuts soon after rejuvenation and medium pruning 80 litres of 20% Trichoderma spore suspension using 16L or kg of the bioagent formulation/ha is required (considering 8000 plants/ha). For spraying of entire bush frame after light pruning/cut across pruning, 400 litres of 5% Trichoderma spore suspension using 20L or kg of the bioagent formulation/ha is required using a NMD 60/450 nozzle.

Red rust

It is a disease of young stems mostly, the ultimate symptoms of which normally manifest on the leaves. The causal organism of this disease is Cephaleuros parasiticus, an alga, causes severe damage especially to the young teas. Tissues of the stem are killed in patches and cause dieback. The leaves of the infected branches variegate with yellow patches. The alga produces brick red or orange coloured fructifications in patches on the infected stems of the tea bush.

Cultural control

1. The predisposing factors to be identified and corrected are i) poor drainage, ii) low soil fertility, particularly potash, iii) improper soil acidity, iv) inadequate shade and v) continuous use of green crops like Tephrosia candida, T. vogelli etc.
2. Pruning of severely affected sections.

Chemical control

In susceptible areas young teas should be sprayed with four rounds of COC/Copper hydroxide during mid April to mid July. First two rounds at 15 days interval and the subsequent rounds at monthly interval. Young shade trees/ green crops in nurseries should be painted with COC to avoid fresh infection.

2% MOP and Urea can be sprayed as a rehabilitary measure in the severely affected sections. Spraying of fungicides should be directed towards the young stems and laterals bearing rusty fructifications.

Dieback of Primaries and seed decay

During the last couple of years, dieback of primaries in certain succulent TV clones and seed decay in some biclonal seed stocks have been causing serious concern. The causal organism of these maladies is identified as Fusarium solani, a parasitic fungus. Generally this pathogenic fungus is predominant in the humid temperate climate of North East India. The susceptible clones and seed stocks to Fusarium solani are recorded as TV 19, TV 23, TV25, TV 26, TV 29, S3A1 parent of seed stock 491 and both the parents of seed stock 520. Symptoms of these maladies are as follows :

On primaries : Blackening of the petioles of leaves, which gradually extends to the nodes and inter-nodes, followed by wilting of the primaries. White cottony fungal growth is seen on the dying tissues, which turns brown at maturity accompanying with development of small pink perithecia of Necteria

On seeds : Blackening of fruit carp followed by immature cracking and dropping of seeds. Seed becomes light pinkish with powdery coverage due to the fungus sporulation in the later stage of infestation.

Control measures

Several chemicals have been evaluated for controlling Fusarium solani both in laboratory as well as in field. In these trials Carbendazim, Hexaconazole and Tridemorph and their combinations were found effective in controlling the pathogen.

Primary root diseases

The most common primary root diseases of tea plants in the plains of North East India are “Charcoal stump rot” and “Brown root rot”.”Black root rot” is occasionally found in Darjeeling gardens while Red root rot is of rare occurrence. The root diseases can spread by means of direct contact or from left over diseased woody material. However, the spread of Charcoal stump rot and Black root rots may take place by air borne spores as well. The diseased materials may also be carried by rain to healthy teas. Unfortunately, there is no known method of detecting root infection by examining the above ground portion of the plant. Depending on the age and size of the bush it may require six months to four years to kill a infected plant. The tea roots remain in close proximity and hence by the time a dead plant is noticed, it is possible that its immediate neighbours have also become infected. Adoption of proper cultural practices is a vital point for control of primary root diseases as no effective chemicals are available at the moment to control these pathogens.

Cultural control

1. When the disease occurs on individual bush or in patch, the diseased plant together with a ring of apparently healthy bushes surrounding it should be uprooted removing all bits of roots.
2. When a large area is infected the diseased patches should be isolated by 90 -100 cm deep and 30 cm wide trench surrounding the area until uprooting can be undertaken. This trench should be connected to the nearest drain.
3. In case of old tea, due for uprooting, only the diseased plant is to be uprooted and the whole area should be kept isolated by an encircling trench as described above. The area should be uprooted two years before replanting.
4. All vacant areas thus created should be kept under a green crop for two yearsbefore infilling or replanting.

Biological control :

Trichoderma bio agents have been found effective in controlling primary root diseases namely, Charcoal stump rot and Brown root rots. Planting pit treatment for infilling and replanting, 10% spore suspension should be used for treating the excavated soil of planting pits @ 100ml/pit. Alternatively, compost or well rotten cattle manure should be mixed thoroughly with the spore suspension and the treated manure should be mixing thoroughly with the excavated soil of the planting pit @ 200g/pit. The treatment will require 30L or kg of Trichoderma biocide/ha.

For top dressing around infills already planted in mature tea (1 year or below) should be sprayed around the collar region on the round @ 100 ml/plant using 5% spore suspension during Apr/May or Sep/ Oct before the soil gets dry. Forking of soil is a must before spraying.

Secondary root diseases:

Violet root rot and Diplodia

Violet root rot caused by Spherostilbe repens and attacks of Diplodia sp. on weak plants are the common secondary root diseases of tea. Violet root rot disease is very common on stiff clayey waterlogged soils. It can easily be controlled by improvement of drainage. Diplodia fungus can live on dead stem and root tissues, which are deficient in reserved starch material. Healthy plants are not affected by this fungal pathogen. No chemical treatment is necessary for controlling both these diseases.

Land Selection for Tea

How to preparation land of tea 

Tea may be replanted in old lands after the removal of old cultivation or in new lands. In either operation, there are many factors that should be considered to minimize the soil and nutrient losses and to protect the soil structure. Regardless which one you are going to do, almost all the operations are the same. Therefore, we consider it as replanting tea after uprooting the old cultivation.

Uprooting of Old Tea Cultivation

When your tea cultivation gives poor yield and with debilitated bushes, and cannot be corrected with agronomic practices such as fertilizer, pruning, etc. tea has to be uprooted and re-planted. In some estates, up-rooting is a manual practice but, it is always better to use a winch (lifter/puller) since it will remove the whole root system. All the roots must be pulled out to remove all Poria and Nematode infested roots, so that they would not infest into new clearing.

At the time of old tea up-rooting, it is advisable to remove all the shade trees. It is a well known fact that, when we cut down shade trees at once, the reserved carbohydrates in the root system would not be depleted. In such situation, remaining carbohydrates will facilitate root disease like Charcoal root, etc. Ring balking (removal of Phloem) stops the translocation of synthesized carbohydrates in leaves into roots without damaging the vascular bundles in the Xylem. This makes water & nutrient supply to the upper parts of the plant continue, and hence, plant dies gradually depleting all carbohydrates in the root system. Therefore, it is always advisable to ring balk the high-shade trees (Albizia) 2 – 2.5 years prior to up-rooting of old tea, to a width of approximately 45 – 60 cm from the base.

If root diseases or Nematode infestations could be seen in up-rooting old tea, treat the soil immediately to prevent their spread. Fork the field and remove all roots in pencil thickness, or even smaller, to prevent re-infestations. All infected roots must be burned in an incinerator and destroyed.

When land preparation is done in a large and hilly area, start it from the upper most sections, in a block-wise manner. This will prevent cleared blocks from re-infestation with pests/diseases and damage to new clearing by rolling rocks, etc.

Always thoroughly keep in your mind that, soil is the utmost priceless component in your land, specially the top 30 cm layer. If you are too haste and didn’t apply measures to minimize erosion during land preparation, it is not only the soil created during millions of years you miss, but also a huge amount of money that you would earn from your tea yield in future. The following paragraphs will briefly explain you on the practices to be done and how to do them with minimum erosion of soil.

Land preparation should always be done avoiding heavy rains. Always try to minimize the time gap between up-rooting and establishment of rehabilitation grass. Finish the job in blocks and complete it up to planting of rehabilitation grass immediately as possible preventing exposed and loosen soil from rain. Never level the land into a very fine texture. It will make falling rain water runoff fast without leaving much time to soak it into the soil and ultimately soil particles will be washed off severely making land eroded. Therefore, it is always better to maintain somewhat rugged soil surface, decreasing the speed of runoff water. It will decrease erosive power of runoff water, and allow spread and percolate into soil pores.

Drains and terrains are then built to maintain the flow of water and save soil from erosion. Drains, terraces and planting of rehabilitation grass and planting of tea are done along the contour lines.  Therefore, marking of contour lines is very important in the field.

Next step is to build up of drains. Sometime, people are used to build drains after several months from the establishment of rehabilitation grass, since it is easier and no collapses of the banks. But that practice is not advisable since it will allow the soil to be washed off with rain water and priceless top soil layer would be lost. Drains are very important to manage the flow of water and minimize erosion. There are two main types of drains, viz. Lateral drains and Main (Leader) drains.

Lateral Drains

Width and depth of the lateral drains are 45 X 45 cm (18 inch) and the slope is maintained 1:120 towards the main drain.  That means if we consider two points each 120 units (m, cm, ft, inch, etc.) apart from other, the difference of vertical elevation between two points is one unit.

Now you might be having a problem, if the depth is 45 cm without changing, and slope is 1:120 how these two conditions come together. Although it is technically said that lateral drains are made along the contour, practically it is not. They are made crossing the contours so that the slope is maintained at 1:120 ratio. We can use the road tracer or clinometers in this purpose.

There are two modifications for lateral drains to control the displacement of silt (soil) from the field, viz.;

• Lock and Spill drains and
• Drains with Silt pits

Surface View of a Lock & Spill Drain

Surface View of a Drain with Silt Pits

Lateral drains should not cut open to the main/leader drain directly opposing each other, but in slightly different elevations to minimize collapse of drain banks and erosion.

The spacing between two lateral drains is dependent on the slope and amount of approximate rainfall received. It ranges from 6 m to 12 m. When the slop reduces, and lower rainfall is received, spacing can be made wider (12 m) and vice versa.

Brim or the banks of the drain should be cultivated along sides of the drain with Vetiver Grass (Vetiveria zizanoides) or African Love Grass (Eragrostis curvula) to minimize erosion and collapse of the brim.

Drains should de-silted and clean regularly. Silt removed from drains should always be put upper side of the drain, but not the lower side.

Leader Drains

Leader (Main) drains (Neththi) are cited in the naturally occurring drain lines to carry away the water from lateral drains in non-erosive velocities. Width and depth of the main drain or leader drain is dependent on the amount of water that has to be carried away.

Leader drains are made in step-wise structure with reverse slope and sides and bottom paved with stones to prevent gullies by eroding. Check dams are made in frequent intervals to collect silt carried away with runoff water and sides or banks are planted with Vetiver grass. Leader drains must always be cleaned and de-silted in frequent intervals as done in the lateral drains.

Reverse Slope in Step-wise Leader Drain

Well Maintained Leader (Main) Drain

Stone paved terraces area built along the contour lines to minimize soil erosion and reduce the slope. The upper brim of the terrace must be above the ground/soil level and slope towards the hill side.

Planting of Rehabilitation Grass

Rehabilitation of new clearings prior to the establishment of tea is a compulsory practice. This helps in soil conservation, enhancing soil fertility and structure, minimize erosion and ultimately very important to get a sustainable high yield from tea.

There are only two rehabilitation grasses to re-gain the soil conditions after uprooting the old tea bushes. They are;

• Guatemala (Tripsacum laxum) and

• Mana (Cymbopogon confertiflorus)

Just after drains are being constructed rehabilitation grass must be planted, Guatemala in 20 x 60 cm spacing. Planting material for Guatemala is 4 – 6 node stem. Plant stem 3 – 4 nodes below ground using a crowbar. Mana is planted in 10 x 60 cm spacing. Planting material is little tillers separated from large bushes. Rehabilitation grass must be maintained at least 1.5 years to improve soil conditions after uprooting old tea. Grass is frequently (3-4 month interval) cut and put between the rows to increase organic material. Roots of the grass penetrate into the soil and bind soil particles minimizing erosion. On the other hand, such organic matter content incorporated into soil will help in enhancing cation exchange capacity (ability of soil to hold fertilizer in it), water holding capacity, soil aeration, soil micro & macro organisms, etc.

If the land is reported to be infested with Nematodes (Radopholus similis) it is better not to use Guatemala, but Mana for rehabilitation, since roots Guatemala grass found to be hosting that nematode species.

It is always advisable to apply Dolomite to the land prior to establishment of rehabilitation grass. The amount of dolomite to be applied is given below, according to the pH level of soil. This also helps to prevent Magnesium deficiency in young tea. Therefore, you need to know the pH level of your land as well.

Below 3.9 pH                      2500 kg/ha

3.9 – 4.2                               2000 kg/ha

4.2 – 4.5                               1500 kg/ha

4.5 – 5.5                               1000 kg/ha

Lop the grass regularly in 3 – 4 month interval. Fertilizer (U 625) application is done when the plants having sufficient foliage beginning from 160 kg/ha, next the dosage is increased to 210 kg/ha after lopping. After 2 – 3 lopping it is further increased to 310 kg/ha.    

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Land Selection for Tea

Tea is economically cultivated in a wide range of soils. In tropical, sub-tropical and temperate climatic conditions, tea grows in soils derived from Gneiss or Granites, Flat Alluvial lands, Peat Soils, Volcanic Ashes and Residual Formations.

Albizia moluccanais the best indicator plant that shows the suitability of a soil for the cultivation of tea, especially  in South-East Asian region, i.e. countries like India and Sri Lanka, etc. Tea is a plant that love to grow in acidic soils. It is considered that it can grow in a range of pH 4 - 6.5, where the optimum range is pH 4.5 - 5.5. If the pH of the soil is out of that optimum level, it should be corrected with Aluminum Sulphate or elemental Sulphate, before the planting. Lands naturally grown with Bracken fern (Gleichenia linearis), generally known as in this optimum pH range. Red-Yellow Podzolic Soils (RYP) is the best tea growing soil. These are the dominant soils in the low country and upcountry wet zone in Sri Lanka.

Albizia moluccana Leaves & Flowers

Gleichenia linearis Plant

If you are planning to replant old tea cultivation, it is always better to select lower “B” category and upper “C” category fields for that. Generally, tea estates have categorized their tea fields as A, B & C based on the yield (kg/ha/yr) over a period of not less than 2-3 years. Highest yielding lands come under category “A” while lowest in “C”.

The lands selecting must be undulating terrains, well drained and with a good soil depth and un-eroded. It is always advisable to avoid eroded lands with slab rock, concentrated boulders, surface rocks and gravel. In Sri Lankan conditions well drained lands less than 70% (31.5^o) of slope (Mid elevations 55% of slope or 24.75^o), more than 60 cm of soil depth, less than 20% of surface rockiness and less than 50% of gravel in top 90 cm layer of soil are considered as generally accepted parameters in land selection for ea cultivation. Flat lands adjoining paddy fields, water bodies or boggy areas are advisable to avoid due to poor drainage and soil aeration.

Land slope can be easily measured (either in percentage or degrees) with Clinometers. Otherwise, it could be simply measured with a rope. One end of the rope is wedge to the slope while a person below to that point raise the other end so that the rope would remain in the horizontal pane. Vertical height to the hand of the man at the point which the rope is held (A) divided by the horizontal length of the rope from the wedge to man’s hand (B), multiplied with 100 will give you the slope in percentage.

Simple way of finding Land Slope in percentage

Simple Home-made Clinometer, its Mechanism, Pocket Clinometer and Hand-held Clinometer in use

Soil depth is measured after preparing soil pits. Number of soil pits dig will be depended on the variation of the land. But generally, there should be at least 12 – 15 soil pits made to cover a one hectare land. The soil pit is 1 m X 1 m X 1 m in dimension and one wall should directly face the sunlight. Soil depth is measured with the meter tape from the upper brim of the pit to the parent rock. Apart from the soil depth, we can inspect for any hard layers underneath the soil surface, type & structure of the soil, depth of the gravel layer, depth of the top soil layer, soil color, etc. in the same location. At least 60 cm of soil depth is considered compulsory for commercial tea cultivation while 60 cm – 90 cm is moderately suitable and more than 90 cm will be the optimal.  

Duly Prepared Soil Pit for Inspection

In determining gravel percentage, take samples from the top 90 cm layer of the soil pit. Air-dry the sample and carefully break any soil aggregations with hand and weigh (Initial weight) it. Then sieve it through 10 mm mesh & collect what is remained in the sieve and weigh (Weight of Gravel). The following equation gives the percentage gravel content.

Set of Siever for partical size analysis

Surface rockiness is measured visually. Visually inspect the land from a distance and determine how much surface area covered with rocks and approximate percentage of that.

Avoid steep rocky clayey or gravelly patches even in a good land you have selected. Such bad patches of land can be easily identified by the growth of rehabilitation grass (Guatemala & Mana). If rehabilitation grass noticed retarding or wilting like symptoms, such land pockets may be having some kind or limitation for tea as well. Therefore, use such areas continue with grass as thatch banks, or diversify them into fuel or timber crops, rather than cultivating tea.

Apart from above discussed land and soil parameters, climatic factors such as rainfall & its distribution, prolonged drought conditions, desiccating wind areas should be avoided from tea cultivation. In Sri Lanka, only wet and intermediate zones could be cultivated with tea. The Agro Ecological Regions (AER,) suitable for tea cultivation, are as follows. (W – Wet zone, I – Intermediate zone, U – Up Country, M – Mid Country, L – Low Country)

• Wet zone -                    WU1, WU2a, WU2b, WU3

WM1a, WM1b, WM2a, WM2b, WM3a, WM3b

WL1a, WL2a

• Intermediate Zone -       IU1, IU2, IU3a, IU3b, IU3c, IU3d, IU3e

IM1a, IM2a, IM2b, IM3c

Cocoa

Theobroma cacao

Family: Sterculaceae

   

History

The cocoa tree is thought to have originated in the Amazon basin and spreading to Central America particularly to Mexico. It was known and used by the natives in the region, such as Olmec and Mayas, and they considered it as the “food of gods”. Cocoa seeds were used as currency by the Aztecs who also enjoyed a type of bitter chocolate drink. Christopher Columbus discovered cocoa beans in America but only after 20 years later, Hernando Cortes discovered the bitter drink used by the Aztecs and sent the beans and recipes back to King Charles V of Spain. The Spanish refined the recipes adding sugar and heating the ingredients to improve the taste. By 1828 the cocoa press was developed, allowing the extraction of cocoa butter. Later around 1879 The Swiss developed both milk chocolate and solid chocolate. By 1800’s European Colonial rulers introduced cocoa to their colonies and after that it was developed in Africa and Asia as commercial plantations.   
 

Products and Uses

Seeds are the source of commercial cocoa and the main final product is the chocolate. Intermediate cocoa products are cocoa butter, cocoa liquor, cocoa powder and cocoa cake. Cocoa Powder is used in Chocolates, Sweets, Ice creams Bakery items and Beverages. Besides the traditional uses in chocolates and confectionaries, cocoa butter is also used in manufacture of tobacco, soap and cosmetics in some countries.
 

Major Growing Areas

Suitable conditions for growing cocoa are found in the Central, North Western, Sabaragamuwa, Uva, Western and Southern provinces of Sri Lanka.  Cocoa can be considered as the most important tree crop for under planting coconut and rubber provided suitable soils exist. Total extent of cocoa is 2472ha and  Kandy, Kaluthara , Badulla Kurunegala, Kegalle and Monaragala districts are the main cocoa growing districts.
 

Varieties

There are three main varieties as Criyollo, Forastero and Trinitario. Sri Lanka had the fame of having “criollo” variety which produce fine and flavor cocoa but currently most of the cocoa found in Sri Lanka are crosses of above three main varieties.
 

Soils and Climatic needs

Soil
The best soils for cocoa are deep, well drained clay loams rich in organic matter. Scattered stones are pebbles are tolerable up to 40% of the surface of such soils. Coarse gravelly soils, sandy soils, shallow soils and soils underlain by slab rock or hard late rite are unsuitable.

Climate
Altitude : up to 600MSL
Temperature : Most suitable temperature is between 21 0 – 32 0 C
Rain fall:  1150 -2500mm is recommended.
P.H.: 5-6.5 is recommended
Atmospheric humidity: thrives best under moist humid conditions
Frequent winds are harmful as it decreases humidity
Shade: Relatively dense overhead shade (40-50%) is essential at the time of harvesting and during first 03 years of growth. Thereafter the shade can de removed with the spread of canopy and 25-30% shade is adequate for grown up cultivations. Where no shade from old rubber, coconut or forest trees is available quick growing trees such as banana, papaya or glyricidia should be established for temporary shade and dadap for permanent shade.

Crop establishment

Planting material
Seeds are normally used for planting. Pods, taken from selected cocoa lines, are opened to get fresh seeds and then seeds are thoroughly washed to remove the mucilage. Seeds can be sown in a sand bed or can be directly planted in a poly bag filled with equal mixture of top soil, cow dung and san. If sown in a sand bed, seedlings should be replanted in a poly bag.
Bud grafted cocoa plants are also used as planting material especially in multiplying high yielding varieties.
Spacing:
For monoculture 10’x10’ (1100 plants/ha)
Intercropping with rubber – 12’x20’
Intercropping with coconut – 26’x26’

Field Planting
Planting is done with the on set of monsoon rains. After the land preparation seedlings are planted in pits of 11/2’x11/2’ in size and filled with top soil and cow dung. Temporary shade should be provided if there is no adequate shade in the field.

Crop management
Weeding
When the cocoa plants are young regular weeding (4-5 times a year) is necessary. When cocoa trees are grown weeding in once or twice a year is sufficient.

Fertilizer application
Recommended mixture - 770 kg / ha at the density of 1100 plants/ha
 

Components of the mixture	Parts by weight	Nutrient in the mixture
Urea (46%N)	4	14%N
Rock phosphate ( 28 % P2O5)	5	11% P2O5
Muriate of potash (60% K2O)	3.5	14% K2O
Kieserite (24%MgO)	1	2%MgO

Age of plantation	Maha Season (mixture Kg/ha.)	Yala Season (mixture Kg./Ha.)
1st Year (kg)	137.5	137.5
2nd Year (kg)	275	275
3rd Year and onwards (kg)	385	385

Mulching is beneficial to conserve moisture and to supply excess nutrition. Cocoa leaves and cocoa pods are recommended a suitable mulching material.

Pruning
Removal of water shoots is essential for successful in cocoa All water shoots, which develop from the main stem, should be removed when they are small as they depress the yield if allowed to mature. All dead branches and dry twigs should also be removed.
If shade is high shade trees should be pruned and light shade should be maintained.     

Crop Protection

Diseases
Pod rot disease
Initial symptoms are small brown lesions with water soaked appearance. If the humidity remains high brown lesions spread very fast. As the disease develops a light bloom of sporangia is produced about 1cm behind the advancing margin of the lesion.  To control remove all infected pods and destroy them, spray 1% Bordeaux mixture or any other copper fungicide. Excess shade and water shoots as well as unwanted branches should be removed.

Swollen Shoot Disease
A characteristic symptom of the disease is the swelling of branches and production of leaves with mosaic symptoms. It is caused by a virus and transmitted by mealy bugs. However in Sri Lanka disease is caused by a mild strain hence the economic loss is negligible. Disease can be controlled by removing infected plants and, controlling mealy bugs and avoiding the use of planting material from infected plants.

Pests
Cocoa capsid bug and Cocoa Mealy bugs are the important pests in cocoa cultivation. Nymphs and adults of cocoa capsid bug feed on coca pods, tender leaves and stems. They suck juice from plant tissues resulting in small water soaked areas on the pods. Lesions are circular and rapidly turn back. Damage can be controlled by removing the excess shade and if serious, by applying chemicals.

Harvesting and Post Harvest practices

Harvesting
Trees start bearing in the 4th year. Fruits take about 5 months to develop into maturity. Only fully ripened fruits, which are in yellow to orange in color, are harvested using a sharp knife. Open the pods as soon as possible after picking, preferably using a wooden mallet and seeds should be collected into gunny bags.
Processing
Cocoa beans have little commercial value if they are not properly fermented and cured. The principle behind the fermentation is to kill the embryo and only after that process the flavor and aroma is developed. The notable physical change at the end of the fermentation is the change of deep purple color in to chocolate brown in the forestaro type and yellow to cinnamon brown in the criollo type. There are several methods of fermentation which can produce well fermented cocoa. Those are sweat box fermentation, heap fermentation, tray fermentation and box fermentation. The selected method will depend on the scale of production, cost and the availability of labor. The time of fermentation is varying from 2-6 days which depend on the variety of cocoa.  Fermented cocoa beans are sun dried using artificial dryers.   

Standard quality specifications
The international cocoa standards require cocoa of merchantable quality to be fermented, thoroughly, dry, free from smoky beans, free from abnormal or foreign odors and free from any evidence of adulteration.
 

 
        Grade I                  Grade II               Gabling

Medicinal and Chemical Properties

Cocoa butter s used as a folk remedy for burns, cough, dry lips, fewer, malaria, rheumatism, snakebite and wounds in major producing countries. It is also reported to be antiseptic and diuretic

Pepper

Piper nigram L.

Family: Piperaceae

  

History

Pepper is the most widely used spice in the world and known as “King of the Spices”. Pepper crop is native to South Asia and historical records reveal that pepper is originated in South India.  Peppercorns were a much prized trade good often referred also as “black gold” and used by as a form of commodity money. Until well after the Middle age, virtually all of the black pepper found in Europe, the Middle East and the North Africa traveled there from India’s Malabar region. It was some part of the preciousness of these spices that led to the European efforts to find a sea route to India and consequently to the European Colonial occupation of the country as well as European discovery and colonization of America/s. Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, India and Brazil are the main pepper producers in the world.

Products and Uses

Pepper is largely produces as black pepper which is the dried whole fruit. White pepper is produced by removing outer pericarp and pepper is also available in crushed and ground forms. Small amount of green and ripened pepper is pickled in brine and dehydrated green pepper and preserved red pepper also traded. Pepper oil and oleoresins are also extracted marketed as value added products.

Pepper is mainly used as a spice and flavoring agent in food industry. It also has industrial uses in perfumery and pharmaceutical industries.

Major Growing Areas

In Sri Lanka pepper is mainly cultivated in Low and Mid country Wet and Intermediate agro-climatic zones. Total extent of pepper in Sri Lanka is about 29,378ha and Matale, Kandy, Kegalle,Badulla,Ratnapura, Monaragala and Kurunagala are the major districts.

Varieties

Although the origin of black pepper is believed to be Malabar Coast of India, Sri Lanka too is a home to a number of wild pepper types. When consider the huge genetic variability of P. nigrum L. found in Sri Lanka and the presence of pepper wild relatives, it is believed that Sri Lanka also a place of origin of pepper.  Some commercial black pepper varieties had also been introduced to Sri Lanka since the existence of commercial black pepper trade. High yielding pepper line called “Panniur-1” from India and “Kuchin” from Malaysia was introduced in 1970s but MB21 and GK 49 are high yielding and superior quality local selections which are popular among black pepper cultivators.

soils and Climatic needs

Soil

Pepper grows best in well drained loamy soils rich in organic matter and having a minimum depth of 60cm. Clay soil restrict root growth and create moisture stress during short dry spells. Ill drain soils leads to many soil borne diseases.

Climate

Altitude: from Sea level to elevation of about 800m amsl.

Annual rain fall: not less than 1750mm. Areas with prolonged droughts should be avoided unless there is facility for supplementary irrigation. There should be clear dry spell and a sufficient rainfall for flower induction and to facilitate pollination.

Temperature: Plants can tolerate 15º C – 35ºC. Growth and yield performances are better in humid tropics. Strong winds are harmful.

Crop establishment  

Planting material

Pepper is usually propagated vegetatively using stem cuttings. For commercial cultivations cuttings are selected from terminal stems or from ground runners. If cuttings are taken from lateral branches bush type pepper plants can be produced. The selected mother vine should be high yielding, healthy and with vigorous growth, produce lateral branches with short inter-nodal distances, long spikes, complete coverage of spikes with berries, bold berries and be free from pest and diseases. As pepper is grown in different climatic zones the selected line should be tolerant to the climatic conditions of the area. Cuttings are planted in poly bags filled with a mixture of equal parts of top soil, cow dung, sand and coir dust.

Field Planting

Spacing – for both mono crop and inter crop with coconut – 2.4mx2.4m spacing is recommended (1700 plants/ha).
After the land preparation planting pits of 45cmx45cmx45cm are made and filled with the mixture of top soil, cow dung or compost.

Pepper vines are trained on live or dead supports. In Sri Lanka live supports are used and commonly used support trees is Glyricidia sepium. and some may use Erythrina indica (Dadap) or Gravilia robusta. Glyricidia sticks of 3-5cm in diameter and 2.2m in length should be planted to a 20cm depth at the corner of the planting pit. Supports should be planted at least 06 months before the planting of pepper provide adequate shade.

Field planting of pepper is done with the on set of monsoon rains. About 4-6 months old potted healthy and vigorously growing plants with 5-8 leaves are planted in the pits at 15-20cm away from the support.  Immediately after the planting, temporary shade should be provided to protect cuttings from the direct sun light and suitable mulch should be applied to the base to conserve soil moisture.

Crop management 

Training and pruning pepper vines

As the new pepper plants starts elongating, it must be tied on to the support so as to facilitate the adventurous roots to attach themselves to the support.

It is required to train 3-4 orthotropic (terminal) shoots over the support and satisfactory number of plagiotrophic (lateral) branches when the vine reaches to 8-10 nodes. Having 2-3 terminal shoots give a more productive columnar shape canopy and substantial numbers of lateral   branches ensure the higher yield (Spikes are emerged only from lateral branches), If any growing does not produce orthotropic at the 8-10 nodal stage the pruning of pepper vine from the terminal should done to induce 3-4 orthotropic shoots.

After 3-5 years pepper vine grows to the top of the standard and make a good canopy. At the height of 3.5-4.0m height pruning should be done to maintain the height of the pepper plant and to make a good shape canopy.

Shade control and mulching

The height and number of branches of the Glyricidia support should also be regulated by pruning so as to keep a final height of about 3.5-4.0m height.  It is recommended to prune Glyricida trees at least 3 to4 times a year. In the wet zone pruning Glyricidia four times a year is highly beneficial as it reduces the labor cost and unwanted shade and also provides adequate mulching material. Experimental evidences have shown that application of Glyricidia lopping, at the rate of 10kg/tree/year, can cut down inorganic fertilizer requirement by 50% without any yield loss.

Fertilizer application
Recommended mixture - 2380 kg / ha
 (without Glyricidia lopping)

Recommended mixture - 1190 kg / ha (with Glyricidia lopping)

Components of the mixture	Parts by weight	Nutrient in the mixture
Urea (46%N)	4	14%N
Rock phosphate ( 28 % P2O5)	5	11% P2O5
Muriate of potash (60% K2O)	3	14% K2O
Kieserite (24%MgO)	1	2% MgO

Without glyricidia lopping

Age of plantation	Maha Season (mixture Kg/ha.)	Yala Season (mixture Kg./Ha.)
1st Year (kg)	250	250
2nd Year (kg)	500	500
3rd Year and onwards (kg)	700	700

with glyricidia lopping

Age of plantation	Maha Season (mixture Kg/ha.)	Yala Season (mixture Kg./Ha.)
1st Year (kg)	125	125
2nd Year (kg)	250	250
3rd Year and onwards (kg)	350	350

Crop Protection

Diseases
Pepper Yellow Mottle Virus Disease

Pepper Yellow Mottle Virus(PYMV) disease is the most harmful disease for pepper caused by a combination of viruses. Initial yellowish spots could be seen on young leaves and subsequent stunted growth of the vine, small, irregular leaves with yellow mosaic patches, Short internodes, and small spikes with half filled berries are visible symptoms. Gradually yield decline drastically.  Disease is spread through vectors such as Pepper lace bug, Mealy bugs and infected planting material. No identified control measures except the use of healthy planting material and destroying infected plants and vector control.

Quick Wilt

Disease is caused by a fungus called Phytopthera capsisi. Base of the plant is infected first and basal parts of the vine get rotten which will spread into root system. When infected, plants get wilt and die within 2-3 weeks. Disease can be avoided by improving drainage and keeping the shade under control. When diseased infected plant parts should be removed and Bordeaux mixture or other fungicide should be sprayed into base of the vine.

Slow Wilt

Leaves become yellow in drought but gets normal after rain. This situation exits for about a year or two and finally plant become yellow and die. About 20-30% yield decline in pepper has been observed due to slow wilt. Slow wilt of pepper caused due to the damage to the root system by mechanical damages, nematode and insect damages and fungal attacks. To avoid the nematodes 03g of carbofuran should be added into pots or 30g of carbofuran should be added into planting hole. Experimental evidence has proved that application of Glyricidia lopping at four times a year reduces nematodes significantly. If the condition is serious infected plants should be uprooted and destroyed. Proper soil conservation and maintain organic matter content in soil minimize the incidence. Chemical treatment should be applied after confirmation of the real cause.

Pests

Lace Bug

Lace bug is a vector of the PYMV disease. Population is rapidly increasing during the rainy season though the insect can be seen through out the year. Adult lay eggs underneath of the leaf and nymphs suck juices from immature plant parts and spikes. Brown spots can be seen on leaves and damaged spikes produce no or less berries. A significant yield loss can be seen when damage occur during flowering stage. Agronomic practices such as shade control and weed control is important for control the insect. If damage is serious chemical treatments can be applied. 
Stem borers and leaf eating caterpillars are other important pests.

Harvesting and Post Harvest practices

Pepper is harvested after 7-8 months of maturity. To separate berries pepper corns are threshed manually or by using a mechanical thresher. Pepper berries can be directly dried under sun or can use artificial dryers. Sun drying takes 4-6 days. To get uniform black color, blanching of raw pepper is done by immersing berries in boiling water for about 03 minutes. Blanching reduces drying time by 2-3 days and also kills any microorganism presence. To produce white pepper fully ripened berries are immersed in water for about 5-6 days until the seed coat get rotten. Then the seed coat is removed by rubbing on a wire mesh or using mechanical decorticator. Remaining pepper seeds are thoroughly washed and dried to produce white pepper.

Standard quality specifications

Quality standards approved by the Sri Lanka Standard Institute are given below

	Sp. Grade I	Grade I	FAQ
Mouldy berries %	1	1	2
Other extraneous matter %( insects live or dead, stones, sand, plant parts, mammalian fecal matter etc.)	1	1	2
Light berries %	Max. 4	Max. 4	Max.10
Moisture %	12	14	14
Appearance	Dark black colour with surface grooves	Dark black to brownish black colur with surface grooves

 

Medicinal and Chemical Properties

Bioperine is a standardized extract from the fruits of black pepper (Piper nigrum) or long pepper (Piper longum). Its piperine content is 95% or more, compared to only 3-9% found in raw forms of these peppers. Black pepper extract, containing Bioperine has been used extensively in Ayurvedic medicine to treat fevers, digestive disorders, urinary difficulties, rheumatism, neuralgia and boils.  Bioperine enhances the bioavailability of nutrients. Due to its ability to increase the absorption of nutrients comprising nutritional supplement formulations, bioperine has been termed a natural thermonutrient and bioavailability    enhancer.