VEGETABLEPRODUCTI

ON

Theseareplant
swhi
char
econsumedi
nrel
ati
vel
ysmal
lquant
it
iesasasi
dedi
shwi
tha
st
aplefood.

3.
3.6.
1.1

Exoticvegetablesar
ethosethatori
ginat
efr
om othercount
ri
esandt hefol
lowi
ng
arefoundorgr owninBotswana:
- Spi nach -Lett
uce -
Radish -Carrot
s
- Beet roots -Tomatoes - Cauli
fl
ower -Gr een/y
ell
ow
pepper
- Cabbage -Turnips -Bushbeans - Br
oadbeans
- Oni on -
Leeks -Peas
- Kal e[choumoull
ier
] -Cucumber -Rape
Etc….

Indi
genousv
egetablethosethatar
enati
veorl
ocal
tothegi
vencountya
r ndthey
i
nclude:
-Rothwe -Mmadi nt
ane[Thepeleswane] -Kut wane -Leswe
-Thepe -Morogowadi nawa -Monyaku Delel
e
Etc…

3.3.
6.1.2
Nut
ri
ti
onalv al
ueofVeget ables
 Theyar er i
chinmi neralsandv it
ami nswhi chhel pprotectthebodyagai nst
diseases
 Spi nachi sasour ceofi r
onwhi chi sessent ialforbl
oodf ormation
 Eat ingcar r
otscanhel pimpr oveone’ sey esi ghtbecauseitcont ains
caroteneandv it
ami nAwhi chhel pimpr oveey esi
ght.
 Manyv egetablescontainwat er(94%)whi chi sneededformany
processes
 Leaf yvegetablessuchascabbage, rape,spi nachandlettucepr ov i
det
he
digestivesystem wi t
hf i
bre
 Makesf oodappet izi
nge.g.gar l
icandoni ons
 St archyv egetablessuchaspot atoespr ovidet hebodywi thener gy

3.
3.6.
1.3
Demandandsupplyofv
egetabl
es
Demandforv
egetabl
esi
shighwhil
esuppl
yisrel
ati
vel
ylowandtheshor
tfal
li
s
metbyi
mportsf
rom nei
ghbori
ngcount
ri
esespeci
all
ySouthAf
ri
ca.

3.
3.6.
1.4

Oppor
tuni
ti
esf
orf
urt
herv
eget
abl
edev
elopment

1
 Thereishighdemandf orv egetabl
es
 Thegov ernmentsupportlocalproducti
onfinanci
all
y
 Vegetablesaremarketable
 Thegov ernmentcontr
olsimpor tati
onofvegetabl
est oprot
ectlocal
producti
on
 Mor edamshav econstructedincreasi
ngchancesofpr acti
cingi
rri
gat
ion
 Thegov ernmentcontr
olsnat i
onallyi
mportantpestsanddiseases

3.
3.6.
1.5

Gov
ernmentst
rat
egi
esai
medati
mpr
ovi
ngv
eget
abl
epr
oduct
ion

o Pr ov i
def i
nanci al assistancet ointerestedf armer st hroughC. E.
D.A.
o Pr ov i
dest raini
ngt ohor t
icultural f
armer satRur alTrainingCenters[RTC]
o Pr ov i
dest echnical guidancet of armer sthroughi tsinfor mati
onand
ext ensionser v
ices.
o Pr omot est eachi ngofAgr icultureinschool sandcol l
eges
o Cont rol
si mpor tationofv eget ablesinor dert opr otectlocal f
armers
o Encour agef armer stof ormt hemsel vesi ntocooper ati
vesandassoci ati
on
sot hatt heycanbeeasi l
yassi sted
o Pr ov i
dei nput satsubsi dizedpr i
cesthr oughI SPAAD
o Conduct ingagr icul t
ural showswher ev eget ableproducer scanexhi
bit
thei rproduce, mar kett heirpr oduceandexchangei deas
o Impr ovingi nfrastr ucture. i
.e.bui l
dingbet terroadst oimpr ove
transpor tation,pr ov i
dingel ect ri
cit
yandt elephoneser vi
ces
o Dev elopingmar ket i
ngst ruct uresorf acili
ti
eswher ef armer scaneasil
ysell
thei rproducee. g.Bot swanaHor ti
culturalMar ketinGabor one

2
 3.
3.6.
2.1-3.
3.6.
2.2

Choosi
ngt
hemet
hodofpr
oduct
iont
oadopt

Af
armershouldconsi
der:
o Costandmai nt
enancerequired
o Soilty
pe
o Cli
mat i
ccondit
ions
o Ski
llsandknowledgebythef ar
mer s
o Avail
abil
it
yofsupportser
vicese.g.seedsout
let
o I
ncidenceofpestsanddiseases
o Valueandproducti
vit
yofav egetabl
ecrop

3.
3.6.
2.3

3
 METHODSOFVEGETABLEPRODUCTI
ON

1.Openbeds
Thi
siswher evegetablecropsaregrowninanopencultiv
atedpieceofl
and.The
wholefiel
dwher evegetabl
ecropsaretobeplantediscult
ivat
ed.Wecanalso
haveindiv
idualpl
otspreparedwherevegetabl
esaretobegr own.Thi
sisa
commonpr act
icei
nhomegar densaswellasinschools.

2.Concretebenches
Inthi
smethod,sever
al per
manentbedswithaframeworkofbri
cksorconcr
ete
areconst
ruct
ed.Suit
ablesoil
isthenpour
edtof i
ll
upthebenches.Veget
abl
es
grownherearethentakencareofunt
ilmatur
it
y.

3.Gr eenhouses
Greenhousesar estructur
eswi t
hagl assorpl ast
icroofandwal
lsalsomadeup
ofglassorplastic.Thesetransparentgreenhousewal l
sall
owsunli
ghttoenter
andwar mt heinsidebutthenpr ev
entheatf rom escapi
ng.Thewall
salsoprotect
cropsfrom str
ongwi nds,
pestsandcol d.Greenhousesaremainl
yusedby
commer cialf
armer s.

3.
3.6.
3.1-
3.3.
6.3.
3

TYPESOFPLOTS/SEEDBEDS
Ther
ear
ethr
eet
ypesofplot
snamel
y:

i
.Sunkenplot
-iti
sthet
ypeofpl
otwi
thi
tsbasesl
i
ght
lyl
owert
hant
hegr
ound
l
evel
[About10–15cm]

Advantage
o Itconser
vesalotofwat
ertheref
oresui
tabl
eforar
easwi
thl
i
ttl
erai
nfal
l
.
o Pr ot
ect
sseedl
i
ngsf r
om er
osion

Di
sadv
antages
o Ital
lowswatertostayinaplotforal
ongti
memakingt
hesoi
lwat
erl
ogged.
o Notsui t
abl
etoareasthatrecei
vesmorer
ainf
all
o Requiressoi
lofhighfer
ti
li
ty
o Labourandtimeconsumi ng

i
i.Flatpl
ot-i
tisat
ypeofpl
othav
ingt
hebaseoft
hepl
otatt
hesamel
evelast
he
ground
andusuall
ydonothav
eri
dges/wal
ls.

4
Advantages
o Itconserveswaterandall
owsexcesswat eroutoftheplot
;ther
efor
eiti
s
suitablef
orareaswithmoderat
erainfal
l
s.
o Easyandl esstimeconsumingtoprepare
Di
sadvantages
o Mor ewaterislosti
nareaswherethereislessrai
nfal
l
o Seedlingscaneasil
ybewashedawaybyr unningwaterdur
ingaheavy
storm

i
i
i.Rai
sedpl
ot-i
thasabasesl
i
ght
lyhi
ghert
hant
hegr
oundl
evel

Advant ages
o I tof f
ersabet terstr
uctureandmor eplantfoodsinceithasmoretopsoi
l.
o Pr ovidesbetterdrai
nageandaer at
ion
o Encour agesbetterr
ootdev elopmentandpenetrati
on
o Hel psinpr ev
ent i
ngwashi ngawayofcr opsduri
ngr ai
nstorms
Disadvant ages
o Poori nconser vi
ngwat ertheref
orenotsuit
abl
ef orareaswit
hlessr
ainf
all
.
o Cannotbeusedi nsandysoi l
s
o Labourandt i
meconsumi ng

Fact
orsinf
luenci
ngt hetypeofseedbedt ouse
 Thetypeofplantst ogrow
 Soil
typeinthegar den
 Thelabouravail
abletopr epar
ethebeds
 Weatherconditi
onsi nthearea
 Amountofr ai
nfallreceiv
ed

3.
3.6.
2.4-
3.3.
6.2.
5

5
 3.
3.6.
2.6-
3.3.
6.5.
4

SPI
NACHPRODUCTI
ON
Cl
ass:Leaf

Var
iet
iesgr
owninBotswana:
- FordHookGiant
- Luccul
us
- NewZealand

Cli
maticr
equirements
-Growswel l
inanoptimum cool
temper
atur
eof10°
c–30º
c
-i
tisresi
stanttol
ightfr
ost

Sui
tablesoi
ltype
-i
tcanbegr owninawiderangeofsoil
sbutitdoeswel
lunderadeep,fer
ti
leand
wel
l
dr
ainedsoi
ls.Ther
efor
esandyloam soi
lwit
hapHof6. 0and6.8will
besuitabl
e.

Fer
ti
li
zerrequir
ement s
o Basal dressi
ng-addanyorgani
cfert
il
izer
segchickenmanure,
kraal
manureet catt
herateof3–5kg/ m²bef or
esowingseeds.
o Topdr essing–apply14g/m²ofLimestoneAmmoni um Ni
tr
ate[LAN]or

6
 20g/
m²ofAmmoni
um Sul
phat
e.

Reasonsforaddi
ngfer
ti
li
zer
s
o Leafcropsar
eheavyfeeder
sther
efor
etheyr
equi
real
otofnut
ri
ent
s.

Sowingandspacing
Spinachissowndir
ect
lyonaplotwi
tht
hefol
lowingspaci
ng:
Int
errow Int
rarowspaci
ng Dept hofsowing
spacing
40cm –60cm 15cm –25cm 1cm –2cm

Managementofspi nach
i
.Wat eri
ng-doner egularl
yandwi thsuff
icientwat er.
i
i.Thinning–shouldbedoneat2–3weeksaf terseedli
ngemer gence.
i
ii
.Weedcont r
ol–keeppl otfr
eeofweeds
i
v.Cul t
ivat
ion–doneev eryti
mebef or
ewat er
ing.
v.Mulching–usedr ygr ass,compostoranyot hersuitabl
emat eri
al.
vi
.Pestanddi seasecont r
ol –trybyal
lcost stoav oiduseofpest i
cidesi
nst
ead
use
cul
turalmethods
vi
i.Pruning–remov edead, unproduct
iveleavesaswel lasthoselayingont
he
ground.

Di
seasesofspi
nach
o Leafspot

7
 o Dampingoff
o Rootknot
o Leafcur
l

Di
seases Cr
ops Cause Sy
mpt
oms Cont
rol
andpr
event
ion
af
fect
ed

1.Leafspot Spi
nach, Fungu  Smalll
ightbrowncircul
ar  Use Capt an dust or
Peas s spotswithdarkedgeson Di
thaneM45att her ate
and l
eaves. of 10g per5 li
tres of
Beet
root water
.
s  Thesespotslat
erdev el
op
i
ntoholes.

2.Dampi
ng Spi
nach, Fungu  Base of t he stem and  Use certi
fi
ed seeds
of
f Peas s rootsoftheseedli
ngsturn dr
essedwi
thfungi
cides
and black ordar k brown in
Beet
root colour  Pr
act
icecr
opr
otat
ion
s
 They f al
lov er and die  Avoidoverwater
ingand
about 2 weeks af ter overcr
owding of
emer gence. seedli
ngs

 Dress seeds wit

h
fungi
cides [e.
g. Thi
ram
75%att herateof2gper
1kgofseeds]

SI
GNSOFMATURI TYOFSPINACH
 Welldeveloped,t
ender
,long,
freshandcrispyleaveswi
thabr
ightcol
our
.If
del
ayedt heleav
esbecomedul lincol
orandr ough.
 Assoonast hefl
owerstockappearsal
ltheleavesshoul
dbeharvest
ed
andplantsuprooted

Har
v est
ingofspi nach
 Spinachi sharvest
edbycutti
ngtheouterl
eaveswi
thasharpkni
fejustabov
e
thegr oundlevelandl
eavestherestt
ogrow.Thisi
sdonewhenplantsare2
mont hsol danditwil
lberegul
arl
ydoneforupto10months.

8
Mar
ket
ingofspi
nach

 Leav esareputi
napl ast
icbagt oavoidr
api
dwilti
ngandtheyar
esoldper
ki
logr am i
mmediat
elywhi l
estil
lfr
esh.
 Spinachcanbesoldt oindiv
idualconsumer
s,supermar
kets,
school
sand
cl
inics,veget
abl
etradersetc.

BEETROOT PRODUCTI
ON
Cl
ass:Root

Vari
eti
esgr owninBotswana:
- Det roitDarkRed
- Egy ptianEarlywonder
- Cr i
msongl obe
- Obel isk
Cli
maticr equir
ement s
-Growswel li
nacool weather[around20º c]butcanalsobegr ownthr
oughout
theyear
-Eventhoughf r
osttheyareresistanttofrost
,theygr
owv er
yslowl
yduringwint
er.
-Underv erycoldconditi
ons,theypr oduceverythi
cktaproots

Sui
tabl
esoi
lty
pe
-gr
owsinawiderangeofsoi
l
sbutitdoeswell
underwel
ldrainedsandyl
oam
soi
lwit
hapHof5.8–8. 0,
hardcompactsoi
l
sshouldbeavoided.

Fer
ti
li
zerrequir
ement s
o Basal dressing-addanyorgani
cfert
il
izer
sor2:3:2(
22)+1%Zincatthe
r
ateof80g/ m²aweekbef or
esowing.
o Topdr essing–appl y30g/m²ofLimestoneAmmoni um Ni
tr
ate[LAN]
whenthepl antsareabout5-7cm t
allandhav
er ecover
edfr
om thi
nning.

Sowi
ngandspaci
ng

Beetr
ootsar
esowndir
ectl
yonaplotwi
ththefol
l
owingspaci
ng:
Int
errow Int
rarowspaci
ng Dept hofsowing
spaci
ng
30cm –50cm 6cm –12cm 2cm –4cm

Managementofspi
nach

i
.Watering-doneregul
arl
yandwi thsuff
ici
entwat er
.
i
i
.Thinning–shouldbedonewhenseedl i
ngsar eabout10cm.
i
i
i.Weedcont r
ol–keeppl otfr
eeofweedsbutdonotdamager oots.
i
v.Culti
vati
on–doneev eryti
mebef or
ewat er
ing.
v
.Mul ching–usedrygrass,compostoranyot hersuit
abl
emateri
al.
v
i.Pestanddiseasecontr
ol –trybyal
lcoststoav oi
duseofpesti
cidesi
nst
ead

9
use
cult
uralmet hods
vi
i.Pr uning–r emov edead,unproduct
iveleavesaswellasthosel
ayingont
he
ground.
vi
ii.Earthingup–donet oprotecttherootfrom pest
s,adv
erseweather
condi ti
onsaswel l
aspr ovidi
ngbasal supportt
ot heplat
.

Di
seasesofBeetr
oots
o Leafspot
o Dampingof f
o Rootknot
o Leafcurl

SI
GNSOFMATURI
TYOFBEETROOTS

 Mat urerootsar eabout8cm indi

ameter(fi
stsi
ze)butt
hesealsodepend
ont hev ari
ety.
 Shoul dnotbeal lowedtogrowlargert
hanthesizeofatennisbal
lbefor
e
beinghar vested.
 Lar ger ootsar efi
brousandhaveapoorf l
avor
 Al sowhi teringswi l
lappearwhentheroot
sarecutinhalf
,thi
sisasign
thatther ootsareold.
Har
vestingofBeet root
s

Beet
rootsar
er eadyforharvest
ingwhentheyar
e8–12weeksaft
ersowing
whenrootsare5-8cm indiameter
.
Theyareharv
estedbyei t
heruprooti
ngorusi
ngadi
ggi
ngf
ork(donoti
njuret
he

10
r
oot
)

Mar
ket
ingofBeet
root

Soili
swashedof ft
heroot
sandtheyaretiedi
nbundl
esandsoldORweighedand
soldperkil
ogram.
Theycanbesol ddi
rect
lyt
oconsumers,super
market
s,school
sandcl
i
nics,
vegetabl
etrader
setc.

Met
hodsofpreser vingvegetables
o Dryi
ng-cooki ngindigenousv egetabl
ethensundry
ingthem
o Refri
gerati
onkeepi ngv eget
ablesi naref
ri
gerat
ort
oinhibi
tbact
eri
a
multi
pli
cation
o Deepf r
eezing
o Canning
o Bottl
ing
o Processingint osauce,jam,archerandpaste.

11