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.
Table of Contents
Ecological Requirements
Altitude:
- Those with small heads: 900-15o0m above sea level
- Those with Large heads: 1800-2700m above sea level.
Temperature: require cool condition.
Rainfall:
- 750-2000mm per annum.
- Should be well distributed throughout the growing period.
Soils:
- Deep
- Fertile
- Well drained.
Varieties
Early maturing:
- Brunswick,
- Sugarloaf,
- Earlyjersey,
- Copenhagen market,
- Chinese cabbage,
- Celerycabbage,
- Cafesplits kool
- Gloria, mukuki,
- Golden acre.
Late maturing:
- Drumhead,
- Savoy,
- Perfection,
Nursery Practices
- The beds should be raised, dimension 1 m wide and any convenient length (usually 2 3m in length).
- Make drills of 15-20cm apart.
- Sow seeds by drilling and cover to a depth of 1cm.
- Provide shade or mulch material.
- Apply phosphatic fertilizers and mix thoroughly with soil during planting.
- Water twice a day.
Seedbed Preparation
- Cultivation should be done during the dry season so that all the weeds are killed.
- Dig holes at the spacing of 60cm x 60cm.
- Incorporate farm yard manure in the soil.
- Transplanting
- Water the seedlings before uprooting.
- Seedlings are ready for transplanting after one month that is when they are 10-15cm in height.
- Select healthy and vigorous seedlings.
- Transplant the seedlings with balls of soil to prevent root damage.
- Plant to the same depth as they were in the nursery.
Field Maintenance
- Apply fertilizers during planting and top dress later.
- Control weeds to reduce competition.
Pest Control
Diamond Black Moth
- Damage: Eats the underside of the leaf making windows or holes in the leaf.
- 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
- Cause: Bacteria
- Symptoms: Leaves turn yellow and rotting of the stem giving an offensive odour,
- Control: Closed season, crop rotation, use certified seeds and spray appropriate chemicals.
Black Leg
- Cause: Fungus
- Symptoms: Brown to black spots on seedlings and dark canker on the stem.
- Control: crop rotation, destroy infected materials.
Harvesting
- Cabbages are ready for harvesting 3-4 months after transplanting.
- The heads are cut when they are solid and compact.
- Harvested cabbages are sold immediately.
See also
CLASSIFICATION OF ANIMAL FEEDS