Saturday, October 17, 2009

How to Plant a Peanut Guide

In the next few paragraphs, we will explore new ideas and thoughts that may help you achieve your goal and decide what is best for you.

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) or groundnut has been a current crop in the Philippines. It is considered one of the chief ground legumes mature by farmers but its production has been low and irregular. Among the provinces in the Philippines, the top supplier of peanut are Isabela, Pangasinan, La Union, Quirino, Cagayan, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Aurora, Albay and Iloilo. However, the Cagayan Valley borough shaped almost half of the country's round peanut production.

In the Philippines, peanut can be mature throughout the year provided inputs, especially the water requirement are adequately unfilled. In universal, dry time crop (October-January) gives superior yields and beans of better attribute than the showery time crop.

Recommended Varieties


The recommended peanut varieties in the Philippines are as follows:
UPL Pn-2 - 104-111 days
UPL Pn-4 - 105-110 days
UPL Pn-6 - 105-110 days
UPL Pn-8 - 100-110 days
BPI Pn-2 - 97-101 days
UPL Pn-10 - 98-100 days
PSB Pn-2 - 101-103 days
PSB Pn-3 - 103-104 days
ICGV 8848 -120 days
ICGV 88392 -120 days
ICGV 88406 -120 days

Land Preparation
Peanut requires a well-prepared field to attain good seed emergence. Thorough land preparation is also necessary for proper development of pods and effective weed control. Plow and harrow the field 2-3 times at an interval of 7 days. Each harrowing consists of 2 passing.
In dry season planting, straight furrows are made at a distance of 50 cm from higher elevation of the field going down to the lower elevation.
Seedbed Preparation

A well-cultivated soil allows easy penetration of the peg and development of the pods. Plowing the field 15-20 cm deep will completely cover the plant residues and reduce losses from stem and pod disease caused by Sclerotioum rolfsii. About two to three alternate plowings and harrowing will be sufficient to put the soil in good tilt for planting.


Crop Establishment

Seed Treatment
Only full mature seeds from recommended varieties with high germination rate and vigor, that are free of weed seeds and other foreign materials

Planting
Peanut is planted as soon as the furrows are made, probably early in the morning or late in the afternoon. Planting shelled peanut seeds is the standard practice but some farmers use the old practice of planting unshelled pods. A 50-cm row spacing gives the highest bean yield. However, for convenience and relative ease of weeding, cultivation and spraying without significantly affecting yield, 60-cm row spacing is recommended. Planting maybe done mechanically or manually. Manual planting is accomplishes either by drill method (sowing of seed singly and evenly on shallow laid-out furrows or by the hill method

Method and Time of Cultivation
Cultivation not only loosens up the soil for better root and peg development of peanut but also controls the growth of weeds. Yield of peanut is greatly influenced by the combination of off-barring and hilling up. Likewise, hilling up is better that flat cultivation because the former provides loose soil around the base of the plant for the developing pegs. Hilling up done 35-40 days after plant emergence or just before flowering results in higher than hilling up after flowering.

Weeding
The traditional method of weeding is still done which is a combination of cultivation and manual weeding. Weeding should start as early as 2 weeks and not later than 6 weeks to maximize bean yield.

Inter cropping
Peanut is a crop that fits well in many multi-cropping schemes. In the Philippines, peanut is planted between rows of corn at varying spacing. Corn plants spaced at 100 cm apart with one row of peanut inter crop produce the highest grain yield. However, one row of peanut in between 2 rows of corn spaced at 75 cm is found to be the best inter cropping combination. Inter cropping peanut with sugarcane or other annual crops such as mung bean, soybean or upland rice is highly profitable. Peanuts may also be inter cropped with cassava, okra and maybe planted between rows of coffee.

Water Management
Peanut is relatively drought tolerant. Most field legumes need critical period of water during germination, flowering, pod development and pod filling stages. When peanut is planted during rainy season, irrigation is generally not needed, however, when planted during the dry season especially in early October, supplemental irrigation is not needed in most instances. Normally, there is still residual soil moisture sufficient to support the vegetative and reproductive process of the crop from October to December. The late dry season planting in February needs supplemental irrigation. Three to four applications maybe enough; first application is at planting for seed germination; the second weeks after planting; the third at mid bloom stage and the fourth at pod filling. The average amount of irrigation water ranges from 4-50 mm per application.

Nutrient Management
In the absence of soil analysis, a 30-40-40 fertilizer recommendation is practical which is equivalent to 1.33 bags of urea (4-0-0) or 3 bags of ammonium (21-0-0), 4 bags of colophons (0-20-0) and 1.33 bags of muriate of potash (0-6-0). If soil inoculate is used, only one-half of the recommended fertilizer is needed.

Harvest Management
Peanut should be harvested at the right stage of maturity. Harvesting is normally a very manual and labor intensive operation which varies from 6 man-days/hectare to 15-23 man-days/hectare.
In small-scale production, harvesting is done manually by pulling the entire plant or passing a native animal-drawn plow or both sides of the row to loosen the soil.

The maturity of peanut can be determined by the following indications; (a) gradual withering and yellowing of the leaves of majority of the plants which are more noticeable during dry season planting; (b) expected maturity date of variety ranges from 90-110 days depending on the planting season; (c) maturity is indicated by hardness of most of the pods, darkened veins of the inner portion of the shell, vascular strands on the shell becomes more distinct and plump pinkish full grown kernels.


Post-Production Practices

Stripping/Threshing
Farmers aerate and dry newly harvested peanut in the field which can either handpick or strip/thresh pods from the vine by beating. To shake off pods from the vines, farmers repeatedly strike pods against a hard surface. Manual threshing of wet peanuts is accomplished at the rate of 11 kg/hr per person while that of half-dried peanuts at the rate of 30 kg/hr. per person.

For wet-season crops, farmers usually strip/thresh the pods immediately after harvest so that they can be immediately dried to the desired moisture content to prevent deterioration. For dry-season crops, stripping is delayed because farmers windrow the plants in the field to reduce plant and pod moisture content.

Picking is done is such a way that the peduncle does not go with the pod. The pods are then washed and the inferior, immature ones are separated from the mature and sound pods. The parent plant or vines are usually either left in the field to decompose or kept and used as animal fodder.

Drying
Sun drying is the traditional and most commonly used drying method by farmers which is considered as the cheap method but very dependent on climatic condition. It will take 2-5 days depending upon the weather condition to dry the crops left in the field under the sun. In general, drying is done twice within the chain of postharvest operation; initial drying prior to threshing and final drying before shelling.

When peanuts are grown as second crop, windrow frying in the field is sometimes followed by aeration in small shaded huts prior to threshing and final drying as practiced in Cagayan Valley region.

Shelling
Peanut should be shelled carefully to avoid scratching, splitting and rupturing of the seed coat, breaking of the cotyledon, or separating one or both of the cotyledons from the embryonic axis. Traditionally, farmers shell peanut manually. Manual shelling of sundried and flatbed dried peanuts gave similar average recoveries of 68%. Hand shelling is the preferred method of obtaining peanut seeds which protect seeds from being broken.

Sorting
After shelling, processors manually clean and sort peanut into reject, broken whole nut and unshelled nut. The common practice to winnow peanut by using crircular bamboo tray “bilao” and hand pick the nuts. Substandard kernels and other impurities are manually sorted from good kernels done by separating the split, damaged, moldy and other defective kernels.
Storing

Peanuts are stored in unshelled form. The shells act as a natural protective covering of the seeds against mechanical damage and insect infestation. Farmers use sacks but some store peanut in open concrete pits under their farmhouse, bamboo baskets. For shelled peanuts, traders use bags piled to a maximum of 7-8 layers only. Shelled peanuts are usually stored 2 months and six months only for the unshelled peanut.


Are You Sure Your Agriculture Technology Is Covered?

Before we begin, know that our goal is to give you as much useful information as we can fit on our page.

When you think of agriculture business assurance guard tackle breakdown or crash, you think immediately of tractors, combines, and plowing tackle. But do you think about computers?

nowadays, it's not your father's rural. While many  Agriculture business owners may not even reach it, they've departed high-tech. Most grows nowadays activate on computerized tackle, replacing traditional grow tackle and processes or enhancing dealing practices and grow management. If you have efficient your grow tackle just, are you sure your agriculture assurance parcel guards the new equipment?

apparatus such as soil and harden sensors, crop sensors that screen progress, or any computerized equipment is not guarded under your banner agriculture dealing assurance document. In detail, a powered crash of any new equipment could be a devastating cost to your agriculture business dealing. inferior, many adult assurance policies were not printed to anticipate the next-generation agriculture tools that nowadays's appealing and grow owners are with. Many document limits are inadequate to guard motor crash or other obstacle in dealing due to mechanical crash.

If you feel that you haven't learned anything new thus far, there is a whole new realm of information in the rest of this article.

Luckily, new policies now subsist that guard these high-tech policy. New equipment breakdown policies shield agriculture business dealings from mechanical crash and breakdowns, electrical distribution structure crashes, tank and weight equipment malfunctions, electronic structures obstacle, and even malfunctioning heating and cooling structures. jacket tangible injury, as well as pecuniary costs due to breakdowns, agriculture dealing equipment breakdown guarded offers Shields for the injured equipment, the profits cost stemming from dealing interruption caused by the equipment breakdown, any electrical overhaul interruptions caused by the breakdown, and any leasing equipment outlay. Also, these policies will guard dealing restoration outlay.

If it's been longer than three being because your last document magazine, get in converge with an appealing assurance specialist. A magazine of your old guard age can outline how greatly guarded you have for equipment breakdown and whether that guard age is adequate for nowadays more future rural equipment.

The next time you have questions regarding this subject, you can refer back to this article as a handy guide.


  • Are You Sure Your Ag Technology Is Covered? - Equipment such as soil and weather sensors, crop sensors that monitor growth, or any computerized equipment is not covered under your standard agriculture business insurance policy. In fact, a motorized failure of any new equipment ...

Monday, October 12, 2009

Why India Should Not Demand Cuts in Agricultural Subsidies

Past this year the Doha circular of WTO trade negotiations collapsed (again) after the US, Europe, India, and Brazil were incapable to catch a reciprocating contract on harsh farmhouse subsidies in the west, and minoring industrial goods and rite barriers in the developing world.

India and Brazil charged the US and Europe for not minoring their collossally high agricultural subsidies enough. But the query to ask is why India is even campaigning for minor farmhouse subsidies?

India just floated a tender to buy 530,000 tons of wheat on the international advertise. obsessed by bank constraints and register demand from India, Japan, and others, wheat prices are at an all time high. Barring a miracle in Indian agricultural productivity, it is probable that India will continue a net importer of wheat for the foreseeable outlook. So why ask the US to cut farmhouse subsidies, when it is in instigate subsidizing Indian bread?

We have just reached the tip of the iceberg, as the remainder of this article will help to further your understanding of this complex subject.

The same sense applies to other agricultural yield too. As sharp out last year by G. Chandrashekhar, in nothing of the four main world commodities would India park to advantage substantially even if urban economies eliminated subsidies. What is more, the divide of agricultural goods in India trade exports is declining it was 20.55% in 1996-97, 18.05% in 1998-99, and 13.36% in 2000-01 (PDF, means duration Export plan).

There is, of course, the brawl that minor subsidies will broach prices and hence broach farm house's incomes. But this reasoning is egregious in so many conduct, I don't know where to originate.

First, it ignores the detail that while there are numerous million farmhouseers in India, there are over 1 billion customers too. This is the classic obstacle with farmhouse subsidies in common they advantage a stout, well ordered group of goodsrs, but against the wellbeing of the greatly better, but disordered mainity of customers. shoddier, the answer will be incentives for farmhouseers to delay in farmhouseing just when they should be encouraged to move into other forms of production.

The prevalent obstacle with this brawl, however, is that it takes responsibility of the crash of Indian agriculture away from the government and seats it on the US. farmhouse subsidies take thought away from the very important crash of the government, through its monopoly on procurement and intervention in distribution, to grant a bank sequence and advertise that work. This, in detail, explains why the Indian government is so cutting to brawl for farmhouse grant cuts - beinstigate it involves little sweat to keep a main ballot save opportune. Actually burden something about the pathetic turmoil of Indian agriculture is a far fewer fortunate proposition.

The countries that will very advantage from steep cuts in farmhouse subsidies are commonly in Africa. While portion them is really a gallant instigate, the WTO trade negotiations are not about scoring gnome points with Africa. At the WTO, India should let the US bank its bread while bargaining for stuff such as looser intellectual estate pedals, larger access to belabor advertises, and rite industries. And at home, it should get its own house in order, slightly than charge exterior services for its crashs.

If you need help with this subject, or do not know how to begin, there are several free resources on related websites to give you a boost.

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Sunday, October 11, 2009

The Importance of Agriculture

Agriculture plays an important role in the overall economy of each country there. Not only because it tends to the entire population of a country to feed, but in the sense that agriculture are interrelated and interact with all relevant industries of the country. A country is generally regarded as a country socially and politically stable, relying on a farm very stable.

Agriculture provides a stable food security of the country. Food safety is one of the main requirements of each country. No nation can truly develop a stable agricultural base and home to a nation  hungry  like hungry people can not do what-so-ever to help develop their country. Diet prevents hunger is traditionally considered one of the biggest problems faced by small developing countries. Most countries depend on agriculture and related industries for their main source of income. Even the new developing countries find that they depend, and can greatly benefit from the agricultural sector.

Be produced outside of plants and animals, which makes use of farmers, the agricultural sector in the country, agriculture is the main source of employment in most countries. Bigger companies often find it necessary, the extra hands to successfully cultivate the land and maintaining appropriate livestock rent. Most of these large enterprises have processing plants near the facilities necessary for the implementation of agricultural products and the evolution of by-products. No need to say that these sub-sectors that employ large man power their businesses. Most modern farms and agriculture-related sectors make good use of modern equipment of today and the principles of science and technology.
The use of technology in agriculture is determined by the ability of farmers to cope with these advances. The country can benefit farmers dealing with modern technology in agriculture can be a good production of their products to ensure that their country has benefited as a whole. Modern technologies of agriculture would be unnecessary if farmers are not competent enough to be one of the available technologies to use them.

Most cited the old industrial countries began to develop mainly through the development of agriculture. Cities have also been based on agriculture, before it could be fully embraced industrialization. Most of the principles, which are currently in use in modern society have their roots under the principles of agriculture. Construction is a bulk of the practices are shaped by culture, often with experience in agricultural practices. This method has saved many ancient cities from destruction at the time of plague and drought.

Agriculture is generally common in rural areas of arable land, but dealing with modern technology in agriculture, agriculture, very likely, even in urban areas. These activities can be undertaken for sustainable development of personal and family needs or for commercial purposes.

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