Theory question 106
Crop HusbandryGive an account of the production of banana, using the following sub-headings:
(a) one common variety;
(b) planting materials;
(c) propagation;
(d) husbandry;
(e) two common pests;
(f) two common diseases and how each is controlled;
(g) maturity period.
Show the model answer
(a) Any one: Dwarf Cavendish; Giant Cavendish; Gros Michel; Lacatan; Robusta
(b) Suckers (sword suckers preferred), corms/bits of corm (bullheads), tissue-culture plantlets
(c) Vegetative: suckers planted in holes about 60 cm × 60 cm × 60 cm, filled with topsoil and manure, at a spacing of about 3 m × 3 m, at the start of the rains
(d) Weeding; mulching; manure and fertilizer (high potassium); desuckering (keep 1–3 suckers per stool); propping/staking heavy bunches; removal of dead leaves; irrigation in dry season
(e) Any two: banana weevil (Cosmopolites sordidus); nematodes; banana aphid; thrips
(f) Any two with control: Sigatoka leaf spot (fungus) – fungicide sprays, remove infected leaves, good drainage; Panama/Fusarium wilt – resistant varieties, clean suckers, crop rotation; bunchy top (virus, aphid) – destroy infected plants, control aphids, clean planting material
(g) About 9–15 months from planting to harvest of the first bunch
Give spacing and the maturity period.