PLANTING
PLANTING
- Farmers are encouraged to use certified seeds
- Planting should be done with the first planting rains or soon after the main crop has emerged where inter-planting is practiced
- Plant spacing depends on duration to maturity and cropping system followed.
Short duration pigeon peas
- Best produced as pure stand on either double or single row
- Plant on ridges spaced at 75cm or 90cm apart
- Single row requires 2 plants per station at 20cm apart
- Double rows spaced at 30cm apart require one plant per station, 10cm apart
- For double row planting the ridge should be flattened on the top
- Seed rate of 16 to 25 kg/Ha (single or double row)
- Intercrop short duration pigeon peas on intra ridge, alternate ridges or in strips of 2 or more ridges.
Medium and long duration pigeon peas
- Plant 2 seeds per station spaced at 60cm on ridges of either 75cm or 90cm apart
- Seed rate of 8kg/hectare.
Planting intercrops
- Pigeon pea can successfully be grown in intercrop systems
- Pigeon peas grow very slowly for the first two months in intercrop and starts rapid growth when the other crop is approaching maturity.
Steps to establish soya bean and pigeon pea intercrop
Step 1
- Plant soya bean first
- Avoid ridges wider than 75cm as this decreases plant population per unit area
- Plant soybean about 5-8cm apart, 3cm deep, two rows per ridge
- Soya must not be dry planted.
Step 2
- Plant pigeon pea on the same day you have planted soya
- Plant 3 pigeon pea seeds per planting station at 90cm spacing on the ridges already planted with soy bean
- This single row of pigeon pea must be at the centre (top) of the ridge
- Only 6kg pigeon pea seed is required to plant 1ha of soy bean/pigeon pea intercrop.
Steps to establish groundnut and pigeon pea intercropping
Step 1
- Plant groundnut first with the first effective rains – a delay in planting will cause a significant drop in yield
- Make ridges that are 75 cm apart
- Plant 2 rows of groundnuts on either side of each ridge, at about 5-8cm depth
- Within each row, plant groundnut seeds at 10-15cm apart, depending on the groundnut variety
- Seed requirements per hectare range from 80-100kg, depending on the groundnut variety and seed size.
Step 2
- Plant pigeon pea on the same day
- Plant 3 pigeon pea seeds per planting station at 90cm spacing on the ridges already planted with groundnuts
- This single row of pigeon pea must be at the centre (top) of the ridge
- Only 6kg pigeon pea seed is required to plant 1 hectare of groundnuts/pigeon pea intercrop
- Groundnuts are harvested earlier and pigeon pea remains in the field
- The benefit of the pigeon pea to next year’s crop (usually maize) is due to the large amount of leaves that fall to the ground as the crop matures and adds a lot of organic mulch that improves soil fertility.
Steps to establish maize and pigeon pea intercropping
- This is common with short duration varieties
- Pigeon peas can be intercropped with maize where maize and pigeon peas are planted on the same ridge or maize and the pigeon peas are planted on alternate ridges or in strips of 2 or more ridges.
Step 1
- Make ridges at 75cm apart.
- Plant maize first with the first effective rains
- Plant one maize seed per station at 25cm apart.
Step 2
- Plant 3 pigeon pea seeds at 90cm apart on the ridges already planted with maize after the maize has established (two weeks after planting maize)
- Or plant 3 pigeon pea seeds per planting station at 90cm apart on alternate ridges to maize ridges or in strips of 2 or more ridges.
