Land preparation

• Plough the field 2-3 times or dig to a depth of 25-30 cm

Planting

 Selection of planting material

• Tapioca is propagated by stem cuttings.
• Select mature healthy stems free from diseases or pests.
• Discard about 10 cm from the lower mature and about 30 cm from the upper immature end.
• Cut stems into setts of 15-20 cm length using a sharp knife.
• Harvested stems are to be stored vertically in shaded and well-aerated places.
• Spraying dimethoate (0.05 per cent) on the stem to control scale insects.

 Planting method

• Pit, flat, ridge or mound method of planting can be adopted depending upon soil type, topography of land and elevation so that waterlogging is avoided.
• Pit followed by mound is found to be the best method of planting.
• Plant the cuttings vertically after smoothening the lower cut end
• Planting depth - 4-6 cm.
• Adopt square method of planting at a spacing of 90 cm x 90 cm @ one cutting per pit.
• Gap filling should be done within 15 days after planting preferably with longer setts of 40 cm length.
• Sree Visakham is recommended as an intercrop in coconut gardens.
• Optimum plant population - 8000 plants/ ha with 90 cm x 90 cm spacing.
• For non-branching varieties like M-4 adopt spacing of 75 cm x 75 cm.

Minisett planting technique for quality planting material

 Selection of planting material

• For producing minisetts, mature, disease free stems preferably those obtained from indexed meristem culture should be selected.
• Two node cuttings are taken from these stems using a sharp hack-saw.
• Top one-third portion is usually discarded in the traditional system, however in the minisett technique, it is fully utilized.
• The tip of the stem (about 5 to 6 cm long) is carefully cut without causing damage. For preventing dehydration, it is advisable to place the tip cuttings in water.
• The stem just below the growing tip is very tender with prominent axillary buds.
• Hence, from this portion, cuttings with four nodes are taken instead of two as the latter may easily get dried up

 Preparation of nursery

• Select an area with well-drained soil and irrigation facility.
• Shade net house of 35 per cent shade is ideal for the germination and growth of minisetts.
• Mark out the length and breadth and make raised beds of soil: sand mixture in equal proportion.
• The beds could be of convenient length and width not exceeding 1 m.
• An area of 220 m² nursery is required for producing minisetts for planting one hectare of land.
• Two node cuttings are planted end to end horizontally, about 5 cm deep inside the soil, with the buds facing either side.
• Tip cuttings and four node top setts should be planted erect at 5 cm x 5 cm spacing to prevent decay due to excess moisture in these tender parts.
• Minisetts would sprout in a week’s time. Mosaic virus infected plants, if any found, should be rogued off as soon as such symptoms are expressed, to keep the nursery disease free.
• The minisetts will be ready for transplanting in about three to four weeks’ time.
• After the basal application of recommended manure in the main field, ridges of 30 cm height are taken with a spacing of 45 cm between the ridges and planting is done on the ridges at a spacing of 45 cm.
• Multiplication ratio by this process is enhanced to 1: 60 as against the traditional method 1:10.

Intercropping in tapioca

• Tapioca is planted at a spacing of 90 cm x 90 cm and it takes about 3-3.5 months’ time to have enough canopy to cover the land.
• Intercropping of groundnut is possible during the early stages of tapioca crop.
• Preferred varieties - TMV-2, TMV-7, TG-3, TG-14 and Spanish Improved
• The best season for sowing groundnut - May-June.
• Immediately after planting of tapioca setts, groundnut seeds are sown at a spacing of 30 cm between rows and 20 cm within rows, so that two rows of groundnut can be accommodated in between two rows of cassava.
• Seed rate of groundnut 40-50 kg/ ha
• Dibbling one seed per hill.
• Select only well-matured and bold seeds for sowing.
• A basal dose of 50:100:50 kg N:P₂O₅:K₂O per ha should be given uniformly to both the crops.
• One month after sowing of the seed, 20 kg each P₂O₅ and K₂O and 10 kg N / ha may be given to the intercrop along with earthing up.
• Once pod formation has started (i.e., 40-45 days after sowing) the soil should not be disturbed, as it will affect the pod development adversely.
• The groundnut crop matures in 105 to 110 days.
• After the harvest of pods, the haulms are incorporated in the soil along with a top dressing of 50 kg each of N and K₂O per ha for the main crop.
• By adopting this practice, 20-25 per cent additional income can be obtained.
• In sandy areas intercropping tapioca with cowpea / groundnut / black gram / green gram may be recommended giving a spacing of 20 cm on both sides of the ridges.
• The non-trailing grain cowpea variety V-26 is recommended as a companion crop along with tapioca.
• For a pure crop of tapioca or for a cropping system involving tapioca as the main crop and the pulse crop suggested above, the field may be irrigated once in 36 days to a depth of 5 cm.
• This recommendation is for shallow water table situations.
• For deep water table situations, the crop may be irrigated once in 24 days to a depth of 5 cm.