What Farmers Must Do To Boost Yam Production

Tapping of yam root is very much practiced in Buea, whereby six months after planting a tuber, you take a knife, open the soil at the top and cut carefully below the collar, you remove the tuber, cover it with soil and after two months when the crop is at eight months, you will have another tuber.

But for farmers who want to boost their yam production, the rapid multiplication of yam through the minisett technology is recommended, says South West Sub-Regional Delegate for Agriculture, Elame Germain.

The technique involves cutting a tuber of yam into many parts up to 30 mini-parts. Farmers in Buea and environs can follow the normal yam planting calendar (October-January).

Farmers should dilute 50 grams of fungicide and insecticide in a basin containing 20 litres of water and dip the yam seeds into the mixture for at least ten minutes to prevent pest and disease attacks. The seeds are then removed and allowed to get dry for two days. After this, create a flat surface and fill it with saw dust. Then make a shade on the surface with palm fronds.

The next step is to nurse the seeds in the saw dust by placing the split yams on the saw dust two metres apart; the side with the skin on the saw dust and the wounded part facing upward. This permits the yam to germinate. The yam seeds should be watered moderately given that yam does not thrive in so much water.

The importance of placing the seeds on saw dust, not on soil is because if it is on soil, when you want to remove it, the roots that must have germinated will get destroyed. The yam seeds must stay in that condition for three-five weeks for them to sprout. Afterwards, they are removed to a bed of 1metre wide and 20 cm high. The tubers are put 5 cm deep into the soil. Then bamboos of about 2 meters high for each seedling are staked to direct the vines of the yam for adequate sunlight to reach the crop. The distance between one seed to another must be one metre by one metre. After six months, your yam will be ready for harvest.

The advantage with this technology is that it permits you to harvest many tubers of yam on one bed. A farmer who practised this method last year in Bonakanda, Buea Subdivision, said, “I learnt about this technique last year during a workshop organised by the Sub-Regional Delegation for Agriculture. I put it into practice by splitting 100 tubers of yam. I was amazed with the results. I made more than 1.5 million frs cfa from sales. This year, I have decided to double my efforts and I am very positive about the outcome.”

The Sub-Regional Delegate for Agriculture also advises farmers not to make the mistake of placing one stake to direct up to six yam vines.

“Once this happens, there is competition amongst the yams for sunlight and this leads to poor yields. To obtain the best results, one stake should go for one vine,” says Elame.

*For more information on training on minisett technology, contact the Southwest Sub-Regional Delegate for Agriculture, Elame Germaine on 77 68 20 40.