Lesson 6.5.0 CASSAVA, MANIOC, - Cultivation , Manihot esculenta

 

FOOD FOREST COURSE

AGRO-ECONOMY Lesson 6.5.0 

CASSAVA, MANIOC, - Cultivation , Manihot esculenta


Cassava is also known as Manioc, Manihot, Tapioca and Yucca.

Cassava is a very easy to grow crop and the tubers are a staple food for many of the indigenous people of the tropical belt.  These starchy tubers are a very versatile food and can easily replace potatoes and wheat.  Moves have been made to replace rice with cassava in the poorer Southeast Asian countries, as it is a much less intensive and thirsty crop to grow. 

Cassava is a very attractive shrub that comes in many varieties, and it is extremely easy to propagate.  There are three main varieties, and they are yellow or sweet cassava, white or bitter cassava that can yield massive tubers within 12-18 months, and another variety that takes several years to grow and is used as a stand by crop in case of drought used by indigenous people.  The yellow varieties come in several different types and they can be boiled and eaten like potatoes. 

The white cassava can be eaten boiled but too much eaten in this way can lead to low level cyanide poisoning.  It is good to grate or better still, ferment white cassava first.  Eaten this way will make it totally free from the cyanide compounds.  The other variety of white cassava is not usually grown in Permaculture gardens and is not to my knowledge, available as such.

Cultivation

Cassava is a very easy crop to grow, and the two main disadvantages are that it takes at least the best part of one year before you can harvest the first tubers and it takes up a lot of space in the garden. This of course is not a disadvantage if you are gardening on acreage along with plenty of other tropical vegetables in a food forest garden. Cassava is one of my favourite starchy foods and if enough cassava are planted then a steady supply of tubers will be available for daily consumption.

Soil fertility is not important, as cassava will grow in a wide variety of soil types. It’s the soil friability that counts, as this will allow the tubers to be able to grow to their full potential. Traditionally, mounds are formed, and two pieces of cuttings, each one-foot in length, are inserted into the mound in opposite directions. The cuttings lie at a very shallow angle to the ground and this will enable maximum contact with the soil to allow roots to strike from the cuttings. This way there will be two cassava shrubs growing on the one mound with potentially a lot of cassava tubers for future harvesting.

A fence can also be grown from cassava cuttings as is done in the Philippines.  Plant 1½ cm thick cassava cuttings 20-30cm apart and use timber or thick bamboo for the corner posts.  Lace bamboo strips between the stems and when the cassava is well rooted, prune the tops off to encourage low and thick growth. Irrigation is not necessary although when it’s dry for extended periods, watering will help push things along, otherwise it will simply take longer to mature.

When planting potted up cassava they need to be settled in with some water first especially if the weather is dry. The occasional lopping of branches is fine and also watch out for livestock, as they will demolish the bush. It is recommended that if feeding the branches and leaves to livestock it is best to wilt them for a couple of days first because of the cyanide that is also present in the leaves. My cows obviously haven’t read the book and go for the cassava bushes whenever they can.

The cassava tubers like a friable soil such as a sandy loam and our own soil here on the farm is not very conducive to root crops because of the many rocks underground. This problem can however be solved over time, as a good build up of mulch will enable the cassava to grow close to the surface of the soil under the mulch. Massive tubers can be grown under a thick layer of mulch this way and can be easily foraged for with bare hands. In some circumstances they have been so big that they needed to be carried over the shoulder like gigantic clubs. They tasted good too! 

Text from the roots, Elisabeth Ferkonia (Aus.) PDC studied with Bill Mollison,




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