AGN 413.

AGRONOMY OF INDUSTRIAL
CROPS.
COURSE NOTES

Lester Botoman, PhD

Course aim .

• To understand the origin, botany, ecology and

agronomy of commercial crops in Malawi

• To focus on the industrial potential of a wide

range of crops grown in Malawi, and how to
increase production and quality.
 Agronomist
• Crop and soil management specialist
• Using plant and soil science principles must:
o Be open minded to identify soil, plant and pest
management constraints and provide solutions
o Show the potential yields and quality of crops to
farmers and stakeholders
o Provide economically viable crop production packages
o Provide linkages to other agric scientists such as
breeders, pathologists, marketers, industrialists:
familiar with value chain
ORIGIN AND SPREAD OF CROPS

Origin and spread of plants

• The survival of pre-historic man was limited
to food gathering – livestock and wild plants
• By and by man domesticated both livestock
and plants. He had to learn how to sow and
cultivate plants to the best of his advantage.
• Most likely plants were grown on fertile soils,
new alluvial soils, around dwelling units –
choice of fertile soils was wide in those days.
 Origin and spread of crops –Cont’d
• The first recorded cultivation was in Northern
Iraq and neighbouring country. In 7000 BC the
first recorded crops were wheat and barley.
• Next was in the river basin of Mesopotamia
and Egypt around 5000 BC to 300BC.
• Some of the early crops to be domesticated in
Mexico were common guard – chikho
(Lagenaria siceraria) , curcubits (nkhaka
group), beans, amaranthus, cotton, avocados,
 Spread of crops cont’d

• Next was in the river basin of Mesopotamia and

Egypt around 5000 BC to 300BC.
• Some of the early crops to be domesticated in
Mexico were common guard – chikho (Lagenaria
siceraria) , curcubits (nkhaka group), beans,
amaranthus, cotton, avocados,
• Generally, this is the order in which crops have been
domesticated
1) Small cereals – wheat, barley
2) Root and tubers – cassava, potato, yams etc
3) Rice in Asia
 The process of domestication
• Man takes plants and grows them where he wants.
Almost all the time, knowingly or not, selects for
characters useful to him, resulting in:-
– Genetic changes (concentrates genes)
– Physiological
– Structural changes

• Some of the factors selected for:- temperature – low or

high; soil pH, soil water, alkalinity, maturity period,
drought, pests and disease
These selections have resulted in
• Better plant performance under conditions of choice
• Reduced ability to survive in wild state
 Changes that have occurred in plants as a result of
selection by mankind
1. Absence of shattering. Sometimes leading to
complete loss of seed dispersal mechamisms
2. Increase in size of fruits and seeds, roots and tubers
etc
3. Conversion from perennials to annuals
4. Loss of seed dormancy
5. Changes in breeding systems, usually from self
pollination to fertilization
6. Loss of defensive adaptations such as hairs, spines, or
thorns
7. Loss of protective coverings and sturdiness combined
with reduction in the development of fibrous tissue
 Changes to plants cont’d
8. Improvement palatability and chemical
composition (digestibility), but then rendering
them more likely to be eaten by animals
9. Simultaneous (uniform) seed bearing for
combine harvesting
10. Increased susceptibility to disease and pests
11. Development in seedless ‘parthenonocarpic’
fruits
12 Multiplication by vegetative propagation
13 Selection for double-cropping
 Other general consequences
• Spread to greater diversity of environments
and geographical range, some no longer
suited the wild life
• Crops have ended with a different ecological
preference
How do changes occur?
Sum total of the changes is = evolution
• Evolution = process leading to loss of genes or increase
in gene frequency
• Evolution is assisted by
i) vast multiplication of plants, favored ones doing well,
non-favored ones perishing
ii) hybridization. = out-crossing of distantly related
individuals
iii) Selection/evaluation is greatly assisted by Mutations
• Mutations =relatively permanent change in hereditary
material involving either physical change in
chromosomes relations or biochemical change in the
codon that make up genes.
About mutations
• Over 30 mutations have been recorded in
coffee Arabica.
• Recessive genes are normally masked as a
result of having low frequency. They may
attain high frequency in new areas.
• In large populations the number of naturally
occurring mutations can be large and add to
the gene pool
• Mutations can be selected for especially in an
adverse environment
Factors which have influenced the present
distribution of crops.
• A food crop can be liked and accepted by people for
various reasons. Usually people want a crop to give
acceptable yields
• Acceptable yields depend on its input requirements
and how soft or harsh is the environment
• It takes time for this to happen, but when it happens
people are very reluctant to change.
• This is more applicable to crops, less applicable to
varieties or races between crops.
• Some circumstances such as serious disease failure,
pests, or market collapse can force a change in people.
 Other factors which have influenced the
present distribution of crops
• Although these are history, they remain important
guides in policy and strategy to scale out new crops
in new areas
1. Introduction, selection and breeding and of
new cvs suited to new environments and
utilization.Need an efficient system. Eg high
yielding rubber clones in Malasya. Maize and
Sweet potatoes in Malawi. This includes crop
testing under a wide range of environments.
Also, area of origin may not necessarily
provide the optimum environmental
conditions. So people try the crop elsewhere
Other factors influencing spread Cont’d

2. Improvement in Crop Husbandry

– less competition in pure stand
– research stations located in areas of
maximum potential production eg
Chitedze Res, hence encouraging high
yields are recorded
– efficient control of weeds eg herbicide,
flooding techniques etc
– improved methods of husbandry
(including improved mechanization,
Other factors influencing spread cont’d

3. System of agric. Esp peasant vs large scale

plantations
4. Cost, supply and efficiency of labour
5. Availability of capital
6. Marketing : existence of mkts, with production
keeping pace with demand and nearness, especially
for perishables such as tomato, mushroom
7. Availability of seed (planting material) of the cv in
demand
Other factors influencing the spread cont’d
8. Easy, adaptable technology for difficult propagation and
processing steps including availability of advisory services
9. Government subsidies to take off new crops.
10. Support by industry, usually as contract farming (help with
inputs and mkt guarantee). Eg with cotton in Mw
11. War and trade embargos. Eg Soviet Union learnt to grow
wheat after an embargo (boycott) by USA.
12. Outstanding support from some individual grower or
specialist
13. Agric. Departments, Botanical Gardens in promoting crop
14. Early success of the crop important in determining success
soon afterwards
15. Sometimes compulsory cultivation.
 Centres of origin and diversity
Center of origin: that location where it is proven to
have first appeared. The primary criterion in
identifying a center of origin is the presence of
wild relatives.
Centre of diversity. The geographic area wherein
the plant exhibits the highest degree of variation
at the population and genetic levels. That is, the
center of diversity is where the highest number
of cultivated types and wild relatives, as well as
gene variants (alleles), exist.
Vavilov’s centres of Origin
..
• Nikolai hanovitch Vavilov (1926) proposed different centres
of origin for various crop plants on two criteria (i)
Occurrence & wild relatives, (ii) Occurrence of maximum
variations in the crop.
• They are 11 in number, which are as follows: (the numbers
of centres tend to vary with different sources. All the same
good to note countries where some of these crops
originate
(1) South-East Asia: Rice, Pigeon Pea, Banana, Mango, Orange,
Brinjal, Black-Pepper, Sugarcane,
(2) China: Onion, Tea, Soyabean.
(3) South- West Asia: Wheat.
(4) Asia Minor and Afganistan: Rye, Lentil, Apple, Pear,
Apricot, Pomegranate, Pistachio, Almond.
 .
(4) Asia Minor and Afghanistan: Rye, Lentil, Apple,
Pear, Apricot, Pomegranate, Pistachio, Almond.
(5) Mediterranean: Oat, Lettuce, Cabbage, Beet.
(6) Ethiopia: Barley, Sorghum, Coffee.
(7) Brazil: Groundnut, Pineapple, Rubber.
(8) Peruvian Andes: Potato, Tomato, Chilli.
(9) Mexico and Central America: Maize & cotton.
(10) USA: Sunflower.
(11) European Siberian Region: Cherry, Cichory,
Hops.
Table 1. Scope of IARC crop improvement possibilities
in Africa. (after Tennyson and DeVries)
Centre Mandate Primary breeding sites
crops
IITA (Int. Inst. of Trop Banana/ One, Nigeria; Kampala, Uganda
Agric) Plantain

Cassava Ibadan, Nigeria; Kampala;

Soybean Chitedze, Lilongwe, Mw

Cowpea Kano, Nigeria

Maize Ibadan; Bouake, Ivory Coast
CIAT (Int Centre of Trop Beans Kampala; Lilongwe
Agr)
CIMMYT (Int Maize & Maize Harare, Zimbabwe; Addis
Wheat Imprvnt Centre) Ababa, Ethiopia; Nairobi,

Wheat Addis Ababa

 Table 1 continued
CIP (Int Potato Centre) Potato Lilongwe

Sweet Nairobi
potato
ICRISAT (Int Crops Res Sorghum Bamako, Mali; Nairobi;
Inst for Semi-Arid Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.
Tropics) Lilongwe Malawi

Millets Bulawayo; Bamako

Pigeon pea Nairobi
Groundnut Lilongwe; Bamako
WARDA (Now Africa Rice Bouake; St Louis, Senegal;
Rice Centre) Entebbe, Uganda
 Current strategies for rolling out new
crops or varieties
• Malawi being agricultural based country, there is need
for intensification of agricultural production and
diversification to include industrial crops and appropriate
crop varieties.
• Some of the strategies in use are as follow, which draw
from above experiences and new strategies
1. Subsidy programmes. Direct intervention to make
country self sufficient and allow uninterrupted focus on
`other areas of national growth and development.

2. Anchor farm/mega farm approach. A farm is a focal point

for surrounding farmers. Will do the marketing (various
services) for farmers, provide extension service.
 Malawi Vision 2063
An inclusively wealthy and self reliant nation (NPC, 2020)
Pillar 1: Agricultural Productivity and Commercialization
a) Agricultural Productivity: Improved agricultural productivity
and well functioning structured agricultural markets can
transform the sector to generate income, release agricultural
labour and stimulate demand in other sectors.
• Immediate effects of Improving agric productivity on hunger &
poverty:
(i) increase the production and incomes
(ii) attract young people to the agriculture sector;
(iii) it will reduce food prices, which affect real income and poverty
in urban areas, while generating important spillovers to the rest of
the economy; and
(iv) it will intensify the use of productivity enhancing research and
technologies thereby achieving greater output per livestock and
unit of land used and producing larger farm surpluses.
Contract farming
• Contract farming refers to a key stakeholder asks someone to
grow a crop, and promises to buy from them. Can be a
processing plant eg oil processor, fruit processing, being
making etc.
• Advantage is that s variety of special attributes can be
promoted, with assurance of quality. Ordinarily contractor
supports farmers so they can maintain quality and obtain the
expected yields. It is important farmers get expected yields to
meet the targets of the contractor.
• The Integrated Production system uses this approach. Other
examples include cotton growers
• Chibuku products and their specialty sorghum varieties. Main
problem is that farmers sell elsewhere, usually lured by high
prices.
• Cotton industry has similar arrangements
Contract farming (CF) and industrialization
• Contract farming can fast track large volumes of raw
material production to meet minimum capacity for
industrial production (factory capacity, justify
investment, production and distribution)
• Due to incentive of market, farmers can join without
the long adoption process
• Appropriate variety and quality issues can be specified
• Contracting firm can easily target a suitable production
region and disease Trouble free) zone
Challenges to agric
in Mw vs contract Lo`w productivity weak links to
farming (Mw and stagnant yields markets,
contract farming limited and weak low uptake of
strategy 2016 farmer organisations improved farm
Some, if not all of inputs
these challenges, can low profitability of high transport
be addressed through smallholder costs
contract farming that agriculture
operates in an inadequate access poor quality
efficient, competitive to market control
and fair manner Mw information.
Govt Contract farming
strategy 2016)
 NATIONAL AGRIC INVEST: THE MALAWI PLAN
Stemming from the NAP
• A plan of action to implement the Agric Policy. 2017/18
22/23. Replacing Agric Sector Wide Program ASWAP.
• Supported by government and donor agencies. US$
3.219 bn or Mk 2 TN
• A framework to coordinate and prioritise investments by
various government agencies, development partners,
and non-state actors in the agriculture sector.
Four programmes identified
• Policy, institutions and coordination for results
• Resilient livelihood and production systems
• Production, productivity, growth and markets
• Value addition, trade, and finance for transformation
 National Economic Empowerment Fund
(NEEF)
• Mission includes: providing microfinances
services to Malawians especially Youth women
• Provide loans to youth (as individuals or
groups of 10)
• Agribusiness and farm input loans
 Malawi Agricultural and Industrial Investment
Corporation (MAIIC)
• Partnership between Government, the private sector and
international investors to play a leading role as a catalyst
for socio-economic development, job and wealth creation
in Malawi.
• MAIIC is proactive and innovative in developing products
and services that drive private sector development as
follows:
i) Loans
ii) Leases
iii) Bonds & Insurance arrangements
iv) Guarantees
v) Lines of credit
 Agricultural Commercialization
(AGCOM) Project
• A Malawi Government flagship programme for
transforming smallholder agriculture from
mostly subsistence to commercial
• Link together Producer Organizations (POs),
service providers (including research and
extension) and off-takers in a value chain, in a
concept known as a Productive Alliance (PA)