Growing chili starts with preparing a nursery bed. A 3×4 feet portion of land off the ground is prepared.
A week to planting, a farmer may opt to apply compost manure or NPK fertilisers to enhance soil fertility.
Preparation of the nursery bed ought to go hand-in-hand with preparation of the main garden where the seedlings will be transplanted.
Soak the seeds in water overnight (for 12 hours) on the eve of planting. The next morning, the seeds are scattered in the portion of land prepared as seed bed before covering them with a layer of soil.
After planting, mulch the soil with dry grass/vegetative plantain, thick enough to prevent direct sun rays. It takes 10 days for the chili to germinate.
When 70% of the seeds have germinated, a farmer is advised to remove the grass off the bed and build a makeshift shelter over the bed.
The seedlings are ready for transplanting after 30 days. There are two planting procedural spacing formulae; a 2×2 feet or a 3×3 feet.
On the day of transplanting, a farmer may apply NPK fertiliser. If one cannot afford it, one may opt for compost manure.
Use of pesticides
Chili requires a variety of pesticides at different vegetative and productive stages. The vegetative stage is from the time the chili seedling is transferred from the seedbed to the garden to the time the chili plants begin to develop fruits.
Here, the spraying pattern ranges from once to four times a month.
Farmers seeking to export their yields ought to note that failure to use pesticides could be counter-productive as it compromises the quality of the yields which export clients emphasise.
The yields are thoroughly scrutinised by the exporting client using special devices). Should the consignment (yields) fail to meet the required specifications, it is out rightly rejected.
Harvesting
It takes 90 days for a well-tended chili plantain to bear fruits. Like any cash crop, yields at the beginning of the productive stage are usually lower.
For chili, an acre yields between 25 to 30 export boxes. The export box is a small special packaging that contains about a quarter kilogramme of fresh chili.
Four export boxes make up a kilogramme. From the third harvest season, the volume of yields is between 30 to 80 export boxes per acre. Harvest is usually twice a week.
