Trainer’s Manual

1 Smallholder HorticulturalProduction and BusinessTrainer s ManualAcknowledgementsSNV is grateful for the financial support of DANIDA under the RuralAgricultural Revitalization programme - Commercialization of Smallholder farmers (RARP-CSF). Furthermore, we would like to acknowledge the Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanization and Irrigation Development, Horticulture Research Institute (HRI) and Department of Agricultural Technical and Extension Services (Agritex) and Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, who gave their valuable time and technical information with a view to enhance the ordinary horticultural smallholder farmers . SNV would also like to acknowledge the following core team of writers for committing their valuable time and technical expertise in developing this Manual : SNV: Cloffas Nyagumbo Ruwimbo Sabeta Kudakwashe Watetepa Dominic Mubvuta FAO: Denford Chimboza Agritex: Walter Makotore Hilda Mariyacha (Manditsvara) Godfrey Tore Nyaradzo Maocha HRI: Linda MuushaAcknowledgementsTables, Figures & PhotographsAcronyms and AbbreviationsForewordOverview: RARP CSF and HorticultureComponentModule 1: Understanding the HorticulturalBusiness Unit 1: Markets and MarketingUnit 2: Enterprise Analysis and BudgetingUnit 3: Production/AgronomyUnit 4: Post-Harvest Handling & Value AdditionUnit 5: Area and Yield EstimationModule 2.

2 Horticultural Crop Production,Budgeting and MarketingUnit 1: Tomato GuideUnit 2: Potato GuideUnit 3: Green Pepper GuideUnit 4: Onion GuideUnit 5: Garlic GuideUnit 6: Cabbage Guide Unit 7: Rape/Covo GuideUnit 8: Butternut GuideUnit 9: Gem Squash GuideUnit 10: Carrot GuideUnit 11: Cucumber GuideUnit 12: Fine Beans GuideUnit 13: Garden Peas GuideUnit 14: Okra GuideUnit 15: Water Melon Guide01030405091314274552616364758284931 00106109113116121123128133135 ContentsUnit 16: Mushroom GuideUnit 17: Banana GuideModule 3: Pest and Disease IdentificationIntroductionUnit 1: PestsUnit 2: DiseasesAppendixReferences13714215315415 518120721303 Smallholder Horticultural Production and Business Trainer s ManualTable 1 Table 2 Table 3 Table 4 Table 5 Table 6 Table 7 Table 8 Table 9 Table 10 Table 11 Table 12 Table 13 Table 14 Table 15 Table 16 Table 17 Table 18 Table 19 Table 20 Table 21 Table 22 Table 23 Table 24 Table 25 Table 26 Table 27 Table 28 Table 29 Table 30 Table 31 Tables.

3 Figures & PhotographsSources of market informationExample of market channels in horticultureDifferent standards required by different markets Gross margin budget for gem squash for a ha plot Assumptions on costs & budgets analysis Summary of viability indicators from selected smallholder horticulture crop budgets Sample cashflow budget for a horticulture farmer Sources of finance available to farming businesses A partial budget exampleExample of stock record book for farmer producing bananas in chipping district of ZimbabweExample of basic cash book format for a smallholder irrigation farmer Example of tomatoes and onions sale journal for the months of March and April 2014 Example of a credit journal for January 2015 for a horticulture farmer Important fertilizers in horticulture Quantitative loss assessment in value chain (%)Aspects which affect deterioration rate Some major manufacturers and distributors of secondary processing equipment in Zimbabwe Estimating volumes using various units of measuresCultivar description (tomatoes)Tomato insect pests Tomato diseases Key marketing information systems Potato seed types Potato fertilizer requirements Potato water requirementsCultivar description (onions)

4 Onion weed managementOnion insect pestsOnion diseaseGarlic weed management Garlic insect pests Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4 Figure 5 Figure 6 Figure 7 Figure 8 Figure 9 Figure 10 Value Chain LensKey Marketing Information Systems Cash Inflow/Outflow How to do soil sample using a spade Commodity System Analysis Methodology Change of organopletic quality of tomatoes with maturityLay out of plantationPositioning the plant in the holeProduction CalendarBanana maturity indicesPhoto 1, 2 Photo 3 Photo 4 Photo 5 Photo 6, 7 Comparison of frail michigan pea beansMummified aphids; Red spider mites; Whiteflies H. armigera larva burrowing through tomatoParasite TransportationOnions drying in a box type tobacco barn Table 32 Table 33 Table 34 Table 35 Table 36 Table 37 Table 38 Table 39 Table 40 Table 41 Table 42 Table 43 Table 44 Table 45 Garlic diseasesCabbage weed managementCabbage insect pests Cabbage diseasesRape/covo insect pests Rape/covo diseases Butternut insect pests Butternut diseasesCarrot insect pests Carrot diseases Fine beans pest and diseases Pea insect pests Pea diseasesMushroom insect pests 04 Smallholder Horticultural Production and Business Trainer s ManualAcronyms & AbbreviationsAGRITEXABE ChilliesAMAHRIFAOMoHCCSNVA griculture Technical and Extension ServicesAfrican Birds Eyes ChilliesAgriculture Marketing AuthorityHorticulture Research InstituteFood Agriculture OrganizationMinistry of Health and Child CareNetherlands Development

5 OrganizationForeword05 Smallholder Horticultural Production and Business Trainer s Manual06 Smallholder Horticultural Production and Business Trainer s ManualThe land reform programme (1980-2010) saw significant changes in the Zimbabwe agricultural landscape with effects hitting hard on the horticulture subsector, which was dominated by large commercial farmers (LSCF) land ownership dropping from 34% to 5%. This scenario created a vacuum which demands smallholder farmers to stand up and fill if we want to reclaim our space in the horticulture global sector where during our peak we exported horticultural commodities worth million in 1999 and through the process accounting for of the Gross Domestic is an agro-based country where 80% of the population, with 70% residing in rural areas, depend on agriculture for a livelihood.

6 With horticultural commodities contributing 7% to agricultural Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and smallholder farmers now being one of the major producers, there is need to address an array of challenges they face as they fill this commercial space. In order for smallholder farmers to effectively supply the formal and informal markets, they need to improve their competitiveness by increasing their production and productivity. Hence to do so we need to continuously build their technical and business skills whilst at the same time upgrading their production practices and Smallholder Horticultural Agronomic and Business Manual therefore provides farmers , extension specialists and horticultural advisors with horticultural agronomic and business information which will guide them in decision making and optimising their Acquaye-Baddoo SNV Zimbabwe Country DirectorSmallholder horticultural farmers in Zimbabwe currently face myriad challenges ranging from limited access to specialised technical support, business skills, lack of quality and affordable inputs.

7 Lack of access to reliable water for cropping and inadequate production and post-harvest technologies and challenges accessing affordable government private and developmental agencies joining efforts to commercialize smallholder farmers and integrate them in the formal and informal horticultural market systems, there is need to address their technical and business needs. Furthermore, both formal (including export) and informal markets are now relying on smallholder farmers who are still currently yielding way below the optimum level, government agricultural workers and both private and public horticultural advisors must support smallholder farmers increase productivity and strengthen their business skills in order to feed local, regional and international several instances, horticultural agronomic and business manuals are developed and presented separately leaving farmers , extension specialists and horticultural advisors with one side of the puzzle.

8 This Smallholder Horticultural Agronomy and Business Manual attempts to bridge this gap as it presents a hybridized Manual tackling production, marketing and business issues in key horticultural this Manual and for the 19 selected horticultural crops, the Manual will focus on markets and marketing; enterprise analysis and budgeting; crop agronomy and harvesting, post-harvest handling and value addition. Gross margin budgets included in some specific crops are just shared to serve as guides, extension specialist and horticultural advisors should develop area specific budgets. For each crop, we have included one major pest and one major disease text box which should also help farmers , extension specialists and horticultural advisors in effective pest and disease management.

9 It is our hope that this Manual will complement the already existing horticultural agronomic and business information. By improving the knowledge base, it is our hope also that smallholder farmers will improve productivity and profit margins hence improving their household food and income security whilst at the same time contributing overall horticultural growth locally and NyagumboSNV Zimbabwe Horticulture Team Leader07 Smallholder Horticultural Production and Business Trainer s Manual08 Smallholder Horticultural Production and Business Trainer s Manual09 Smallholder Horticultural Production and Business Trainer s ManualOverviewRARP CSF and Horticulture Component10 Smallholder Horticultural Production and Business Trainer s ManualProgrammeComponentRural Agriculture Revitalization Project: Commercialising Smallholder Farming (RARP CSF)Value Chain Development- HorticultureCropsFruits, Vegetables, Herbs, Spices and TeaObjectivesDevelopment of sustainable contract farming arrangements and market linkages for smallholder farmers in HorticultureBeneficiaries6,000 smallholder farmersProposed Implementing Partner(s)Private companies, line ministries (Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development and Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and cooperative Development) and Farmer unionsPeriodJan 2014 Dec 2015 SNV was engaged by the Danish International Development Organisation (DANIDA) to implement the Rural Agriculture Revitalisation Project - Commercialisation of Smallholder farmers (RARP CSF)

10 , an initiative which seek to facilitate commercialisation of smallholder agriculture with a view to promote improved household incomes, employment and food security. The project aim was to reach 280,000 smallholder farming households throughout all eight rural provinces in development objective of the project was to commercialise smallholder farming in the country by re-instating sustainable commercial input and output marketing channels as well as technical and business development services provision. The RARP CSF was implemented following an integrated value chain development approach that addresses all constraints hindering growth in specific sub project components which include improving small scale farmers access to the right and high yielding inputs, development of win-win sustainable contract farming arrangements and provision of effective business development services have been designed to facilitate the revitalisation of the horticulture, oil seeds and dairy sub sectors.