- How many suckers of plantain should I plant on a plot of land? I’m in Nigeria
- At what month should i plant the sucker? Note: my Land is not a water area
- When should I apply NPK fertilizer?
- What other plants can I plant with plantain?
Hello Alina, Glad to have you here.
Here are the answers to your questions following their order of arrangements:
1. How many suckers of plantain should I plant on a plot of land? I’m in Nigeria
The recommended spacing is 3m between the plantain rows and 2m within the row (in other words 3m x 2m). You can also use 2.5m x 2.5m as an alternative depending on your choice as the farmer. However, if spaced at 3m x 2m then 1 hectare of farmland which contains 15 plots of land should contain 1667 plants, but with a spacing of 2.5m x 2.5m, it should contain 1600 plants.
Now I provided you with the calculation for one hectare to make it easier for you to understand in case you need to expand or plant more than one plot of land.
To get the number of plantains that you need to plant on one plot of land, all you need do is to DIVIDE the total number of plants for 1 hectare depending on your choice of spacing BY “15 PLOTS” which makes up a hectare.
2. At what month should I plant the sucker? Note: my Land is not a water area
Planting your plantain suckers in the rainy season months of May, June, July, and August can be beneficial to the growth of the plantain plants because of the abundance of water.
3. When should I apply NPK fertilizer?
The application of fertilizer should start 1 month after planting of plantains or with the first rains in an already existing field. The fertilizer is applied around the main plant in a circle about 50 cm in diameter. Fertilizer is not worked into the soil as that causes extensive damage to the superficial root system. No fertilizer is applied in the dry season.
You can refer to the following pages for more information:
https://agric4profits.com/plantain-fertilizer-application-and-methods/
https://agric4profits.com/recommended-plantain-fertilization-methods/
4. What other plants can I plant with plantain?
Plantains and bananas can be intercropped with other crops like coffee, cocoa, maize, beans, sweet potatoes, cocoyam, etc. However, ensure to provide them with the adequate and required spacing in order to accommodate them all.
You can refer to this page for more information:
https://agric4profits.com/plantain-inter-cropping/
Always feel free to reach out to us again if you have any further questions, as we will always be here to guide you to ensure that you generate maximum profits from your farming business.
