Tapioca Cultivation

Common Name: Manioc or Yucca

Introduction
 Cassava is the most important starchy root crop grown in the tropics and is mainly cultivated
in southern peninsular India and consumed after cooking.
 Introduced during seventeenth century by Portuguese, the crop played a significant role to
overcome food shortage among the low income group of people in Kerala
 Processed products like chips, sago and vermicelli made of tapioca are also popular in the
country. Being easily digestible, it forms an important ingredient in poultry and cattle-feeds.
 It is also widely used for production of industrial alcohol, starch ,glucose and biodegradable
plastic. Among the different tropical root and tuber crops grown in India, cassava is of
significance as it can produce more calories per unit area.
 Its importance in tropical agriculture is due to its drought tolerance/drought avoidance, wide
flexibility to adverse soil, nutrient and management conditions including time of harvest.
 The drought tolerance is mainly due to its inbuilt mechanism to shed/drop the leaves under
adverse soil moisture conditions to facilitate slow down of all the vital activities of the plant.
 When the rain comes it draws on its root reserves to form a new leaf canopy and later fills its
roots. Hence, cassava can readily be grown in areas of rather uncertain rains that prevent the
successful cultivation of other crops.
 As cassava has no determined harvest time after which it spoils, farmers can have a
staggered harvesting rather than a set date. This adds to the advantage in cassava based
cropping system.
 It is based on the concept that once the bud sprouts, the roots developed would start drawing
nutrients from the soil and no more from the mother planting material and therefore the
size of planting material actually does not matter as far as sprouting is concerned.
 Dried cassava product is known as Vattukappa.
 In Indonesia cassava flour is called Gaplek and Vellukappa in Kerala.
  Cassava starch is also used as additive to cement and used to improve viscosity of drilling
muds in oil wells.
 Cassava has two cyanogenic glucosides linamarin and lotaustralin in its edible roots and
leaves.
Origin and Distribution
Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz) popularly known as tapioca, is a native of Brazil in Latin America
and was introduced to India (Kerala) by the Portuguese in the 17th century. Portuguese distributed
the crop from Brazil to countries like Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia and India. Nigeria is the major
growing country in world accounting for 50% of area and production. In India, crop is cultivated in
southern peninsular region, particularly Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh contributing 93% of
area and 98% of production in the country. Kerala accounts for nearly 50% of total area under
cassava in India where is was 1st introduced and is mainly grown as rainfed crop. Highest production
and productivity in India is seen in TN.
Botany
 Cassava belongs to family Euphorbiaceae and is diploid (2n=36). Polyploids with 2n=54 and 72
are also available.
 It is a perennial shrub producing 5-10 cylindrical tubers per plant.
 Being a member of family Euphorbiaceae, it produces latex.
 The stem is woody and variously branched.
 It is a perennial monoecious shrub.
 It is drought tolerant crop and shed leaves when go into dormancy.
 Photosynthesis of cassava is peculiar having a combination of C3 and C4. Two distinct types
of stems are present
 Without branching at the top and
 With spreading nature.
 Leaves are palmately lobed with 5-9 lobes.
 Cassava is monoecious in nature and cross-pollinated (Insects).
 Female flowers are a few in numbers and are borne in the base of inflorescence and male
flowers are borne above.
 Female flowers open about 10 days before male flower anthesis.
 Stigma is receptive from 6.30 a.m. and continues up to 2.30 p.m.
 Plants when raised from seeds produce typical tap root system.
 Inflorescence is panicle.
 Since crop is mainly propagated by vegetative means by stem cuttings, numerous
adventitious roots develop, of which a few develop into tubers.
  Tubers are composed of a thin periderm, white or purple cortex known as rind and central
massive flesh rich in starch (25-40%).
 Bitterness often encountered in a few varieties and at certain stage is due to a bitter principle
cyanogenic glucoside which on hydrolysis produce HCN and yellow colour is due to carotene.
 The cynogenic potential of cassava leaves is 5-20 times higher than that of edible parts.

Varieties
 Varieties differ in colour of rind and flesh, size of tubers, colour of stem, leaf and petiole,
branching pattern, duration of crop and resistance to mosaic disease. High amount of cross-
pollination results in heterozygous nature.
 Most of the crop improvement works on cassava are done at the Central Tuber Crops Research
Institute (CTCRI), Thiruvananthapuram. Important varieties developed at CTCRI are listed here
H-97 Erect branching hybrid, developed by crossing Manjavella Local with a Brazilian Local, is
characterized by the light sepia colour of emerging leaf with brown tubers Yield 25-35 t/ha in 10 months.
H-165 This is a non-branching hybrid with mature leaves showing drooping nature. Tubers are relatively
short with cream coloured rind. Yield 33-38 t/ha in 8-9 months.
H-226 This semi-branching hybrid having characteristic green coloured leaves. Tuber rind is light purple
and skin is cream with purple patches. Susceptible to cassava mosaic disease (CMD). Yield 30-35 t/ha in
10 months.
Sree Sahya This is a multiple hybrid involving five parents. It is non-branching with dark brown
petiole and spiny prominent stipular mark Tubers are long and rind is cream coloured; yield 35-40t/ha in
10-11 months.
Sree Vaisakham This is a semi-branching hybrid with slightly yellow fleshed tubers which remains
yellow even after cooking. Carotene content is 466 IU / 100 g. Tuber rind is cream and skin is brown
coloured. Yield is 35-38 t/ha in 10 months.
Sree Prakash This is a short, non-branching, early maturing (7-8 months) variety developed by clonal
selection. Highly tolerant to Cercospora leaf spot; yield 35-40 t/ha in 7-8 months.
Sree Harsha This is a triploid clone developed by crossing a diploid with an induced tetraploid clone
of ‘Sree Sahya’ Plants are stout, erect and non-branching with tubers of good cooking quality and high
starch content (38-41%). Yield 35-40 t/ha in 7-8 months.
Sree Jaya This is a short-duration (6 months) clonal selection suitable for low land cultivation as a
rotation crop in paddy-based inter-cropping system. Tubers are with brown skin and purple rind and have
good cooking quality. Yield 26-30 t/ha. Susceptible to CMD.
Sree Vijaya This is also a short-duration (6-7 months) clonal selection suitable for low land
cultivated as a rotation crop in a paddy-based inter-cropping system. Tubers are with cream coloured rind
and light yellow flesh due to high carotene. Susceptible to mite and scale insect. Yield 25-28 t/ha in 7
months.
M-4 This is a non-branching variety with excellent cooking quality. Susceptible to mites. Yield 18-23
t/ha in 10 months.
Sree Rekha Erect branching variety with excellent cooking quality. Susceptible to mites; yield 18-23 t/ha
in 10 months.
Sree Prabha Semi-spreading variety with good taste and quality. Yield 35-40 t/ha in 10 months.
Three varieties viz., Nidhi, Kalpaka and Vellayani Hraswa were developed by Kerala Agricultural
University.
Sree Padmanabha CMD resistant cassava variety
Nidhi Yield (25.1 t/ha), Tolerant to mosaic, Short duration (5-6 months) grayish white stem, Petiole
white with red shade, Skin light pink.
Kalpaka (KMC-1) Yield (28.4 t/ha), short duration (6 months), Non branching stem, pink tuber rind.
Vellayani Hraswa High yield (44.01 t/ha), Short duration (5-6 months), Pink tuber rind, Excellent
cooking quality.
Tamil Nadu Agricultural University also developed three varieties viz., CO-1, CO-2 and CO-3.
CO-1
A clonal selection with tubers having whitish brown skin, creamy rind and 35% starch; yield 30 t/ha in 8-
9 months.
CO-2 A branching variety with tubers having brown skin, creamy white rind and 34.6% starch; yield 35
t/ha in 8-9 months; suitable for consumption and industry.
CO-3 A branching variety having tubers with brown skin and 35.6% starch; yield 42.6 t/ha in 8 months.
CO 4Selection from Me501,Yield 50 t/h,Starch 40 %,Field tolerant to Red spider mite and scales.
CTCRI CO 5 Released during 2007. Yield potential 30 t/ha, Starch content 26%, Resistant to CMD,
suitable to irrigated conditions.
Climate
Cassava is a tropical crop tolerant to drought and cannot withstand frost. It is grown in altitudes up
to 2000 m, but performance is better in lower altitudes. Though crop can be grown even in semi-arid
conditions, growth and productivity are better in warm humid climate with well distributed rainfall.
Soil
Cassava grows on all types of soils, but saline, alkaline and ill-drained soils are not suitable. Crop is
mainly grown in lateritic soils to loamy in Kerala and black and red soils in Tamil Nadu.
Season of Planting and Preparation of Sets

As an irrigated crop, cassava can be planted during any part of year, but December-January planting is
better.
As a rainfed crop, planting is done during April-May before onset of South-West Monsoon and during
September-October coinciding with North East monsoon
Stem cuttings, usually called as sets, for planting are taken from disease free stakes of 8-10 months
maturity having a thickness of 2-3 cm diameter.
 Discard woody basal portion and tender top portion of stem
 Prepare sets of 15-20 cm length with a smooth circular cut at the base and slanting cut at top
for easy identification of base and top.
 The circular cut at base ensures uniform callus formation and root initiation.
 Sets prepared from stem stored for 15 days with leaves give better sprouting
 True cassava seeds technology has been developed at CTCRI, Kasargod with seed rate of
1.5kg/ha. Viability of cassava seeds is 8 months and dormancy period is 3-4 months.
 Top one-third portion is usually discarded in the traditional system of selection of sets
Improved Techniques in Cassava
Preparation of Mini Setts
For producing minisetts,
first step is selection of mature, disease free stems (preferably those obtained from meristem
culture).
In a study conducted at CTCRI to standardize the optimum size of minisett planting material in cassava,
three sizes of nodal cuttings: single node, two node and three nodes were tested under three spacings.
Two node minisetts has been standardized as the optimum size for rapid production
of planting materials in cassava.
Minisetts are prepared from healthy stems by making two node cuttings using a sharp hack saw.
Top one-third portion is usually discarded in the traditional system however in minisett technique, the
whole stem is used. When tip cuttings are taken, it is advisable to place them in water so as to
prevent dehydration. The stem just below the growing tip is very tender with prominent axillary buds.
Hence from this portion, cuttings with four nodes are taken instead of two as the latter may dry up very
fast. During the course of minisett preparation, sufficient care should be taken such that no damage is
caused to the axillary buds.
About 50 to 70 minisetts could be prepared from a stem.
Shade Net House
The shade net house should be ideally located on a flat field and the soil should be well drained and
devoid of stones and pebbles, preferably near a water source. Since the minisetts ought to be free of any
diseases and pests, it is essential to raise them in a protected environment.
Preparation of Nursery
The nursery beds should be located within the shade net house. Prior to making beds, it is desirable to dig
the soil well, break clods and form fine tilth. To set the beds, mark out convenient length and the width
should be invariably 1 m.
Planting Mini Setts in Nursery Furrows are made across the width of the bed with a khurpi or small
hand hoe, about 5 cm deep. Two node cuttings are then planted in the furrow, end to end
horizontally, with the buds facing either side.
A spacing of five cm is could be provided between two rows
Minisetts planted in the furrow is then covered with a fine layer of soil: sand mixture.
Tip portion minisetts and four node minisetts from the top tender portion of the stem must be
planted vertically in the nursery rather than in horizontal position. This is because the chances of
the tender minisetts getting decayed due to excess moisture are very high, if horizontally embedded
in the soil. When vertically planted, a spacing of 5 x 5 cm could be adopted for facilitating growth of
the minisetts.
Nursery Mangement of Minis Setts Light irrigation is given soon after planting and then another could
be given after four or five hours. From the next day onwards, intermittent irrigations could be given for
about two weeks. The minisetts would start sprouting in a week’s time. Chemical fertilizers should not
be applied. It is advisable to spray Dimethoate (0.05 %) at fortnightly intervals as a prophylactic measure
against pests like white fly which is responsible for spreading cassava mosaic disease (CMD).
Transplanting Mini Setts to Main Field
The minisetts will be ready for transplanting in about three to four weeks time. Two to three fully
opened leaves’ stage is the optimum time for transplanting. Uprooting minisetts from nursery beds could
be done with the help of a khurpi, taking maximum possible care not to break roots. Prior to
uprooting, the main field should be properly prepared. It should be thoroughly ploughed and brought to a
fine tilth. About 12.5 t/ha of dry FYM is spread in the field. Ridges of 30 cm height are taken with a
spacing of 45cm between the ridges.Uprooted minisetts are then carefully planted on ridges at a spacing
of 45 cm. If the variety is branching type, then ridges may be made 60 cm apart. On an average, about
50,000 minisetts could be transplanted in 1 ha of land. It is very essential that the transplanting of
minisetts must coincide with rainfall, if the crop is to be raised as a rainfed crop. If it is a dry period,
unless irrigation is given the minisetts may not establish and would eventually dry off. Availability of
moisture in the field must be ensured till the transplanted minisetts are established.
Management of Transplanted Mini Setts
 The transplanted minisetts usually get established in a week’s time. After establishment,
50:50:50 kg/ha of N, P and K may be applied as basal and one month later, the second dose
of fertilizers, 50:50 kg/ha N and K may be applied as top dressing.
 Weeding and intercultural operations could be done at the application of second dose of
fertilizers. Thereafter, if need be, one more weeding may be given. Due to the closer spacing and
intensive growth, weeds would be few and also intercultural operations would be rendered
difficult.
 The plants would mature in about 7 – 9 months time depending upon the varietal character.
Harvest of Planting Material
On harvest from a hectare, about 60,000 cassava stems and 75 to 80 tons tuber could be obtained by
adopting minisett technique, whereas, in the traditional production system, about 24,000 stems and 30
t/ha of tubers could be obtained. If minisett technique is adopted for further multiplication, then minisetts
for planting 50 - 60 ha could be obtained in the next generation. Multiplication ratio in
cassava planting material by this process is enhanced to 1:70 from the traditional 1:10. Cassava cultivars
are of three types based on cyanide content in the edible portion of the root i.e Sweet or Non-toxic <50
mg/kg fresh weight, Intermediate 50-100 mg/kg fresh weight, bitter or toxic >100 mg/kg fresh
weight.
Storage of Planting Materials
Stems produced through minisett technique should be stored in a well ventilated store house
facilitating diffused light inside the shed. Harvested stems should be kept erect and never horizontal
on the floor. The stems could be kept vertical by providing a support structure inside the storage shed.
Stems stored thus remains viable for about three months. Stems can also be stored vertically under the
shade of a tree or under a shade roof. Studies have also revealed that the stems can be safely stored for
over three months in “zero energy cool chambers”.
Storage of Stakes
 Fresh stakes from mature plants are ideal for obtaining best results. However, when they are
not available due to prolonged drought or even excess moisture; many producers have to preserve
the stem before it is being used for cultivation.
  Long storage causes loss of moisture and stems are also exposed to many pests.
 For any storage method, stakes must be mature when stored and must not be stored in wet
conditions or allowed to get wet.
 Uncut stems can be usually stored in shady, well ventilated areas. In southern Mexico, bundles
of stakes are kept upside down under mango trees as long as 8 weeks. In the south of Brazil,
stakes are stored up to 8 weeks horizontally in the open.
 Storing the stakes for a period of 15 days has been observed to give maximum sprouting (96
%) as compared to planting fresh stakes (90 %). Storage beyond 60 days resulted in the loss
of the viability of the planting material and sprouting was less than 75 %.
 Stems stored in vertical or in inverted position gave better sprouting when compared to
horizontal storage. Under hot climatic conditions, the stakes are stored in zero energy cool
chambers as practised in some parts of Andhra Pradesh.
Land Preparation
 Land is ploughed or dug properly for loosening soil to a depth of 20-25 cm. Depending on
texture of soil and slope of land, mounds or ridges or raised beds are prepared.
 Mounds of 25-30 cm height are prepared in poorly drained soils.
 Ridges of 25-30 cm length are made in sloppy land for a rainfed crop and in leveled for irrigated
crop. Ridges are taken across the slope. Flat raised beds are taken in level lands having good
drainage. Since cassava mosaic disease is a serious problem, care should be taken to select
disease-free stakes for preparation of sets.
 Raising sets initially in raised beds by planting very close (400 sets / m2), rouging out diseased
plants and uprooting disease-free sets for planting at 3 weeks age ensure disease-free seedlings.
Planting
Sets 25 – 30 cm length are planted vertically in beds, mounds or ridges to a depth of 5 cm. Care should
be taken to avoid planting of sets inverted. Spacing depends on branching pattern of varieties. Normally
erect and non-branching varieties are planted at 75 x 75 cm and branching or semi-
branching varieties at 90 x 90 cm. In case, sets are dried after planting, 5% of stakes may be planted
as reserve in field, separately at a closer spacing of 4 x 4 cm for gap filling after 20-25 days.
Manures and Fertilizers
Cassava is a heavy feeder and crop is to be adequately manured for getting high yield. Apply 125 tonnes
of farmyard manure / ha as basal dose. For high yielding varieties, a fertilizer dose of 50 kg N, 50 kg
P2O5 and 50 kg K2O / ha is recommended at the time of land preparation. If planting of sets is done
during hot condition, basal dose of fertilizers and manures may be postponed to one month
after planting. This will avoid attack of termites and drying up of sets. Apply second dose of
fertilizer i.e., 50 kg N and 50 kg K2O, 45-50 days after planting along with weeding and earthing up.
In short duration varieties, fertilizer dose can be reduced to 75:50:75 kg NPK/ha.
Deficiency Symptoms
Among the different nutrient deficiency symptoms lime induced iron chlorosis is widespread in the
alkaline soils of the cassava growing areas of Tamil Nadu. It is characterised by chlorosis of the
younger leaves. This can be controlled by foliar spray of iron chelates or 1-2% ferrous sulphate
solution.
Irrigation
In Kerala the crop is mostly grown under rain fed situation whereas in Tamil Nadu it is grown under
irrigated condition. For proper establishment of cassava stakes/settlings (rooted cuttings) in the main
field, sufficient moisture should be ensured in the field for the first twenty days after planting. A stress
free condition always promotes higher tuber yield, as cassava has got a continuous growing period.
Cassava requires sufficient soil moisture for sprouting of stakes and subsequent establishment. The bulk
of the root volume is confined to the upper 20cm soil and the lateral spread of the root extended up
to 45 cm under field conditions. The stage of the crop most sensitive to moisture is tuberization. Up
to tuberizaion the crop needs irrigation at 10 days interval, and there after once in 20 days.

Interculture
Pinching off excess sprouts emerging from sets is necessary in cassava cultivation.
This may be done 30-45 days after planting. As sprouts from top buds are more vigorous than those
emerging from lower nodes, retain only two sprouts from top portion, that too on opposite sides of
set.
Inter-culture operations are aimed at removing weeds in early stages of crop and to improve physical
condition of sets for proper tuber development.
First inter-culture operation may be done sufficiently deep at 45-60 days after planting and a
shallow inter-culture by way of weeding or earthing up may be given one month after the first.
Intercropping
As cassava is widely spaced, intercropping with short duration crops like ground nut, French bean
and bush cowpea will utilize light and water more effectively and give an additional income of
Rs.36000-358000/ha within 3-32½ months. It adds organic manure to soil and controls weeds.
Intercrops are to be adequately manured for avoiding competition with main crop.
Harvesting and Yield The crop is ready for harvesting in 10-11 months after planting. Short
duration varieties can be harvested in 6-7 months. Delayed harvest results in deterioration of quality
of tubers. Harvesting is usually done by uprooting plants gently by holding stem and
after harvesting, stack stems vertically in well aerated place for use in subsequent planting.
Yield is 25-30 t/ha for short duration varieties and 30-40 t/ha for other varieties.
Value added products from cassava

Snack food Animal feed Gum

Bio-degradable
plastic