Amorphophallus requires fairly long growing season and a rainfall of about 150 cm during the crop period. A well-drained soil of medium texture is suited for this crop.

Season
Corm pieces are normally planted during February-March, before the onset of monsoon.

Variety
Sree Padma: The crop matures in 8-9 months. Cooked tubers are free from acridity.

Preparation of land
Dig pits of 60 x 60 x 45 cm size 90 cm apart. Collect the topsoil to a depth of 15-20 cm separately and fill it after the pits are formed. Apply cowdung or compost at 2-2.5 kg/pit and mix with topsoil.

Seeds and sowing
Tuber cut-pieces weighing about 1 kg are ideal for planting. Dip the pieces in cowdung slurry and allow to dry under shade before planting. After planting, cover the pit with dried leaves or other mulching materials. About 12,000 cut pieces weighing about 12 t are required for planting one hectare. Most of the seed material will germinate within one month after planting. Mealy bugs usually attack the corm in field and store. Avoid planting corms already infested. As a prophylaxis, dip the planting material in monocrotophos 0.02% for 10 minutes.

Minisett planting
Planting of minisett transplant and cormels gives better yield than traditional method. Cormels weighing 75-100 g each can be planted directly in nursery beds at a spacing of 90 x 30 cm.

Aftercultivation
Apply full dose of P₂O₅ and half the dose N and K₂O (N:P₂O₅:K₂O @ 50:50:75 kg/ha) after forty five days of planting along with intercultivation and weeding. Apply second dose of fertilizers (N and K₂O @ 50:75 kg/ha) one month after the first application along with intercultivation and earthing up.

Harvesting
The crop will be ready for harvest 8-9 months after planting.

Colocasia is a crop of tropical and sub-tropical regions and requires a warm humid climate. Under rainfed conditions, it requires a fairly well distributed rainfall around 120-150 cm during the growth period. Well-drained soil is suitable for uniform development of tubers.

Season
Rainfed crop: May-June to Oct-Nov
Irrigated crop: Throughout the year

Varieties
Sree Rashmi and Sree Pallavi are two improved varieties

Seeds and sowing
Use side tubers each of 25-35 g for planting. About 37,000 side tubers weighing about 1200 kg are required to plant one hectare.
Plough or dig the land to a depth of 20-25 cm and bring to a fine tilth. Make ridges 60 cm apart. Plant the side corms at a spacing of 45 cm on the ridges.

Manuring
Apply cattle manure or compost @ 12 t/ha as basal dressing, while preparing the ridges for planting. A fertilizer dose of 80:25:100 kg of N:P₂O₅:K₂O per ha is recommended. Full dose of P₂O₅ and half dose of N and K₂O should be applied within a week after sprouting and the remaining half dose of N and K₂O one month after the first application along with weeding and earthing up.

Aftercultivation
Inter-cultivation is essential in colocasia. Weeding, light hoeing and earthing up are required at 30-45 days and 60-75 days after planting. The leafy parts may be smothered about one month before harvest so as to enhance tuber development.

Irrigation
Ensure sufficient moisture in the soil at the time of planting. For uniform sprouting, irrigate just after planting and one week later. Subsequent irrigation may be given at 12-15 days intervals, depending on the moisture retention capacity of the soil. The irrigation should be stopped 3-4 weeks before harvest. About 9-12 irrigations are required for the crop till harvest. In the case of rainfed crop, if there is prolonged drought, supplementary irrigation is required.

Mulching
Soon after planting, cover the ridges with suitable mulching materials for retention of moisture and to control weeds.

Plant protection
Colocasia blight can be controlled by spraying ziram, zineb, mancozeb or copper oxychloride formulations at 2 g/l of water (1 kg/ha). For controlling serious infestation of aphids, apply dimethoate or monocrotophos at 0.05%. Leaf feeders can be controlled by applying malathion or carbaryl or endosulfan.

Harvesting
Colocasia becomes ready for harvest five to six months after planting. The mother corms and side tubers are separated after harvest.

Storage of seed material
The side tubers to be used as planting materials are usually separated from the mother corm and stored. Keep seed tuber in sand spread over the floor to avoid rotting.

Dioscorea alata is predominantly a tropical plant. The crop cannot withstand frost and excessively high temperatures. Temperature around 30ºC and rainfall of 120-200 cm distributed throughout the growth period are ideal. Day length greater than 12 hours during initial stages and shorter day length during the later part of the growing season favour satisfactory tuber formation. Yam requires loose, deep, well-drained, fertile soil. The crop does not come up well in waterlogged conditions.

Season
Seed tubers are normally planted during the later part of the dry season (March-April) and start sprouting with the onset of pre-monsoon showers. If the planting is delayed, yams start sprouting in storage, which is not desirable for planting.

Varieties
1. Sree Keerthi: Suitable for intercropping in mature coconut garden and with banana.
2. Sree Roopa: Possesses excellent cooking quality.
3. Indu: This is recommended as a pure crop and also as an intercrop of coconut in the reclaimed alluvial soils of Kuttanad.
4. Sree Shilpa: This is the first hybrid having good culinary quality. The crop matures early, within 8 months. The tubers have 33-35% dry matter, 17-19% starch, 1.4-2% protein and 0.8-1.2% sugar.

Seeds and sowing
D. alata produces mostly a single big tuber in which only one head end of the tuber is available as good seed material. For getting the head end in each propagation unit, the whole tuber is divided longitudinally. Each piece of cut tuber should weigh at least 250-300 g. Dip the pieces in cowdung slurry and allow to dry under the shade before planting. About 2500-3000 kg of seed material is required to cover one hectare of land.

Preparation of land
Plough or dig the land up to a depth of 15-20 cm. Dig pits of size 45 x 45 x 45 cm at a distance of 1 x 1m. Fill up three fourth of the pits with 1-1.25 kg cattle manure or compost and mix with topsoil. Plant the cut tuber pieces and completely cover the pit with leafy materials to conserve soil moisture and maintain optimum temperature.

Manuring
Apply cattle manure or compost at 10-15 t/ha as basal dressing. A fertilizer dose of 80:60:80 kg of N:P₂O₅:K₂O per ha has to be applied in two splits; half dose of N, full P₂O₅ and half of K₂O within a week after sprouting; remaining half N and half K₂O one month after the first application along with weeding and earthing up.

Plant protection
Yam scale is found to infest the corms both under field and storage situations. As a prophylactic measure, dip the planting material in monocrotophos 0.05% suspension for 10 minutes.

Trailing
Trailing is essential to expose the leaves to sunlight. Trailing has to be done within 15 days after sprouting by coir rope attached to artificial supports in the open areas or to trees where they are raised as an intercrop. When grown in open areas, trail to a height of 3-4 m. Trail the vines properly as and when side shoots are produced.

Harvesting
The crop becomes ready for harvest within 8-9 months after planting when the vines are completely dried up. Dig out the tubers without causing injury.

It is grown in a similar agro-climatic situation as that of D. alata. Planting season and manuring are also similar.

Varieties
(1) Sree Latha: This is a selection from Thiruvananthapuram district with a duration of 8 months. Tubers are oblong to fusiform with creamy white flesh. Vines twine to the left.
(2) Sree Kala: This is an early variety with 7.5 months duration. The tubers have 35-37% dry matter, 23-25% starch and 1-1.3% sugar.

Seeds and sowing
Select medium size tubers weighing about 100-150 g each. Plant the whole tuber, one in each mound and cover completely with soil. Mulch the mounds to maintain optimum temperature and moisture. To plant one hectare 1800-2700 kg of seed materials are required.

Preparation of land
Plough or dig the land to a depth of 15-20 cm. Prepare mounds at a spacing of 75 x 75 cm incorporating cattle manure @ 1 kg per mound

Manuring
The fertilizer dose and schedule of application are the same as that of D. alata.

Trailing
Trail the vines by fixing small poles attached with coir rope and direct 4-6 plants per pole.

Harvesting
The crop is ready for harvest by about 7-8 months time. Tuber yields of 20-25 t/ha can be obtained by following the improved methods of cultivation.

White yam or African yam is a new crop species of edible yam introduced from Nigeria.

Varieties

Sree Subhra: The tuber contains 27-28% dry matter, 21-22% starch and 1.8-2% protein. It is drought tolerant with 9-10 months duration.

Sree Priya: The tuber contains 25-27% dry matter, 19-21% starch and 2-2.5% protein. It is drought tolerant and duration is 9-10 months. It is suitable for intercropping in mature coconut garden and with banana.

Sree Dhanya: It is the first dwarf variety. The tubers have 28-30% dry matter, 22-24% protein and 0.3-0.5% sugar.

Rapid seed yam production (minisett technique)
In this method clean and healthy yam tubers weighing about 1 kg are cut into cylindrical (disc-like) pieces, each about 5 cm thick. From each such piece, 2-4 small pieces (30 g) could be obtained by cutting the disc longitudinally or along the two perpendicular diameters. Such a piece is called a "minisett". The minisetts are then spread out under light shade for an hour with cut surface facing up before planting them in the nursery seedbeds. The minisett takes 2-3 weeks for sprouting. At this stage, they are transplanted to the main field at a spacing of 50 cm on ridges taken 1 m apart.

Sweet potato requires a warm humid tropical climate with a mean temperature of about 22 ºC. Though sensitive to frost, it can also be grown in the hills up to an altitude of 1500-1800 m as a summer crop. Under rainfed conditions the crop requires a fairly well distributed annual rainfall of 75-150 cm. Being a photosensitive crop, sunny days and cool nights are favourable for better tuber development.

The crop can be grown on a variety of soils having good drainage, but grows best in fertile sandy loam soils. Heavy clayey and very light sandy soils are not suitable for proper tuber development.

Season
Rainfed crop: June-July, September-October
Irrigated crops: October-November (for uplands) and January-February (for low lands)

Varieties
Improved varieties: H-41, H-42, Sree Nandini, Sree Vardhini, Sree Retna, Sree Bhadra, Kanjanghad, Sree Arun, Sree Varun

Local varieties: Badrakali Chuvala, Kottayam Chuvala, Chinavella, Chakaravalli, Anakomban,

Preparation of land
Work the soil to a fine tilth by ploughing or digging to a depth of 15-25 cm. Make ridges 25-35 cm high, 60 cm apart for planting vines.

Seeds and sowing
Sweet potato is propagated by means of vine cuttings. To obtain vine cutting, raise nurseries from selected tubers using the following method. Eighty kg of medium sized weevil free tubers (each of 125-150 g) are required for planting in the primary nursery area (100 m² to plant one hectare).

Plant the tubers at a spacing of 30-45 cm on ridges formed at 60 cm apart and replant in secondary nursery of about 500 m² area at a spacing of 25 cm. Apply urea 15 days after planting at 1.5 kg / 100 m² in the primary nursery. To ensure better plant growth in the secondary nursery, 5 kg of urea has to be applied in two split doses on 15th and 30th day after planting. Vines obtained from the freshly harvested crop are also planted in similar nursery area to obtain sufficient planting material. Cuttings obtained from the apical and near apical portions of the vines are preferable for planting in the main field. Storing of cut sweet potato vines with intact leaves, in bundles covered with banana leaves (dipped in water) and kept under shade for two days prior to planting is recommended. Irrigate the nursery every alternate day during the first 10 days and once in 10 days, thereafter. Vines will be ready for planting on the 45th day.

In the main field, plant vine cutting of 20-25 cm length on ridges 60 cm apart and at a spacing of 15-20 cm between the vines. The cuttings can also be planted on mounds taken at a spacing of 75 x 75 cm. On the top of each mound, 3-6 cuttings can be planted. Plant the vine cuttings with the middle portion buried deep in the soil and the two cut ends exposed to the surface. Ensure sufficient moisture in the soil for early establishment of the cutting. Provide adequate drainage and prevent water logging.

Manuring
Apply cattle manure or compost at 10 t/ha at the time of preparation of ridges. The recommended N:P₂O₅:K₂O dosage for sweet potato is 75:50:75 kg/ha. For the reclaimed alluvial soils of Kuttanad, the recommendation is 50:25:50 kg/ha. Apply N in two equal split doses, the first at the time of planting and the second 4-5 weeks after planting. Apply full dose of P₂O₅ and K₂O at the planting time.

Irrigation
When grown as irrigated crop, provide irrigation once in 2 days for a period of 10 days after planting and thereafter once in 7-10 days. Stop irrigation 3 weeks before harvest. But one more irrigation may be given 2 days before harvest. IW / CPE for higher tuber yield in non-rainy periods is 1:2 (approximate interval of 11 days). The application of N and K₂O at the rate of 50 kg/ha is recommended for the crop grown under irrigation.

Aftercultivation
Conduct two weeding and earthing up operations about 2 weeks and 5 weeks after planting. The top dressing of fertilizers may be done along with the second aftercultivation. Prevent development of small slender tubers at the nodes by turning the vines occasionally during active growth phase.

Rotation and mixed cropping
Under irrigated conditions, sweet potato can be rotated with rice and planted during December-January after harvest of the second crop of rice. As a mixed crop, it can be grown along with colocasia, amorphophallus etc. Under rainfed conditions, green manure crops such as kozhinjil and sannhemp can be grown after harvest of the sweet potato and later incorporated into the soil at the time of land preparation for the succeeding crop.

Plant protection
a. Dip the vines in 0.05% fenthion or fenitrothion or monocrotophos suspension for 5 to 10 minutes prior to planting. This is to control the sweet potato weevil.

b. Spray the crop, one month after planting and subsequently three more times at tri-weekly intervals with any of the insecticides mentioned above to control field infestation by the sweet potato weevil.

Integrated control of sweet potato weevil
(a) Remove and destroy the crop residues of the previous crop.
(b) Use healthy and weevil-free planting materials.
(c) Apply Eupatorium odoratum leaves as mulch @ 3 t/ha at 30 DAP.
(d) Drench with 0.05% endosulfan, fenthion or fenitrothion at 65 DAP and earthing up at 80 DAP.
(e) Trap adult weevils using sweet potato pieces (of about 6 cm diameter) of 100 g size, kept at 5 m apart during 50 to 80 DAP at 10 days interval. Tubers may be cut and kept inside wire cages to avoid rat damage.
(f) Use pheromone traps (3Z Dodecenyl 2E butenoate).

Harvesting
The duration of the crop depends on the variety; but in general, the crop can be harvested in about 3.5-4 months after planting. Harvest the crop when leaves begin to turn yellow and the tubers mature. The maturity of tuber can be ascertained by cutting fresh tubers. The cut surface will dry clear if the tuber is mature and becomes dark green if immature. Harvest the crop by digging out the tubers without causing injury.

Tapioca grows and produces best under warm humid tropical conditions where rainfall is well distributed and fairly abundant. It can also be grown under irrigation where rainfall is low. Its outstanding characteristic in terms of moisture requirements is the ability to withstand fairly prolonged periods of drought. However, at the time of planting there must be sufficient moisture for the plant to establish itself. The crop cannot withstand cold and is killed by frost.

The crop grows well in well-drained laterite, gravelly and sandy loam soils. Heavy and rocky soils are less suitable because they restrict root development. The crop cannot survive waterlogged conditions and in such areas, it must be planted on mounds or ridges that permit drainage. The crop can also be gown on hill slopes and on wastelands of low fertility.

Varieties
H-97: This is a semi-branching variety, tolerant to mosaic disease with duration of 10 months. But the harvest can be prolonged even up to 16 months. The starch content is 30%.
H-165: This is a non-branching type with poor cooking quality having eight months duration. It is tolerant to mosaic but susceptible to wilt disease. The starch content is 24.5%.
H-226: This is a semi-branching type with medium cooking quality having 10 months duration. It is moderately susceptible to mosaic. The starch content is 29%.
M-4: This is an erect type with excellent cooking quality having 10 months duration. The starch content is 29%.
Sree Visakham: This is a semi-branching type with yellow coloured flesh having 10 months duration. It shows high tolerance to mosaic and low susceptibility to pests like red mites, scale insects, thrips etc. The starch content is 26% and vitamin A 466 IU.
Sree Sahya: This is a predominantly semi-branching type with 10 months duration. It shows high tolerance to mosaic and low susceptibility to pests like red mites, scale insects, thrips etc. The starch content is 30%.
Sree Prakash: This has seven months duration and the yield potential is 30-40 t/ha.
Kalpaka: This is a non-branching type with six months duration and is suited as an intercrop of coconut in reclaimed alluvial soils of Kuttanad.
Sree Jaya: This is an early variety with seven months duration and excellent cooking quality. Tuber contains 24-27% starch and is low in cyanogens.
Sree Vijaya: This is an early variety with 6-7 months duration and excellent cooking quality. Tuber contains 27-30% starch and is low in cyanogens.
Sree Harsha: This has 10 months duration and good cooking quality. Tuber contains 34-36% starch. They are non-bitter and ideal for culinary purposes and the high starch content makes it suitable for preparing dried chips.
Nidhi: This is a high yielding early variety with 5.5-6 months duration. It is tolerant to mosaic and moisture stress. Tuber contains 26.8% starch and 20 ppm HCN.
Vellayani Hraswa: High yielding early variety with 5-6 months duration. It cannot tolerate drought. The cooking quality is very good. Tubers contain 27.8% starch and 53 ppm cyanogen.
Sree Rekha: It is a top cross hybrid with 10 months duration. Tubers contain 28.2% starch with excellent cooking quality.
Sree Prabha: It is a top cross hybrid with 10 months duration. Tubers contain 26.8% starch with good cooking quality.

Preparation of land
Before planting, plough the field 2-3 times or dig to a depth 25-30 cm depending upon soil type to establish a deep porous field in which the setts are to be planted.

Planting material
Tapioca is propagated from cuttings. Select mature healthy stems free from diseases or pests. Discard about 10 cm from the lower mature and about 30 cm from the upper immature end. Stems should be cut into setts of 15-20 cm length using a sharp knife. About 2000 stems are required for planting one hectare. Harvested stems are to be stored vertically in shaded and well-aerated places. Spraying dimethoate (0.05%) on the stem will control scale insects.

Season and planting
The main planting seasons are April-May with the onset of southwest monsoon and September-October with the onset of north-east monsoon. Planting can also be done during February-April, provided sufficient moisture is made available through irrigation. For maximum tuber production, April-May planting is preferred because the crop can effectively utilize both the monsoons. The second best season is September-October.

Pit, flat, ridge or mound method of planting can be adopted depending upon soil type, topography of land and elevation so that waterlogging is avoided. Pit followed by mound is found to be the best method of planting. Plant the cuttings vertically after smoothening the lower cut end, at a depth not exceeding 4-6 cm. Adopt square method of planting at a spacing of 90 x 90 cm @ one cutting per pit. It is preferable to adopt 75 x 75 cm spacing for non-branching varieties like M-4.

Gap filling should be done within 15 days after planting preferably with longer setts of 40 cm length. Sree Visakha is a choice variety recommended as an intercrop in coconut gardens. Optimum plant population is 8000 plants per ha with 90 x 90 cm spacing.

Manuring
Cattle manure or compost may be applied at 12.5 t/ha during the preparation of land or while filling up the pits so as to provide about 1 kg of organic manure per plant. Apply fertilizers N:P₂O₅:K₂O at the rates (kg/ha) shown below:
H-97 and H-226:                                                75:75:75
H-165, Sree Visakham, Sree Sahya:              100:100:100
M-4 and local:                                                     50:50:50

N and K₂O may be applied in three split doses, i.e., 1/3 basal, 1/3 two months after planting and 1/3 three months after planting. Dose of P₂O₅ can be reduced to half where the crop is grown for more than 3 years under full dose of recommended fertilizers, since under such situation there would be build up of soil P.

For August-September planted tapioca, apply half N, full P₂O₅ and half K₂O basally with first digging and weeding. The remaining quantity of N and K₂O may be applied 45 days after planting at the time of intercultivation.

Note: N:P₂O₅:K₂O at 50:50:100 kg/ha is recommended for Sree Visakam when grown as an intercrop in coconut garden. Higher levels of N tend to increase HCN content of the tubers.

Aftercultivation
Keep the field free of weeds and maintain soil loose by 2-3 shallow diggings or hoeing up to 90 days after planting followed by light earthing up. Retain two shoots on each plant in opposite directions and remove excess shoots about 30 days after planting.

Irrigation
Under conditions of well-distributed rainfall, tapioca grows well as a rainfed crop and irrigation is not necessary. However, the crop has to be irrigated to provide sufficient moisture under conditions of prolonged dry periods after planting. When the crop is grown under irrigation, yield increase of 150-200% over the rainfed crop has been observed.

Furrow irrigation with 25 mm water at 100 mm CPE and alternate furrow irrigation with 50 mm water at 75 mm CPE require only less water and labour for optimum yield. Approximate irrigation interval schedules will be 27 and 20 days respectively in summer months.

Intercropping in tapioca

Tapioca is planted at a spacing of 90 x 90 cm and it takes about 3-3.5 months time to have enough canopy to cover the land. So it is possible to have an intercrop of groundnut during the early stages of tapioca crop. Bunch varieties like TMV-2, TMV-7, TG-3, TG-14 and Spanish improved are preferred for intercropping in tapioca. The best season for sowing groundnut is May-June. Immediately after planting of tapioca setts, groundnut seeds are sown at a spacing of 30 cm between rows and 20 cm within rows, so that two rows of groundnut can be accommodated in between two rows of cassava. A seed rate of 40-50 kg/ha is recommended for dibbling one seed per hill. Only well-matured and bold seeds are to be selected for sowing. In acid laterite soils of Kerala, apply 1000 kg/ha of lime as basal dressing. A basal dose of 50:100:50 kg N:P₂O₅:K₂O per ha should be given uniformly to both the crops. One month after sowing of the seed, 20 kg each P₂O₅ and K₂O and 10 kg N / ha may be given to the intercrop along with earthing up. Once pod formation has started (i.e., 40-45 days after sowing) the soil should not be disturbed, as it will affect the pod development adversely. The groundnut crop matures in 105 to 110 days. After the harvest of pods, the haulms are incorporated in the soil along with a top dressing of 50 kg each of N and K₂O per ha for the main crop. By adopting this practice, 20-25% additional income can be obtained.

In sandy areas intercropping tapioca with cowpea / groundnut / black gram / green gram may be recommended giving a spacing of 20 cm on both sides of the ridges. The non-trailing grain cowpea variety V-26 is recommended as a companion crop along with tapioca. For a pure crop of tapioca or for a cropping system involving tapioca as the main crop and the pulse crop suggested above, the field may be irrigated once in 36 days to a depth of 5 cm. This recommendation is for shallow water table situations. For deep water table situations, the crop may be irrigated once in 24 days to a depth of 5 cm.

Plant protection

Cassava mosaic disease (CMD)
The disease is transmitted by a white fly Bemisia sp. As a rule, only stem cuttings from disease free plants should be used for planting to minimize the spread of the virus disease. For this purpose, tagging of disease free healthy plants for selection as planting materials must be practiced from September to December. All plants showing even very mild symptoms must be rejected. Mosaic tolerant varieties such as H-97 may be used to minimize economic loss of tubers.

Production of disease free planting material of tapioca through nursery techniques
Setts of 3 to 4 node cuttings from apparently disease free plants are collected and planted in the nursery at a very close spacing of 4 x 4 cm so that about 500 setts can be accommodated in one square metre land. Daily watering of the setts has to be done for the first 10 days and on alternate days afterwards. Screening of CMD symptoms may be started 10 days after planting. Setts showing even mild symptoms are to be removed and burnt. This must be continued up to 20-25 days, by that time healthy seedlings can be transplanted to the main field. Supplementary irrigation may be given in the transplanted field till they get established. Screening for disease symptoms and rouging of infested plants may be continued in field at weekly intervals up to harvest. The selected healthy stems are again cut into minisetts and subjected to nursery and field screening. By adopting this technique it is possible to produce healthy plants.

Leaf spot
Spray 0.2% ziram or zineb or 1% Bordeaux mixture for control of leaf spot.

Bacterial blight
Bacterial blight is a disease noted in severe proportion in certain parts of Kerala. Chemical control is not effective. Use of resistant or tolerant varieties is the only method of control. Among improved varieties, H-97, H-226, H-1687 and H-2304 are tolerant to the disease while H-165 is highly susceptible. Among the local varieties, M-4, Paluvella, Pichivella, Parappilppan, Anamaravan etc. are tolerant to the disease.

Red spider mites and scale insects
Red spider mites in the field and scale insects under storage are important pests of tapioca. Under field conditions light infestation of mites can be controlled effectively by spraying the crop with water at 10 days interval from the onset of mite infestation. In the case of very severe infestation, the crop can be protected by spraying 0.05% dimethoate or methyl demeton at monthly intervals from the time of appearance of mites.
The stem may be sprayed with 0.05% dimethoate before storing as a prophylactic measure against the scales.

Termites
To control termites infesting planted setts, sprinkle a little of carbaryl 10% or chlorpyrifos in the mounds prior to planting.

Management of storage pests of cassava
Treating chips with granular salt (3%), sun drying thoroughly and storing in gunny bags in godown are very effective against Araecerus fasciculatus and Sitophilus oryzae.

Harvesting
Tapioca becomes ready for harvest 9-10 months after planting. Hybrid varieties like H-226, H-97 and H-165, when grown under recommended management practices have recorded yields up to 40-50 t/ha of raw tuber. The local varieties and M-4 yield on an average 12-14 t/ha of tuber.

Citation:
Kerala Agricultural University. 2002. Package of Practices Recommendations: Crops. 12th Edition
(eds. A. I. Jose et al.). Kerala Agricultural University, Trichur. 278p.