Bird's Eye chilli Farming Kenya 2023 | Veg Farms Kenya

Do you want to start cultivating African Birds Eye Chilli in Kenya? Growing numbers of successful African Birds Eye Chilli farmers in Kenya are turning to the African Birds Eye Chilli farming as a source of income. 

African Birds Eye Chilli cultivation can be your best option if you want to start a profitable African Birds Eye Chilli farming business in Kenya. 

In this blog post, we'll provide advice on how to establish an onion farming business in Kenya, "Best time to grow African Birds Eye Chilli in Kenya", "how profitable is African Birds Eye Chilli farming in Kenya", "where to sell African Birds Eye Chilli in Kenya", "cost of African Birds Eye Chilli farming in Kenya", "best fertilizer for African Birds Eye Chilli farming in Kenya", "successful African Birds Eye Chilli farmers in Kenya", and Amiran Kenya seeds

Table of Contents

• African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya -– A Comprehensive Guide 
• Starting African Birds Eye Chilli Farming in Kenya? 
• African Bird's Eye chilli Cultivation in Kenya
• Ecological Requirements
• African Birds' Eye Chili Plant Propagation and Care
• Best Fertilizers for African Birds’s Eye Chillies
• Diseases and Pest Management
• Harvesting African Birds Eyes Chilli in Kenya
• Yields per Acre of the African Birds Eyes Chilli
• F.A.Q

One of the hottest and most pungent chillies in the world is the African Birds eye Chili (ABE), also known as Birds Eye Chili (BEC) or Bird's Eye Chilli. 

The African Birds Eye Chilli, also known by its scientific name of capsicum frutescens, was brought to the world by Portuguese and Spanish colonial traders and missionaries from Mexico. For local use as well as export to Europe and America, it can be found growing in the wild as well as in small-scale and commercial farms.

African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya -– A Comprehensive Guide 

The Birds Eye Chilli is mostly grown in Africa and Asia, with Malawi leading the continent's production. Kenya, Ghana, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Mozambique, and South Africa are additional African nations that cultivate the African Bird's Eye Chilli.

It's interesting to note that the pungency or "hotness" of the African Bird's Eye Chilli varies depending on the climate in which it is grown, with certain nations generating more pungent African Bird's Eye Chillies than others.

Starting African Birds Eye Chilli Farming in Kenya? 

In the article, we analyze the African Birds Eye Chilli's history, health advantages, production planning, ecological requirements, intercropping and crop rotation, establishment of a mother garden for seeds, propagation nursery and land preparation, transplanting, fertilizers, mulching, irrigation, diseases and pests, intercultural practices, yield per acre, harvesting, drying, grading, market requirements, labeling, and storage.

Advantages of the African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya

Due of its hardiness and affordable input costs, growers like the African Bird's Eye Chilli. It can be grown in remote locations.

The African Bird's Eye Chilli is a perennial plant that bears fruit for two to three years. Therefore, after each harvest, you do not need to uproot the plants. Before you grow a fresh crop, you can harvest for a number of years.

African Bird's Eye chilli Cultivation in Kenya

When starting an African Birds Eye Chilli Farm, careful planning is required.

The market is the first thing you need to be certain of.

• Who will purchase your chili after it is harvested?

• Do you intend to add value?

• Do you and the buyer have a contract?

• Do you intend to grow African bird's eye chilies locally or for export?

Answering these questions will help you plan how much chilli to plant. 

The second is that you must budget for the labor that will be necessary, particularly during harvest.

 African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya requires a lot of labor and can upset workers due to its heat.

Only plant the amount of African Birds Eye Chilli that you can collect.

Make sure to sow high-quality seeds that have been certified, whether you purchase them or obtain them from your own seed mother garden. You can obtain high-quality produce by doing this.

Make sure that no crop from the same family as the African Bird's Eye Chilies has been grown for the past 12 months in order to prevent disease. Other peppers, tobacco, brinjals, tomatoes, potatoes, etc. are some of these.

Intercropping and Crop Rotation for the African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya

African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya; The solanaceous family is where chillies originate. The same soil illnesses affect them. It is best to avoid rotating or intercropping with crops from the same family.

After two to three years of growing chillies on the same plot of land, give the soil a one-year rest from the crop. Plant crops from a different family, such as legumes and peppers, for intercropping and rotation. Cowpeas, beans, soy, groundnuts, sweet potatoes, cassava, and other legumes are examples of these. Legumes have the extra benefit of increasing soil fertility by fixing nitrogen.

Ecological Requirements

These peppers will grow well in soils that are organically rich, light loamy, well-drained, and have an ideal pH of 6.0 to 6.5. African Birds Eye Chilies can survive in a wide pH range, from 4.3 to 9.7. Flowers, fruits, and buds suffer from low humidity.

Between 20 degrees Celsius and 30 degrees Celsius are ideal for cultivating the African Bird's Eye chilli. The chilli fruit cannot grow at temperatures below 16 degrees Celsius or above 32 degrees Celsius.

African bird's eye chillies need a 150 cm, growing at a rate of 600–1200 cm year. When it rains too much, leaves decay and fall off, and when it rains too little, fruits fall off trees and flowers wilt.

African Birds' Eye Chili Plant Propagation and Care

Nursery for African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya

Initially, a nursery should be used to grow African bird's eye chilies at a seed rate of 500 grams per hectare (about 2.5 acres). 500 plants should grow from 20 grams of seed.

The nursery should be raised with properly applied manure, with a width of 1M and a length of any desired size. On the day of planting, soak the seeds in water. Plant just the seeds that float. The nursery's seeds should be put in drills that are 1 cm deep, spaced 10 cm apart, and lightly covered with dirt.

Germination for African Bird's Eye chilli production in Kenya

After germination, trim off around 2-3 cm, then leave the remaining seedlings to grow for about 6 weeks or until it's time to transplant. The African Bird's Eye Seedling ought to have five to six leaves at this point.

Transplanting; African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya

Prior to transplanting, pinch off the top buds around 10 days earlier. After being transplanted, the plant will grow multiple sturdy branches as a result of this, and it will also be protected from thrips that feed on the upper leaves and spread the leaf curl virus.

Land Preparation for African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya

The land should be prepared for African Bird's Eye Chilies as soon as possible. Harrow and plough the land. 

Spacing; African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya

For intercropped ABE chilies, the rows should be spaced apart by 6 meters, and for mono-cropped ABE chilies, by 1 to 1.5 meters.

The suggested spacing for planting ABE chilies alone, without any other crops, is 45 cm by 60 cm. The spacing required for intercropping is one metre. Between these two African bird's eye plants, there is this distance.

Manure; African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya

One tonne of well decomposed manure should be incorporated into the soil.

Transplanting The African Birds’s Eye Chillies Seedlings

The African Birds Eye chili seedlings need to be prepared for transplantation from the nursery in six weeks. They develop more quickly when grown in trays and are prepared for transplanting in 4 to 5 weeks.

After watering the plants in the nursery, transplanting should be done in the evening. The purpose of this is to give the seedlings some time to recover from the strain of transplanting. The seedlings might not survive the heat if planted in the morning or during the day.

After transplanting, water the plants. Avoid stagnant water. When the soil becomes dry, keep irrigating even if it doesn't rain (2 cm deep).

Best Fertilizers for African Birds’s Eye Chillies

Before Transplantation,

Apply DAP fertilizers at a rate of 25 grams per plant if the crop is not organic. Before transplantation, the soil is treated with this.

Four Weeks

At four weeks or when the plants are 15 cm tall, CAN fertilizer is applied as a top dressing at a rate of 10 grams per plant. Every two months, CAN fertilizer should be applied.

If potassium is not present in the soil, potassium fertilizer is administered. To determine which microelements are deficient in the soil, a soil test is advised.

Mulching; African Bird's Eye chilli Farming in Kenya

Apply mulch to retain moisture, improve soil fertility, and stop weed growth. Applying mulch should be done twice a year, right before the rains.

Two handfuls of manure or compost should be poured into each hole. This equals to 10 tonnes per hectare.

Diseases and Pest Management

Pests in A.B.E Farming in Kenya

Aphids, mites, thrips, and white flies are the most prevalent pests in A.B.E farming in Kenya.

Control 

Use the recommended insecticides and timely weeding to eliminate the host plants. Since the root knot nematode often only affects sandy, poor soils, add organic matter to the soil before planting.

Diseases in A.B.E Farming in Kenya

Anthracnose, bacterial wilts, Fusarium wilt, late blight, Downey and Powder mildews, and rust are examples of common diseases in A.B.E Farming in Kenya. Virus infections (such as the cucumber mosaic virus and the tobacco mosaic virus) play a significant role in the decline of commercial chili crops' productive life.

Control

Use of certified seeds and maintaining field hygiene are two preventative strategies for disease attacks. Remove virus-infected plants from the field if they have mottled leaves or are stunted. Practice crop rotation. Apply fungicides to treat fungal infections.

Harvesting African Birds Eyes Chilli in Kenya

A.B.E Farming in Kenya will become red about 90 days after it has bloomed and been fertilized. Many chili growers in their first year become impatient as they think the chilies never change color. 

Pay close attention to any first crown or tip discolorations. It is comparatively lightning quick if utilized here. So that the fructose, spice, and scent may fully develop, we let the red pods hang for at least five days.

Between 2 1/2 and 3 months after transplanting, the fruits are ready for the first picking. Picking continues for 3 to 4 months. It is advised to harvest all red, mature chilies as soon as they appear.

 Harvesting can be done once or twice a week.

Harvest only mature, deep red fruits no longer than 2 cm in length. Damaged, ripe, or green chilies shouldn't be put in the dryer. Chilies should be plucked without stalks. After the dew on the plant evaporates, the fruit should be plucked early in the day.

Post-Harvest Handling

Drying in A.B.E Farming in Kenya

• It takes 3 to 4 days for things to dry, depending on the weather.
• Avoid letting chillies dry on the ground. The fruits are often dried above ground on a rack with free air flow (jute perforated material on top of the drying rack may be used).
• Fruits should be shriveled but not brittle; avoid drying in the sun or open to prevent sunburn and rain damage (moisture content of 7.5 to 8 percent)

Grading A.B.E in Kenya

The graded chili is moved to the lowest shelf of the drying rack for two to three days. This can be done while drying to save time.

Packing and Storage

Use locally woven baskets or gunny sacks rather than polyethylene for storage. On-farm storage without sufficient storage facilities is discouraged.

Challenges in Production of A.B.E in Kenya

The chilli industry's most labor-intensive process is harvesting. This has prevented the manufacture of bird's eye chili on a big scale. Planting fewer bushes than you can easily harvest is advised.

Yields per Acre of the African Birds Eyes Chilli

It is possible to generate yields of 1,000 kg to 3,000 kg per acre, depending on management.

A well-managed farm should be able to produce 200 grams of dried chili or at least 600 grams of fresh chili per plant per year. Up to 3 tons of chili should be produced per acre by a well-maintained crop.

Veg farms Kenya; Advice to potential growers of A.B.E  in Kenya

1. The market requires consistently high-quality goods. Operations for drying and grading must be kept to a high quality.
2. Start small, then as you gain experience, increase your productivity.
3. To ensure prompt delivery of the dried produce, it is crucial to schedule production with the buyer.

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F.A.Q

How many Birds Eye Chilli plants per acre in Kenya?

Initially, a nursery should be used to grow African bird's eye chilies at a seed rate of 500 grams per hectare (about 2.5 acres). With 20 grams of seed, 500 plants should result.

How profitable is Birds Eye chilli farming in Kenya?

Achieving yields of 1,000 kg to 3,000 kg per acre depends on good agricultural management. At least 600 grams of fresh chili per plant per year or 200 grams of dried chili should be produced by well-managed Birds Eye farms. Up to 3 tons of chili should be produced per acre by a well-maintained crop.

How many months does Birds Eye chili take to grow?

3-4 months, take about three to four months to mature. When the chillies are mature, remove them from the plant; if you pull them too frequently, they will rip. The crop's color and flavor evolve as it ages.