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a. Planting material
Use a length of vine that is 1.5 – 2.5m (5 – 8 ft) or longer. These cuttings should be flowering in 2 years. Longer cuttings will give earlier flowering. Shorter cuttings will take longer, up to 3 years, to start flowering.
Take cuttings from recent growth of strong healthy plants. Cuttings need not have a growing shoot. Hang cuttings in the shade for 7 days before planting. This reduces the moisture content; it makes for quicker (faster) root development. Note: to avoid the transmission of disease use a clean and sharp cutting implement.
If you do not have enough planting material, a vine about 2 ft (0.5 m) in length can be potted. Once the vine starts to sprout (after about a 1 – 2 months), the vines can be planted out. In Kabarole farmers have found that under favourable growing conditions (75% humidity and fertile soils) with 50% shade, the potted out vines grow well. In fact, Kabarole farmers have found that the vines grown from pots often have a faster growth rate than the traditional 2 m long vines. In Kabarole and other districts with defined dry seasons high losses of planting materials is a problem. To avoid incurring high losses of newly planted vines, the following is recommended:

  • Use 12ft cuttings
  • Plant and loop at the same time; plant at least 6 + nodes, loop the vine planting another 6 + nodes in the loop, tie the remainder against the support tree.
  • Mulch heavily (at least 150 mm)
  • Have shade to increase the humidity and reduce drying out of soil. b. Season for planting
    Plant at the start of the rainy season. Vanilla can be planted during the rainy season, but towards the beginning of the rains.
    c. Instructions for planting
    Before planting

    • Clear the site where you are going to plant vanilla, cultivate the soil well, remove all grass weeds, and add organic matter. Build up beds if you want them.
    • Establish shade; for good growth, young vanilla will need 50% shade.
    • Mark out the site for planting and establish support trees before planting with vanilla. Ideally, this should be 6 – 12 months before planting.

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