Cowpea planting time and method

Growth habit of long beans

Cowpea likes high temperature, and the suitable growth temperature is between 20-25 degrees. It can tolerate high temperature of 35 degrees, but it is not cold-resistant. Its growth will be inhibited if it is kept below 10 degrees for a long time. It has no strict requirements for sunlight and has a wide adaptability to soil. It can be planted in any field with good drainage, looseness and fertility.

Cowpea planting time

Cowpea can be cultivated in spring, summer and autumn. Spring cowpea is generally planted from late February to late March, summer cowpea from April to June in the Yellow River Basin and from April to July in the Yangtze River Basin, and autumn cowpea should be sown in August to September.

Cowpea planting method and steps

1. Land preparation

Cowpea needs to be rotated for more than two years, otherwise diseases and pests will occur. Deep plowing should be 20-30 cm, and then base fertilizer should be applied. If it is acidic soil, lime can be added appropriately. Then the soil should be broken up and raked to make high ridges with a width of 1-1.5 meters including furrows.

2. Planting

Early spring cowpeas can be sown and raised in the greenhouse in March and April, and can be directly sown with plastic film after mid-April, and directly sown in the open field after April and May. The sowing period of spring and summer cowpeas can generally continue to early to mid-July, and autumn cowpeas are sown in July and August, mainly seven-inch and eight-inch cowpeas.

3. Seedling cultivation

If you are transplanting cowpea seedlings, you generally need to supplement the seedlings after they have grown. When the first pair of true leaves of the seedlings unfold, check and supplement the seedlings in time, and leave two seedlings in each hole.

4. Field management

Paying attention to the growth and health of the cowpea seedlings, setting up trellises to guide the vines, cultivating and weeding, and pruning properly can increase the yield of cowpea.

5. Pest and disease control

Common diseases of cowpea include leaf spot, wilt, rust, etc. Crop rotation should be implemented for more than two years, field management should be done well, and pesticides should be applied in time. Leaf spot can be treated with Bordeaux mixture or thiophanate-methyl, spraying once every 10 days for 2-3 times in a row. Wilt can be treated with chlorothalonil or dichlorvos root irrigation, and rust can be controlled with % methyl thiophanate-methyl.

6. Harvest after maturity

When harvesting mature cowpea, do not damage the other flower buds and do not pick off the inflorescence. It is a crop that is harvested sequentially and must be harvested in time before the seeds swell. It is usually harvested when the seed pods turn yellow and soft.