By Joseph Mugenyi
Kampala: Passion fruit is a perennial vigorous vine which grows to give oval or round shaped fruit.
The common passion fruit varieties grown in uganda include;
1. Grandilla passion (local breed and purple in colour)
2. Kawanda hybrid (cross of local breed and yellow passion)
3. Yellow passion
Passion can be propagated using either seeds,stem cuttings, or even grafted prop gules.
Make holes of 454545cm.
Leave the hole uncovered for atleast a week and then add compost manure mixed with soil.
If you are to transplant, do it in the morning or evening when conditions are favourable.
Transplant when seedlings have grown 20-25cm long
Water the plant for easy growth.
Use fertilizers to boost their growth.
On this issue of fertilizer application, I visited a passion fruit farmer who told me that its better you put manure or fertilizers 3cm away from the plant.
Dig around the plant Up to the fertilizer for easy movement of fertilizer to the plant.
Always remember to spray at a 2 weeks interval (insecticide inclusive).
Harvesting.
Passion take 8-12 months to be harvested depending on the variety.
Harvest the;
Locals when they turn nearly black
The yellow passion when it’s golden.
Slightly and wrinkled fruits are super ripe and have sweeter taste.
The ripest will simply fall off the vine
Store for a week or more by refrigeration.
Marketing.
With marketing there is ready market every where across the country.
Get all the agricultural information here bi-weekly.Mugenyi Joseph (MJ Farmer) is a practicing Agribusiness entrepreneur based in Kibiito and a software Engineering student at Makerere University. He can be reached on 0701-443309, Email:mugenyijosemj@gmail.com
