turmeric presentation.ogs.2013
DESCRIPTION
Turmeric Production Presentation Given at Organic Growers' School, March 9th and 10th, 2013TRANSCRIPT
TurmericProduction
Susan AndersonEast Branch [email protected]
What are we talking about today?
• Turmeric Production–Presprouting–Protected Culture–Container vs. Soil–Fertilizers/Soil Amendments–Harvest–Marketing
Turmeric – The Plant
• Curcuma longa, Zingiberaceae family• Rhizomes – grow out and down in all
directions• Foliage tall (3-4 ft) with wide leaf blades• Petioles originate at base of plant• Worldwide very economically, culturally
important crop• India top producer with almost 650,000 tons
Turmeric – The Spice of Life
• Has curcuminoids, and many other compounds, studied to be beneficial to health
• Antioxident, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, anticarcinogenic
• Recently published findings and ongoing research into the benefits of turmeric
Turmeric Production• Containers or Soil Culture• Drip Irrigation• Takes at least 8-9 months from start of
presprout – need protected culture in temperate climates
• Rhizomes grow out and down from seed piece so little to no hilling required
• About 10-16 pieces per pound; use avg. 13
Protected Culture• Hoophouse–Presprout then transplant into soil or
containers to hoophouse• Heated Greenhouse–Direct seed rhizomes into growing
container/soil if root zone kept 70-80F from time of seeding
Turmeric Seed Pieces• Seed should be healthy and fresh• All pieces of rhizome will produce new crop• Some better than others:– In order here from best yielding to least,
with caveat that all do produce yield:• Primary fingers•Mother rhizomes (rounds)• Secondary rhizomes
• DO NOT CUT SEED PIECES – leave rhizomes whole for seed
Turmeric - Presprouting• Receive seed pieces and presprout• Can hold for 5-14 days – well ventilated,
warm (80F) out of direct sunlight• Shallowly plant– Fingers placed horizontal onto the media–Open flats, individual pots, bulb crates
• Presprout at 80F for 4-6 weeks–Goal: get roots and shoots going and the
“mother rhizome” started
Turmeric - Presprouting• Presprouting can take upwards of 4-
6 weeks• Keep very warm, 80F• Be patient
Turmeric - Transplanting• Sensitive to transplant–Be gentle with presprouted
pieces when transplanting–Be sure soil or media receiving
transplants is warm
Turmeric - Transplanting• Mulch or cover soils/containers prior to
and after transplant until shoot emergence to keep soil temps warm (70-80F)– Low tunnels, black plastic mulch (remove after
emergence), row covers
• Use thin mulches after emergence to help increase yields and aid in weed control• Examples: compost or straw with no
weed seed
Turmeric – Container Culture• Media– Coconut coir– Well-drained, good water holding capacity– Neutral pH– Not binding of nutrients– Not mucky
• Containers– Grow bags, flexible plastic or fabric, nothing
fragile or valuable– Depth of at least 12”
Turmeric – Container Culture• Spacing in Container– 3-4 seed pieces in a 15 gallon grow bag (about
6” away from seed piece to seed piece)– If smaller container use only 1-2 seed pieces– If larger, add about 1-2 seed pieces per five
gallon increase– If some pieces are very small, use more pieces
than recommended; vice-versa for larger pieces– 5# will plant about 20-23 fifteen gallon grow
bags
Turmeric – Container Culture• Container Spacing – pot to pot–Make banks of pots for ease of
watering, fertilizing, shade root zone, increase humidity around canopy, weed control
Turmeric – Container Culture• Planting–At least 4” of media in bottom of pot–Media should be premixed with dose
of ferts, micronutrients, organic matter–Place presprouted seed pieces onto
media–Cover with about 1-2” of media
Turmeric – Soil Culture
• Well-drained, good water holding capacity• pH around 5-6– Can be wider range if nutrients are made available
• Get soil test
• Not binding of nutrients• Not mucky• No heavy clay with low OM• Loose, workable soil – good carrot soil
Turmeric – Soil Culture
• Spacing– 6” from seed piece to seed piece– 5# will plant about 30-35 row feet– 3 foot centers, row to row
• Planting– Dig a 1-2” trench (allows for some soil use later if
hilling required)– Place presprouted seed pieces at recommended
spacing – cover with about 1-2” of soil
Watering• Watering – drip recommended–Turmeric yields better when watered
consistently through the growing season–May have to increase frequency of
waterings if media very well drained – increase feedings if watering daily–Decrease waterings as crop goes
dormant in late fall
Fertilizing• Depends upon media/soil–Well balanced (about 5-5-5) fed about
4-5 times through the growing season–Another feeding a week before harvest
– water in–Amend initial media/soil with
fertilizers, compost and/or worm castings–Higher yields with regular fertilizer
applications
Fertilizing – Other Amendments•Use gypsum to promote nutrient uptake – check with OG cert agent before using any new products•Beneficial microbes increase yields greatly–Examples: Trichoderma, Root
Shield, Actinovate, Contans, worm castings, well-aged compost
Mulching• Mulch the crop with a thin layer (½-
1”) at each feeding• Examples – compost, worm castings,
straw with no weed seed
• Mulching aids in water retention and weed control• Turmeric tall, skinny so little shading
of weed competition
Harvest• Just prior to harvest, water once to
make harvest easier• Dig samples at 6-7 months to monitor• Trim all leaves off a few days prior• Containers–Tip bags or containers on side–Pull root ball from container
• Soil–Undermine and gently lift using broadforks
Processing/Storage• Wash and separate rhizomes• Handle gently so no scarring or nicks on
skin• Store until sale at room temperature up
to 5-10 days– Recommend to end users to store at room temp
for a few weeks – no bags• Store for longer at 60-65F, no sunlight, dry,
well ventilated, up to 30-90 days
Saving Seed
• After harvest and processing (be gentle with rhizomes saved for seed)
• Allow rhizomes to air cure for 5-10 days–Well ventilated, dry, shady location
• Can be placed in crate or bucket with DRY loose soil or sand
• Place stored rhizomes in cool, dry location – 60-65F
• Hold for up to 90-100 days
Culture Tips• Hill with about 1-2” media/soil if
rhizomes peek out of soil surface• If leaves yellow then feed a bit more• If saving seed do not overfeed• Turmeric will grow in shade but
yields will be reduced–25% shade at most
• Yields about 5-10 fold, depending upon crop culture through season
Turmeric - Uses• Uses– Curries and many other culinary applications
• Mortar and pestle to make pulp
– Pickling– Food Coloring/color stabilizer– Ayurvedic Medicine
• Aches, liver disorders, wound care, pulmonary, gastrointestinal, skin
– Conventional Medicine• Anti-inflammatory in conjunction with others meds,
gastrointestinal, Alzheimer’s, cancer
• DO YOUR RESEARCH, TALK WITH HEALTH CARE PROVIDER
Turmeric - Marketing• Farmers’ markets• Restaurants• Winter markets–Store rhizomes for later sales
• Value added ideas–Dried turmeric–Dyes
Questions
Sources• http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/662.html
• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17101300• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19110321• http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17569205• http://220.227.138.214:8080/dspace/bitstream/123456789/96/1/Vol.+VIII+No.1+(49-55).pdf
Sources• http://botanydictionary.org/tunica-corpus-theory.html
• http://www.sigmaaldrich.com/life-science/nutrition-research/learning-center/plant-profiler.html
Sources• http://www.naturalstandard.com/• http://www.peoplespharmacy.com/2008/02/25/turmeric-overca/