Last updated on October 31st, 2026 at 09:54 am
Knowing how to plant cassava starts long before a cutting touches soil, with cleared land, raised mounds, and rains that have settled. Get those three right, and young shoots push through the top of the mound within one or two weeks.
On our family farms in Ntigha, Abia State, cassava goes back onto land that has rested under bush for a full year.
We clear that regrowth, burn the cut bush and weeds, then raise mounds or long ridges with hoes.
Stems are cut into short pieces, and three or four go into each mound once the rainy season settles in.
Melon sometimes goes in alongside the cassava, while yam and corn follow on their own schedule nearby.
Here is that whole routine, step by step, carefully checked against IITA’s illustrated planting guide for commercial farmers in Nigeria.
Table of Contents
Step 1: Clear and Burn the Fallow Land
After a year of fallow, the plot is covered in shrubs and weeds that must come down before any mound is raised.
Farmers here burn the cleared bush and weeds, while the old cassava stems and leaves have long since rotted into the soil.
Why each plot rests a year before replanting is covered in cassava crop rotation and fallow.
A lab test before clearing shows what the soil lacks, as set out in testing soil for cassava.
Step 2: Raise Mounds or Ridges With a Hoe
We work the soil entirely with hoes, building either single mounds or long ridges across the plot.
IITA’s commercial cassava guide recommends ridges or mounds to reduce waterlogging on poorly drained land.
The same guide prefers flat or gently sloping sites, and places sole cassava cuttings on the crest of each ridge or heap.
Soil types that suit the crop are compared in soil requirements for cassava.
Step 3: Cut the Planting Stems
We cut stems into pieces of about 7 inches, and never longer than a foot.
IITA recommends cuttings 20 to 25 centimeters long, taken from healthy plants aged 8 to 15 months.
The guide also says to use the hardwood middle of the stem, not the green tops or the oldest bottom section.
Where to get disease-free material is covered in sourcing cassava stems, and knife technique in cutting cassava stems correctly.
Stems kept from harvest until planting need shade, as described in preserving stems for next season.
Choose the variety before cutting, using the comparison of TME 419 and local types.
Step 4: Set Three or Four Cuttings per Mound
On our farms, three or four cuttings go into each mound, spaced about half a foot apart.
IITA’s guide works differently, with one cutting per stand at 1 meter by 0.8 meters for non-branching sole cassava.
For intercropped fields, the guide widens spacing to 1 by 1.5 meters for branching types and 1 by 1 meter for non-branching ones.
Row layouts for mounds, ridges, and intercropped fields are compared in cassava row spacing.
Cutting Angle and Depth
IITA advises upright planting in sandy soil, with two thirds of the cutting buried, and angled planting in loamy soil.
A 2021 review in Agricultural Reviews found slanted cuttings at 45 degrees gave the highest fresh root yield in one trial.
The same review reported that horizontal planting lowered yield in that trial, as competing shoots crowded each other.
Buds must point upward, since a CIAT progress report found inverted cuttings emerged slowest of every position tested.
Knowing how to plant cassava from stem cuttings covers most farms, while other routes appear in cassava planting methods.
Step 5: Plant When the Rains Settle
We plant as soon as the rainy season arrives and the rains have become steady enough to trust.
IITA says dry season planting harms sprouting, and places the main window in April and May where two rainy seasons occur.
A second, minor window opens in August in those zones, while savannah farmers plant at the start of their season in May or June.
Regional calendars appear in the guide to the best time to plant cassava.
Step 6: Fit In Melon, Corn, and Yam
The companion crops do not all go into the ground on the same day as the cassava.
Some farmers sow melon at the same time as the cassava, but the other companion crops follow separately.
Yam goes on its own separate mounds, each one fitted with a stake for the vine to climb.
Corn is planted right beside a cassava mound or about a foot away from it.
Other workable companion pairings for a cassava field are listed in crops to intercrop with cassava.
How to Plant Cassava So Every Stand Sprouts
On our farms, young shoots appear on the mounds within one to two weeks of planting.
CIAT found vertical cuttings emerged fastest, inclined cuttings next, and horizontal cuttings slowest in its germination trials.
Where a stand failed, CIAT found replacements transplanted a month later gave thinner roots and lower yields than the original plants.
Early weeding keeps young shoots from losing light and nutrients, as set out in cassava weed management strategies.
Fertilizer timing is covered in applying fertilizer to cassava, and the crop’s progress in cassava growth stages.
Conclusion
Learning how to plant cassava the Ngwa way means clearing rested land, burning the cut bush, and raising mounds or ridges with hoes.
We cut stems to about 7 inches and set three or four into each mound, half a foot apart.
Planting waits for steady rains, since IITA warns that dry season planting harms sprouting.
Shoots then appear within one to two weeks, while melon, corn, and yam take their own places nearby.
For questions about stems, flour, or starch, message Cassava Pathway in Ntigha on WhatsApp.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many cassava cuttings go in one mound?
We set three or four cuttings into each mound, about half a foot apart.
IITA’s guide instead spaces single cuttings 1 meter by 0.8 meters in sole cassava fields.
How long should a cassava cutting be?
We cut ours to about 7 inches and never longer than a foot.
IITA recommends 20 to 25 centimeters, taken from healthy plants aged 8 to 15 months.
When should cassava be planted?
Plant once the rains are steady, because dry season planting harms sprouting.
In zones with two rainy seasons, IITA points to April and May for the main planting.
How long do cassava cuttings take to sprout?
On our farms, young shoots appear on the mounds within one to two weeks of planting.
Cuttings set upright emerged fastest in CIAT trials, ahead of inclined and horizontal ones.
Chimeremeze Emeh is a tropical crop farmer and chemical engineer from Ntigha, Isiala Ngwa North LGA, Abia State, Eastern Nigeria, specializing in cassava and palm oil, with over 30 years of hands-on experience growing, harvesting, and processing cassava. He grows TMS series, TME 419, and local traditional varieties on his own farms and operates a small-scale cassava flour and starch production business through Cassava Pathway, which he founded as a CAMA-registered agribusiness in 2024. He is also the founder of Palm Oil Pathway, where he applies the same tropical farming expertise. His farms are located in Ntigha, Abia State.