Planting managu: Easy guide on propagating and transplanting African Nightshade/managu seedlings

To propagate seedlings of the African Nightshade (managu), first, you will need to identify the quality and the variety that you want to deal with. There are two varieties, the bitter variety which cannot be transplanted, and the mild variety which is the one that is mostly transplanted. The managu seeds are very small so you must mix them with some dry substance like soil, sand, or manure (eg, from the black soldier frass) mixed with sand. Mix one handful of the seeds, which is about 50 grams, to four handfuls of your dry substance of choice and broadcast this in a bed size of 1 meter to 10 meters in length. Make sure your seedbed is evenly spread, then broadcast your seeds that are mixed with the sand or soil and manure lightly on your bed. Cover the seedbed with well-decomposed manure eg. chicken manure, by lightly broadcasting the manure on top of the bed to make sure each area is well covered.

The best time for you to irrigate is early in the morning or late in the evening. Irrigate your bed for three weeks, before transplanting your seedlings into the furrows or sunken beds, furrows are recommended for ease in irrigation and mulching. Spacing is normally 15 centimeters from one plant to the other, but before you transplant ensure that your furrows are well fed with manure or organic matter. If you are using manure, make sure that it is sufficient because managu is a heavy feeder. Your first harvest should be four weeks after your transplant and should be done on weekly or bi-weekly basis for a period of up to three months. This all depends on how well you have treated your soil.