Getting the right seed and seedlings is key to maximizing your crop output quantities as well as quality. That is why you need to utilize trusted suppliers with a well established track record.
One such company is Amiran Zambia, it is a leading supplier of vegetable seed and seedlings for all horticultural produce. The company provides seed and seedlings for leading cabbage varieties such as landini variety.
For those that want to get the best pepper output to the expanding Zambian market, Amiran has in stock red pepper and yellow pepper – sunshine variety, for egg plants – black beauty and aragon varieties, and for okra -Clemson spineless variety.
The company also provides watermelon – crimson and zebra varieties, onion varieties which include the neptune – red variety and white variety, rape – english giant variety, impwa, Chinese cabbage -chihili variety, green beans – french beans variety, lettuce and for tomato – the tengeru 97 variety among other varieties.
Amiran Zambia Nursery Seed and Seedlings Sales Manager Buumba Habeenzu said the company has about eight main tomato seed varieties which include Nemo netta, Dominique, Victoria, Karen, Topacio, Yara, Roberta and Green Gold.
Habeenzu stated that dominique and nemo netta tomato varieties can be grown throughout the year and yield between 100 tonnes-250 tonnes per hectare. This is a big advantage and give output and revenue through out this productive time.
She also said the company has seeds with a shorter maturity date of three months with yields between 80-100 tonnes per hectare which include sunshine, chuma, karen, and Victoria varieties among others, adding that farmers can harvest within three months with the first harvest starting after about 10 weeks.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with the Zambian Business Times – ZBT, Habeenzu revealed that roberta and topacio varieties are meant to be grown during the rainy season as they are resistant to certain fungi that would affect other varieties in the rainy season and yield between 150-200 tonnes.
The Amiran seed and seedling sale manager stated that the company also produces different banana varieties from Israel including tissue grown bananas as well as fruit tress like hass avocados, noting that Amiran is flexible and sources outside the country what is not available locally.
Habeenzu said the company takes it’s time to produce seedlings which are of very good quality and high standard. This is achieved by Amiran having quality control measures that follow the correct guidelines in order to produce seedlings that farmers will buy in good condition.
She added that seedlings are a bedrock to the foundation and if seedlings are of poor quality, it becomes difficult for farmers to achieve their expected results, therefore Amiran ensures the seedlings are bought when in good condition so that farmers do not experience challenges that may come with seedlings of low quality.
And Amiran Zambia boosts of having most of the varieties they source from their actual suppliers and breeders which are resistance to certain crops such as pests at point of breeding so that no challenges are experienced when the seedlings are delivered to the company and clients.
She added that the tomato varieties suitable to be planted in the rainy season can withstand common diseases which other varieties would end up being wiped out, which is a positive side besides the excellent yields.
“Nemo netta tomato variety which Amiran Zambia supplies is resistance to nematodes, that’s where the name comes from, you can never have nematodes in a nemo netta plant even in a nemo netta field as they repel pests just from point of planting”, she said.
She noted that the company is open to the market’s needs, therefore farmers that want specific varieties that the company doesn’t have can request for such varieties which will be provided as Amiran is driven by the market players who are farmers, so it does not strictly produce what it wants but ensures to cater for the specific farmers’ needs.
Habeezu told ZBT that ideally, the minimum quantity of seedlings farmers can request for is 1,000 seedlings with no limit on the maximum and anything below that is also readily available as a certain amount of seedlings are prepared which can be bought depending on availability or speculative basis.
She added that anything above 1, 000 seedlings should be requested for in advance as Amiran Zambia sources and delivers varieties that specific farmers request, some of which may not be readily available locally or outside the country. These orders for huge or specific quantities of seedlings may also be dependent on the quantity needed.
Habeenzu said the company provides after sell services and follows up on clients in order to provide support and help with production and farmers always get in touch with the company whenever they face challenges, which enables the development of long term relationships.
She added that the company also provides information at the point of sell for specific varieties, and tries to reach out to everyone that may need advice. Amiran Zambia’s Seed and seedlings that are sourced from outside the country come from well established and respected producers from Israel as well as countries like china, Italy and India.
The company also sells seedlings that are not produced by Amiran, on behalf of other quality seed companies, adding that these varieties are solely sold as seedlings. For more information, get in touch with Amiran Zambia.
