Tree Nursery and Seedling Production Level 2

About this module

Level 1 taught you to grow a seedling. Level 2 teaches you to grow a seedling that is worth more, and to prove it is good.

Who it is for. People who have finished Tree Nursery and Seedling Production (Level 1), or who can show the same skills. National Proficiency II covers varied work, mostly routine, under limited supervision.

CTVET status. No CTVET competency-based programme in tree nursery work was found. The nearest is a short private agroforestry nursery course in Bono East, which is a different system. This module is not a CTVET curriculum. It follows CTVET's format so it can be put forward later.

Law status: read this carefully. The Tree Crops Development Authority (TCDA) was set up by Act 1010 of 2019 and covers six tree crops: cashew, coconut, oil palm, rubber, mango and shea. Its Tree Crops Regulations 2023 (L.I. 2471) came into force on 30 November 2023. From 3 July 2026, nobody may distribute planting material of these six crops unless it comes from TCDA-approved sources and has been inspected and certified, and suppliers must keep records of the source and approval for inspection. The exact nursery registration form, conditions and fees were not found, so this book does not give them. Before you sell grafted mango, cashew or coconut seedlings, phone or visit the TCDA regional office and ask. Citrus and avocado are not among the six crops; the rules for registering a nursery for those crops with the Forestry Commission were not verified.

Numbers. Costs and prices in this book marked example were invented to teach the sums. No source gave Western Region prices for polybags, topsoil or grafted seedlings. Replace every example with a real quote from a shop near you.

Bridge from Level 1: what you already know

Safe work, and choosing and laying out a nursery site: water, shade, beds and walkways
The soil mix for polybags (3 parts topsoil, 1 part compost, 1 part sand), filling polybags and sowing
Seed collection, extraction and pre-treatment, and how many seeds to sow per bag
Watering, pricking out, root pruning, culling and hardening off
Selling seedlings and keeping simple records
The idea of a small nursery business

Level 1 did not teach grafting and budding, rooting cuttings, grading plants to a standard, working back from a delivery date, the certified-planting-material rule, nursery protection in depth, or costing a batch of seedlings. Level 2 teaches all of these. Cocoa and oil palm seedlings are taught in their own courses and are not repeated here.

How the module works

Each unit has learning outcomes, performance criteria, the range and the evidence your assessor needs. You are judged Competent or Not Yet Competent. About 70% of the time is practical, following CTVET's Oil Palm programme split of about 30% school and 70% workplace.

Honesty rule. Numbers marked example were invented to teach the method. Where a Ghana fact could not be found, the book says not verified. Some steps come from other countries and are labelled so. Where two sources disagree, the book says so and tells you to test on a small batch first.

Three rules for every unit. (1) Use clean, sharp, sterilised tools. (2) Label every batch: species, source, date. (3) Never give or follow a pesticide dose from a book: read the label of an Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) registered product.

Unit 1 · Seed quality, sources and raising rootstocks

A graft is only as good as the plant underneath it, and a seedling is only as good as its seed.

Competency standard

Learning outcome	Performance criteria — the trainee…
1.1 Choose seed and mother trees	selects healthy mother trees and records the seed source
1.2 Test seed quality	runs a simple germination test and works out the percentage
1.3 Raise rootstocks	raises mango, citrus, avocado or cashew rootstocks to a size fit for grafting

Range. Seed of fruit and tree-crop species; polybags. Evidence. Seed record card; germination test sheet; observed rootstock raising.

Why the seed source matters

In a survey of 240 nursery producers in four regions of southern Ghana, 64 percent collected seed from the wild, 34 percent from plantations, and only about 3 percent used seed from CSIR-FORIG, the research body that supplies improved seed. Many nurseries chose mother trees only by a straight stem (45 percent), good shape (19 percent) or no disease (18 percent). The survey also found that a code of practice for tree seed collection exists but many nurseries do not follow it; the text of that code was not verified.

For the six TCDA crops, the seed, scion or seedling must now come from approved sources and you must keep records of where it came from. Even for other crops, a record of the source protects you when a customer complains. Farmers say their own seedlings "die a lot because of disease or heat", so a better, traceable plant is something they will pay for.

Choosing a mother tree

Choose a tree that is healthy, with a straight trunk (for timber species), good shape, and no disease. Take seed from the mother tree, not from a tree that is under stress. Do not collect from trees you are planning to take cuttings from. For fruit trees, add: it fruits well every season and the fruit is the kind buyers want (course suggestion, not from a source).

Make a seed record card

Write the species and local name (for example, mango, citrus, avocado "Paya", cashew).
Write where the seed came from: tree owner or farm, village, and date collected.
Write whether the source is approved (for the six TCDA crops, ask the TCDA office; keep any paper you are given).
Write how the seed was cleaned and stored, and the date it was sown.
Give the batch a number and write it on a label stick in the bed.
Keep one card for each batch in a plastic folder.

Test the seed: a germination test

A germination test tells you the percent of seeds that sprout, so you know how many to sow.

Germination test

Count out 100 seeds from the lot (for small seed, use two lots of 50). Mix the lot first so the sample is fair.
Sow them in a seed tray of washed sand (no compost in seed trays, because it can cause damping off).
Keep the tray moist and shaded. Water lightly twice a day, morning and late afternoon.
Count the seedlings that come up each day and write the number.
When no more come up for a week, add them: percent = seedlings ÷ seeds sown × 100.
Write the percent on the seed record card.

How many seeds per bag

Use the germination percent to decide. FAO's rule: if more than 8 in 10 germinate, sow 1 seed in half the pots and 2 in the other half; if fewer than 6 in 10, sow 3; otherwise sow 2. Sow no deeper than about half a centimetre for small seed, and thin to one seedling per pot as soon as possible. Large seeds such as mango stones and avocado stones are sown deeper, about twice the seed's thickness.

Raising rootstocks

A rootstock is the seedling that supplies the roots and lower stem of a grafted plant. The scion is the piece of the good variety that is joined on top.

Crop	What a good rootstock needs	Source
Mango	A seedling of a good local mango (Peach and Sabre are best), healthy, about 6 months old, at least 25 cm tall, stem about as thick as a pencil. Sow stones fresh.	ICRAF-Mango-Grafting; Mango-Graft-Search
Cashew	Softwood grafting in a Ghana trial worked well on seedlings about 60 days old, keeping four mature leaves at the base	Cashew-Graft-Search
Citrus	Rootstock suited to your area, grown from fresh seed; the best rootstock for Ghana was not verified	Citrus-Budding-Search
Avocado	Seedling rootstock; the age and thickness for Ghana were not verified	Avocado-Search

(The mango and cashew rows come from source documents; the citrus and avocado rows are what the research could confirm. For these two crops, ask an experienced nursery or the Ministry of Food and Agriculture district office, and test on a small batch.)

Raise 20 mango rootstocks

Collect fresh mango stones from a healthy local tree. Remove the flesh and wash them.
Prepare polybags with the 3 : 1 : 1 mix (topsoil : compost : sand) and fill them a week before sowing.
Sow one stone per bag, label with the batch number and date.
Water in the early morning and late afternoon. Do not overwater.
Each week count what has come up and record it.
When a seedling is about 6 months old, at least 25 cm tall and as thick as a pencil, it is ready to graft. Weed out any that are thin, bent or sick.

Seed sums

(a) In a germination test, 68 of 100 seeds sprouted. What is the percent, and by the FAO rule how many seeds do you sow per bag? (b) How many seeds do you sow for 500 bags? (c) A farmer orders 600 rootstocks of mango. You expect to lose 10% before grafting. How many stones must you sow, if each stone gives one seedling?

What nobody has told you. FORIG seed is better quality but few nurseries use it. FORIG cannot always meet demand. Ordering process and prices for FORIG or Forestry Commission seed: not verified. Ask them, and write down what they say.

Seed lot report

Choose one tree near your home. Draw its seed record card, with a note on why it is a good mother tree. If you can, collect 50 seeds and run a germination test; bring the result.

Check yourself

What does a germination test tell you?
What is a rootstock and what is a scion?
Why do you keep a record of where seed came from?

Unit 2 · Cuttings and layering

A cutting is a piece of a parent plant that grows roots and becomes a copy of that parent.

Competency standard

Learning outcome	Performance criteria — the trainee…
2.1 Choose and prepare cuttings	selects suitable material and cuts it correctly
2.2 Build and manage a propagation box	sets up a humid propagator and keeps it clean
2.3 Make layers	makes an air layer and separates it

Range. Macro (large) cuttings, small leafy cuttings, air layers. Evidence. Observed practical; propagation record; oral questions.

Why use cuttings and layers

Cuttings and layers make plants that are copies of the parent, so they keep the parent's good qualities. Not every species roots easily. The Ghana guide describes methods for agroforestry species; it states that grafting and budding "will not be described" and gives cuttings and layering instead. The steps for a specific species such as gliricidia (length of cutting, depth) were not verified, so test a small batch first.

Large (macro) cuttings, 20 cm to 2 m

Plant a macro cutting

Choose a healthy branch at least one year old.
Remove all the leaves.
Cut the base slanting with a sharp, disinfected tool.
Plant quickly. If you must store it, wrap it in moist material and keep it in a cool, dark place.
Remove a little bark at the base and plant it in wet, light soil.
Label with species, date and parent tree.

Small leafy cuttings (up to 20 cm)

These have 1 or 2 nodes and need a humid propagator, because they lose water through their leaves faster than the roots can supply it.

Build a propagation box. Use a wooden frame covered with clear polythene sheet, with a base of clean sand or sawdust. This is a non-mist propagator. Keep it in shade out of direct sun (the Ghana guide gives the design; the shade advice follows the FAO rule to shade only when needed).

Root small leafy cuttings

Keep shoots in labelled, moist bags until you use them. Trim leaves.
Make a square cut at the base (not slanted).
Dip the lowest 0.5 to 1 cm in rooting powder containing IBA (0.1 to 0.8 percent). Where to buy IBA in Ghana: not verified. Ask an agro-input dealer who sells rooting hormone; use only the product label's directions.
Insert 2 to 3 cm deep and firm the medium around it.
Label: species, clone number, date, treatment. Spray lightly, close the lid.
Open the box daily to check: remove dead leaves and any cutting going mouldy.
When roots show, move each cutting to a polybag and harden (see Level 1 and Unit 4).

The Ghana guide also mentions coconut water as a rooting substance and advises keeping parent plants near the nursery so material is fresh.

Air layering

An air layer makes roots on the branch while it is still on the tree. The Ghana guide lists simple, trench and air layering. For air layering, wrap the wounded part in moist sawdust or coconut husk; when rooted, cut off the rooted "marcott" and place it in a humid chamber. Species-by-species steps and times were not verified.

Make an air layer (practice on any easy woody shrub)

Choose a healthy branch about as thick as a pencil.
Remove a ring of bark about 2 to 3 cm wide (course suggestion based on the guide's description; test).
Wrap the bare ring with moist sawdust or coconut husk.
Cover with clear polythene and tie both ends so water does not escape.
Check every week. When roots show through the polythene, cut the branch below the roots.
Pot the marcott and keep it in the humid chamber.

Rooting sums

You need 300 rooted plants. Your trial rooted 60 of 100 cuttings (example). (a) What is the rooting percent? (b) How many cuttings must you start for 300 plants? (c) A propagation box holds 120 cuttings. How many boxes?

Parent plant list

Walk around your area. List five plants that people root from cuttings (for example in gardens) and describe how they do it. Ask the owner.

Check yourself

Why do small leafy cuttings need a humid box?
Why should a small leafy cutting have a square cut, not a slanted one?
What is a marcott?

Unit 3 · Grafting and budding

A graft joins the roots of a tough local plant to the branches of a variety that fruits early and well.

Competency standard

Learning outcome	Performance criteria — the trainee…
3.1 Prepare tools and material	sterilises tools; cuts and stores scions and budwood correctly
3.2 Graft mango, cashew, avocado	does a wedge or cleft graft and cares for it afterwards
3.3 Bud citrus	does a T-bud and wraps and labels it
3.4 Find and fix problems	diagnoses a failed graft and records the take percent

Range. Mango, cashew, avocado (grafting); citrus (budding). Evidence. Observed graft and bud; take record; oral questions.

Read this before you cut. The mango steps below come from a full, step-by-step manual. The cashew, citrus and avocado steps come from search summaries and a few trials, some from other countries; they are teaching starting points, not a recipe proven in Akwidaa. Test a small batch (20 plants) before you do hundreds. Where sources disagree, the book says so. A Ghana nursery supervisor or Wenchi Agricultural Station trainer should confirm the steps before you teach them.

Tools and hygiene

You need pruning scissors (secateurs) or a grafting knife, grafting tape or clear polythene strips, a sterilising solution (spirit, or household bleach 1 part to 9 parts of water), and a plastic bag or wet newspaper to keep scions fresh.

Sterilise before every plant

Mix 1 part household bleach with 9 parts clean water in a bucket. Use a plastic bucket.
Dip the knife or secateurs blade in it before you start, and between every plant.
Make a fresh bleach mix each day.
Wipe your hands or wear clean gloves. Never touch the cut surfaces.
Never put a cut surface on the ground.

Mango: the wedge (top) graft

This is the full ICRAF method.

Choose the scion. Take a piece from the end of a branch as thick as a pencil, with an active, healthy terminal bud at the "tight bud stage" (swollen but not opened). Cut it about 10 cm long and remove the leaves. Wrap it in wet newspaper in a plastic bag and keep it cool. Use it within 7 days (best the same day). Avoid diseased, crowded, woody scions, or those with loose buds, and avoid flowering and harvest time.

Do a wedge graft on mango

Check the rootstock: about 6 months old, at least 25 cm tall, stem as thick as a pencil.
Sterilise your tools.
Cut the rootstock 6 to 8 cm above the soil.
Split the top of the stem down about 3 cm.
Sharpen the base of the scion into a V, 2 to 3 cm long, with a clean, smooth cut.
Push the V into the split. Match the thickness of scion and stock and line up the green layer just under the bark (the cambium) on at least one side.
Wrap the join tightly with tape. Loosely cover the scion with another strip, leaving the terminal bud free.
Keep the plant under shade. Label with the variety and the date.
After 14 to 21 days the scion should show leaves. Remove the tape when healed.
Harden in shade for 6 to 8 weeks before the plant leaves the nursery.
Do not overwater a newly grafted plant.

After planting out, the manual says to remove the terminal bud about 6 months later to start branching. Another source (summary only) says veneer grafting works in warm months with night temperatures above 18 °C. Mango is a TCDA crop, so the plants you sell need approved scion and rootstock sources.

Cashew: softwood grafting (from trial reports)

A Ghana trial found that softwood grafting on seedlings about 60 days old, keeping four mature leaves at the base, gave high success. July was the best month for one method and October the worst. Scions came from healthy shoots 3 to 4 months old, 15 to 20 cm long, with dormant buds. A wedge cut of 4 to 5 cm was used, with a cleft in the rootstock, wrapped with a polythene strip 1.5 cm wide and 30 cm long, 100 gauge (this size is from an Indian guide). A KNUST study found that semi-hardwood scions treated with IBA did best, so the results conflict; confirm with Wenchi.

Wenchi Agricultural Station has the only scion bank, which cannot supply enough for private nurseries. A code of practice for cashew planting material was introduced in 2022 with the Ghana Standards Authority. Cashew is a TCDA crop, so the scion source must be approved.

Do a cashew wedge graft (practice batch of 20)

Choose seedlings about 60 days old with four mature basal leaves.
Collect scions from healthy shoots 3 to 4 months old, 15 to 20 cm long, with dormant buds. Wrap them in wet newspaper and keep them cool.
Sterilise tools. Cut the rootstock and make a cleft.
Cut a wedge of 4 to 5 cm on the scion and fit it into the cleft. Match the cambium.
Wrap with a polythene strip. Shade the plants and label them.
Check at 14 to 21 days (as for mango; the cashew trial's check time was not verified).
Record how many took and the month you grafted.

Citrus: T-budding

Budding places a single bud, not a whole piece of stem. A citrus guide (summary only) says to bud when the bark "slips" (peels easily), generally May to August in Alabama. Make the T-cut 20 to 30 cm above the ground: a vertical cut about 2.5 cm and a horizontal cut a third of the way round. Remove a shield-shaped bud about 1.3 cm below to 2 to 2.5 cm above the bud. Slide it under the bark flaps, wrap firmly and label the budsticks with variety, date and source. The guide says to use certified disease-free budwood (Florida requires it). The best months for Ghana and where to get certified citrus budwood in Ghana were not verified: run a monthly trial.

Do a T-bud on citrus (practice batch of 20)

Choose a healthy rootstock and a healthy budstick from a source you can name.
Sterilise the knife.
Make a vertical cut about 2.5 cm and a shorter cross cut at the top, forming a T, on the smooth part of the stem 20 to 30 cm above the soil.
Cut a shield bud from the budstick, with a thin slice of wood behind the bud.
Open the bark flaps and slide the shield down inside. Do not touch the inside surfaces.
Wrap the cut firmly, leaving the bud itself uncovered, and label.
Check after 2 to 3 weeks: a green, plump bud means it took (course suggestion).

Avocado: cleft graft

A Kenyan guide from KALRO (summary only) describes a cleft graft: a 3 cm wedge on the scion and a matching 3 cm cut on the rootstock, match the cambium, tie, and cover with a plastic bag. The University of Florida says grafting works best in cooler months. A KNUST study in Ghana found cleft grafting gave more systematic plant development than side or whip-and-tongue grafting. The KALRO PDF could not be read in full, so read it before you teach avocado grafting, and test on 20 plants.

Take percent and troubleshooting

Take percent = grafts that grew ÷ grafts made × 100. Count at 21 days and again at 6 weeks.

Problem	Likely cause	Fix
Scion dries up and turns black	Old or woody scion; wrap too loose; hot sun; scion stored too long	Use fresh scion from tight buds; wrap firmly; shade; use within 7 days
Scion stays green but does not shoot	Cambium not matched; rootstock too thick or thin	Match thickness and line up cambium on at least one side
Join rots	Overwatering; dirty tools	Water less; sterilise between every plant
Rootstock shoots grow below the graft	Normal	Remove them so they do not steal food from the scion
Graft snaps	Plant knocked or poorly wrapped	Stake the plant; handle by the pot, not the stem

(Troubleshooting rows are course suggestions based on the grafting steps; the ICRAF manual says not to overwater newly grafted plants and to use scions within 7 days).

Graft sums

(a) You graft 200 mango plants and 150 grow. What is the take percent? (b) A farmer wants 600 grafted plants. The take is 75% and you lose 5% of the grafted plants in hardening. How many plants must you graft? (c) Each graft uses 40 cm of tape (example). How many metres of tape for 600 grafts?

Graft diary

Choose three plants you grafted or watched being grafted. Check them every 3 days for 3 weeks and record: date, scion colour, any new leaf, any rot.

Check yourself

How long should you wait before you expect a mango scion to show leaves?
Name two things you do before every graft to prevent disease spreading.
Why test a method on 20 plants before doing 500?

Unit 4 · Quality standards, grading and certified planting material

A plant that dies in the farmer's field costs the farmer a year. A good nursery sells plants that live.

Competency standard

Learning outcome	Performance criteria — the trainee…
4.1 Grade seedlings	sorts plants by size and health and culls weak ones
4.2 Measure quality	works out the sturdiness quotient
4.3 Keep traceable records	records the source, dates and grade of every batch
4.4 Explain the planting-material rule	explains what the TCDA rule means for a nursery

Range. Seedlings, rooted cuttings and grafted plants. Evidence. Graded batch; sturdiness quotient sheet; batch record; oral questions.

The planting-material rule (TCDA)

On 16 June 2026 the TCDA announced that from 3 July 2026 nobody may distribute planting material of cashew, coconut, oil palm, rubber, mango and shea unless it comes from TCDA-approved sources and has been inspected and certified. Suppliers must keep source and approval records for inspection. The Tree Crops Regulations 2023 have a Regulation 46 on planting material and a First Schedule that lists nursery registration and conditions for a nursery certificate; only the headings could be read, not the text. A TCDA statement in September 2026 urged value-chain actors to understand the regulatory requirements (title only seen). The fees, forms and conditions were not found: ask the TCDA regional office, and do not collect money for a "certificate" from anyone who cannot show you their authority.

What nobody has told you. Before 3 July 2026, there was no national nursery accreditation system in Ghana, according to a January 2026 study. That is now changing for the six TCDA crops. For other crops (citrus, avocado, timber, shade trees) no certification rule was found, so show quality with your own records and grades.

What a batch record shows

Species and variety
Source of seed, rootstock and scion, with the supplier's name and any approval or certificate number
Dates: sown, grafted, hardened, sold
Number started, number alive, number graded A, B, culled
Names of buyers and quantities sold

Keep these records where you can show them. The Ghana guide says to record planting dates, quantities planted, and the names, quantities and prices sold. FAO adds that you should record sowing dates, germination and growth for every species to find the best time to sow.

Culling, root pruning and spacing

Remove dead, dying and abnormal "giants" so only uniform healthy seedlings go out. Root prune when roots grow out of the pot into the soil, water and shade about two days after, and repeat every 3 to 4 weeks. When leaves overlap, sort large and small plants and re-space them; larger polypots (100 × 175 mm, 4 × 7 inch) give bigger seedlings that survive transplanting better, and black polythene lasts longer. Start final hardening one month before the plants leave, reducing watering and shade.

A number for sturdiness

A report (summary only) attributed to ICRAF gives two quality measures. The sturdiness quotient is height in centimetres divided by root collar diameter in millimetres, ideally about 6. The root-to-shoot dry weight ratio should be between 1 : 1 and 2 : 1. The second needs oven drying and a scale, so use the first in the nursery. These are general targets, not a Ghana standard: seedling height and age standards for sale of each species in Ghana were not verified.

Example: a 30 cm plant with a 5 mm stem has a quotient of 30 ÷ 5 = 6 (good). A 42 cm plant with a 6 mm stem has 42 ÷ 6 = 7 (tall and thin). A 24 cm plant with a 6 mm stem has 24 ÷ 6 = 4 (short and stocky).

Grade a block of 50 plants

Place the plants in rows in good light.
Number a sample of 20 with labels.
Measure each sample's height (cm) with a ruler from soil to the growing tip, and the stem thickness (mm) just above the soil.
Divide height by thickness to get the quotient. Write it in a table.
Mark each plant: A (healthy, quotient near 6, no disease, join healed on grafted plants), B (small or slightly weak), Cull (sick, bent, root coiling, dead tip).
Separate the A, B and cull groups. Do not sell culls as good plants.
Record the counts in the batch record and compute the percentage of each grade.

Grading sums

You graded 400 grafted mango plants: 310 A, 60 B, 30 cull (example). (a) What percent are A? (b) A buyer orders 300 grade A. Can you supply it? (c) A plant is 36 cm tall with a 6 mm stem. What is the quotient and is it near the target?

Quality card

Make a one-page grade card with pictures: what a grade A, grade B and cull plant look like. Pin it where you work.

Check yourself

From what date must planting material of the six TCDA crops come from approved, certified sources?
How do you work out the sturdiness quotient?
Name two things a batch record must show.

Unit 5 · Scheduling the year and taking orders

Plants cannot be rushed. If you start late, you miss the rains and the sale.

Competency standard

Learning outcome	Performance criteria — the trainee…
5.1 Work back from a sale date	builds a calendar from the delivery date
5.2 Plan space and stock	calculates bed space for a given number of plants
5.3 Take and manage orders	records orders, deposits and delivery dates
5.4 Judge a big contract	lists the risks in supplying government or large buyers

Range. A nursery batch of fruit trees and shade trees. Evidence. Calendar; space plan; order book; oral questions.

Know when people buy

A January 2026 study found demand for seedlings peaks from March to June and again from September to November. More than 80 percent of farmers raise their own seedlings, and no buyer base was guaranteed. That study was about horticultural (vegetable-type) seedlings, not tree seedlings, so ask local cocoa, oil-palm, coconut and fruit farmers when they plant. FAO's advice is to work back from the planting date, so seedlings are good planting size when the rains start.

Work back from the sale date

Add up the time each step takes, then count backwards from the date the buyer wants the plant.

Step	Time (mango example)	Source
Rootstock growth	about 6 months (26 weeks)	ICRAF-Mango-Grafting
Scion takes	14 to 21 days (use 3 weeks)	ICRAF-Mango-Grafting
Hardening	6 to 8 weeks (use 8)	ICRAF-Mango-Grafting
Total	37 weeks

Example: a buyer wants grafted mango plants on 1 March 2027. Counting back 37 weeks, you must sow stones on about 15 June 2026; you graft 11 weeks before (14 December 2026); hardening starts 8 weeks before (4 January 2027). If the buyer wants them on 1 September 2027, sowing is about 16 December 2026. (Dates calculated by script; the stone season in Western Region was not verified, so check when fresh stones are available.) For cashew, the Ghana trial found the month affects take (July best, October worst for one method), so schedule grafting for the best month.

Make a 12-month wall calendar

Draw 12 boxes (one per month) on a sheet. Mark the rainy seasons.
Mark the peak buying months (March to June and September to November).
Pick one crop and one sale date. Use the table above to count back and mark the sow, graft and hardening dates.
Write beside each date what you need: stones, polybags, scions, tape, labour.
Pin it up and tick off steps as you complete them.

Space for the batch

The Ghana guide gives about 5 m² of bed area per 1,000 seedlings; double it for walkways, sheds and poles, and double it again for large pots. Beds are 80 to 100 cm wide, walkways at least 60 cm, arranged in blocks of 500 or 1,000 so stock-taking is easy. So 1,000 seedlings need 10 m² of nursery, and 5,000 seedlings need 50 m². A batch of 8,000 needs 8 × 5 × 2 = 80 m², or 160 m² in large pots.

Take orders properly

Write each order in a book: buyer, phone number, species, variety, grade, quantity, price, date wanted
Take a deposit before you sow or graft (course suggestion; the amount is for you and the buyer to agree)
Say plainly how many plants may fail and what you will do (replace? refund?)
Give a delivery date and keep it
Keep a receipt book; give a receipt for every payment

Be careful with big contracts

Seedling contractors who supplied Green Ghana Day in 2021 and 2022 in the Ashanti Region said they were unpaid; one report gave GH¢28 million. The Forestry Commission also gives away free seedlings in some programmes, which pulls down prices for common trees. Sell what free programmes do not: grafted fruit trees, special species, quality, delivery and a guarantee. Get any big order in writing; do not borrow heavily to supply it.

Order maths

A farmer orders 300 grafted mango plants at GH¢7 each (example price) on a 30% deposit. (a) What is the total price? (b) How much is the deposit, and the balance? (c) You need 8,000 plants of different kinds for the year. How much bed space is needed (use 5 m² per 1,000 and double it for walkways)?

Ask three farmers

Ask three farmers or buyers: when do you plant? how many do you need? what do you pay? Record the answers on one page.

Check yourself

Which two periods of the year does the study say seedling demand peaks?
How many weeks before a sale must you sow a mango stone, using the table (rootstock + take + hardening)?
Name one risk of supplying government seedlings.

Unit 6 · Protecting the nursery: pests, diseases and hygiene

Prevention is cheaper than cure. A clean nursery needs very little spraying.

Competency standard

Learning outcome	Performance criteria — the trainee…
6.1 Prevent disease	names and applies hygiene and water controls
6.2 Recognise common problems	identifies damping-off, leaf spot, dieback and pests
6.3 Respond safely	uses non-chemical controls first; reads labels for registered products

Range. A small nursery with seedling and grafted batches. Evidence. Inspection sheet; control plan; oral questions.

No doses in this book. Pesticide rates depend on the product and crop. This book gives none. Use only products registered by the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA); a product without an EPA registration number is not approved. Read the label first; ask the EPA or the district agriculture officer for the current list. The TCDA regulations also have rules on agrochemicals and pest control (Regulations 60 and 61; content not seen). No list of EPA-registered biopesticides for nurseries was found.

What goes wrong in Ghana nurseries

Operators in southern Ghana reported damping-off, leaf spot, shoot dieback and wilting, and pests such as crickets, termites and squirrels. The causes were linked to overwatering, too much shade, poor ventilation, garden or forest soil and stream water. Stream water and garden or forest soil can carry nursery fungus (Cylindrocladium). Leaf spot of Ceiba pentandra caused heavy deaths in Ghana nurseries.

The prevention list

Use clean, sterilised tools; sterilise between plants (bleach 1 : 9 water, or spirit)
Use washed river sand and well-made compost, not forest or garden soil
No compost in seed trays
Water only morning and late afternoon; do not overwater; use clean water
Shade only when needed; permanent heavy shade makes weak, yellow plants; open slats; waterproof shade over seed trays
Keep beds free of weeds and rubbish; do not reuse a bed without cleaning
Remove and cull sick seedlings at once
Keep newly grafted plants out of rain, and do not overwater them

Simple controls

Termites and ants: wood ash was used; keep the nursery clean.
Cutworms and beetles: dig out cutworms and hand-pick beetles.
Damping off: it increases when beds are reused without rotation, so clean or change the bed and the sand.
Squirrels and rats: cover seed beds with wire mesh or fine netting (course suggestion).
Sick plants: a trial in Sudan found neem kernel powder reduced termites in nursery beds; rates there were local and are not given here.
Biopesticide sprays are mentioned in the Ghana guide, but the product, rate and registration must come from an EPA-registered label.

Protective gear: gloves, apron and rain boots. If you must spray a registered product, ask a trained agriculture officer to supervise, store it locked and labelled, away from children, and never spray against the wind.

Weekly nursery inspection

Walk every row. Look at the leaves (spots, yellowing), stems (cankers, rot at the soil), pots (loose roots, weeds).
Count sick plants for each batch. Write them down.
Pull sick plants out and take them away from the nursery (do not leave them on the ground).
Check that shade and water are as planned. Check for waterlogged corners.
Look under leaves and at the base of the stem for pests.
Wash and sterilise your tools.
Write an action list for the week.
If something new appears, take a sample to the district agriculture office, or in the Ghana survey, some operators took samples to CSIR-FORIG or the Forest Services Division.

Loss sums

In a batch of 400 seedlings, 36 died of damping off (example). (a) What percent were lost? (b) If each plant cost GH¢3 to raise (example), what is the cost of the loss? (c) After cleaning the bed, the next batch of 400 lost 12. What is the new loss percent?

Nursery inspection at a neighbour

Visit a nursery or a garden. List three things that are good for plant health and three that are risks.

Check yourself

Why is stream water or forest soil a risk in a nursery?
Can you use any pesticide you find in a shop?
Name two controls that cost nothing.

Unit 7 · Costing, location, business, marketing and access

Know what each plant costs before you name a price. Then sell the quality, not just the plant.

Competency standard

Learning outcome	Performance criteria — the trainee…
7.1 Cost a batch	works out cost per plant and a selling price
7.2 Choose a location	explains what makes a good nursery location
7.3 Plan a nursery business	writes a one-page plan with services and a marketing plan
7.4 Include everyone	describes tasks and adjustments for persons with disabilities

Range. A small grafted-seedling nursery. Evidence. Costing sheet; business plan; oral questions.

What the market looks like

More than 80 percent of farmers raise their own seedlings, and the main problem for new nurseries is finding buyers. A group of women with disabilities in Ahafo (about 200 seedlings, mahogany, emire, mango and orange) said their main problem in August 2026 was "no buyers".
A government programme costed improved cashew seedlings at GH¢1.50 each, which was a production cost via GEPA (the export agency), not a market price. A study of cashew seedling businesses found four models with gross margins from US$1,616 to US$8,474 (abstract only; models and prices not seen).
Coconut seedlings advertised on Jiji ranged from GH₵8 to over GH₵40, mostly Central Region (unverified ads, not Western Region).
Polybags, topsoil, sand and grafted fruit-tree prices in the Western Region were not found. Phone three agro-input shops in Takoradi or Tarkwa and write the prices down.

Money maths: cost and price of 1,000 grafted mango plants

All costs below are example numbers; replace them with real quotes.

Item	Working	GH¢ (example)
Mango stones	1,200 × 0.10	120
Polybags	1,000 × 0.40	400
Topsoil, sand, compost mix	1,000 × 0.20	200
Scions (approved source)	1,000 × 0.30	300
Tape and labels	1,000 × 0.10	100
Labour	40 days × 50	2,000
Water and shade		300
Sterilising supplies and tools wear		80
Total cost		3,500

Of 1,000 grafted, 75% take (750 plants) and 50 are lost in hardening, so 700 plants can be sold.

Cost per sold plant = 3,500 ÷ 700 = GH¢5.00.
Price with 40% added to cost = 5.00 × 1.40 = GH¢7.00.
Money in = 700 × 7.00 = GH¢4,900. Profit = 4,900 − 3,500 = GH¢1,400.
Profit as a share of sales (profit margin) = 1,400 ÷ 4,900 = 28.6%. Note that adding 40% to cost is not the same as a 40% margin.
Break-even = 3,500 ÷ 7.00 = 500 plants must be sold to get your money back.

What if the take is worse or better (price stays GH¢7)?

Take	Plants taken	Sold (minus 50)	Money in	Profit
60%	600	550	3,850	350
75%	750	700	4,900	1,400
90%	900	850	5,950	2,450

The lesson: a skilled grafter earns much more, because the cost of the batch is the same whether the grafts take or not. (All numbers checked by script.)

Cost your own batch

Use your own quotes for a batch of 500 grafted plants (stones, bags, soil, scions, tape, labour, water). Work out: (a) total cost; (b) plants you expect to sell if 70% take and 25 are lost; (c) cost per plant; (d) price with 40% added; (e) the break-even number of plants. As a check, use these example figures: total cost GH¢1,900, 70% take, 25 lost, 40% markup.

Location settings that give good returns

Near your buyers and planting areas, near water, and near a motorable road
Near cocoa, oil palm, coconut, rubber and fruit farms around Takoradi and Akwidaa (buyer list: your own visits)
Near a school, church, Assembly or NGO that plants trees (the Ahafo group urges these as buyers)
Near a road where passing farmers can see the plants

Business ideas and ingenuity

Sell grafted fruit trees and rooted cuttings that farmers cannot easily raise themselves
Sell plants with a guarantee (replace plants that fail in the first month) and a labelled variety
Offer delivery to the farm and a short planting talk
Raise rootstocks and sell them to bigger nurseries (course suggestion)
Sell ornamental and shade plants to homes, schools and churches
Offer a grafting service: graft farmers' own rootstocks on site (course suggestion)
Work as a group nursery with youth and women
Keep a pre-order list and send a WhatsApp message before the rains

Market yourself

Use a WhatsApp Business profile with your catalogue (species, price, photo), a greeting message and an away message.
Set up a free Google Business Profile so farmers searching nearby find you; verification can be by phone, email, video call or a postcard (about 14 days).
Put up a clear sign at the nursery gate with a phone number; label each plant with species and date.
Take before-and-after photos (with permission) of a farm that planted your plants; ask for referrals.
Keep a portfolio: batch records, grade card, TCDA or other certificates you actually hold. Never claim a certificate you do not hold.
Do not promise what the seedlings cannot do. Say honestly how many usually survive.

Accessibility

No source gave physical-accessibility design for nurseries. The suggestions below are course suggestions, not from a source. Beds 80 to 100 cm wide with walkways at least 60 cm let a person reach from one side (the widths come from the Ghana guide). Sit-down tasks such as pricking out, bagging, labelling, grafting, record keeping, sales and phone orders suit people with limited walking or standing. Use raised benches to reduce bending, large-print or colour labels for people with low vision, and a partner for heavy lifting such as soil mixing and carrying. A women's group with disabilities in Ahafo runs a tree nursery and said: "We can work". The Persons with Disability Act, 2006 (Act 715) is the law on disability rights; reports say public facilities still do not follow it fully. Reports said the Assemblies' disability share would rise to 5% from 2026; this was not verified for this book, so ask your District Assembly about help for disabled entrepreneurs.

Plan your nursery business

Cost one batch using the table above and your own quotes.
Write a one-page plan: what you sell, who buys, where, price, deposit, delivery, and the licences you need to ask the TCDA about.
Draw a layout that suits workers with different abilities.
Set up a mock WhatsApp Business catalogue with three plants and prices.
Present it in two minutes to the class.

Phone call

Phone the TCDA regional office (or visit) and write down: do you need to register your nursery; what is needed; what does it cost; how long does it last. Bring your notes.

Check yourself

If a batch costs GH¢2,000 and 400 plants can be sold, what is the cost per plant?
Why is a high graft take good for profit even though the batch cost stays the same?
Name one task in a nursery that suits a person who cannot stand for long.

Glossary

Term	Meaning
Competent / Not Yet Competent	The two possible results of a CBT assessment
Rootstock	The seedling that gives the roots and lower stem of a grafted plant
Scion	The piece of the chosen variety joined to the rootstock
Graft	Joining a scion to a rootstock
Budding	Joining a single bud to a rootstock
Cambium	The thin green layer under the bark where the join heals
Wedge / cleft graft	A graft with a V-shaped scion in a split rootstock
T-bud	A bud slid under bark flaps cut in a T shape
Take percent	Grafts that grew ÷ grafts made × 100
Cutting	A piece of plant that grows roots to make a new plant
Marcott	The rooted branch cut off after air layering
Propagation box	A closed frame that keeps cuttings humid
Sturdiness quotient	Plant height (cm) ÷ stem thickness (mm); about 6 is good
Cull	To remove a weak or sick plant
Hardening off	Getting a plant used to full sun and less water before it leaves
TCDA	Tree Crops Development Authority, which covers six tree crops
Certified planting material	Seed or plants from approved sources that have been inspected
Damping off	A disease that kills young seedlings at the soil
Break-even	The number sold to cover all costs
Margin	Profit as a share of sales

Logbook

Copy these pages into an exercise book. Your logbook is part of your assessment evidence.

Unit 1: seed record card; germination test sheet; rootstock record
Unit 2: propagation box record; rooting percent; air layer record
Unit 3: sterilising checklist; graft and bud records with take percent; graft diary
Unit 4: graded batch sheet; sturdiness table; batch record; grade card
Unit 5: wall calendar; space plan; order book page; farmers' answers
Unit 6: weekly inspection sheets; loss calculations
Unit 7: costing sheet; business plan; TCDA phone notes
Every homework, dated

Self-check quiz

How do you work out the germination percent of a seed lot?
What are the rootstock and the scion?
What size and age should a mango rootstock be at grafting?
Why must you sterilise your knife between every plant?
How long after a mango graft should the scion show leaves?
Why should you test a new grafting method on a small batch?
What is the sturdiness quotient, and what value is good?
From 3 July 2026, what must planting material of mango, cashew and coconut come from?
How many weeks before sale should mango stones be sown, by this book's table?
Which two periods does the study give for peak demand for seedlings?
Who decides which pesticide is allowed, and what must you read first?
A batch costs GH¢3,500 and 700 plants can be sold. What is the cost per plant?