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Malawi cowpeas are leguminous plants that are tolerant of sandy soils and low rainfall. This adaptation makes it suitable in semi-arid areas such as the northern part of Malawi. Farming is less expensive as it is less demanding as it can fix nitrogen into the soil using the nodules in its roots, thus a perfect crop for intercropping. The whole cowpea plant is used as forage for animals. It is mainly used in making cattle feeds. 

There are four varieties of the crop that are grown in the northern areas of Malawi. The species have different morphology, such as size, shape, and even the plant structure. The plant can grow erect, semi-erect, or also climb on other plants, according to the species. Cowpeas seeds are high in protein. The leaves and the ponds can be used while they are immature. 

Cowpeas were domesticated in Africa and are among the oldest crops to be farmed. The seeds are used as meals into stews, ground into flour, or even paste. Farming of the product is inhibited by a large infestation of pests and insects. 

Within the crop, there is large morphological diversity, and even the growth conditions and the preference of the growers vary from one region to the other. The plant does self-pollination making its genetic diversity within the varieties very low. The plants can grow as short bushes of as short as 20 centimeters while the climbing ones act like vines and use other plants to climb or trail along the ground up to a height of 2 meters. It has a taproot that can go as deep as 2.4 meters in 8 weeks. 

There is a high variance in the size and shape of the leaves, which makes it a vital classification and distinguishing feature in the varieties. The peduncles which home the flowers and the seeds also is a distinguishing factor.  

They have small seeds and also ponds with cultivated peas having ponds, which are 10-110 centimeters, with each pod carrying from six to 13 seeds that usually bare kidney shape. The more the seeds are restricted in the ponds, the more spherical they become. They have varying texture and color, with the composition varying from smooth to rough. They are white, red, green, brown, cream, or even black. 

They do well in dry areas with soils that are made up of 85% sand, making them suitable in the arid parts of the country and having high production. They are used both as livestock and human feeds in these areas. They require an optimal temperature of 30degrees Celsius, which makes it grow in the summer. It requires rainfall of 400 to 700 mm annually and soils that are sandy as it is tolerant of soils that are infertile and even acidic. 

Harvesting of Malawi cowpeas is done three months after sowing; leaves can be picked after a month while after four months, and the whole plant can be used as forage. The low fertilization requirements in the plants and these conditions make the plant ideal for farmers in the arid areas in the country that do not have enough resources to opt for its farming. Some early maturing varieties can be planted in the semi-arid regions such as the northeastern areas in Malawi that grow early where rainfalls are less than 500mm annually. 

After harvesting, the storage seeds are stored in well-treated containers to avoid postharvest pests’ infestation. There are the traditional methods that the natives use in protecting the grains using extracts of the neem tree, mixing them with ash, or even using smoke to prevent these attacks. The product can be packed in pest-free bags from 1 kg up to 5o kilos according to the needs of the client. There are modern preservation methods available such as freezing, heat treatment, or even irradiation to kill the pests. 

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