Applied Horticulture Crop Production Technology (Fruit crop)

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4. Perform different cultivation practices of Litchi. 1.2 INTRODUCTION. Litchi ( Litchi chinensis) is most important subtropical, evergreen fruit tree. A native.
School of Agriculture Diploma in Commercial Horticulture DCH-10

Applied Horticulture: Crop Production Technology (Fruit Crops) DCH 03

2010-2011 Uttarakhand Open University Haldwani, Nainital

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Expert Committee Prof. Vinay Kumar Phatak Patron Uttarakhand Open University Haldwani, Nainital

Prof. Nem Pal Singh Director, School of Agriculture & Health Sciences Uttarakhand Open University Haldwani Nainital

Shri Sudhir Chadda Director IDHT, Chaffi, Bheemtal

Dr. Ranjan Shrivastava Associate Professor, Deptt. Of Horticulture GBPUA&T, Pantnagar

Dr. Prabhat Kumar Assistant Professor, Deptt. Of Horticulture GBPUA&T, Pantnagar

Programme Co-ordinator

Gaurav Papnai

Course Writers and material collection Prof. Nem Pal Singh Director, School of Agriculture & Health Sciences Uttarakhand Open University Haldwani, Nainital

Gaurav Papnai Academic Consultant Uttarakhand Open University Haldwani, Nainital

Course Editing Prof. Nem Pal Singh Director, School of Agriculture & Health Sciences Uttarakhand Open University Haldwani, Nainital

Gaurav Papnai Academic Consultant Uttarakhand Open University Haldwani, Nainital

All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form, by mimeograph or any other means, without prior permission in writing from the Uttarakhand Open University.

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Syllabus

Page No.

Unit-1: LITCHI

01-09

Unit-2: GUAVA

10-20

Unit-3: PAPAYA

21-31

Unit-4: APPLE

32-54

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Unit-1: LITCHI Table of Contents 1.1 OBJECTIVES 1.2 INTRODUCTION 1.3 CLIMATE AND SOIL 1.4 VARIETIES 1.5 PROPAGATION 1.5.1 SEED PROPAGATION 1.5.2 VEGETATIVE PROPAGATION 1.6 CULTIVATION 1.6.1 PLANTING 1.6.2 TRAINING AND PRUNING 1.6.3 MANURING AND FERTILIZATION 1.6.4 AFTERCARE 1.6.5 IRRIGATION 1.7 HARVESTING AND POSTHARVEST MANAGEMENT 1.8 PHYSIOLOGICAL DISORDER

1.1 OBJECTIVES After the completion of the chapter students will be able to 1. Understand importance of Litchi cultivation. 2. Identify different varieties of Litchi. 3. Understand propagation methods of Litchi Cultivation. 4. Perform different cultivation practices of Litchi.

1.2 INTRODUCTION Litchi (Litchi chinensis) is most important subtropical, evergreen fruit tree. A native of South China, it reached India by the end of 17th century. India ranked second in the world 1|Page

next to China in litchi production. Most area falls in north Bihar comprising Muzaffarpur, Vaishali, Samastipur, Begusarai, east and west champaran and Bhagalpur districts. Litchi is famous for its excellent quality, pleasant flavour, juicy pulp (aril) with attractive red colour. Although litchi is liked very much as a table fruit, dried and canned litchis are also popular. A highly flavored squash is also prepared from its fruits. The fruit consists of 60% juice, 8% rag, 19% seed and 13% skin varying upon variety and climate. Litchi is also an excellent source of vitamin C (40.0-90mg/l00g) but it contains insignificant amount of protein (0.80.9%), fat (0.3%), pectin (0.43%) and minerals especially calcium, phosphorus and iron (0.7%).

1.3 CLIMATE AND SOIL Generally it flourishes best in a moist atmosphere, having abundant rainfall and free from frost. Its plants grow luxuriantly at 30'C. The maximum temperature during flowering and fruit development varies from 21'C in February to 38'C in June. Humidity is another important factor for litchi. The dry hot winds in summer cause fruit cracking and subsequently damage the pulp (aril). Sometimes it limits the expansion of litchi cultivation. Wet spring, dry summer and light winter are desirable conditions for fruiting in litchi. Litchi grows in a variety of soil types. However fairly deep, well-drained loam soil rich in organic matter is best suited for its cultivation. Light sandy loam is ideal. High lime content in soil is also beneficial to its trees. If soil is deficient, lime must be added to it. Soils, where best litchi is grown, contain about 30% lime. A sandy loam or clay loam with a pH of 5.5-7.0 and sufficient soil depth is ideal for litchi cultivation.

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1.4 VARIETIES A large number of varieties are grown in different parts of India. Of these early seedless (Early Bedana), Rose Scented, Dehradun, Gulabi, Calcuttia, Purbi, Kasba, Shahi, Bombai, Late Seedless (Late Bedana), China and Deshi are important. Shahi. Rose Scented and China are commercial varieties of Muzaffarpur, while Kasba and Purbi are choicest litchies of the eastern parts in Bihar. Early Bedana and Late Bedana are other important litchi varieties. In Uttar Pradesh, Rose scented, Dehradun and Calcutta, and in West Bengal, Bombay Green and Kalyani selection are extensively grown. Muzaffarpur, Dehradun, Seedless and Late Bedana are widely-grown varieties in Punjab. An early, non-cracking seedless selection, Swaran Roopa, has been identified for commercial planting in Chhotanagpur area.

1.5 PROPAGATION Litchi is raised both through seed and vegetative means. 1.5.1 Seed propagation Propagation by seed is not common because the plants raised from seed take 7-12 years to come into bearing. These plants normally do not produce true to type fruits and often produce fruits of inferior quality. Seeds are used generally to raise seedlings for rootstock purposes or raising hybrid seedlings. The seeds should be sown immediately after extraction from the fruit, as they lose their viability in 4-5 days. If seeds remain in the fruit and fruits are not allowed to dry, they can be kept viable for 8-4 weeks. For germination; seeds soaked in water for l5-20 hr should be placed horizontally, about 1.5 cm below the surface of a well-drained soil. The growth of seedlings may be improved by the use of mycorrhizal soil.

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1.5.2 Vegetative propagation Litchi can be propagated successfully by cuttings and grafting (splice and inarching). Budding is not commonly practised. The most common and easiest method adopted all over the world is air layering. Air-layering is also called “marcotting” in China and “Gootee” in India. About 2 cm wide ring of bark is removed just below a bud from a healthy and vigorous twig about oneyear-old and 2.5-4.0 cm across. The cuti is then surrounded by mud ball containing sphagnum moss (2 parts of damp moss and 1 part of soil from the foot of old litchi tree is best suited) and wrapped with a polythene sheet. Both ends are tied with fine rope or rubber bands to make it practically air-tight. When sufficient roots are formed in about 2 months, the branch is cut below the soil or sphagnum moss and petted in a nursery. July-October is most appropriate time, After removing the air-layers (marcotts) from the mother plant, it is desirable to provide some moist or humid atmosphere by sprinkling water mist for further 2 or 3 weeks, It is necessary to cut back the top of the branch, so as to secure a proportion of leaves to root. At least 6 months-old marcotted (air-layered) plants should be planted in the permanent field preferably monsoon (rainy season). IBA (2-10 g/litre of water) is most effective n root promotion in air-layering of litchi.

1.6 CULTIVATION 1.6.1 Planting Before planting, the land should be cleared and leveled with gentle slope on one side of the plot, on the opposite direction of irrigation source. Then pits of 1m x 1m x 1m Size should be dug at the desired places a few weeks before the actual planting. These are kept open for 15-20 days and then refilled with a mixture of well-rotted farmyard manure, leafmould and canal silt. A mixture of farmyard manure (20-25kg), bone-meal (2kg) and sulphate

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of potash (400g) is also recommended to be mixed with a basket full soil in a pit from a litchi orchard, containing mycorrhizal fungi. It is helpful in establishment and quik growth of newly-planted plants. The pits are watered to set this mixture with the earth. Planting is done after a week. Water is applied immediately after planting. Litchi trees are usually planted in a square system, 10m apart. The distance can be reduced to 7.5m apart each way where litchi plants need protection either from frost or from the desiccating winds. For quick establishment and less mortality, healthy 6-9 months old, true to type plants, fine roots should be selected. It is advisable that all the new plants should be inoculated with mycorrhizal fungi. After planting, the land should not be allowed to dry completely. Hence, the new plantation is recommended during early monsoon season. Planting can also be done in the spring, if irrigation facilities are available. Planting is not advisable when the weather is either too dry or too wet.

1.6.2 Training and pruning Training young litchi plants for making a good framework is necessary. Once the desired shape and a strong framework is achieved, pruning is not required, except removing dead or diseased branches and damaged shoots. In India, this occurs indirectly when a part of the shoot bearing the cluster of fruits is removed during harvesting. However, heavy pruning of tree causes profuse vegetative growth resulting in poor fruiting. If trees become too old and produce small sided fruits, pruning heavily improves the yield and quality of fruits.

1.6.3 Manuring and fertilization In India; litchi is grown mostly in natural fertile soil. A little or manure is given. The acute shortage of N, P and K seems to stunt all forms of litchi growth, including floral

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initiation. The fertilizer schedule recommended for litchi for north Indian plains is given in Tables 1. Fertilizer should be applied just after harvesting during the rainy season. Applying fertilizers late result in more vegetative growth and less fruiting. Method of manuring is similar to that of other fruit crops. The plants grown, under deficiency of NPK can flower but do not set fruits. The plants grown under Mg deficiency do not even bloom.

Table 1. Fertilizer schedule for litchi in north India Fertilizers/plant/year (kg) Age of plant

Farmyard

Calcium

Super

Muriate of

manure

ammonium

phosphate

potash

nitrate 1-3 years

10-20

0.3-1.00

0.2-0.6

0.05-0.15

4-6 years

25-40

1.0-2.00

0.75-1.25

0.20-.0

7-10 years

40-50

2.0-3.00

1.50-2.00

0.30-0.50

Above 10

60

3.50

2.25

0.60

years

1.6.4 Aftercare Maintenance of good sanitary conditions is must to keep litchi orchards healthy and disease-free. Litchi is a deep-rooted tree with most of its feeding roots occurring 20-30cm deep. Therefore, deep tillage is harmful for its plants since it may cause injury to its roots. Tillage operations should be limited up to upper 7-1Ocm soil layers, whereas deep tillage up to 15cm during inactive growth phase is advised. Since litchi is a slow growing tree taking at least 6 years to come to flowering and fruiting, meter cropping vegetables, pulses and berseem is advised. Some quick-growing fruit plants like papaya can also be grown in early years of its plantation. The intercrops should be manured separately and protected from pests and diseases. 6|Page

Weeds are controlled mainly by hand-weeding or hoeing which is very laborious and expensive. Applying pre-emergence herbicides Diuron or Atrazine @ 2kg/acre at one month interval keeps weeds under control; Use of black polythene mulch also controls weeds more effectively than organic mulch.

1.6.5 Irrigation January-end to the onset of monsoon is a critical period for irrigation since vegetative growth and fruit development take place. Four months prior to normal floral initiation period (December-January) in northern India, the plants should not be irrigated. Though litchi is a deep-rooted, perennial fruit crop, the absorbing roots mostly occur in the upper topmost soil layer between 20 and 30cm depth. Therefore, this zone should have 50% soil moisture during the critical period. Young trees should be irrigated by the basin system. As the tree grows, the basin should be gradually enlarged. The fully grown trees are irrigated by flooding or by furrow irrigation, depending on the availability and source of water as per their requirement. The frequency of irrigation ordinarily depends on soil type. Generally weekly irrigation should be given in summer. No irrigation is required during winter in fruiting trees before fruit set.

1.7 HARVESTING AND POSTHARVEST MANAGEMENT The number of days taken by the fruit to mature varies with genotype and environment and hence cannot be the deciding factor for its maturity. Generally litchi fruits, mature 50-60 days after fruit set. The development of colour on fruits is a dependable criterion of maturity but it differs from variety-to-variety. Generally fruits turn deep red when fully ripe. Fruits harvested at this stage possess excellent fruit quality. Maturity of fruit is also determined by the shape of the tubercles which on ripening become somewhat flattened and

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the epicarp becomes smooth. Litchi fruits, like other fruits, are not harvested individually to avoid skin rupturing at the stem-end and quick rotting of fruits. They are harvested in bunches along with a portion of the branch and a few leaves. It prolongs the storage life of fruits. Harvesting of litchi is usually done in May and June. In Bihar, it is done in early-May, whereas in Uttar Pradesh and Punjab it starts during late-May to early-June. In India; yield varies from 80-150kg fruits/tree depending upon variety and tree vigour. After harvesting, fruits should be packed as quickly as possible, as their quality deteriorates markedly, if they are exposed to sun even for a few hours. In packed litchi fruits, air should circulate freely. The damaged, sun-burnt and cracked fruits should be sorted and graded properly. There should be only fruits of one grade in a box. Fruits of different varieties should be packed separately. It is better if the box or container is tagged having name of variety and grade. These are lined with litchi leaves or other soft packing material as paper shavings, wool etc. To maintain quality and avoid gluts, fruits should be stored properly. Keeping fruits in storage at 50-70C may minimize the losses. Besides retaining colour and taste, the storage also minimizes the heavy loss in fruit weight. At present almost entire litchi crop in India is consumed as fresh. Since litchi is a highly perishable fruit, its canning and preserving into squashes, jelly and juice is desirable to utilize surplus produce, if any. The fruits for local market should be harvested at their full ripe stage, while for distant markets they start turning reddish. If marketing of packed fruits is delayed, they should be kept in a cold storage. Litchi fruits can be stored in good condition for 3-4 weeks.

1.8 PHYSIOLOGICAL DISORDER Sun-burning and skin-cracking in developing fruits is a serious problem in litchi. High temperatures, low humidity and soil moisture conditions during fruit development promote this disorder. 8|Page

Inadequate moisture during early period of fruit growth results in the skin becoming hard and sun-burnt- It may crack when it is subjected to increase internal pressure as a result of rapid aril growth following irrigation or rain. Fruit cracking in litchi is also favoured if temperature goes above 38°C and relative humidity less than 60%. Although effective control measures have not been recommended, frequent and adequate irrigation to bearing trees during fruit growth and development period is most useful. Growth regulators NAA (20mg/litre of water), GA (40mg/litre of water), 2, 4-D (10mg/litre of water), 2, 4, 5-T (10mg/litre of water) and Ethephon (10mg/litre of water) reduce the incidence of fruit cracking. Spraying with ZnSO4 (1.5%) weekly or CaNO3 (1.5%) fortnightly from pea-size to harvesting of fruit is an effective method to reduce cracking incidence.

Check Your Progress

Q.1 Litchi is rich source of ………………………, .…………………….., ……………..……, ……………………, ……………………, ………………………. and ……….……………… Q.2 India is ……………………….. in Litchi production. Q.3 Discuss different methods of propagation. Q.4 Elaborate different cultivation practices of Litchi cultivation. Q.5 Discuss on harvesting and post harvest practices of Litchi. Q.6 What are the different physiological disorders in Litchi crops. Q.7 Write down different Litchi varieties for North India.

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Unit-2: GUAVA Table of Contents 2.1 OBJECTIVES 2.2 INTRODUCTION 2.3 CLIMATE AND SOIL 2.4 VARIETIES 2.5 PROPAGATION 2.5.1 SEED PROPAGATION 2.5.2 VEGETATIVE PROPAGATION 2.6 CULTIVATION 2.6.1 PLANTING 2.6.2 TRAINING/PRUNING 2.6.3 MANURING AND FERTILIZATION 2.7 GUAVA WILT 2.8 AFTER CARE 2.9 IRRIGATION 2.10 HARVESTING AND POSTHARVEST MANAGEMENT

2.1 OBJECTIVES After the completion of the chapter students will be able to 1. Understand importance of Guava cultivation. 2. Identify different varieties of Guava. 3. Understand propagation methods of Guava Cultivation. 4. Perform different cultivation practices of Guava. 2.2 INTRODUCTION GUAVA (Psidium guajava) is a very popular fruit. It is available through-out the year except during the summer season. Being very hardy, it gives an assured crop even with very 10 | P a g e

little care. Its cost of production is also low because its requirements for fertilizer, irrigation and plant protection are not much. Further its nutritive value is very high. Therefore it is an ideal fruit for the nutritional security. Guava is also grown as a backyard fruit to a great extent. Best quality guavas are produced in Uttar Pradesh, particularly in Allahabad region.

2.3 CLIMATE AND SOIL Owing to its hardy nature, guava is grown successfully in tropical and subtropical regions up to l,500 m above mean sea-level. Best quality guavas are obtained where low night temperatures (l0oC) prevail during winter season. It tolerates high temperatures and drought condition in north India in summers but it is susceptible to severe frost as it can kill the young plants. An annual rainfall of about l00cm is sufficient during the rainy season (July-September). The rains during harvest period, however, deteriorate the quality of fruits. Guava is cultivated on varied types of soils-heavy clay to very light sandy soils. Nevertheless, very good quality guavas are produced in river-basins. It tolerates a soil pH of 4.5-8.2. Maximum concentration of its feeding roots is available up to 25cm soil depth. Thus the top soil should be quite rich to provide enough nutrients for accelerating new growth which bears fruits.

2.4 VARIETIES The varietals characteristics in guava are not as distinct as found in majority of other fruits. Its propagation through seeds reduces the distinctive characteristic of a variety in commercial cultivation. Important guava varieties are:

Lucknow 49 Also known as Sardar, its fruits are large, roundish-ovate in shape, skin primroseyellow and pulp white, very sweet and tasty. The TSS and Vitamin C contents are high. The plants are vigorous. 11 | P a g e

A1lahabad Safeda The most famous variety of Allahabad, it has acquired large variations due to seed propagation. The fruits are large in size, round in shape, skin smooth and yellowish-white. The flesh is white, firm, soft having pleasant flavour, high TSS and vitamin C content. The seeds are numerous, bold and hard. The trees are tall with profuse branching and broad crown. It can withstand drought condition.

Chittldar This variety is very popular in we stem Uttar Pradesh. The fruits are characterized by numerous red dots on the skin, high sweetness, and small and, soft seeds. It is otherwise similar to Allahabad Safeda fruits in size, shape and pulp. It has higher TSS content than Allahabad Safeda and Lucknow 49 but lower vitamin C content. The tree characters resemble to those of Allahabad Safeda.

Harijha Harijha is more popular in Bihar because of profuse bearing. The trees are of medium vigour due to sparse branching. The fruit is round in shape, medium large in size and greenish-yellow in colour. Flavour is sweet with good keeping quality.

Hafshi It is red fleshed guava having good taste. Fruit is of moderately big size, spherical in shape with thin skin. Trees are of medium vigour but productive.

Apple Colour Its fruits are medium sized and pink coloured. They are sweet in taste with good keeping quality. They require temperature for the development of good pink colour. The trees

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are of medium vigour but their leaves are greener than others. However, it is a moderate yielder. Seedless All the seedless varieties Saharanpur Seedless, Nagpur Seedless and other are the same. Two types of fruits, completely seedless and partly seeded, are borne on a plant of seedless variety. The completely seedless fruits develop on the shoots rising from the stem and these are bigger in size and irregular in shape. The partly seeded fruits are born on normal shoots at the periphery and are small in size and round in shape. Seedless variety is unfit for commercial cultivation because it gives very low yield. The plants are very vigorous.

2.5 PROPAGATION Guava is propagated both by seeds and vegetatively. But vegetative propagation is commercially followed. 2.5.1 Seed Propagation The propagation of guava through seeds should not be encouraged, because the, seedlings have 1ong juvenile phase, give lower yield and bear poor qua1ity fruits. But the seedlings serve as rootstock material for grafting or budding. The seeds should be sown as soon as possible after extraction from the ripe fruits. Soaking of seeds in water for 12hr or in hydrochloric acid for 3min. gives about 90% germination. About 1year old seedlings become ready for grafting or budding. For planting seedling, seeds should be collected from the plants producing high-quality fruits and high yield. 2.5.2 Vegetative propagation In northern India, guava is propagated by inarching, giving a very high percentage of success during rainy season. But inarching is cumbersome and, gives limited number of plants from the mother plant. 13 | P a g e

Budding has been adopted only on a limited scale in some parts of the country where the atmospheric humidity is high. The main problem encountered in this method is disbudding of rootstock making it labour-intensive. Among the various methods of buddingshield, patch and chip-the patch budding is ideal giving highest percentage of success. However, the best time of budding differs from locality-to-locality. Layering is being commercially followed in the southern and western India with very good results. After bending the plant, its branches are covered with soil leaving the terminal portion open. In a few months the rooting of branches takes place which are then separated from the mother plants and planted in the nursery for further sale. Layering is a labourintensive method. A limited number of plants can only be multiplied from a mother plant. When mother plants are very tall, air-layering of shoots is done during the rainy season using polythene and moist sphagnum moss. Use of root-promoting plant growth regulator, IBA (3,000 ppm), promotes the rooting of air-layers up to 100%. The main limitation of air-layering is the poor establishment of air layers in the nursery after detachment from the mother plant. Further, the method is very cumbersome and labourintensive. Stooling is the easiest and cheapest method of guava propagation. The self-rooted plants (cuttings or layers) are planted 0.5m apart in the stooling bed. These are allowed to grow for about 3 years. Then these are cut down at the ground level in March. New shoots emerge on the beheaded stumps. A 3Ocm wide ring of bark is removed from the base of each shoot rubbing the cambium of the exposed portion in May. All the shoots are mounded with the soil to a height of 30cm. The soil is covered with mulch to conserve the moisture. After a period of 2 months of the onset of monsoon, the shoots are detached from the mother plant at ringed portion and planted in the nursery. The shoots are headed back to maintain the root and shoot balance before planting in the nursery.

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By following the technique of ringing and mounding of the shoots, second time stooling is done on the same mother stools in first week of September. The rooted stool layers are detached in first week of November. Thus stooling is done twice on the same mother stools in a year. The stooling of a mother stool can be done for many years. With the advancement in its age, the number of stool layers also increases every year. The growth and development of stool layers are better than seedlings. The application of rooting hormone is not required. A semi-dwarfing rootstock for guava Aneuploid 82 has been developed.

2.6 CULTIVATION 2.6.1 Planting The field for planting is prepared during summer season by ploughing, leveling and removing weeds. The pits of 1m x 1m x 1m size are dug and filled with a mixture of farmyard manure and soil. If soil is good and irrigation facilities are available the preparation of land and digging of pits are not required. The planting is done during the rainy season by adopting square planting system. Guava is commercially planted at a distance of 8m. The exact planting distance is, however, decided according to variety, soil fertility and availability of irrigation facilities. Guava Lucknow 49 needs more spacing than Apple Colour and Allahabad Safeda. Under irrigation and high soil fertility, the plants become very vigorous requiring more spacing. In normal conditions, a planting distance of 7 mt is optimum. High-density planting reduces total soluble solids, sugars and ascorbic acid but increases titratable acidity. The lower plant population results in the spread of crown, while higher planting density causes erect growth of branches making the plant tall and compact. High-density planting, gives higher yield/Unit area m early years of fruiting.

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2.6.2 Training/pruning Traditionally, no pruning is done in guava because the plant bears heavily even without it. But no pruning results in the formation of narrow crotches, limb breakage due to heavy fruit load and overcrowding. Therefore, training of plants in young stage to build strong framework and to avoid weak crotches is necessary, whereas fruiting trees should be pruned to check overcrowding in the orchard. The plants should be trained as low headed trees to facilitate multiple hand pickings. The open centre or delayed open centre system may be adopted. The scaffold branches in young plants are to be tipped back to encourage secondary branching. The root suckers, water sprouts and criss-cross branches are to be removed altogether. In Maharashtra, bending of horizontal branches is practiced to some extent by tying the branches of 2 adjoining plants to increase fruiting in young plants but it is labour-intensive and creates hindrances in cultural operations. In every growing season, a large number of new shoots emerge in guava a majority of which are lateral and a few are terminal. These shoots produce fruits. After 1 year most of the lateral shoots dry out, while terminal shoots put forth the extension growth. Hence, to check the overcrowding and to control the plant height, the terminal shoots on the periphery may be headed back at about 40cm level in alternate years. Pruning also takes place during harvesting as the fruit is plucked along with the shoot on which it is borne. Pruning is usually recommended after harvesting or in spring. Summer pruning may damage the plant by sun burning.

2.6.3 Manuring and fertilization Although guava is grown without the application of any manure and fertilizer, it responds very well to their application by giving higher yield and better quality fruits. For guava-growing regions of the country, different fertilizer schedules- 600g N, 400g K in

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northern region; 260g N, 320g P and 260g K in eastern region; 900g N. 600g P and 600g K in southern region and 600g N, 300g P and 300g K/plant/year in western region-have been recommended. The fertilizer application should be based on leaf nutrient status of an orchard, wherever feasible. Time of fertilizer application depends on the crop taken and the region. In north India, fertilizer is given in the first week of May for rainy season crop and in first week of July for winter season crop. In West Bengal, fertilizers are applied in 2 equal split doses, one in January and the other in August. At Bangalore, full K and 70% N are applied in June and full P and 30% N in September. Since 48% of feeder roots of guava are found in the surface soil up to 25cm depth, the fertilizer should be placed in 25cm trenches 1m away from the trunk for better uptake. Sometimes guava suffers a deficiency which is characterized by reduction in leaf size, interveinal chlorosis, and suppression of growth and dieback of leaders. It can be corrected by spraying of ZnSO4 (0.45kg) and hydrated lime (0.32kg) in water (33 litres). Bronzing is another common problem in guava. It is caused by the deficiency of B, Zn, N, P and K due to low soil pH. The soluble P level of leaves is a better index for bronzing. Guava Lucknow 49 is more susceptible than Allahabad Safeda. It can be reduced by improving the soil pH and treating the soil with N, P, K and Zn at 200, 80, 150 and 80g/year respectively, or fortnightly foliar spraying of these nutrients each at 2% for 4 months.

2.7 GUAVA WILT Guava plants are attacked by wilt, which alone cause heavy losses. It is very difficult to find out an orchard of guava more than 30 years in age because most of its plants die at about 20 years of age due to wilt. Various fungi causing wilt are Fusarium roseum oxysporum f. psidii, F. solani, Macrophomina phaseoina and Gliocladium roseum. Resistant

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rootstock is the only solution. The planting material should not be obtained from a wiltinfected region or nursery

2.8 AFTER CARE Guava plants do not require much care after planting. The weeds are removed be shallow cultivation. Green manuring should be done during rainy season and clean cultivation during rest of the year. Leguminous crops can be grown as intercrops during first 3 years of planting to obtain more income and to increase the N content of the soil. Both rainy and winter season crops are very heavy compared with spring crop. Fruit quality of the winter crop is best. Therefore, winter crop is preferred over the rainy season crop. In northern India, normally hot and dry summers along with low soil moisture do not allow summer flower to set the fruits but in mild summer and normal soil moisture, the summer flowers set fruits for rainy season crop which is known for its poor quality fruits and severe incidence of fruit fly and fruit-borer. The practice of taking winter crop instead of rainy season crop is known as crop regulation. The rainy season crop can be removed by spraying of urea (10%) on Allahabad Safeda and 20% on Lucknow 49 at the time crop are hand removal of flowers and other methods of removing rainy season crop are hand removal of flowers and fruits, spraying of bioregulators, root exposure, withholding irrigation and pruning of 1/4th of flower-bearing shoots are either costlier or impractical or ineffective.

2.9 IRRIGATION Guava is mostly grown under rainfed cond1tion and irrigation is rarely practiced wherever this facility is available. However, irrigation enhances the yield of guava by making the plant more vigorous and increasing the fruit set. Irrigation is especially desirable after

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planting for survival of the plants and thereafter for 2-3 years to obtain early good growth. Irrigation of fruiting plants depends upon the adoption of a particular cropping pattern. For the whole year, cropping pattern which is commercially adopted all over the country except the northern region, irrigation is given during summer and autumn season and for the rainy season crop, the irrigation is essential during summer season. Normally, winter season cropping pattern is adopted in north India which requires fortnightly irrigation during October-November. Irrigation is given to make the soil of root zone moist; thus heavy irrigation is unnecessary. The fruit quality of guava is adversely affected by high soil moisture content during harvesting.

2.10 HARVESTING AND POSTHARVEST MANAGEMENT Guavas are harvested throughout the year (except during May and Jun) in one or the other region of the country. However, peak harvesting periods in north India are August for rainy season crop, November-December for winter season crop and March-April for spring season crop. In the mild climatic conditions of the other parts of the country, the peak harvesting periods are not so distinct. Guava fruits develop best flavour and aroma only when they ripen on tree. In most of the commercial varieties, the stage of fruit ripeness is indicated by the colour development which is usually yellow. For local market, fully yellow but firm fruits are harvested, whereas ha1£ yellow fruits should be picked for distant markets. The fruits are harvested selectively by hand along with the stalk and leaves. The plants begin bearing at an early age of 2-3 years but they attain full bearing capacity at the age of 8-10 years. The yield of a plant depends on its age, cropping pattern and the cultural practices. A 10-year-old plant yields about 100kg of fruits every year. If both rainy and winter season crops are taken, more yield may be obtained in the rainy season.

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Ripening of guava starts on the tree and continues even after harvest. It is accelerated in rainy season due to high temperature and slows down in winter season due to low temperature. The fruits are packed in baskets made from locally available plant material. For distant markets, wooden or corrugated fiber-board boxes are used along with good cushioning materials-paddy straw, dry grass, guava leaves or rough paper. Good ventilation is necessary; to check build up of heat. Guava is a delicate fruit requiring careful handling during harvesting and transporting. The fruits should reach the consumer in a firm condition. Because of their perishable nature, guavas are disposed off immediately after harvesting in the local market and a very small quantity is sent to distant markets. Since fruits are sold at a cheaper price and are available for a very long period of the year, they are not kept in cold storage. However, shelf-life of guava can be extended up to 20 days by keeping them at low temperature of 50 C and 5-85% relative humidity it can also be stored for about 10 days at room temperature (180-230C) in polybags providing a ventilation of 0.25%.

Check Your Progress

Q.1 What is the importance of Guava crop? Q.2 Write short notes on climate and soil requirement for Guava crop. Q.3 List down different Guava varieties. Q.4 Explain propagation methods of Guava crop. Q.5 Elaborate cultivation practices of Guava crop. Q.6 What affect the growth of Guava crop? Q.7 Write down post harvest practices of Guava crop.

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Unit-3: PAPAYA Table of Contents 3.1 OBJECTIVES 3.2 INTRODUCTION 3.3 CLIMATE AND SOIL 3.4 VARIETIES 3.5 PROPAGATION 3.6 CULTIVATION 3.6.1 SOWING 3.6.2 FIELD PREPARATION 3.6.3 AFTERCARE 3.6.4 WEED CONTROL 3.6.5 REMOVING UNWANTED MALE PLANTS 3.6.6 MANURING AND FERTILIZATION 3.6.7 IRRIGATION 3.7 POT CULTIVATION 3.8 HARVESTING AND POSTHARVEST MANAGEME

3.1 OBJECTIVES After the completion of the chapter students will be able to 1. Understand importance of Papaya cultivation. 2. Identify different varieties of Papaya. 3. Understand propagation methods of Papaya Cultivation. 4. Perform different cultivation practices of Papaya.

3.2 INTRODUCTION Papaya (Carica papaya) produces fruits throughout the year. It reqt1ires less area for tree, comes to fruiting in a year, is easy to cultivate and provides more income/ha next to banana. It has a high nutritive and medicinal value, Papain prepared from dried latex of its 21 | P a g e

immature fruits is used in meat tenderising, manufacture of chewing gum, cosmetics for degumming natural silk and to give shrink resistance to wool. Besides, it is also used in pharmaceutical industries, textile and garment cleaning paper and adhesive manufacture, sewage disposal etc.

3.3 CLIMATE AND SOIL Papaya is a tropical fruit. However, it also grows well in the mild subtropical regions of the country up to 1,000m above mean sea-level. Temperature is one of the most important climatic factors which determines the success of papaya cultivation. Night temperature below 12°-14°C for several hours during winter season affects its growth and production severely. It is very much sensitive to frost, strong winds and water stagnation. It can grow in a wide variety of soils, provided these are well-drained and, aerated. A rich, well-drained sandy loam soil is ideal for its cultivation, It grows well in deep, rich, alluvial soils on banks and deltas of big rivers of India. Papaya can also be grown in calcareous and stony soils provided with heavy dose of organic manures. Soils with high pH (8.0) and low pH (5.0) should be avoided.

3.4 VARIETIES A large number of varieties are cultivated. As a matter of fact many of these are not real varieties since these cannot be relied upon to reproduce the parental characters in all their progenies. However, well-known varieties with certain specific plant and fruit characters are described below.

Pusa Delicious It is a gynodioecious variety with 100% productive plants with good fruit yield and quality having excellent taste and good flavour. 22 | P a g e

Pusa Majesty This is also gynodioecious variety with high productivity and better keeping quality of fruits. This is also one of the highest papain yielders.

Pusa Giant This is a vigorous variety and is dioecious in nature. The plants are sturdy and tolerant to strong winds. The fruits are suitable for tooty-fruity and candies like petha.

Pusa Dwarf It is a dwarf-statured dioecious variety with good yield. Fruits are medium-sized with oval shape and are preferred by consumers.

Pusa Nanha An extremely dwarf variety; it is suitable for kitchen gardens, pot and roof-top cultivation. This is ideal for high-density orcharding.

Co 1 A dwarf and dioecious variety. Fruits are medium-sized with spherical shape.

Co 2 It is medium-tall, dioecious variety, having good fruit quality with high papain content. It is predominantly cultivated for papain production.

Co 3 It is a gynodioecious variety will tall, vigorous trees. The fruits are medium-sized, with high sugar content and red coloured flesh. This is preferred for dessert. 23 | P a g e

Co 4 It is a dioecious variety with medium-tall, vigorous trees. There are purple on the stem, petiole and leaf. Lt is suitable for home-gardening.

Co 5 It is a selection from Washington variety, cultivated mainly for papain production. It yields 1,500-l,600kg/ha of dried papain.

Co 6 A selection from Pusa Majesty, it is dioecious having dwarf stature. It produces largesized fruits. It is recommended both for papain and dessert purposes.

Coorge Honey Dew A selection from Honey Dew, it is a gynodioecious variety having excellent fruit quality under south Indian conditions.

Pink Flesh Sweet It is a selection with excellent-quality fruits. Fruits are medium-sized with pink flesh. The TSS is 12-140 Brix. It is a good dessert variety.

Pant 1 Its plants are dioecious providing medium-sized fruits. It is recommended for tarai area in Uttar Pradesh.

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Sunrise Solo This is a gynodioecious variety having pink flesh and good taste.

Taiwan This is also gynodioecious variety with blood-red coloured flesh and good taste.

3.5 PROPAGATION Papaya is commercially propagated by seed. Gynodioecious varieties breed true-totype and are preferred by commercial growers. Tissue culture or micro propagation are recent techniques for propagating papaya. These, however, need to be standardized. Since papaya is commercially grown by seed, production of quality seed is most important for successful production and establishing papaya-based industries in the country.

3.6 CULTIVATION 3.6.1 Sowing About 250-300g seeds are sufficient for a hectare. The seedlings can be raised in nursery-beds 3m long, 1m wide and 10cm high as well as in pots or polythene bags. The seeds should be sown lcm deep in rows 10cm apart and covered with fine compost or leafmould. Light watering should be done with water can in the morning. The nursery-beds may be covered with polythene sheet or dry paddy straw to protect seedlings. Tender seedlings should also be protected from heavy rainfall. Dusting of insecticides to protect the seedlings against insect pests is also advised. Damping off is most serious disease. Treating seeds with 0.1% monosan (phenyle mercury acetate), Cerasan, Agrosan or Thiram dust before sowing is the best preventive measure to check it. The nursery-beds should also be treated with 5%

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formaldehyde solution before sowing. If disease appears in the nursery, Bordeaux mixture (1%) or copper exycholoride (0.2%) should be sprayed. The seedlings raise in polythene bags stand transplanting better than those raised in seed-beds. Perforated polythene bags of 20cmx 15cm size of 150-3200 gauge can be used as a container. They are filled with a mixture of farmyard manure, oil and sand in equal proportion. Four to five seeds are sown in each bag after germination only three seedlings are retained. The seedlings may be transferred to nursery-beds or pots or polythene bags to avoid overcrowding and further check of growth of. This is also done when the field is not ready for planting. Generally 15-20 cm tall seedlings become ready for planting in about two months.

3.6.2 Field preparation Since papaya does not withstand water logging, a well-drained upland should be selected for its cultivation. Its plants are also sensitive to strong winds. In open and highlying areas, where plants are exposed to storing winds or storm, suitable windbreaks are essential to protect them. Such windbreaks also save the trees to a great extent from damage caused by cold winds or frost. The seedlings are planted in pits of 60cmx60cmx60cm size. The pits are dug about 15 days before in summer and filled with top soil along with 20kg farmyard manure, 1 kg neem or karanj cake and 1 kg bone-meal or fish-meal. Tall and vigorous varieties are planted at greater spacing, while medium and dwarf ones at closer spacing. Planting Papaya is planted during spring (February-March), monsoon (June-July) and autumn (October-November). Spring planting is done in areas where the climatic condition is mild throughout the year. Monsoon planting is preferred in the frost prone areas and autumn

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planting generally done in the regions where the rainfall is high and virus problem is acute in rainy season. Plants are protected against frost damage by covering them with a polythenesheet. Planting distance is determined by the integration off light interception, cultivar and economic consideration. A spacing o 1.8 mx1/8m is normally followed for most of the cultivars. A closer spacing of 1.33 mx1.33m (5,609 plants/ha) is optimum suited for papaya Pusa Delicious under subtropical condition of Bihar. Spacing of 1.6mx1.6m gives highest yield of fruits as well as papain in Tamil Nadu. A closer spacing of 1.2m/x1.2m for Pusa Nanha is adopted for high-density orcharding, accommodating 6,400 plants/ha/ Planting of papaya seedlings should be preferred in the evening. The seedlings from nursery-beds are lifted with a all of earth and planted in the field. Plants raised in polythene bags are planted after removal of polythene. Three seedlings should be planted in each pit followed by light irrigation. Only on seedling may be planted with pure gynodioecious varieties it is also important to keep some extra plants reserved in the nursery or in polythene bags for gap filling in the field.

3.6.3 Aftercare Proper care should be taken to save the seedlings in the field especially against insect pests and hevy rainfall in early stage. In frost-prone areas, they should be protected with small thatches or polythene structure. Some extra seedlings reserved in the nursery may be utilized for gap filling. Since srfficient space is available between rows, papaya –based cropping systems (sequential and intercropping) are most remunerative. Papaya tobacco intercropping in north Bihar is ideal. It is advised not to grow crops line chilli, tomato, brinjal and lady’s finger to avoid viruses as they act like hosts. No intercrop should be taken when flowering and fruiting start.

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A suitable crop rotation must be followed to maintain self fertility and to avoid replant problem. Intercropping leguminous crops after non-leguminous ones. Shallow-rooted crops after deep rooted ones are beneficial.

3.6.4 Weed control Seeds grow luxuriantly in papaya fields and exhaust most of the applied nutrients. In the beginning, they also compete for light, are and water seedling in poor fruiting. Deep hoeing is recommended during first year to check weed growth. Hoeing should not be done in rainy season or after fruiting since its plants are shallow-rooted. Overgrowth of weeds also causes water logging condition and makes the plants vulnerable to root-rot and foot-rot in rainy season. Therefore weeding should be regularly done, especially around the plants. Application of Fluthloralin or Alachlorin or Butachhlorine (2.0 g/ha) as pre-emergence 2 months after transplanting can control all weeds for 4 month.

3.6.5 Removing unwanted male plants It is necessary to keep 10% male in papaya orchards for good pollination, where dioeciously varieties are cultivated. As son as the plants flower, extra male plants should be uprooted. The hermaphrodite plants produce good-quality fruits and should not be confused with male plants while removing them from the orchard. Weaker and diseased plants should be uprooted, after ensuring 1 plant/pit. Earthling up should be done 30 cm in radius around the plants on or before the onset of monsoon to avoid water logging. It also helps plants to stand erect.

3.6.6 Manuring and fertilization Papaya is a heavy feeder and needs heavy doses of manures and fertilizers. Apart from the basal dose of manures applied in the pits, 200-250g each of N, P2O5 and K2O are 28 | P a g e

recommended for getting high yield. Application of 200g N is optimum for fruit yield but papain yield increase with increase in N up to 300g/ a dose of 250g N, 250g P and 500g K/plant is recommended for papaya Coorg Honey Dew under Bangalore conditions, while 200g each of N,P and K in split doses in the first, third fifth and seventh month is recommended for papaya Co 1 under Coimbatore conditions. Deficiency of lime and B has often been observed in papaya orchards. Spraying of 0.5% zinc sulphate (twice) and one spray of Borax (0.1%) may be done depending upon the nutrient status of soil.

3.6.7 Irrigation Optimum soil moisture is essential for growth, yield and quality of fruits. Under low moisture conditions, floral sex shifts towards female sterility, resulting in low yield. At times over-irrigations may cause root-rot disease. Thus efficient water management is required in papaya cultivation. Number of irrigations depend upon soil type and weather conditions of the region. Protective irrigation is required in the first year of planting. In the second year when its plants are laded with fruits. Irrigation oat fortnightly interval in winter and at 10 days interval in summer is needed form October till May. Generally basin system of irrigation is used but care is taken to avoid water stagnation around the plant. In low rainfall area, where the water is scarce, sprinkler or drip system can be adopted. Papaya plants are very susceptible to water logging. Even 24hr stagnation with water may kill the well-established plants. Therefore it is most important to select upland for papaya plantation. It may further be shaped sloppy in heavy rainfall areas to make a few furrows or trenches for quick and complete drainage of water during rainy season.

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3.7 POT CULTIVATION Papaya can also be grown in big pots. Half cut iron drums and wooden crates can also be used for this purpose. The size of pot should not be less than 75cm x 40cm. Papaya seedlings can be raised in August-September. The polythene bags used for raising seedling should be filled with one-third part each of sand, compost and soil. The seeds should be sown 1cm deep with 5-6 seeds in each bag. It should be watered regularly with watering can. When seedlings are 10-15cm high they should be planted in pots already prepared during OctoberNovember. At least 4 plants in each pot should be planted. These are thinned down to one after removing male and other diseased or weaker plants. Apart from the organic manures, a dose of chemical fertilizers containing N (50g), P (50g) and K (75g) should be applied as topdressing. Chemical fertilizers should be applied after flowering. The same quantity should be repeated in each month from July to October. Precaution should be taken that these fertilizers are applied at least i5cm away from the plant in a circular fashion. Water should be immediately applied after each topdressing.

3.8 HARVESTING AND POSTHARVEST MANAGEME The fruits should be left on tree until they fully mature. Usually fruits are harvested when they are of full size, light green with tinge of yellow at epical end. On ripening, fruits of certain varieties turn yellow while some of them remain green. When the latex ceases to be milky and become watery, the fruits are suitable for harvesting. While picking fruits from the tree, care must be taken that they are not scratched, and are free from any blemishes; otherwise these are attacked by fungus and start, decaying during marketing. The fruit yield of papaya varies widely according to variety, soil, climate and management of the orchard. On an average each plant of improved varieties bears 30-45

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fruits, weighing 40-75kg in one fruiting season. On an average, yield of 60-75 tonnes/ha may be expected in a season from an orchard of papaya.

Check Your Progress

Q.1 Write down the importance of Papaya crop. Q.2 Write short notes on climate and soil requirement for Papaya crop. Q.3 List down different Papaya crop. Q.4 Explain propagation methods of Papaya crop. Q.5 Elaborate cultivation practices of Papaya crop. Q.6 What affect the growth of Papaya crop? Q.7 Write down post harvest practices of Papaya crop.

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Unit-4: APPLE 4.1 OBJECTIVES 4.2 INTRODUCTION 4.3 CLIMATE AND SOIL 4.4 VARIETIES 4.5 PROPAGATION AND ROOTSTOCKS 4.5.1 SEEDLING ROOTSTOCK 4.5.2 CLONAL ROOTSTOCKS 4.6 CULTIVATION 4.6.1 HIGH DENSITY PLANTING 4.6.2 TREE SIZE CONTROL 4.6.3 TRAINING 4.6.4 PRUNING 4.6.5 PRECAUTIONS IN PRUNING 4.6.6 MANURING AND FERTILIZATION 4.6.7 AFTERCARE 4.6.8 FRUIT DROP 4.6.9 IRRIGATION 4.6.10 PHYSIOLOGICAL DISORDERS 4.7 HARVESTING AND POSTHARVEST MANAGEMEN 4.7.1 PRE-COOLING 4.7.2 GRADING 4.7.3 PACKAGING 4.7.4 STORAGE

4.1 OBJECTIVES After the completion of the chapter students will be able to 5. Understand importance of Apple cultivation. 6. Identify different varieties of Apple. 7. Understand propagation methods of Apple Cultivation. 8. Perform different cultivation practices of Apple.

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4.2 INTRODUCTION APPLE (Malus pumila) is the most important temperate fruit of the north- western Himalayan region. It is predominantly grown in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and hills of Uttarakhand, accounting for about 90% of the total production. Its cultivation has also been extended to Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Nagaland, and Meghalaya in north-eastern region and Nilgiri hills in Tamil Nadu. The agro-climatic conditions in these states are not as conducive as in north-western Himalayan region. Early and continuous rains from April onwards do not favour the production of quality fruits besides resulting in high incidence of diseases. The apple-growing areas in India do not fall in the temperate zone of the world but the prevailing temperate climate of the region is primarily due to snow covered Himalayan ranges and high altitude which helps meet the chilling requirement during winter season extending from mid-December, to mid March.

4.3 CLIMATE AND SOIL Most of the apple varieties require 1,000-1.500 hours of chilling below 70C during winter to break the rest period. These conditions are available at an elevation of 1,5002,700m above mean sea-level in the Himalayan ranges. By and large, the average summer temperature should be around 21°-24°C during active growth period. The areas with frostfree spring and adequate sunshine during summer without wide fluctuations in temperature are most suitable for apple cultivation. Low temperature, rains and cloudy weather, during flowering period hamper the bee activity, affecting cross pollination adversely. Areas exposed to high winds particularly the hill tops are also not suitable for its cultivation. Dry winds during summer desiccate flowers and hamper bee activity, resulting in poor fruit set inclement weather, particularly low temperature below 15°C during bloom restricts the bee

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activity which is completely inhibited below 4.4°C, affecting fruit set. Fully opened blossoms may be killed at temperatures below -2.2°C. The optimal temperature for pollen germination and fruit setting is 21.1-26.7°C. Well-distributed rainfall of 100-125cm throughout the growing season is most favourable for its optimal growth and fruitfulness. The long drought spells during fruit development and excessive rains and foggy conditions at fruit maturity hamper fruit size and fruit quality. Dry temperate areas suitable for apple cultivation in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir are most suitable for production of high-quality fruits having intense coloulr development, high sugar content and longer shelf life. Soil depth, drainage and pH determine the suitability of soil type. Loamy soils, rich in organic matter having a pH of 5.5-6.5 with gentle to moderate slope, proper drainage and good aeration are most suitable. The soil should be free from hard substrata and waterlogged conditions. Where cultivation is done on flat soils, proper drainage channels need to be developed to restrict the incidence of collar- rot, root-rot and other soil-borne diseases.

4.4 VARIETS Apple varieties should have climatic adaptability, attractive fruit size, shape, colour, good dessert quality, and long shelf-life, resistance to diseases and pest and tolerance to drought conditions besides high productivity. In fifties, the green English variety McIntosh, Baldwin, Jonathan, Cox's Orange Pippin, Golden Delicious, Black Ben Davis and Pippins-predominated. Of late, the coloured Delicious apples have replaced the English ones. As a result of this phenomenal change, Delicious group occupies more than 83% of the total areas under apple in Himachal Pradesh, 15% in Jammu and Kashmir and 30% in Uttarakhand. In Jammu and Kashmir, the area under Ambri has decreased tb1ess than 1% due to late-bearing of this variety, though the fruits are

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highly attractive with a long shelf-life. The recommended apple varieties in Jammu,and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and hills of Uttarakhand are given in Table 1. Table 1. Recommended apple varieties in different states

1.

2.

3.

Seasons Early Season

Himachal Pradesh Tydeman's Early (P) Michael Molies Delicious Schlomit Starkrimson Mid Season Starking Delicious Red Delicious Richared Vance Delicious Top Red Golden Lord Lambourne (P) Red Chief Oregon Spur Redspur Red Gold (P) Late Season Golden Delicious (P) Yellow Newton (P) Winter Banana Granny Smith (P)

Jammu & Kashmir Irish Peach Benoni

Uttarakhand Early Shanburry (P) Fenny Benoni Chaubattia Princess American Mother Rea Delicious Razakwar Starking Delicious Jpnathan (P) McIntosh (P) Cox's Orange Pippin Cortland Delicious (P) (P) Red Gold (P) Queen's Apple Rome Beauty Scarlet Siberian King Pippin American Apirouge Kerry Pippin Lal Ambri Sunhari Chamure Golden Delicious (P) Red Delicious Ambri Baldwin Yellow Newton (P) White Dotted Red

Rymer Buckingham (P)

Recently, a further shift from Delicious group to improved spur type and standard colour mutants has been observed; The spur-type mutants produce trees 50-80% of the standard size with 20-50% higher yield potential in addition to early fruit maturity and better fruit colouration. The high yielding apple Scarlet Gala and Red Fuzi have also been introduced in Himachal Pradesh and hills of Uttarakhand. These are being evaluated on size controlling clonal rootstocks M 9, M 26, M 7, MM 106 and MM 111.

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Scab-resistant varieties A number of Scab-resistant cultivars have been introduced since the incidence of apple scab in epidemic form in 1972-73 in Jammu and Kashmir and 1978-79 in Himachal Pradesh. Florina, Macfree, Nova Easy Grow, Coop12, Coop13 (Redfree), Nova Mac, Liberty and Freedom. Florina, an introduction from France, has shown promising performance in Himachal Pradesh and may become a good substitute for Delicious apples in scab-prone areas. Firdous and Shireen have been released for commercial cultivation as scab-resistant varietes ofr Jammu & Kashmir.

Hybrids Hybridization programme of apple resulted in release of Lal Ambri (Red Delicious x Ambri) and Sunehari (Ambri x Golden Delicious) in Jammu and Kashmir; Chaubattia Princess and Chaubattia Anupam (Early Shanburry x Red Delicious) in Uttarakhand hills; and Ambred (Red Delicious x Ambri), Ambrich (Richared x Ambri) and Ambroyal (Starking Delicious x Ambri) in Himachal Pradesh. Ambrich, Ambroyal and Ambred have not gained popularity among the growers of Himachal Pradesh because of very late maturity and extended harvesting period, where as high-colouring and early-maturing cultivars are preferred.

Low-chilling varieties These varieties perform well in areas where winter chilling is less than 800 hr below 7°C, insufficient for breaking dormancy of Delicious varieties. Introduction of low-chilling varieties has expanded the scope of apple cultivation to warmer and marginal areas. However, all low-chilling varieties are poor in dessert quality sub acid in taste and have poor shelf life and as such have a scope for commercialization. Important table-purpose, low

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chilling varieties are Michal, Schlomit, Anna, Tamma., Vered and Neomi. Tropical Beauty and Parlin's Beauty are suitable for processing purposes.

Pollinizing varieties The most important feature of a pollinizing variety is that its flowering should synchronize with the main variety. In addition to this, It should have abundant viable pollen, long duration of flowering, compatibility with main variety, self fruitfulness, regular bearing besides good commercial value. The Delicious group of varieties are self incompatible and cross pollinated, where as most of the English varieties are self-pollinated and act as suitable pollinizers for Delicious group of varieties in the proper proportion of 11-30% in main variety plantation depending on the situation of the orchard The most suitable pollinizing cultivars are Tydeman's Early, Red Gold, Golden Delicious, McIntosh, Lord Lambourne, Winter Banana, Granny Smith, Starkspur Golden and Golden Spur. A combination of early, mid-season and late-flowering pollinizers provides assured cross- pollination for the main variety. A combination of Tydeman's early, Red Gold Golden Delicious has been recommended in Hiachal pradesh for starking Delicious plantations. The flowerings crabs have also been introduced for cross pollination and are under evaluation. Some important flowering crab varieties are Red Flush, Crimeon Gold, Yellow Drop, Manchurian, Snowdrift, Golden Hornet and Malus floribunda. Redfree and Liberty, resistant to scab, can also be used as pollinizers.

4.5 PROPAGATION AND ROOTSTOCKS The apple plantations are raised on seedling rootstocks. The use of clonal root-stocks has not been commercialized despite the established superiority to raising uniform plantations, precocity and high productivity in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and

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Uttarakhand. Non-availability of clonal material in the absence of commercial mass propagation techniques has remained the major constraint. Apples are propagated on seedlings of crab apple or self pollinizing varieties, Golden Delicious, McIntosh, Yellows Newton and Northern Spy having good seed viability, germinability arid seedling growth. The seeds of commercial varieties from fruit juice canning units are also used by nurserymen for raising seedling stocks. However, the seedling stocks lack uniformity in tree size and productivity but show better adaptability to sloppy and shallow soils under rainfed conditions.

4.5.1 Seedling Rootstock Apple seeds need stratification in moist sand at 4-7 0C for 60-90 days. The water soaked seeds are placed between 2 and3 cm thick layers of moist sand in wooden boxes or polythene bags during December. The stratification boxes of bags are placed in cool place where the required chilling temperature of less than 7°C for l, 000-l, 500 hr is met in 60-90 days. The sand is kept moist during stratification. The stratification can be accomplished in the lower chamber of the refrigerator also. The stratification requirement is also met with in areas having very cool winters by direct sowing of seeds in nursery beds during NovemberDecember. The pre stratified seeds, as indicated by whitish tip at the micropylar end, are sown during February-March in well-developed, raised beds. Sowing is done in rows l0 cm apart with the spacing of 5cm between the seeds and 2-3 cm deep. Nursery beds should be irrigated after sowing and covering with 10 cm hay or pine needle mulch to protect the germinating seedlings from heavy rains and spring frost. Mulch when the seedlings are 5cm long for the straight upright growth of seedlings. One-year old seedling stocks are ready for grafting during February.

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4.5.2 Clonal rootstocks The size controlling Malling (M) and MaIling Merton (MM) series clonal root-stocks were introduced at the Regional Horticultural Research Station, Mashobra and Temperate Fruit Research Station, Kotkhai, in Himachal Pradesh, Government Hill Fruit Research Station, Chaubattia in Uttarakhand and fruit Research Station, Shalimar in Jammu and Kashmir during late sixties. The common method of propagation of clonal rootstocks of apple is mound layering (stooling). The rooted layers of the clone are planted in well-prepared stool beds during winter at a distance of 30cm in the row and60cm apart. The 3-4 years old layers give rise to numerous suckers during spring. The suckers are covered with the soil before monsoon. The suckers are ringed or notched near the base during the rainy season and covered with soil to encourage rooting. The difficult-to-propagate rootstocks like M 9 need the treatment of 1,000-2,000 ppm IBA at the notched portion for quick root initiation. The rooted layers are separated at the onset of dormancy (December) and lined out in nursery beds for further grafting with scion varieties during February-March. The rootstock should be healthy and disease-free and should attain the thickness of 0.9-1.25cm at grafting height for proper budtake success. The growth of the rootstock should be straight and upright with proper root development. There should be no gall, knot or injury scar at the grafting height. The rootstocks of, apple are grafted with desirable scion variety during FebruaryMarch. The scion wood should be collected from the mother plants of known pedigree. It should be collected from bearing trees only. One year-old shoot growth is ideal for scion wood. Scion sticks should have only vegetative buds and not the reproductive buds. The scion wood should be healthy and disease-free. They should have 3-5 well-developed buds with smooth internodes. These should be collected during dormancy.

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The scion wood collected prior to grafting must be properly stored. It should be kept slightly moist and at a low temperature to prevent the bud-break. A common method is to wrap the wood, in bundles of 25-100 sticks, in polythene sheets or bags. Moist saw-dust, wood shavings or moss should be used for packing to maintain moisture during storage. Sand should be avoided as it sticks to the scion wood and blunts the edge of knife during grafting. The storage temperature is also very important. If the scion wood is stored for 2-3 weeks, 5°C storage temperature is satisfactory. However, if the scions are to be stored for a longer duration (1-3 months), the scion wood should be kept at about 0oC to keep the buds dormant. Scions cannot be used for grafting in the active stage of growth. Tongue grafting is the ideal method of grafting scion cultivar on the rootstock with more than 90% bud-take success. The scion should be grafted 15-20cm above the ground level. February-March is most suitable time of tongue grafting. It should be just before the bud-break. In tongue grafting, a slant cut is made on the rootstock 2-3 cm long across the stem about 15-20cm above the crown. A vertical cut is given from one-third of the top of slant cut and extended up to two-thirds of the length of slant cut. Similar cuts are made on the scion wood and the 2 parts are connected by inner locking the tongues made by vertical cuts on scion and stock. The cambium of the 2 portions should match for successful graft. The graft union is wrapped with polythene strip. The bud take is accomplished in 4-6 weeks and thereafter the polythene wrapping should be removed. 'T' budding during monsoon and chip budding during August can also be done for propagating scions with good bud-take success and smooth scion-stock union but the plant growth is poor in the Indian conditions. It takes one year for raising grafted plants, whereas two in case of budded plants of standard size.

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4.6 CULTIVATION Before planting an apple orchard, proper decisions should be made on selection of varieties, rootstocks, tree size, spacing, placement of pollinizers and planting layout. The planting distance varies according to variety, vigour of rootstock, fertility of soil and climatic conditions. In flat and valley areas, the planting is done in square or hexagonal system of layout, However on slopes, contour or terrace plating is preferred, The usual pit size is 1m x 1m x 1m without any hard pan or rock at its base or on the sides, The pit should be dug and ruled up one month before planting. The top soil and sub-soil should be piled separately while digging. Top soil must be filled first followed by sub-soil on the top to improve the fertility of lower layer of pit. While pit filling, 40-50kg well-rotten farmyard manure and 500g of super phosphate should be mixed in soil. The soil is allowed to settle for one month before planting,. An early planting of apple in December- January is desirable for proper establishment. Graft union should be kept 25 cm above the ground level to avoid collar- rot and scion rooting. The combination of rootstock and scion variety determines the planting distance and planting density, In standard plantations, the plants of standard varieties grafted on seedling stocks are planted at a distance of 6-7.5m, accommodating 180-250 plants/ha. The planting distance can be reduced according to the vigour of rootstock. The clonal rootstocks particularly dwarfing and semi-dwarfing root-storks should be used where the soils are flat, fertile and irrigated.

4.6.1 High density planting High-density planting has consistently increased in popularity and acreage particularly with small land-holdings in the Indian conditions recently. The traditional systems of planting having long juvenile period are labour-intensive and, low yielding with

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poor-quality fruits, whereas high-density planting is more efficient orcharding system, It is precocious, easily manageable, has higher yield potential with better quality fruits and higher returns/unit area, The high-density planting cannot be adopted in very steep, unfertile, shallow and drought-prone areas. There are 4 categories of high-density planting-low (less than 250 plants/hac), moderate (250-500 plants/ha), high (500-1,250 plants/ha) and ultra high density (more than 1,250 plants/ha). With the increase in planting density, the yield may increase, but beyond a threshold density, quality is deteriorated and may not be profitable in terms of economical returns, Super high-density plantings or meadow orcharding with a density of 20,000-70,000 plants/ha in some European countries have been raised but not commercialized so far. The major advantages of high density planting are: •

Potential of precocious bearing



High yield potential/unit area



Low labour costs and better orchard management



Improved fruit quality The trees of high-density planting should have maximum number of fruiting branches

and minimum number of structural branches. The branches on the tree should be so developed that each branch casts a minimum amount of shade on other branches. To develop favourable characteristics, following rules must be followed: •

Prevent upright growth of tree



Develop horizontal branches



Space small laterals along the central leader



Develop and maintain fruiting spurs along the entire branch as it develops



Develop rigid strong, self-supporting



Develop fruiting spurs along the sides rather than top or bottom of lateral branches.

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4.6.2 Tree size control A key to successful high-density planting depends upon control of tree size. Following tree size controlling methods can be adopted to develop high density plantings. •

Use of size-controlling rootstocks



Use of spur-type scions



Training and pruning methods to induce dwarfing and spreading habit of tree



Mechanical devices like branch bending to control size



Use of chemicals

The most convenient and indispensable method of tree size control in apple high-density planting is the use of size controlling clonal rootstocks. The combination of rootstock and scion variety determines the plant spacing and planting density/unit area.

4.6.3 Training The plants are trained according to growth and habit and vigour of the rootstock. Training helps, to establish a strong framework of scaffold limbs capable of supporting heavy yield with quality fruits, regulate annual succession of crops, expose maximum leaf surface to the sun, direct the growth of the trees so that various cultural operations like spraying and harvesting become economical, protect the trees from sun-burn and promote early production. The training procedures for standard and dwarf plants differ. •

The standard trees are trained on modified central system. The ideal standard tree can be trained as:



The plants are pruned to 50-60 cm above the ground at the time of planting.



During first year 2-3 well-spaced scaffold limbs are selected with the lowest at 30cm above the ground and others spaced vertically 10-15 cm apart in a spiral fashion, The

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growth of unwanted shoots is depressed by pinching 3-5cm of the shoot tips during mid May. •

The selected primary scaffold during summer is headed back to one fourth to one fifth of the growth.



During second year dormant pruning, the central leader and primary scaffold branches are headed back similar to first dormant pruning. More scaffold branches are retained on the trunk at the vertical distance of 45-75 cm. A total of 5-7 secondary branches/ tree usually two on each primary scaffold are also selected in the second dormant pruning which are directed partially outward. The primary scaffold should have the crotch angle of 450 with trunk. The proper crotch angle can be developed by tying the branches with inserting the branch spreaders.



Third year training consist of thinning out of unwanted branches and heading back others to desirable side limbs. Secondary branches often develop spurs during third growing season.



By fourth year, training is largely completed. By this time, the proportional growth of central leader and side scaffold branches should be attained which should be 1:1.5. This will help in lateral growth rather than upward growth of plants favorable for proper spur development.



When the tree attains the height of 4-4.5m. the central leader should be headed back near to moderate side growing shoot to check the height of the plant, dwarf plants are trained to spindle bush/slender spindle, i.e. one-year old plant is headed back to 45-60 cm at the time of planting.



During first summer, 2-3 laterals or feathers, 30cm from the base are selected to form main scaffold branches the scaffolds should have wide angle and be well-spaced

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around the stem. Vigorous growing laterals are tied down in august when the extension growth has ceased in order to develop wide crotch angle. •

During first winter, 2-3 well-spaced laterals are retained and unwanted branches are removed. The scaffold branches are headed back to one-third to half of the length to a outward growing bud if the growth is weak. Otherwise the main branches can be left unpruned. The leader is also cut back to more or less erect but a weak lateral. Any vigorous, upright shoot, growing near the forming leader and competing with it should also be removed.



During august of second year, suitable laterals are tied down to form more scaffold branches.



To check excessive vigour of central leader, it may again be cut back to suitably placed weak growing lateral which is trained to take the place of the central leader. Delaying pruning until late winter also helps in checking vigour.



During subsequent winters, branches are allowed to grow from central leader at regular intervals, choosing wide angled shoots. Higher placed branches should be kept shorter than lower ones to allow the light penetration into the lower tree canopy to the maximum extent.



The main branches should be so trained and spaced that there is plenty of room for fruiting laterals and those should not be allowed to fork at terminal.



In order to keep sufficient wood in the spindle bush while it is being built up, a small surplus of wide angled branches is retained, which may be cut when branches require more space and get crowded.

4.6.4 Pruning Pruning in apple is essential to maintain a proper balance between vegetative growth and spur development. The basic steps of pruning standard bearing trees are: 45 | P a g e



Start pruning at the top of the trees and work downward.



Cut upward growing limbs back to strong laterals.



Remove the crowding branches and thin out the remaining leaving the vigorous fruiting wood well spaced along the length of limbs.



Remove dead, broken and diseased wood.



Remove parallel growing shoots causing crowding and shading and opposite growing shoots at a point on the stem.



Remove all water sprouts except the occasional ones which maybe needed to fill a vacant space in the canopy.



While removing a thick branch, first small cut should be mad. on the under side of limb to avoid bark peeling.



Divert branches to open areas by pruning to desirable laterals.



The plants trained on spindle bush system can be pruned as:



Once the central leader has reached its desirable height of 2.5m, the extension growth should be cut back each year to a weaker side branch.



Strong growing shoots towards the top of the tree should be removed completely.



Renewal pruning of the fruiting branches lower down should be carried out each year to maintain vegetative growth and fruit quality in lower part of the tree.



The branches causing shade to the other lower branches should be removed or headed back.



In thinning out of branches to main stem, a stub should be left to encourage the regrowth of moderately vigorous fruitful bud.



Avoid removing too many branches and so reducing potential fruit yield. The main branches which have lost the vigour can be stimulated by pruning. Worn out wood of heavy cropping varieties should be removed periodically.

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4.6.5 Precautions in pruning •

When a limb larger than 3cm in diameter is removed, the pruning cut should be made as close as possible to the branch from which the limb arises without leaving a stub.



Large pruning wounds should be protected with Bordeaux paste or Chaubattia paste to check the entry of rot-causing fungi.



In 1- or 2-year-old shoots, heading back can be done to promote growth of side shoots and quick wound healing. In 3-year-old and older shoots, pruning should be shifted to thinning out cuts to reduce vegetative growth and promote fruiting.



The competing branches should be thinned out rather than headed, back.

14.6.6 Manuring and fertilization Application of manures and fertilizers start right from planting of orchard. The first application should be made at the time of filling of pits. The fertilizer dose depends upon the soil fertility, type of soil, kind and age of trees, cultural practices, climate and crop load. The dose of manures and fertilizers should be determined on the basis of soil and leaf analysis. In an orchard of optimal fertility, N, P and K may be applied in the ratio of 70:35:70g/year age of the tree. The dose should be stabilized (700:350:700g N:P:K/ tree) after 10 years of age. These applications may be supplemented with farmyard manure @10kg/year age of the tree with the maximum of 100 kg. Apple trees prefer N, P and K in the form of calcium ammonium nitrate, super phosphate and muriate of potash respectively. As the crop load is low in an 'off year, the standard fertilizer dose of NPK may be reduced to 500g, 250g and 400g respectively. Since the response to P application is poor in P-rich acidic hilly soils, it would be a better practice if P is applied after every 2-3 years or should be reduced to half annually in such conditions.

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In bearing trees, farmyard manure along with P and K should be applied during December-January. Nitrogen is applied during February-March, 2-3 weeks before bud-break. The N can be given in two split doses, first 2-3 weeks before bud-break and second one month after flowering, where the irrigation facilities are available. The fertilizers should be broadcast in the tree basins 30cm away from tree trunk to the canopy drip line and mixed well in the soil. Deep cultivation to mix the fertilizer in soil should be avoided, as this practice injures root system. Table 5: The symptoms and corrective measures of important nutrient deficiencies Nutrient Nitrogen

Deficiency symptoms

Dose of chemical Urea 0.5% (2 sprays)

Shoot growth restricted, short, thin, upright and spindly. Leaves remain small, normal in shape, pale-yellow in colour and later orange, red and yellow tints. Older leaves are first affected fruits remain small. Boron First symptoms appear on fruits which do Boric acid not develop normally and become 0.1% (2 misshapen caused by hard corky tissues. sprays) Fruit cracking may also occur. Leaves are dark green, thick and brittle starting at tip, appearance of purple pimples on young twigs, poor fruit set ass a result of blossom blast. Zinc Buds along the shoot fail to develop, Zinc sulphate leaves remain small and narrow (little (0.5 %) leaf) and form rosette at tips. Foliage is sparse older leaves may fall in severe cases. Fruits remain small and misshapen. Manganese Cholorosis between the main veins Manganese starting near the margin of leaves and sulphate extending towards midrib. Early (0.4 %) defoliation occurs on the top of the trees. Fruits develop poor coloration. calcium Upward cupping of margins of youngest Calcium leaves. Margins of older leaves become chloride necrotic and shatter. Deaths of growing points followed by die back. Bitter pit symptoms (corky depression) also appear near calyx-end of fruits.

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Time of foliar application After petal fall and 1 month later

Pre-bloom and post-bloom

After petal fall

After petal fall

30-45 days before harvesting

In high-rainfall areas with steep slopes and small basins band application of N is preferred. There are deficiencies of macro as well as micronutrients. The B, Zn, Mn, Ca and N have been found in deficient range mostly and symptoms can be easily identified on leaves or shoots. The symptoms and corrective measures of important nutrient deficiencies are given in Table 5.

4.6.7 Aftercare Clean basin management is the common practice of f1oor managementm in apple. The basins are kept clean by, hand working, hay mulching or black alkathene mulching. In cool climates, black alkathene mulch is very efficient which not only controls weeds and conserves moisture but also improves the fruit quality. It should be avoided in warmer areas, as black alkathene absorbs the solar heat and increases the soil temperature, hampering root growth. Application of Glyphosate@800ml/ha or Grammaxone/Paraquat (0.5%) as postemergence herbicide suppresses the weed growth for 4-5 months. In the initial years of plantations, green-manuring crops like sunflower and bean may be cultivated between the basins to improve the soil texture and nutrient status of soil. Improved grasses like orchard grass (Dactylis glomerata), tall fescue (Fescue arundinaceae) and timothy (Phleum pratense) and nitrogen-fixing legumes like red clover (Trifolium pratense), white clover (Trifolium repens) and lucerne (Medicago sativa) can be introduced between the tree basin spaces m grown-up orchards. Heavy bearing in apple usually results in small-sized, poor-quality fruits and sets in alternate bearing cycle. Judicious fruit thinning at proper stage of fruit development not only regulates cropping but also fruit size and quality. The practice is essential in pollinizing varieties in the Delicious group plantations for regulating adequate cross-pollination. Carbaryl or Sevin@750-1,000ppm, or NAA@10-20ppm at petal fall results in optimal fruit

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thinning. Hand-thinning can also be done but it is very cumbersome and uneconomical procedure.

4.6.8 Fruit drop Most of commercial varieties experience 3 phases of fruit drop early drop. June drop and pre-harvest drop, The early drop considered natural, occurs due to lack of pollination and fruit competition. The June drop is caused by moisture stress and environmental conditions which can be checked by maintaining soil moisture through irrigation or mulching. The preharvest drop causes serious economic losses, as the mature marketable fruits abscise before, harvesting due to reduction in levels of auxins or increase in ethylene levels in fruit. Earlyripening varieties like tydeman’s Early, Red Gold and Pippins experience 40-60% drop, whereas in Delicious group loss occurs to the extent of 15-20% of crop load. Application of NAA (10ppm) before the expected fruit drop or 20-25 days before harvesting checks the preharvest fruit drop effectively.

4.6.9 Irrigation Most of apple orchards in India are situated in rain fed sloppy area where irrigation facilities are inadequate except in f1at valley areas. Apple requires uniform distribution of rainfall throughout the year or needs to be supplemented with irrigation during critical periods. The most critical period of water requirement in apple is from April to august, the peak requirement being after frit set. In areas where irrigation is available, apple requires about 114cm water during the whole year which can be scheduled in 15-20 irrigations. In critical summer months, the irrigations can be given at 7-10 days interval and rest at 3-4 weeks interval. At least 8 irrigations during critical period of water requirement are recommended for Staking Delicious apple. With the introduction of drip irrigation system,

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irrigation can be extended to scarce water source areas and hilly slopes also. About 1,695 litres of water/tree is required during the season in drip irrigation compared with 3,840 litres/tree in the conventional method of irrigation. In drought prone and water scarce areas, the soil moisture can be retained by mulching or black alkathene mulching immediately after spring rains.

4.6.10 Physiological Disorders Scald is one of the storage disorders in apple. Light mottling on greener surface of fruits are initial symptoms of scald. Darkening becomes more severe with elapsed time and ultimately extends to red surface also. Scald usually affects the skin only but in severe cases it may extend to fruit flesh. The immature fruits are most susceptible to scald which is aggravated by warmer temperatures in storage. Bitterpit is characterized by small sunken spots on the fruit surface which are more prevalent near the blossom-end. Initially small water-soaked areas appear which shrink and turn brown with the loss of water and ultimately become brown localized areas of/the dead tissue. Unlike the name, these corky tissues are never bitter in taste. The immature picked fruits and large-sized fruits in ‘off year are most affected, Golden Delicious, Yellow Newton and Gravenstein being most susceptible apple varieties. Internal browning is associated with apple Yellow Newton and is characterized by brownish streaks radiating into flesh from the core. Controlled atmospheric storage with higher temperature can be helpful to control this disorder. Appearance of disorder is less at 1°C in cold storage.

4.7 HARVESTING AND POSTHARVEST MANAGEMENT Since apple is climacteric fruit, the maturity of fruits does not coincide with ripening. The fruits usually do hot attain fully ripe edible quality on the tree while harvesting. The 51 | P a g e

fruits should be harvested at proper picking maturity to attain proper edible quality at ripening. Picking of immature fruits results in poor quality fruits lacking flavor and taste which shrivel during storage. Over nature fruits develop soft scald and internal breakdown with poor shelf-life. There are several maturity indices which can be adopted in proper fruit harvesting. The TSS of fruit pulp, ease in separation of fruit from spur, change in ground surface, colour from green to pale, change in seed colour to light brown, fruit firmness a d days from full bloom to harvest are some reliable maturity indices for apple which can be considered singly or in combination. All the fruits do not mature evenly on trees depending on the time and number of flower flushes. Thus more than one picking are required. Apple fruits should be picked in such a way that bruising and stem punctures are avoided and pedicel must remain with fruit. Apple should be grasped between index finger, middle finger and thumb and quick upward twist of wrist will easily pluck the fruit a1ong with pedicel. Picked fruit should be placed softly in the picking bags or baskets. The fruits should be transferred carefu1ly from picking baskets to boxes or baskets be transported houses for grading and packing.

4.7.1 Pre-cooling After picking, the fruits should be placed in a cool and ventilated place to remove field heat before packing. Air cooler, cold water sprinkling or fruit washing with water also helps quick removal of field heat. Keeping fruits over height near the tree basins for cooling down is another practical way to remove field heat. Fruit surface must be free of moisture before grading, wrapping or packing in cartons.

4.7.2 Grading Applies are graded according to fruit size and fruit appearance or quality. On the basis of fruit size, apples are graded manually in 6 grades. On the basis of fruit colour, shape, 52 | P a g e

quality and appearance, apple fruits can be graded in 3 or more quality grades. These grades are designated as AAA, AA and A; A,B,C; or extra fancy, fancy class I and fancy class II. For size grading, mechanical graders with washing and waxing facilities are available in India now.

4.7.3 Packaging Apples are packed in wooden boxes. Size of wooden boxes used in different applegrowing areas of India are different and carry about 10kg or 20 kg fruits in a box. Standardsized wooden boxes are 45.7 cm long, 30.5cm wide, and 25,4,27.5 and 30.5 cm in height according to size of grade. Corrugated-fibre (CFB) cartons are also available for packing apples. Such cartons are of 2 types-universal cartons and telescopic tray-pack cartons. The CFB cartons not only save the precious wood and forest wealth but result in very sell fruit bruising (3.5%) which fetch god

market

price.

The

usual

dimensions

of

CFB

cartons

with

trays

are

50.4cmx30.3cmx28.2cm (outer jacket) and 50.0 cmx30.0cmx28.2cm (inner case).

4.7.4 Storage Apples have long storage life compared to other fruits. However, different varieties have different storability. Deterioration of fruits starts after climacteric stage. However, shelf-life of apples can be prolonged by providing optimal storage conditions. The cold storage retards fruit deterioration and reduces decay from pathogens and shrivelling from water loss. The recommended storage temperature for apple is -l.10 -00C which is about 0.8°-l.8°C above the average freezing point of most apple varieties. The relative humidity of 85-90% should be maintained in cold storages. Most apple varieties can be stored for 4-8 months after harvesting; Ambri has the longest storage life.

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Check Your Progress

Q.1 Write down the importance of Apple crop. Q.2 Write short notes on climate and soil requirement for Apple crop. Q.3 List down different Apple crop. Q.4 Explain propagation methods of Apple crop. Q.5 Elaborate cultivation practices of Apple crop. Q.6 What affect the growth of Apple crop? Q.7 Write down post harvest practices of Apple crop.

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