Dhaulpur, Rajasthan
The pomegranate is a ‘giving fruit’. Plant it once and it flowers for several years, say horticulturists. Packed with vitamins A, C and E, besides folic acid, the fruit has great antioxidant properties too.
Pomegranate, a sub-tropical fruit, grows well in semi dry conditions. It needs the heat and dryness especially when it is ripening. The ideal temperature for this time should be around 38 degrees celsius. It needs a combination of light loamy and sandy soil that drains well.
However, a few points need to be kept in mind to ensure there is a good yield of the fruit. Many times, because of lack of proper awareness, farmers are left with pomegranate orchards that are not yielding as they should, and they suffer serious losses.
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The types of pomegranate
Ganesh: This pink variety has medium sized seeds and is famous in Maharashtra.
Jyoti: Medium to big in size, this variety has a shiny skin and is yellowish red in colour, and its soft seeds are extremely sweet.
Mridula: This deep red variety has a shiny skin. The seeds are deep red in colour and juicy and each fruit can weigh up to 250 to 300 grams.
Bhagwa: This variety is a shiny ochre in colour and has deep red seeds in it. It is usually big in size. If cultivated properly, each sapling of this variety can bear up to 30-40 kgs of fruit. It is suitable to grow in Maharashtra and Rajasthan.
Arakta: This variety grows in abundance. The fruit is big, red and has sweet and juicy seeds. At its best, each sapling can bear up to 25 to 30 kgs of fruit.
Kandhari: While this variety is big and juicy, the seeds can be a little hard in texture.
Other varieties of pomegranate include Ruby, Karkai, Guleshah, Bedana, Khog, seedless Jalor, etc.
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DIY pomegranate cultivation
August to September, or February to March are the ideal time to plant pomegranate orchards.
A pit with 60x60x60 dimensions has to be dug. The prepared soil in the pit should have 20 kgs of cow dung manure, one kg of single super phosphate and 50 grams of chlorpyrifos powder mixed in it. A 15 cm layer of this soil in each pit is ideal. Irrigate the soil so that it is firmly packed. Only then is it ready to receive the pomegranate sapling.
Saplings can be planted at a distance of five by three metres, in the intensive method of planting which yields very well. In this method one can plant nearly 600 saplings per hectare.
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The saplings should be well irrigated in the month of May and regularly thereafter till the monsoon arrives. After the monsoon, the saplings should be watered once in 10-11 days.
Drip irrigation is suited to the cultivation of pomegranates. Drip irrigation saves a lot of water, and increases yield.
In the first year, each sapling will need 125 grams each of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. The second year the quantity of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium increases to 225 gms, 250 gms and 250 gms, respectively. In the third year it should be 350 gms, 250 gms and 250 gms, respectively.
In the fourth year the nitrogen content should be 450 gms, and phosphorus and potassium should be 250 gms each. After the fifth year, the soil should receive 10-15 kgs of manure and 600 gms of nitrogen, 250 gms of phosphorus and 250 grams of potassium.
Pruning of the pomegranate
The trees have to be pruned regularly. There are two ways of doing this. In one method, all outer branches are pruned. But this is not suited to commercial growth of pomegranate trees.
In the second method, the pomegranate is pruned in such a way that four or five stems are allowed to take root and grow and the rest are removed. This provides more space and light to the remaining branches and they fruit and flower well. This method is more suited to grow the fruit commercially.
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Three years after the saplings are planted, they start bearing fruit. However, if the pomegranate is being grown for commercial purposes, it is recommended that the first harvest happens after five years. A sapling that has been tended to well will yield about 60 to 80 fruits a year for up to 30 years.
A hectare of pomegranate orchard should give the farmer an income of up to Rs 800,000 a year. The intensive method of cultivation also saves the farmer money on manure and fertiliser costs. The yield is also higher.
Pintu Lal Meena is an agriculture officer from Sarmathura, Dhaulpur, Rajasthan. Views are personal.
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