Mr. Randip Ghosh, Assistant Manager, VNR Nursery Pvt Ltd, Raipur, Chhattisgarh, talks about custard apple, cultivation practices, economics, and challenges.
When we talk about Annona or custard apple, there are 4 varieties - Sita phal, ram phal, Lakshmana phal, and hanuman phal. Considering Sita phal, to start an orchard, the suggested spacing for mechanical intercultural operations, 12 ft row to row and 8 ft plant to plant is needed. We can cultivate 450 plants per acre. For tractor intercultural operations, we need 10 x 10 ft row to row, and 6 x6 ft plant to plant with total plants of 726 in an acre. The orientation of the orchards should be north to south for better aeration and sunlight penetration. Raised bed cultivation is a new technology, earlier farmers used to grow in flat bed. A raised bed helps the custard apple plants to grow better as it gets more drainage, more growth of roots, and it can protect the plants from phytophthora root rot.
In canopy management, there are 2 types in India, round canopy and espalier canopy. In the espalier canopy, the plants are tied with ropes to the wire. In the round canopy, plants do not get proper sunlight penetration. Cultivation becomes harder for the labour to go inside the plantation and do the bagging. So, there is reduced sunlight penetration, fruits and plants get infected with fungal disease and turn black and drop off eventually. We met Dr. Paula Ibell in Australia to learn the method of espalier system of canopy for mango. When we applied it here in guava, custard apple, mango, and a few more fruit varieties, we got a great success. This system needs 3 wires, the firs tone above 80 cm, the second one 50 cm above the first one, and the third 50 cm above the second one.
The density of plantation needs 12 x 8 ft spacing. We can see a 2 year old plant yielding more fruits in espalier system because of good sunlight penetration, aeration, and healthy fruits. The infrastructure needed for this are cement poles, tightening rod, concrete, GI wire, costing about Rs. 75 to 80 thousand per acre which varies from place to place. About pruning, in Chhattisgarh, there are two regions, Bastar and Raipur. The pruning depends on the start of monsoon season. 15 days prior to start of monsoon, we have to do the pruning. After pruning, we use Bordeaux paste to protect the plant from sunburn. The plant is also covered with newspaper, and the secondary branches are washed with Bordeaux paste. We can follow the same procedure for dragon fruits, and guava.
After pruning, it needs pollination. We can see in the markets many fruits are in deformed shape, when the pollination is one, the fruit shape will be uniform and big. We have to identify the flowers to be pollinated with male and female parts. The correct stage of pollination is the 5th stage. We need to collect the flowers one day before, we have to remove the petals, keep the flowers in a single layer, and take a small brush to rub to get anthers from the flowers. They are collected in a cup, shaken to collect pollen powder, and pollinate the flowers in the morning hours. We cn take pollen in brush and pollinate the flowers. The fruits will start setting from 10 to 12 days. We have to thin down the leaves to get good fruits of good size. If the fruits are close by, they will rub against each other and the fruits will become dark. We have to remove the leaves near the fruits. In many orchards, they use organic and plastic mulching. Organic mulching is good if the temperature is more than 40 degrees, and we can use paddy or corn straw for this purpose. If the temperature is below 40 degrees, we can use plastic mulching. We can use 100 micron mulching to protect the plants against weed and moisture retention. This mulching can be used up to 5 years. The cost per acre for using mulching will be Rs. 11500. It is very cheap compared to using labour for weeding. We can also go for green grass mulching in the custard apple orchard. Doop Grass is grown at 6 inches distance one feet row to row and 6 inches plant to plant. Within 45 days we can see the growth of the grass. This will protect the soil from erosion, maintains soil temperature, prevents soil cracking, and dust free plants.
The main difference between open centre system and espalier system is the space. Espalier system needs less space, mechanisation operations are easy, less labour requirement, pruning easy, attack by disease and pest is less, usage of chemical spray is less, and yield per ha is more. It has proved better than open canopy system.
In many orchards, we see that the custard apple trees which are grown in the periphery is prone to sunburn, and to prevent this bagging is done. We use comb net to cover the fruits and then bags to protect them from sunburn and other insect attack. The cost of bagging is around Rs. 3.5 per fruit. After pruning, it takes 135 days for the fruits to mature. Fertigation is not much needed for custard apple cultivation. Only at the time of fruit set, it is needed. After harvest no fertigation is needed. The plant goes into dormancy, and in March it starts giving leaves, and at that time, fertigation is needed. It is also needed during the months of August, September, October, and November. We use the fertilisers, N, P, K, Mg, and Ca in the ratio of 1, 0.2, 1.2, 0.12, and 0.36. The yield per acre using these methods will be - in case of 12 x 12 ft row to row and 8 x 8 ft plant to plant, we can get Rs. 7 to 8 lakhs, and in case of 10 x 10 ft row to row and 6 x 6 ft plant to plant, we can get 12 to 13 lakhs. Fruits from our nursery have higher TSS, big size, more shelf life, small seeds, and no grains in the pulp.
Lakhsman phal is a promising one with fruit weight of 300 g, thin skin, sweetness and TSS 22 to 24%, 60 to 64% pulp, and it is harvested during November to January when fruits are not much available in the market. We can cut and easily eat it. The revenue from this is the same as Sita phal. Till now 12 states have adopted our technologies and are getting good results. We have released many more varieties of other fruits such as guava, drum stick, jackfruit, grape fruit, karonda, lime, almond, pummelo, and wax apple. Package of practices such as land preparation, care for young plants, planting, drip placement, and trimming of plants are given in our website. We have an option for growers to identify the market to sell the fruits. VNR Nursery has 76 varieties of 32 crops accredited by NHB, along with more than 500 varieties in fruit crops. We have facilities like nursery production, clean mother lock, rootstock growing area, rootstock mother block, mechanisation in fertigation, virus indexing and DNA fingerprinting lab. We have supplied more than 8 million plants to various states and districts. We have automated hardening net houses, greenhouses, seed sowing unit, germination unit, nursery raising unit, media sterilisation unit, and so on for developing a healthy planting material which are disease-free.
How can we manage the best fertigation and the time?
The fertigation is done in the ratio of , P, K, Mg, and Ca in the ratio of 1, 0.2, 1.2, 0.12, and 0.36. If the plant needs ammoniacal type of fertiliser and if we give nitrate type of fertiliser, the nutrient will go to the vegetative growth and not to the reproductive growth. We have to mange the fertigation according to the physiological character of the fruits and the demand. We have done many trials and concluded that. fertigation has to be given every day, we use drip irrigation, and every drop of water should contain the fertiliser. This has to be managed at 110 to 120 ppm and go up to 250 at the time of fruiting.
There is a buyer seller exchange in our website, it has an option to know about fruit vendors. We have to locate the vendor, click on that and get the names of the states on the screen. Based on the location of the farmer, we can spot the market, click on it, and get the names of the vendors in the states with phone number sand addresses. We can sell to them directly by contacting them. The logistics have improved well. We can send products from one state to another within a short time. We believe that unless we provide infrastructure to farmers to market their produce, the job is incomplete.
How is VNR Madhur or Uttam compare to the other varieties found in the market?
We basically compare the characteristics of the fruits such as why a variety is popular in the market and among the consumers. Next is how convenient it is to grow. So, we have published the package of practices of growing custard apple on our website along with photos and videos for a new grower who has not grown custard apple so far. The characteristics of the varieties, in other varieties, we may see features and size. Madhur is bigger than other varieties. It has less number of seeds, more sweetness. When we go for espalier type of cultivation, the fruiting starts from second year. When the gestation period is reduced, the financial cycle of the project improves. Instead of paying interest for 36 months, the borrower can pay only for 24 months. All these benefits make Madhur more preferred compared to other varieties.
What are the optimum climatic conditions requirements for cultivating custard apple? What are the main pest and diseases that affect custard apple plants, and how can farmers manage them effectively?
Elevation of the land, temperature from 10 to maximum of 42 degrees will help the custard apple to grow easily and nicely. Mealybug and thrips are the major pests, thrips also help in pollination. We can spray chlorpyriphos, maintain the orchard clean, and use yellow sticky traps to prevent ants carrying the mealybug to the plants. When irrigation and moisture are excess in the orchard, the same can lead to growth of pests and diseases.
What are the key factors influencing the economics of custard apple farming? What are the main challenges faced by custard apple farmers in marketing and distribution?
Layout planning, land, good slope, and drainage system are very important. We have all these listed in our website and explained them. We should have good canopy, sunlight, aeration to reduce humidity, etc. Farmers have to do proper grading of the fruits, earlier when consumers found low grade fruits at the bottom of the crate, they refused to pay good price for the produce. The C grade fruits can be used for pulp extraction and other things. Economics will work out well if the farmer aims at producing A and B grade fruits. He can create a goodwill in the market. Farmers should know how to create good fruits from good plant, how to sell the fruits in the market with proper grading and packing.
How does the market demand fluctuate for custard apple cultivation, and what are the factors driving this? How does the cost of production vary across different regions of custard apple cultivation?
It is the production of the fruits as the demand goes on a sustained basis. When we get glut in the market, we should not try to sell in such markets. We should find efficient methods to sell the produce within 3 days. We have to look for places with high demand to get good price. Cost of cultivation depends on the technology and quality of the practices. The espalier system will cost only Rs. 80 lakhs in the first year, we can find the structure goes on for 15 years. Mulching costs Rs. 55 thousand and can go on for 5 years. If we use the latest technologies, we can get sizeable profit too. Farmers should shift from traditional method of cultivation to latest methods to get quality and quantity.
Can you discuss the sustainability aspect associated with custard apple cultivation?
Custard apple is a sun loving plant, with minimum requirement of moisture during reproductive phase. It can go up to 35 years. I have seen such trees in Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu.
How do government policies and subsidies impact custard apple farming at the grassroot level? Which are the regions in India that have custard apple grown in huge numbers?
It has to be checked with the local horticulture department. There is no national policy for custard apple. Every state has its own options and procedures to identify crops and give support to that. Any area which is below one thousand MSL can grow custard apple plants. Ujjain to Madhya Pradesh, entire South, Chhattisgarh, and boundaries of Madhya Pradesh grow custard apple in large numbers.
Randip Ghosh
Assistant Manager - Production
VNR Nursery Pvt Ltd, Corporate Center
Canal Road Crossing, Ring Road No.1,
Raipur, Chhattisgarh 492006
Email: randip.ghosh@vnrnursery.in
Phone: +91 8819090075
When we talk about Annona or custard apple, there are 4 varieties - Sita phal, ram phal, Lakshmana phal, and hanuman phal. Considering Sita phal, to start an orchard, the suggested spacing for mechanical intercultural operations, 12 ft row to row and 8 ft plant to plant is needed. We can cultivate 450 plants per acre. For tractor intercultural operations, we need 10 x 10 ft row to row, and 6 x6 ft plant to plant with total plants of 726 in an acre. The orientation of the orchards should be north to south for better aeration and sunlight penetration. Raised bed cultivation is a new technology, earlier farmers used to grow in flat bed. A raised bed helps the custard apple plants to grow better as it gets more drainage, more growth of roots, and it can protect the plants from phytophthora root rot.
In canopy management, there are 2 types in India, round canopy and espalier canopy. In the espalier canopy, the plants are tied with ropes to the wire. In the round canopy, plants do not get proper sunlight penetration. Cultivation becomes harder for the labour to go inside the plantation and do the bagging. So, there is reduced sunlight penetration, fruits and plants get infected with fungal disease and turn black and drop off eventually. We met Dr. Paula Ibell in Australia to learn the method of espalier system of canopy for mango. When we applied it here in guava, custard apple, mango, and a few more fruit varieties, we got a great success. This system needs 3 wires, the firs tone above 80 cm, the second one 50 cm above the first one, and the third 50 cm above the second one.
The density of plantation needs 12 x 8 ft spacing. We can see a 2 year old plant yielding more fruits in espalier system because of good sunlight penetration, aeration, and healthy fruits. The infrastructure needed for this are cement poles, tightening rod, concrete, GI wire, costing about Rs. 75 to 80 thousand per acre which varies from place to place. About pruning, in Chhattisgarh, there are two regions, Bastar and Raipur. The pruning depends on the start of monsoon season. 15 days prior to start of monsoon, we have to do the pruning. After pruning, we use Bordeaux paste to protect the plant from sunburn. The plant is also covered with newspaper, and the secondary branches are washed with Bordeaux paste. We can follow the same procedure for dragon fruits, and guava.
After pruning, it needs pollination. We can see in the markets many fruits are in deformed shape, when the pollination is one, the fruit shape will be uniform and big. We have to identify the flowers to be pollinated with male and female parts. The correct stage of pollination is the 5th stage. We need to collect the flowers one day before, we have to remove the petals, keep the flowers in a single layer, and take a small brush to rub to get anthers from the flowers. They are collected in a cup, shaken to collect pollen powder, and pollinate the flowers in the morning hours. We cn take pollen in brush and pollinate the flowers. The fruits will start setting from 10 to 12 days. We have to thin down the leaves to get good fruits of good size. If the fruits are close by, they will rub against each other and the fruits will become dark. We have to remove the leaves near the fruits. In many orchards, they use organic and plastic mulching. Organic mulching is good if the temperature is more than 40 degrees, and we can use paddy or corn straw for this purpose. If the temperature is below 40 degrees, we can use plastic mulching. We can use 100 micron mulching to protect the plants against weed and moisture retention. This mulching can be used up to 5 years. The cost per acre for using mulching will be Rs. 11500. It is very cheap compared to using labour for weeding. We can also go for green grass mulching in the custard apple orchard. Doop Grass is grown at 6 inches distance one feet row to row and 6 inches plant to plant. Within 45 days we can see the growth of the grass. This will protect the soil from erosion, maintains soil temperature, prevents soil cracking, and dust free plants.
The main difference between open centre system and espalier system is the space. Espalier system needs less space, mechanisation operations are easy, less labour requirement, pruning easy, attack by disease and pest is less, usage of chemical spray is less, and yield per ha is more. It has proved better than open canopy system.
In many orchards, we see that the custard apple trees which are grown in the periphery is prone to sunburn, and to prevent this bagging is done. We use comb net to cover the fruits and then bags to protect them from sunburn and other insect attack. The cost of bagging is around Rs. 3.5 per fruit. After pruning, it takes 135 days for the fruits to mature. Fertigation is not much needed for custard apple cultivation. Only at the time of fruit set, it is needed. After harvest no fertigation is needed. The plant goes into dormancy, and in March it starts giving leaves, and at that time, fertigation is needed. It is also needed during the months of August, September, October, and November. We use the fertilisers, N, P, K, Mg, and Ca in the ratio of 1, 0.2, 1.2, 0.12, and 0.36. The yield per acre using these methods will be - in case of 12 x 12 ft row to row and 8 x 8 ft plant to plant, we can get Rs. 7 to 8 lakhs, and in case of 10 x 10 ft row to row and 6 x 6 ft plant to plant, we can get 12 to 13 lakhs. Fruits from our nursery have higher TSS, big size, more shelf life, small seeds, and no grains in the pulp.
Lakhsman phal is a promising one with fruit weight of 300 g, thin skin, sweetness and TSS 22 to 24%, 60 to 64% pulp, and it is harvested during November to January when fruits are not much available in the market. We can cut and easily eat it. The revenue from this is the same as Sita phal. Till now 12 states have adopted our technologies and are getting good results. We have released many more varieties of other fruits such as guava, drum stick, jackfruit, grape fruit, karonda, lime, almond, pummelo, and wax apple. Package of practices such as land preparation, care for young plants, planting, drip placement, and trimming of plants are given in our website. We have an option for growers to identify the market to sell the fruits. VNR Nursery has 76 varieties of 32 crops accredited by NHB, along with more than 500 varieties in fruit crops. We have facilities like nursery production, clean mother lock, rootstock growing area, rootstock mother block, mechanisation in fertigation, virus indexing and DNA fingerprinting lab. We have supplied more than 8 million plants to various states and districts. We have automated hardening net houses, greenhouses, seed sowing unit, germination unit, nursery raising unit, media sterilisation unit, and so on for developing a healthy planting material which are disease-free.
How can we manage the best fertigation and the time?
The fertigation is done in the ratio of , P, K, Mg, and Ca in the ratio of 1, 0.2, 1.2, 0.12, and 0.36. If the plant needs ammoniacal type of fertiliser and if we give nitrate type of fertiliser, the nutrient will go to the vegetative growth and not to the reproductive growth. We have to mange the fertigation according to the physiological character of the fruits and the demand. We have done many trials and concluded that. fertigation has to be given every day, we use drip irrigation, and every drop of water should contain the fertiliser. This has to be managed at 110 to 120 ppm and go up to 250 at the time of fruiting.
There is a buyer seller exchange in our website, it has an option to know about fruit vendors. We have to locate the vendor, click on that and get the names of the states on the screen. Based on the location of the farmer, we can spot the market, click on it, and get the names of the vendors in the states with phone number sand addresses. We can sell to them directly by contacting them. The logistics have improved well. We can send products from one state to another within a short time. We believe that unless we provide infrastructure to farmers to market their produce, the job is incomplete.
How is VNR Madhur or Uttam compare to the other varieties found in the market?
We basically compare the characteristics of the fruits such as why a variety is popular in the market and among the consumers. Next is how convenient it is to grow. So, we have published the package of practices of growing custard apple on our website along with photos and videos for a new grower who has not grown custard apple so far. The characteristics of the varieties, in other varieties, we may see features and size. Madhur is bigger than other varieties. It has less number of seeds, more sweetness. When we go for espalier type of cultivation, the fruiting starts from second year. When the gestation period is reduced, the financial cycle of the project improves. Instead of paying interest for 36 months, the borrower can pay only for 24 months. All these benefits make Madhur more preferred compared to other varieties.
What are the optimum climatic conditions requirements for cultivating custard apple? What are the main pest and diseases that affect custard apple plants, and how can farmers manage them effectively?
Elevation of the land, temperature from 10 to maximum of 42 degrees will help the custard apple to grow easily and nicely. Mealybug and thrips are the major pests, thrips also help in pollination. We can spray chlorpyriphos, maintain the orchard clean, and use yellow sticky traps to prevent ants carrying the mealybug to the plants. When irrigation and moisture are excess in the orchard, the same can lead to growth of pests and diseases.
What are the key factors influencing the economics of custard apple farming? What are the main challenges faced by custard apple farmers in marketing and distribution?
Layout planning, land, good slope, and drainage system are very important. We have all these listed in our website and explained them. We should have good canopy, sunlight, aeration to reduce humidity, etc. Farmers have to do proper grading of the fruits, earlier when consumers found low grade fruits at the bottom of the crate, they refused to pay good price for the produce. The C grade fruits can be used for pulp extraction and other things. Economics will work out well if the farmer aims at producing A and B grade fruits. He can create a goodwill in the market. Farmers should know how to create good fruits from good plant, how to sell the fruits in the market with proper grading and packing.
How does the market demand fluctuate for custard apple cultivation, and what are the factors driving this? How does the cost of production vary across different regions of custard apple cultivation?
It is the production of the fruits as the demand goes on a sustained basis. When we get glut in the market, we should not try to sell in such markets. We should find efficient methods to sell the produce within 3 days. We have to look for places with high demand to get good price. Cost of cultivation depends on the technology and quality of the practices. The espalier system will cost only Rs. 80 lakhs in the first year, we can find the structure goes on for 15 years. Mulching costs Rs. 55 thousand and can go on for 5 years. If we use the latest technologies, we can get sizeable profit too. Farmers should shift from traditional method of cultivation to latest methods to get quality and quantity.
Can you discuss the sustainability aspect associated with custard apple cultivation?
Custard apple is a sun loving plant, with minimum requirement of moisture during reproductive phase. It can go up to 35 years. I have seen such trees in Maharashtra, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu.
How do government policies and subsidies impact custard apple farming at the grassroot level? Which are the regions in India that have custard apple grown in huge numbers?
It has to be checked with the local horticulture department. There is no national policy for custard apple. Every state has its own options and procedures to identify crops and give support to that. Any area which is below one thousand MSL can grow custard apple plants. Ujjain to Madhya Pradesh, entire South, Chhattisgarh, and boundaries of Madhya Pradesh grow custard apple in large numbers.
Randip Ghosh
Assistant Manager - Production
VNR Nursery Pvt Ltd, Corporate Center
Canal Road Crossing, Ring Road No.1,
Raipur, Chhattisgarh 492006
Email: randip.ghosh@vnrnursery.in
Phone: +91 8819090075
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