Hello Sir
Pomegranate is drought hardy with low maintenance cost, steady, with good yield, fine table and therapeutic values and better keeping qualities.
In India it is mainly cultivated in Maharashtra, Andhra pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kanataka and Gujarat.
It can adapt itself to a wide range of climatic conditions but is grown successfully in areas of cool winters and hot and dry summers. It can grow from the plains to an elevation of about 1829 m.The tree can withstand frost but temperature below 11. 1°C is injurious.
Soil : The pomegranate shows wide adaptability to varying soil conditions. But it grows best on deep, rather heavy loam and alluvial soils which are ideal for its cultivation. It can tolerate soils which are limy and slightly alkaline. It can also be grown in medium or light black soils.
Land preparation:The land selected for pomegranate cultivation is thoroughly and deeply ploughed followed by 3 to 4 cultivations and harrowings. Planting is done in well pre- pared pits of 1/2 cu. m. size. The pit should be filled with about 20 kg farmyard manure mixed with fine soil. This should be done before the rainy season in the southern and western India, whereas in northern India, it can be done by the beginning of January.
Planting:The planting of the rooted cuttings in the main field may be done during monsoon. The plants are removed from the nursery with a ball of earth and most of the leaves as well as the side shoots are pruned off. The layout is done according to square or hexagonal system and plant- ing is done 3 to 6 m apart. Light irrigation should be given immediately after planting. Rooted cuttings or air-layers are planted in pits at the required distance and filled with 20 kg farmyard manure with fine soil.
Fertilizer Application: At the time of planting, well rotted farmyard manure @ 20 kg per tree is usually applied to pomegranate plants and this is continuously given to each plant every year at the break of monsoon. For 4-6 years old bearing trees, 500 g N, 250 g P205 and 250 g K2O plant have been found to give good yield. However, 50 kg farmyard manure and 3-5 kg oilcake or 1 kg sulphate of ammonia prior to flowering are recommended for healthy growth as well as fruiting. Apply the farmyard manure and half the dose of ammonium sulphate at the time of bahar treat- ment. The remaining dose of ammonium sulphate should be given one month after the application of the first dose.
Irrigation : The young plants require regular irrigation for their establishment and to start new growth. In northern India, where planting is done during spring, regular water- ing may be given every 7 to 10 days till the onset of monsoon. However, in other areas where planting is done during monsoon, irrigation may be given whenever there is no rain for a week or 10 days. The bed or basin system of irrigation is usually practised. Withhold irrigation 2.5 to 3 months before bahar treatment. The fruit cracks if there is irregularity in irrigation during fruit development and, therefore, copious and regular irrigation is essential during fruiting season.
Training and Pruning : There are two methods of training the pomegranate viz single stem and multi stem training. The young I plants are properly trained to form a single stem with a number of well distributed scaffold limbs. Single stem is achieved by removing all the side shoots at the time of planting. On this main stem, 3-4 main branches are allowed to grow about 60-70 cm from the ground level. The second is multi stem system in which naturally arising stems are kept. The tree in this system becomes crowdy. Pomegranate requires less pruning except for the removal of suckers and giving a shape to the tree. The side branches are pruned and the tree is allowed to grow on a clean main stem. The fruits are borne terminally on short branches known as spurs. The older spurs which have lost the capacity of fruit bearing and also those shoots which interfere with others should be removed. It is desirable to encourage new growth on 1 to 3 years old wood.
Bahar Treatment : In pomegranate, there are three main flowering sea- sons viz. Ambe bahar, (February-March), Mrig bahar (June-July) coinciding with the break of monsoon and Hasth bahar (September-October). Only one bahar is taken from the tree and the season of fruiting to be adopted is mainly determined by the market factor and the availability of water. The bahar treatment consists in with- holding water supply for about two months before the normal flowering season to produce fresh growth and blossoms resulting in a heavy crop yield. After two months, soil is mixed with manure and light irrigation is given.
In Maharashtra, there is a continuous flowering, but the Ambe bahar (flowering in January-February) is taken. The fruits of this bahar are harvested in the second half of Mayor In the first of June. The advantage in taking Ambe bahar fruits is that the climate remains dry and , warm to hot during the fruit development and ripening. 1 There is less attack of pests and diseases. Moreover, the fruits are of good quality and possess attractive red colour. The Ambe bahar crop is less susceptible to cracking than 1.. the crops of other bahars. Where the irrigation facilities are not available, the Mrig bahar is recommended.
The fruits become ready for harvesting 5-7 months after the appearance of blossoms. Usual practice among the growers is to pick the fruits when they are slightly under-ripe so as to avoid the loss due to cracking. Each tree bears about 100 fruits per year and continues to give economic crop upto 30 years.
The keeping quality of the pomegranate fruits is good and it keeps well for a long time. Fruits can be kept fresh without spoilage and shrinkage by storing them at a temperature of 0 to 4.5°C with 80-85 % relative humidity. Spraying with 2 % lypol solution is also effective to increase the storage life of the fruit.
Diseases:
Leaf spot: Spray of Bavistin or JK Stein. 0.1 % at 20 days interval (b) Mix of antibiotics like Agrimycin or Paushamycin with above fungicides to control both bacterial and fungal infections.
Fruit rot: Prune all infected twigs and fruits and burn them. (b) Dithane M-45 or Captan should be sprayed at an interval of 15 days.
Fruit spot: Prune the dead and affected twigs or branches. (b) Spray Dithane M-45 or Captan (500 gm in 200 litres of water) after the fruit set. Generally 3-4 spraying are needed at 15 days intervals.
Cracking of Fruits
Fruit cracking:It is due to the hardening of the skin of the fruit during long dry period and then sudden expansion in the volume of inner part of the fruit after rain or heavy irrigation. Regular and light irrigation throughout the fruiting season and improving the water retention capacity of the soil by adding organic manures prevent fruit cracking to a large extent.
