Expert Advisory Details

Posted by Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana

Punjab

2020-03-04 10:07:02

Experts' advice for horticultural farmers

The evergreen fruit plants like citrus, mango, litchi, guava, loquat and ber may be planted in the field.

The young as well as the old trees should be irrigated regularly and more frequently as they put forth new growth/ flushes. The young plants should be provided with stakes for upright and straight growth. To litchi trees, apply irrigation after the fruit set and continue watering at 3 weeks intervals. To grapevines, one irrigation is needed during the first week of March.

Apply irrigations at weekly interval from end of March in early maturing peach varieties.

For rejuvenation of senile guava trees, head back such trees at 1.5 m from the ground level leaving 2-3 primary scaffolds and apply Bordeaux Paste on the cut ends.

For checking foot rot in citrus, (Phytophthora) drench the soil around basin of the tree and main limbs with Sodium hypochlorite 5% @ 50ml tree in 10 litres of water. Care should be taken that solution may not fall on leaves.

Ethephon 400 ppm at Colour break stage (250 ml in 300 litres of water in first week of March) advances ripening by two weeks in Umran and produces attractive, uniform, better quality and deep golden yellow with chocolate tinge coloured fruit. The peak season for harvesting of ber in Punjab is mid-March to mid-April.

To check the insect pests of citrus especially psylla and aphids, spray 200 ml Crocodile/Confidor 17.8 SL or 160g Actara/Dotara 25 WG (thiamethoxam) 500 litres of water on spring flush or 6.25 litre MAK HMO (Horticulture Mineral Oil).

For the control of withertip or die-back in citrus, spray Bordeaux mixture 2:2:250 before the flower opening.