Horticulture
Horticulture :: FAQs :: Fruits


FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS - FRUIT CROPS

1. What are the mango varieties suitable for processing?
Alphonso, Banganapalli, Totapuri  

2. Name some mango varieties suited for export?
Alphonso, Banganapalli, Sendura

3. Can I use mango seedlings for commercial planting?
No. Grafts should be used for commercial planting.

4. How can I induce flowering in mango?
During February 0.5% Urea (5 g/lit.) or 1% Potassium Nitrate (10g/lit.) may be sprayed to induce flowering in mango.

5. Suggest some alternate methods for biennial bearing.
i.Plant regular bearing varieties like Banglora, PKM 1, PKM 2.
ii.Follow regular cultural practices like manuring, pruning, watering and plant protection measures.

6. What are the culinary varieties in Banana?
Monthan, Nendran, Vayal vazhai, Ash Monthan and Chakkia.

7. Name some banana varieties suitable for hilly areas.
Virupakshi, Sirumalai and Namaran, Red Banana, Manoranjitham (Santhana vazhai) and Ladan.

8. What is meant by sucker treatment in banana?
Select sword suckers of 1.5 to 2.0 kg weight, free from diseases and nematodes.  Trim the roots and decayed portion of the corm, cut the pseudostem leaving 20 cm from the corm and grade the suckers to size. To avoid wilt disease, infected portions of the corn may be pared, dipped for 5 minutes in 0.1% Emisan solution (1 g in 1 lit of water) in Rasthali, Monthan, Neyvannan, Virupakshi and other wilt susceptible varieties.  Pralinage with 40 g of Carbofuran 3 G granules per sucker.  (Dip the corm in slurry solution of 4 parts clay plus 5 parts water and sprinkle Carbofuran to control nematodes). Alternatively, dip the corm with shade dry for atleast 24 hours and plant.

9. What is the use of bunch covering in banana?
Uniform bunch maturity, free from pest and disease infection, bruises and black spots.

10. What is meant by kottavazhai in banana and which variety is more susceptible for that disease?
Kottavazhai is seediness in banana especially in poovan varieties. This is can be controlled by spraying 2,4 – D at the rate of 25 ppm within 20 days after opening of last hand (1 g/40 lit/200 bunches) or 1.2 g of Sodium salt of 2,4 – D dissolved in 40 lit of water for 200 bunches.

11. How can I get more yield in acid lime?
Fruit set in acid lime can be increased by 2,4,D @ 20 ppm during flowering. Similarly the fruit retention can be achieved by spraying 2,4,D @ 20 ppm / NAA 30 ppm after fruit set (marble size).

12. What is the method of training adopted for growing grapes?
Pandal system

13. Suggest some of the methods to increase grape yield and quality.
Dip the clusters in solution containing Brassinosteroid 0.5 ppm and GA3 25 ppm at 10 -12 days after fruit set.

14. How can I increase the berry size in grapes?
Dip the clusters of Thomson seedless and other seedless varieties at calyptra fall with 25 ppm GA (25 mg/lit) and repeat again at pepper stage to increase the size of berries.

15. How to prepare Bordeaux mixture?
A quantity of 400 g of Copper sulphate should be dissolved in 20 lit of water and 400 g of lime in another 20 lit of water separately. The copper sulphate solution should be added to the lime solution constantly stirring the mixture.  Earthern or wooden vessels and plastic containers alone should be used and metallic containers should not be used.  To find out whether the mixture is in correct proportion, a polished knife should be dipped in the mixture for one minute and taken out.  If there is reddish brown deposit of copper, additional quantity of lime should be added till there is no deposit in the knife.

16. How to control bronzing of leaves in guava?
Combined spraying of ZnSO4, MgSO4, and MnSO4 @ 0.5 % and CuSO4 and FeSO4 @ 0.25 % + Teepol @ 1 ml per 5 lit. of solution on a new flush, one month of 1st spray, flowering and fruit set stage will control the bronzing of leaves in guava.

17. What is meant by paired row planting in pineapple?
The spacing between two trenches will be 90 cm. Row to row spacing in the same bed per trench will be 60 cm and plant spacing within the row is 30 cm.

18. How many ratoon crops can be practiced in pineapple and what is the most suitable variety amenable for ratoon crop in pineapple?
Up to 5 ratoon crops can be practiced in pineapple. Mauritius is amenable for ratoon cropping.

19. What is the spacing adopted for high density planting in sapota?
8 x 4 m

20. Name some rootstock materials suited for preparation of sapota grafts?
Pala and Kirni

21. I have only one well maintained sapota tree of PKM-2 variety. This is not at all or shows poor bearing phenomenon. Why?
This is mainly due to pollination problem. Hence plant atleast 4-5 trees for better pollination and fruit set.

22. How can I artificially ripe the sapota fruits?
Artificial ripening can be done by keeping 5000 ppm Ethrel + 10 g of NaOH pellets in a beaker in air tight chamber. the fruits will be ripened with in 1 or 2 days.

23. What are the table purpose papaya varieties?
CO 3 and CO 7

24. Name some dual purpose (papain + table purpose) varieties of papaya.
CO 2, CO 5 and CO 6

25. What is meant by papain?
The latex obtained from immature (75 to 90 days old) fruits of papaya contains proteolytic enzymes. This is called papain.

26. What is the use of papain?
Meat tenderization, tooty fruity preparations.

27. How much of papin can be obtained from 1 hectare?
600 – 800 kg of crude papin

28. Whether the fruit can be selled in the market after papain extraction?
Yes

29. How can I control fruit borer in pomegranate?
i. Bag the fruits with polythene covers during flowering period to prevent         egg-laying
ii. Spray 2 ml/lit of Endosulfon or Malathion
iii. Spray neem oil 3 % or NSKE 5 % at the time of butterfly activity

30. I am constantly / daily foraging my cows by tying over the trunks of Jack tree.  Is it a right practice?
No. While doing so the fruiting buds are damaged and yield will be very lesser.

31. Can I use seedling material of ber plants for commercial / large scale planting?
No. Budded plants can be used for early bearing period.

32. Fruit fly is the big menace for me? How can I control them?
i. Destroy the infested fruits
ii. Dig the soil under tree canopy to destroy pupae and incorporate Lindane 1.3 % dust @ 30 g/tree.
iii. Spray Malathion or Endosulfon or Quinolphos 2 ml/lit

33. What kind of fruit trees can I choose for dry land areas?
Aonla, Sapota and Ber

34. What are the rootstocks suited for apple grafting?
M 778 and M 779

35. How can I control wooly aphis problem in apple?
Use resistant rootstocks viz., M 778, 779, MM 104, MM 110, MM 112, MM 113, MM 114. Spray Methyl dematon 25 EC at the rate of 4 ml/li.

36. How to control lichens problem in apple orchards?
Spray quick lime 1 kg/20 lit of water after pruning to control lichens growth.

37. Name the suitable pollinator for plum.
Hale

38. What is the method suitable for growing passion fruits?
Pandal system

39. Where I can get the recent technologies and planting materials of fruit crops?

Professor and Head,
Department of Fruit Crops
Horticulture College and Research Institute
Tamil Nadu Agricultural University
Coimbatore – 641 003
Phone: 0422 – 6611270
Email: fruits@tnau.ac.in
Professor and Head,
Department of Fruit Crops
Horticulture College and Research Institute
Tamil Nadu Agricultural University
Periyakulam – 625 604
Phone & Fax:  (04546) 231726

© All Rights Reserved. TNAU-2015.