Citrus fruits 15 CITRUS CULTIVATION IN PUNJAB By H.S. Rattanpal Gurteg Singh Sandeep Singh Anita Arora Department of Fruit Science Punjab Agricultural University Ludhiana - 141 004 First Edition: February 2017 ISBN 978-93-86267-15-3 Published by Additional Director of Communication for Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana. Email :
[email protected] CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 1 SOIL AND CLIMATE 3 VARIETIES 5 CITRUS NURSERY PRODUCTION 22 PLANTING OF ORCHARD 31 NUTRITION 35 IRRIGATION 45 INTERCROPPING 52 TRAINING AND PRUNING 53 WEED MANAGEMENT 58 HARVESTING AND POST-HARVEST HANDLING 61 OTHER DISORDERS 71 INSECT AND MITE PESTS 76 DISEASES 100 PREPARATION OF DIFFERENT FUNGICIDES 121 This page is intentionally left blank INTRODUCTION The importance of citrus fruits in world’s economy is demonstrated by its wide scale cultivation under tropical and sub-tropical conditions. Citrus has a tremendous socio-economical and cultural impact on the whole society. The multifold nutritional and medicinal values make this fruit indispensible in several parts of the world. Citrus is primarily valued for the fruit, which is either eaten alone as fresh fruit, processed into juice or added to dishes and beverages. At the moment, citrus is being grown in Punjab over 52,836 hectares with annual production of 10,49,977 tonnes. Kinnow mandarin occupies an area of 49,356 hectare with annual production of 10,21,719 tonnes. The agro-ecological conditions of Punjab are best suited for the production of Kinnow mandarin. Kinnow cultivation has proved a boon for the farmers due to its higher economic productivity as compared to other fruit crops. The inherited abiotic stress tolerance in Kinnow came from its mother parent King mandarin make this tropical fruit suitable for the sub-tropical region too.