Mango

• India contribute 64 percent of total world production of the 25 million metric tonnes and 83 percent of Asia’s production of 11.8million metric tonnes. In India, Andhra Pradesh has second largest area under mango, being next to Uttar Pradesh covering about 3.70 lakh ha, but ranks first in production of about 29.6lakh tonnes per year. Krishna, Chittoor, Vijayanagaram, Khammam and West Godavari are five major growing districts in Andhra Pradesh.

Varieties

• Andhra Pradesh has the largest number of commercial varieties (table, juicy, pickle, off season, exotic and export varieties) and is endowed with the unique position of having the richest varietal wealth in the world.

Table purpose

Banganpalli (Baneshan, Safeda)

• This is the leading commercial variety of the state. Tree medium, fruit large sized (2 to 3 perkg), fruit colour golden yellow, quality very good, mid season (it is good in taste if tasted towards later half of May), moderate yielder and fairly regular, moderately tolerant to hoppers and winds, keeping quality good, suitable for canning.

Totapari (Bangalore, Collector, Chittoor mamidi)

• Better suited to dry regions, more regular and heavy yielder. Tree medium, mid season (bearing later than Banganpalli) fruits medium to large (2 to 3 per kg), skin thick, shape oblong (bottle necked towards the base) fruit quality poor to medium, trees vulnerable to cyclone damage, fruit keeping quality is excellent.

Suvarnarekha (Sundari, Lal Sundary)

• Popular in Srikakulam and Visakhapatnam districts. Tree medium, bearing heavy and regular, early in coastal area (i.e about last week of April ) and mid season in Telangana region. Fruit medium size (4 to 6per kg), skin medium thick, shape ovate-oblong, colour light cadmium with a blush of deep red, flesh firm, fibreless, fruit quality medium to good, with an acidic blend, susceptible to powdery mildew, keeping quality is good.

Neelum

• More popular in Rayalseema region. Tree medium, highly regular and heavy bearer, late season, fruits medium sized (4 to 6perkg), skin medium thick, shape oval-oblique (roundish), sinus some what prominent and beak distinct, colour orange yellow, flesh fibreless fruit quality better than Totapari, with an acidic blend, more susceptible to anthracnose keeping quality good.

Dashehari

• More suitable for Telangana Zone. Tree medium to vigorous biennial bearer moderate yielder, mid season, fruits small to medium in (4 to 8 per kg), skin medium thick shape elliptical – oblong, colour greenish yellow, flesh firm, fibreless, fruit quality excellent, with more sugar acid blend, keeping quality good.

Kasar

• Tree medium, mid-season, biennial in bearing, moderate fruits medium to large size (3 to 4 perkg), shape oblong, fruit colour light aprlcot yellow with red blush on shoulders. Taste is very good and sugar / acid blend is excellent.

Mahmooda vikarabad

• A dwarf variety suited for high density planting. Tree small, regular and heavy bearer, mid season to late, fruit medium, skin think, yellowish green, flesh moderately firm, fibreless, fruit quality very good to best, susceptible to hoppers, tolerant winds, keeping quality of fruit good.

Hybrids

Malika (Neelum x Dashehari)

• Tree medium, mid to late season, fairly, fruits large sized (2 to 4 perkg), skin medium thick fruit shape oblong elliptic, colour cadmium yellow, flesh firm, fibreless fruit quality excellent with more sugar acid blend keeping quality good.

Neeleshan (Neelum x Banganpalli)

• A hybrid between Neelum and Banganpalli, released from Agricultural Research Station, Anantarajupet. This has become quite popular among the farmers of Rayalaseema region. It excels Banganpalli in productivity and regularity of bearing, fruit large sized and similar in apparance.

Manjeera (Rumani x Neelum)

• Hybrid of Rumani x Neelum released from Fruit Research Station, Sangareddy, fruit very attractive and lrge (300 to 350q) looks like Rumani. It is dwarf variety, suitable for high density planting. About 500 plants can be accommodated per hectare adopting a spacing of 4.5m x 4.5m. It is a prolific and regular bearer.

Juicy Varieties

Peddarasam

• Popular in Godavari and Krishna districts. Tree medium in height, fruit large, greenish yellow when ripe, juice is a abundant fibrous, sub-acidic, bearing early, fairy regular.

Chinnarasam

• Popular in Nuzvid area, tree medium, fruit medium sized, juice abundant, characteristic strong flavour fruit quality very good, bearing regular and heavy (mid season to late) keeping quality fair.

Navaneetham (Panchadara Kalasa)

• Tree medium to large, fruit medium, juice abundant fibre short and soft, fruit quality very good, bearing regular and heavy mid-season susceptible to powdery mildew and moderately tolerant to hopper.

Pickel varieties

Jalal

• Regular bearer fruit size medium to large it is a late variety.

Soils

• The most decirable soil for mango should be of medium texture, deep (2 to 2.5m), well drained, low water table (below 180cm in all the seasons) and having a pH range of 5.5 to 7.5 for good growths and production of mangoes provided they are not very alkaline. Higher calcareous soils are unsuitable for mango. Saline and alkaline conditions are not conductive for profitable mango cultivation.
• Localities which experience bright sunny days and relatively low humidity during flowering period are ideal for mango growing. It can do well in area having an average rainfall as low as 25cm if irrigation can be provided.

Planting material

• One or two year old vegetatively propagated plants in desirable rootstock should be collected from an authentic source. Under Fruit Research Station, Sangareddy conditions. Movadhan and Turpentine rootstocks are suitable for better growth of the tree. For better stand and longevity of the trees, it is advisable to go for in situ grafting.

Planting and spacing

• It is general / planted at the beginning of the monsoon (June-July). In areas with heavy rainfall it is done at the end of rainy season. Dig pits about 1m x 1m x 1m and fill with soil well-mixed with 25kg farm yard manure, 2 kg superphosphate and 150g aldrin dust. The planting distance will vary with the vigour of the variety and location ranging from 8 to 12meters. The dwarf hybrid varieties should be planted at closer spacing. Plant the graft with its earth ball intact and press the soil all around. The graft jointing should be above ground level. It always better to adjust it at the same height/depth at which it was in the pot or nursery bed. Stake the plant to prevent wind damage. Remove rootstock sprouts below the graft joint.

Manures and Fertilizers

• To improve the texture of light soils add adequate tank silt and FYM.

fertilizer schedule for mango is as follows

• Fertilizers should be applied through placement in circular trenches dug 4cm deep and 20cm away from the stem in the first year of application and increasing the depth and lateral distance in the multiples during later years. Manuring is generally done in the beginning of monsoon. Wherever irrigation is available, is advantageous to apply part of the manures after fruit set. In the absence of irrigation, foliar sprays of 2% urea and phosphorus through orthophosphoric acid may be sprayed in September – November and March. This zinc deficiency can be corrected by 0.5% ZnSO₄ at the beginning of the growing season thoroughly wetting the foliage.

Intercultivation and intercrops

• Intercrops like vegetables, low-growing field crops and fruits like phalsa or papaya can be profitably grown in all young orchards. Redgram is not advisable as it is a deep rooted plant and also an alternate host for mealy bug. In old orchards shade tolerating crops like ginger, turmeric etc., can be taken up.
• Pruning to remove the criss-cross dead & dried branches may be done so that the center of the tree is opened with less dense canopy and inner branches are exposed to sunlight. Spraying 1% urea & 0.5% Zinc sulphate has been recommended during October & November months for uniform flowering and fruiting every year.

Irrigation

• The young plants at pre-bearing stage should be irrigated frequently. In bearing trees, for obtaining good flowering, irrigation must be stopped at least 2 to 3 months before flowering period. Irrigation at regular intervals during fruit development period is necessary, beginning from fruit set stage to full development stage and stopped 30 days before harvesting the crop.

Fruit Crop

• Controlled by spraying 2, 4-D at 10ppm or Naphthalene acetic acid at 20 ppm twice at an interval of 15 days during the early stage of fruit development. Avoid any spray at peak time of flowering (full bloom stage).

Harvesting

• The characteristic taste and flavour of the variety develops only by harvesting full size matured fruits. The minimum total soluble solid content for harvesting without sacrificing the quality is 9.0 in case of Banganpalli and 8.5 for Dashehari. For knowing the maturity, fruit samples from various directions of the tree are taken and dropped in bucket of water, the dipped fruits being, indicative of correct maturity. In case of pickle mangoes, time of harvest is relatively more flexible and any time between stone hardening and attainment of physiological maturity appears to be suitable. Harvesting should be done, using mango harvester.
• All the fruits harvested with pedicel avoiding injury to the fruits.
• Avoid shaking and injuries to branches and thus no loss by way of fruit drop from trees during harvesting.

Post-Harvest Technology

• The harvested fruits should be covered or taken to the ripening room immediately to avoid damage. Remove the sap before keeping for ripening.
• Coating the fruit with 6% wax emulsion delays ripening by 2-4 days, mninimizes the weight loss and disease incidence. The fruits can be kept for about 6 weeks in cold storage at a temperature of 5.5⁰C to 7.2⁰C and relative humidity of 85-90%. Storage life of mango can be extended by 20 days by hydro cooling (12⁰C) and 0.1% carbendazim treatment.

Recommendations for production of export quality mango

Integrated Nutrient Management

• Add organic manures profusely. Add 100kgs of well decomposed FYM or 10kgs vermicompost per tree.
• Add bio-fertilizers like phospho-bacteria, azospirillum @ 250g per tree.
• Raise green manure crops in the interspaces (sun hemp and daincha) in the month of June or July and incorporate in the field after 45 to 50 days.
• To avoid micro-nutrient deficiency apply 50 to 100g of Borax, 25g of Zinc Sulphate and 50g of Magnesium Sulphate per tree.
• Apply 100g each of NPK per one year old plant (217g Urea + 625g SSP + 167g MOP). Increase 100g each of NPK every year up to 10 years. For 10 years and above old plantation apply 2.17 kg Urea + 6.25 kg SSP + 1.67 kg MOP per tree.
• Foliar application of Zinc Sulphate @ 5g+2g Borax and 10g Urea per litre of water at new vegetative growth.
• Apply potassium Nitrate @ 10g per litre of water or 13-0-46 (multi K) @ 10g per litre based on leaf analysis in the month of October.
• Before flowering for good fruit set, spray Borax (Solubor) @ 2g per litre along with first spray schedule.

Pest disease Management

• Fruits should be free from pests and diseases. Plant protection measures should be taken at the time of flowering and fruiting against thrips, hoppers, mealybugs, powdery mildew, anthracnose and stem end rot.

Spray schedule for control of pests and diseases

• 1^st spray – 15-20 days before panicle emergence / budburst spray, Monocrotophos (@1.5ml) + Wettable Sulphur (3g) /L on the entire tree.
• 2^nd Spray – To control leaf hopper at budburst stage spray Carbaryl (3g) or imidochloprid (0.3ml) + carbendazim (1g) / L.
• 3^rd spray – To control powdery mildew and hopper at flowering and fruit set stage spray endosulphan (2ml) + karathane (1ml) /L.
• Spray – At marble fruit stage spray Multi K (10g) /L + Mancozeb or Copper Oxy chloride (3g) /l.
• Add adjuvant @ 0.5m /L to spray solution.

Precautions at the time of harvest.

• Avoid injury to the fruit at the time of harvest. Use Dapoli harvester.
• Harvest the fruits at 70-80%maturity. The recommended weight of the fruit at harvest are as following :

1. Banganpalli - 350g (10g more or less)
2. Chousa, Dashehari - 300g (10g more or less)
3. Alphonso - 250g (10g more or less)
4. Kesar - 235-265g (10g more or less)
5. Suvarnarekha - 240-270g (10g more or less)

• Harvest the fruit with 5-7cm stalk and cut it to 1cm before shifting to pack house.
• Harvest fruits between 6-10 AM. Do not harvest the fruit when the temperatures are high.
• For export by sea select fruits which are green in colour without preminent lenticels and TSS of 7-9⁰B. Shelf life of theses fruits is 20-25 days.
• For export by air harvest the fruit at 100-105 days and when the fruits are green in colour with prominent lenticles. Shelf life of fruits is 17-20 days.
• For export to other states harvest the fruits at 108-110 days, with 9-11⁰B TSS, shelf life is 10-12 days.
• Arrange the fruits in plastic creates by paddying the vehicle for transport to pack houses.

Pest and Diseases

Pests

Mango Hopper (idioscopus dypealis ; Amrotodus atkinsoni)

• Spray carbaryl-3 g or fenvalarate 0.002% or monocrotophos 0.05% or phosphomidon 0.05%. First spray should be given at the early stage of panicle formation (bud burst stage). The second spray at full length of panicle but before full bloom and the third spray after fruits are set and have attained pea and marble stage.
• Hoppers suck the sap from flower panicles due to which flowers dry up and drop prematurely, leaves become curled.

Mealy Bug (Droscicha Mangiferee)

• The early instar nymph can be controlled by spraying monocrotophos 0.05% or carbaryl 0.2% or methyl parathion 0.5%. Use polyethylene band on the trunk region to prevent climbing.
• Mealy bug drain out the plant sap and reduce the vitality and vigour of the plant. Processive and continuous draining of plant sap causes wilting and finally drying of infested tissue.

Shoot borer (Chlumstla transverse)

• The attacked shoots may be clipped off and destroyed. Spraying of Fenvalerate (0.02%) or Quinalphos (0.05%) at fortnightly intervals from the commencement of new flush. Total 2-3 sprays may be given depending on infestation.
• Caterpillers enter the young shoot from the terminal end and borer down to a depth of 8-10cm. The affected shoots wilt and dry up.

Stem borer (Batocera rufomaculata)

• They can be destroyed by inserting a hard wire into the tunnel. Seal the tunnel with wet clay after applying 50 EC metacid 0.05% or petrol or few crystals of paradichloro benzene (PDC).
• The grubs bore into the bark and stem. This can be identified from the chewed material coming from the bores and by the hollow sound when the branch is tapped, in severe cases the plant dies.

Stone or Nut weevil (Cryptomhynchus mangiferae Sym. Stermochetus mangiferae)

• Destroy the adults in bark should be washed with wiped kerosene amulsion, Spray Fenthion 0.01%.
• The grubs of the insect damage the pulp and cotyledons of the stone. Alphonso, Neeleshan and Totapari varieties are susceptible to this pest.

Diseases

Powdery mildew (Oidium mangiferae)

• It can be controlled by spraying wettable sulphur 0.2% or Dinocap 0.1% along with second spray of insecticide given for hoppers. If the powdery persists, repeat after 3 weeks.
• White powdery out growth appears on young leaves and inflorescences. In severe cases young shoots wither & drop. Affected leaves become distroyed.

Anthracnose (Collectotrichum gloeosporioides)

• Dead twigs should be pruned to reduce inoculum potential, spraying copper oxychloride or Dithiocarbamate (0.2%) or carbendazim (0.1%) in the nursery. Instantaneous dip of fruits in Benomyl solution (1000 ppm) before storage reduces the incidence of the disease.
• Brown fungal spots appear on the leaves and inflorescences, resulting in shedding of flowers. Black spots appear on fruits.

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