Apricot is cultivated as a cash crop. In India, it is also known as Chola. Kernels are found inside its fruits. Its fruit is considered of the species of peach and apricot. Moreover, it is grown in Turkey the most in the world. In India, it is produced in the foothills of the Himalayas (Kashmir, Uttarakhand and Himachal). Its plant is of average height.
The seeds found in its fruits are like almonds. Whose two to three seeds can be easily eaten by an adult person. Because it contains a slow poison, dried apricots can also be used as dry fruits. Juices, jams and jellies are made from fresh fruits. Apart from this, chutney is also made from it.
Suitable Soil
Apricot cultivation requires deep fertile loamy soil with proper drainage. Waterlogged rugged land is not suitable for its cultivation. The pH of the land for the apricot Cultivation should be around 7. After choosing the soil, you have to prepare it with advanced tractors like Farmtrac 60 and others.
Climate & Temperature
The altitude of 1000 to 2000 meters above sea level is suitable for the cultivation of apricot. Its plants need both temperate and temperate climates to grow. But in temperate regions, where there is high heat for a long time, it should not be grown. Its plants cannot tolerate high heat for a long time because it affects the function of fruiting in plants. But for centuries, the frost that falls on the plant during flowering has been harmful. Therefore, its plants need average rain.
Farm Preparation
Apricot plants are planted by preparing pits in the field. Before preparing cavities, the area is ploughed to make the soil friable. For this, in the beginning, clean the field and do deep ploughing with soil turning ploughs. After that, make the earth friable by running a rotavator in the area. After making the soil friable, put a pat in the field so that the land appears flat. Due to this, there is no problem with waterlogging in the area during the rainy season.
After the pits are ready, mix the appropriate amount of organic and chemical fertilisers in the soil and fill them in the holes. After filling the cavities, give them deep irrigation. Due to this, the ground of the pits becomes hard by sitting well. Therefore, prepare these pits about three months before planting the seedlings. After drilling the holes, cover them with the pulao. Apart from this, you should use quality tractors like Farmtrac 60 powermaxx and others.
Planting Seedlings
The transplanting of apricot plants is done by preparing a pen in the nursery. The plant made from the graft prepared by all these methods has the same properties as the main plant. But when the cutting is ready by seed method, there is a decrease in the quality of the plants. Therefore, their seedlings are prepared in the nursery after the rainy season and are planted in the spring season.
Apart from this, there are many such nurseries registered by the government, which give their saplings to the farmers. Therefore, the farmer brothers can also buy saplings from the nursery and plant them. While buying its saplings, the farmers should keep in mind that there is no disease on the plant, and the plant should be one year old and which are developing well.
Irrigation
Apricot plants have moderate irrigation needs. But in the beginning, the plants need more irrigation. Therefore, we should initially water init plants four times a month during the summer season. Due to this, the plants grow well. However, plants require less water during the winter season. Therefore, we should water the plants for 20 to 25 days during the winter season. But during the frost in winter, water should be given to the plants in light amounts. Due to this, there is no effect of frost on the plant.
Fertiliser
Apricot plants have the same need for fertiliser as the plants of other horticultural crops. Therefore, when preparing pits, we should use about 12 – 15 kg of manure and 400 – 500 grams of NPK. Mix the quantity in the soil and fill it in the pits. We should give plants this amount of fertiliser till the plants bear fruit.
After that, the amount of fertiliser should be increased along with the plant’s growth. When the plant starts bearing fruit, give it fertiliser before it starts bearing fruit so that the fruits can be formed well in the plants. The farmer’s brother wants to cultivate it organically. They can use organic fertilisers instead of chemical fertilisers given to plants.
Weed Control
Weed control in apricot plants is done naturally. For this, in the beginning, we should remove about a month after transplanting the plants, the weeds visible around the plant, and the plant should be lightly mulched. As a result, its plants require 7 to 8 hoeing in the beginning. But when its plants are fully ready, they need hoeing only three to four times a year.
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