AECP-116 Lecture Part 2 PDF

Growth and development patterns of fruit and plantation crops Perennial fruit-bearing plants compromising fruit and plantation crops are so diverse that a single, unifying description of their growth and development cannot be made. Crops vary in growth habits Vines Herb...

Growth and development patterns of fruit and plantation crops Perennial fruit-bearing plants compromising fruit and plantation crops are so diverse that a single, unifying description of their growth and development cannot be made. Crops vary in growth habits Vines Herbs Trees Classification based on growth and development Verheij and Coronel (1992) made an insightful classification to enable us characterize growth and development of fruit-bearing trees and herbs. Single-stemmed species Branched species Single-stemmed species Usually monocots The only dicot species in this group is papaya Single-stemmed crops may be further divided into two groups. 1. Plants whose growth and development culminate in flowering and fruiting 2. Plants characterized by flowering and fruiting concomitant with growth Plants characterized by flowering and fruiting concomitant with growth Examples of crops in this group are coconut, oil palm and papaya. When trees reaches bearing age, each leaf axil produces a flower or inflorescence. Because flowering is coupled with growth, management practices geared towards increasing growth also result in increased productivity. Produce crops all-year round. Cavendish banana plantation in Mindanao have been reported to yield 60 per ha per year (Cabrera, 2000). Smooth Cayenne pineapple (F200 clone) reported a high yield of 83 tons per ha (Serrano, 2000). MD2 pineapple variety, much higher yield of 98 tons per ha (Samonte, 1999).  THE ENVIRONMENT FOR FRUIT AND PLANTATION CROPS Location A GOOD LOCATION for the establishment of an orchard or plantation of fruits and plantation crops should have access to adequate infrastructures like farm-to-market road, facilities such as ports (sea and air), communications, postharvest, electricity, and water supply. It should also have favorable socioeconomic conditions like peace and order, stable government, available and fairly cheap manpower as well as favorable government policies on tarif, trade, and tax incentives. The Soil The soil provides anchorage to plants and serves as reservoir for air, water, nutrients, and beneficial microorganisms. As such, the soil environment is crucial in cultivating any crop, more so in the case of fruit and plantation crops which are permanently planted in the site. SOIL DEPTH Soil depth measures the distance from the soil surface to the lower layers of the soil profile which obstruct root growth and proliferation. For tree crops the soil should be as deep as possible so that the roots can deeply penetrate I and be able to explore water and nutrients from a greater volume of soil. This is particularly critical in typhoon-prone areas where root systems must be anchored deeply to avoid trees from being blown down by strong winds SOIL.TEXTURE Soil texture is determined by the relative proportion of sand, silt, and clay particles. This property of the soil is important because it affects the other soil characteristics. Clayey soil, for example, has greater nutrient and water holding capacity but has poor aeration and drainage and is also more difficult to work on. On the other extreme, sandy soil is well- drained, well-aerated, I and easy to cultivate but has low nutrient- and water-holding capacity SOIL STRUCTURE The structure of the soil describes how the different soil particles are arranged into characteristic aggregates of various sizes, shapes, and stability (Cosico 2005). Its nature is largely dependent on the kind and amount of such cementing materials as organic matter, lime, and fine clay as well as by the management that the soil has been subjected to. SOIL PH Also known as soil reaction, soil pH is the degree of acidity or alkalinity of the soil. Its value ranges from 1 to 14 with 7 being neutral, below which the soil is acidic and above it, the soil is alkaline or basic. The range of pH of typical soil in the Philippines is between 5.5 and 6.5 (Cosico 2005) although large areas have pH values much below 5.5. The Climate  Climate has an intimate relation to the production of any crop, including fruit and plantation crops. In fact, it is the ultimate determinant of what crop is suitable for commercial planting in a particular site or country. The climatic components which are important to cron production are temperature, rainfall, relative humidity, light and wind. Data on climate and weather are obtainable from various agro-meteorological stations scattered throughout the country. TEMPERATURE The Philippines, being surrounded by warm seas, has a generally high temperature due to warm air current blowing over its land mass. Lower temperature (13.2 to 24.6C), however, prevails in the highland’s areas like Baguio City (elevation = 1,200 m) compared to temperature in the lowlands i (23.3 to 30.5C) like Los Banos, Laguna (elevation = 22 m). Monthly average temperature also varies slightly with the lowest occurring in January (22.57C) and the highest in May (28.2C). LIGHT Light controls practically all aspects of plant growth and development, from seed germination to fruit development. It is essential in photosynthesis. There are two major aspects of light which are relevant to crop production. The first is light intensity or the amount of light which varies with season and elevation. Light intensity is lower during the rainy season and at high elevation when and where there is often a cloud cover. RAINFALL Rainfall is the primary and direct source of water for crop production since most agricultural areas in the country are rainfed where the water requirements of the plants are supplied solely by rainfall. Therefore, in such areas it is important that rainfall should occur frequently and in amount is just enough to replenish the amount of moisture that was removed from the rootzone. In fact, the climate in the Phillppines is primarily based on rainfall in which four types are described below according to the Modified Corona classification (Kintanar 1984) RELATIVE HUMIDITY Relative humidity refers to the amount of moisture in the atmosphere relative to the saturation point at a given temperature. The Philippines has a high relative humidity due to extensive evaporation of water from the seas, moist air streams, and high amount of rainfall. The average value in the entire country is 82 percent. Relative humidity is a primary determining factor that influences potential evapotranspiration which is then used as basis for estimating the amount of irrigation water that will have to be applied to the tree. WIND, TYPHOON, AND STORM  SITE DEVELOPMENT (Establishment of Windbreak and Nursery) SITE DEVELOPMENT Refers to the setting up of farm structure necessary to facilitate the overall management of this orchard or plantation. It includes: Construction of perimeter fences Farm road networks Irrigation systems Drainage canals Buildings It may also involve putting up a nursery that will produce the required volume of high- quality planting materials. In hilly land, it is also necessary to establish appropriate soil and water conservation measures such as terracing and planting of hedgerows. Establishment of Windbreak Strong wind or typhoon is the most important climatic factor that limits crop production in tropical countries, particularly the Philippines, with a large portion of its landmass being within the path of numerous strong typhoon every year. First is by selecting sites that are relatively free from typhoon or sites where there is low probability of the typhoon coinciding with the duration of flowering and fruiting periods. Cebu and Iloilo are within the typhoon belt but the period from January to October has less strike probability and therefore considered safe for off season production of mango (Bondad 1989) Another strategy is to select deep soil where roots can penetrate deeply and keep the tree well - anchored the soil to avoid blowdown and uprooting damage. Windbreak trees Strong root systems with strong and dense canopies should be taller than the crops should be planted well ahead of the crops. Examples of good windbreak trees Pili Mahogany Tamarind Agoho  Molave Star apple Banaba Ipil-ipil Kakawate Windbreak trees must be planted perpendicular to the direction of the wind. They may be planted in single or double rows near the fence line and if needed, also within the orchard or plantations. The effectiveness of wind break also depends on its height and density Tall ones protect a large area. Establishment of a nursery A nursery is a place where seedlings are reared until ready for field. It should be established at least a year (preferably two years) prior to the scheduled field planting. The nursery should be located in a portion of the orchard to be developed to save on cost of (and minimize stress during) howling of the planting materials. The nursery site should be: Accessible Relatively flat Well drained Must be secured with fences must have sufficient and reliable water supply It should be provided with basic facilities and structures such as multipurpose shed for potting and for storage of equipment, tools and supplies, a seedbed, irrigation system, scion grove and a compost pit. Basic equipment and tools needed in a simple plant nursery. Sprayer Pruning shear rake  Shovel Wheelbarrow Ladder Garden hose Grafting knife Basic nursery supplies included: Black plastic bag Fertilizers Insecticides Fungicides Ice candy bags Potting Media consisting of garden soil, compost and sand.  LAND PREPARATION (Digging of Holes, Liming & Basal Application of Fertilizer & Planting & Replanting) DIGGING OF HOLE The planting holes should preferably be much larger than the soil volume of the seedlings to be planted. A 30-40 cubic cm hole may be enough for most crops but could be made even larger for older and bigger seedlings. While digging each hole, the upper fertile layer of the soil (top soil) should be placed on one side of the hole; soil excavated from the bottom (subsoil) should be placed on the opposite side. During planting, the top soil (either with or without compost) is used to refill the hole. The subsoil may just be spread out near the base of the newly planted tree. LIMING AND BASAL APPLICATION OF FERTLIZER In case the soil is more acidic than what is optimum for the plant, the best time to apply lime is before or during planting. Likewise, the required amount of organic fertilizer such as well- decomposed animal manure or even inorganic fertilizer should be applied during this time. Mix an equal volume of well-composted manure and top soil and use the mixture to back-fill the hole up to the desired depth. Never use fresh manure as this will cause yellowing and even death of the seedlings. If lime is necessary, include it in the mixture and apply it to the bottom of the hole. If a basal amount of inorganic fertilizer is to be applied, put it at the bottom of the hole and then cover it with a thick layer of top soil before setting the seedling. PLANTING AND REPLANTING Rough handling of seedlings during hauling, distribution, and planting is a major cause of death or mortality of newly transplanted seedlings. Care should be observed in performing these tasks. Do not throw or bump the seedlings. Carefully remove the plastic bag from the seedling by cutting it from top to bottom using a sharp knife or bolo. If the soil is loose and tends to crumble easily, do not remove the entire bag right away. Instead, remove the bottom part of the bag first by slicing it with a sharp knife or bolo. With the rest of the plastic bag still intact, carefully set the seedling to the hole. Put topsoil or compost-soil mixture on the side while slowly pulling the plastic bag upward, passing the bag through the seedlings. Add more mixture until the entire ball of soil is completely covered up to the original soil level in the plastic bag. Compact the soil around the seedlings by pressing the soil with hand or foot. While filling the hole, make sure that the seedling is in vertical position and aligned with the other seedlings. Planting is usually done during the rainy season but if rain is not expected within twenty-four hours, the seedlings should be watered immediately after planting. However, if irrigation facilities are available, planting could be done any time of the year, even during the dry season if necessary. Similarly, replanting may be done any time if irrigation facilities are available; otherwise, it should be done at the start of the next rainy season. After inspecting every hill for dead plants, repeat digging holes and replant the seedlings. For replanting purposes, it would be necessary to keep extra seedlings in one section of the orchard until replanting time. About 10 percent extra seedlings are enough for most crops. Seedlings for replanting purposes should be rebagged in bigger containers so that the growth of seedlings will not be hampered and will be able to catch up with the same batch of seedlings which survived earlier.  Land Preparation Land preparation refers to the series of steps necessary to have the soil ready for planting. It may or may not involve tillage depending on topography and kind of crops to be cultivated. In all situation, It always involved Land clearing which depends on the slope of the land and existing vegetation. Land Clearing In flatland areas, land clearing can be accomplished with considerable ease (involves slashing, ploughing & harrowing) In hilly land, it should be done partially to avoid soil erosion. It can be done in 2 ways namely; Selective clearing Strip clearing Planting Distance How far or how close the trees should be planted It is dictated by the maximum canopy size which varies in species and varieties Prevailing conditions, soil and weather as well as the type of planting materials and tree management also affect the appropriate distance Table 2. Recommend planting distance for various fruits and plantation crops Planting Pattern Planting pattern/ system defines the spatial arrangements of trees in orchard or plantation. 4 types of Planting Pattern Square System Triangular System Quincunx System Modified Triangular System Square System The simplest and the most common Every 4 trees are formed in square pattern Disadvantage of this is that large land area remains unutilized Quincunx System Additional plants (Filler crops) are planted at the center of the squares. Filler trees will remain as long as they do not affect the permanent trees due to shading and root competition Triangular System All plants are equidistant to one another in all directions Every 3 plants form an equilateral triangle Big advantage of this is that the circular canopy of each tree fits very well Less vacant areas Modified Triangular System Similar to Quincunx system, filler trees can also be planted in the middle of triangles.