Mango Cultivation in India; A Full Information Guide

February 3, 2021May 3, 2023 Agrovista 1 Comment

Mango Cultivation in India ; A Full Information Guide

Mango (Mangifera indica L.) belongs to the family Anacardiaceae considered to be the king of tropical fruits. Mango is the National Fruit of India and the National Tree of Bangladesh. Almost half of the world’s mangoes are cultivated in India alone, with the second-largest source being China.

Table of Contents

Uttar Pradesh is the major mango growing state which occupies about half of the total area under mango groves in the country followed by Andhra Pradesh and Bihar. Besides having a delicious taste, excellent flavor, attractive fragrance, it is a rich source of vitamin A and C.

The mango kernal also contains about 8-10 percent good quality fat which can be used for saponification. Mango and its products’ exports, in recent years, have also helped in earning a lot of foreign exchange. The export of products of mango includes mango chutney pickles, juice, nectar, and slices which are being exported to U.K., U.S.A., Kuwait, and U.S.S.R. Besides these, the fresh mango fruits are being exported to Afghanistan, Bahrain, France, Kuwait, Malaysia, Nepal Singapore, and U.K.

Climatic Requirement for Mango Cultivation ;

Mango thrives in almost all the regions from sea level to an altitude of 1500 m. It withstands both fairly dry conditions and heavy rainfall provided that there is no recurrence of severe frost during winter as it is hazardous for the young trees. Rain during flowering is harmful.

Soil Requirement and its Preparation for Mango Cultivation;

It grows well on different soils, except extremely sandy, shallow, rocky, water-logged, and alkaline soils. Loamy, alluvial, well-drained, aerated, and deep soils rich in organic matter are the most suited soils with a pH value between 6 and 7.5 is considered to be good for mango cultivation.

Important Varieties of Mango ;

More than 1500 are Mango is cultivated in India out of which 1000 varieties are commercially cultivated in India.

A) On the basis of Maturity period varieties are divided into three groups ;

Early- Season	Bombai, Bombay Green , Himsagar, Kesar, Suvernarekha
Mid-season	Alphonso, Mankurad, Bangalora, Vanraj, Banganapalli, Dashehari, Langra, Kishen Bhog, Zardalu, Mankurad
Late – Season	Fazli, Fernandin, Mulgoa, Neelum, Chausa

B) Statewise Cultivated Varieties of Mango in India;

State	Varieties grown
Andhra Pradesh	Allumpur Baneshan, Banganapalli, Bangalora, Cherukurasam, Himayuddin, Suvernarekha, Neelum, Totapuri
Bihar	Bathua, Bombai, Himsagar, Kishen Bhog, Sukul, Gulab Khas, Zardalu, Langra, Chausa, Dashehari, Fazli
Goa	Fernandin, Mankurad
Gujarat	Alphonso, Kesar, Rajapuri, Vanraj, Jamadar, Totapuri, Neelum, Dashehari, Langra
Haryana	Dashehari, Langra, Sarauli, Chausa, Fazli
Himachal Pradesh	Chausa, Dashehari, Langra
Jharkhand	Jardalu, Amrapalli, Mallika, Bombai, Langra, Himsagar, Chausa, Gulabkhas
Karnataka	Alphonso, Bangalora, Mulgoa, Neelum, Pairi, Baganapalli, Totapuri
Kerala	Mundappa, Olour, Pairi
Madhya Pradesh	Alphonso, Bombay Green, Langra, Sunderja, Dashehari, Fazli, Neelum, Amrapalli, Mallika
Maharashtra	Alphonso, Mankurad, Mulgoa, Pairi, Rajapuri, Kesar, Gulabi, Vanraj
Orissa	Baneshan, Langra, Neelum, Suvarnarekha, Amrapalli, Mallika
Punjab	Dashehari, Langra, Chausa, Malda
Rajasthan	Bombay Green, Chausa, Dashehari, Langra
Tamil Nadu	Banganapalli, Bangalora, Neelum, Rumani, Mulgoa, Alphonso, Totapuri
Uttar Pradesh	Bombay Green, Dashehari, Langra, Safeda Lucknow, Chausa, Fazli
West Bengal	Bombai, Himsagar, Kishen Bhog, Langra, Fazli, Gulabkhas, Amrapalli, Mallika

C)Hybrid Mango Varieties Cultivated in India

Hybrid Mango Variety	Cross
Amrapalli	Dashehari x Neelum
Mallika	Neelum x Dashehari
Arka Aruna	Banganapalli x Alphonso
Arka Puneet	Alphonso x Janardhan Pasand
Arka Neelkiran	Alpohonso x Neelum
Ratna	Neelum x Alphonso
Sindhu	Ratna x Alphonso
Au Rumani	Rumani x Mulgoa
Manjeera	Rumani x Neelum
PKM 1	Chinnasuvernarekha x Neelum

Some Other Hybrid varieties of hybrid Mango are;

Alfazli, Sunder Langra, Sabri, Jawahar, Neelphonso, Neeleshan, Neeleshwari, PKM 2 (very few of these hybrid varieties are grown commercially in the country).

Deatials of the Important Mango Varieteies ;

Variety

Characteristics

Alphonso

A most important cultivar of mango having good export potential. It shows a good performance in the Ratnagiri area of Maharashtra, and to a certain extent in parts of Gujrat and Karnataka. It has been recommended for North India too Alphonso is known by different names in different areas as Kagji, Badami, Aphur and Hapur etc.

Tree is medium, upright and spreading. Fruit is of medium in size (250 g.). It has thin skin with attractive blush on yellow ground. Flesh is firm and of excellent quality. It has good TSS: acid ratio. In North India fruit ripens in mid July. TSS ranges between 19-21%. The cultivar is prone to spongy tissue.

Amrapali

It is a cross between Dusehari X Neelum and has been released by lARI, New Delhi. It is a dwarf and regular bearing cultivar suited for close planting. It is being popularised for its high orchard efficiency. The fruit size is little smaller than Dusehari, but ripens later than Dusehari. Under Punjab conditions it rippers in August Fruit has good keeping quality and fruit flavour. The TSS ranges between 18-20%.

Banglora (Totapuri)

It is the commercial cultivar of South. It is regular and heavy bearing cultivar. Fruit is oblong, large and necked at the base, with prominent beak. Skin thick, golden in colour, flesh firm and flat in taste, Stone is oblong and hairy: TSS varies between 15-16%.

Banganpali (Safeda)

It is a commercial cultivar of south particularly Andhra Pradesh. Fruits command premium price in North Indian markets due to its earlyness. Fruits remain in the market from March and to July. Trees are of medium in vigour, spreading with rounded top. Fruit size medium to large (300-450g.), beakless. Skin thin and smooth, yellow in colour, flesh firm and fibreless, good quality fruit. Stone have few hairs all over. Keeping quality is good. TSS varies between 17-18%. Under Punjab conditions, fruits ripen in July.

Bombay Green (Malda)

It is a very popular cultivar of Ganga-Jamuna plains. In Punjab it is commonly known as Malda. It is heavy bearer with medium-sized fruits of light green colour. Trees are medium to large, spreading and moderately vigorous. Fruits are beakless with round spex. Skin is medium thick flesh soft, fibreless, yellowish with TSS of 17-18%. Stone is densely covered with small hairs. Fruits ripen from May-July. In Maharashtra it ripens in May and in North India it ripens in July.

. Dusehari (Dashehari)

One of the most popular cultivar of North India, with excellent quality and size of fruit. It is being cultivated in south India also. Trees are moderately vigorous, spreading with rounded top. Fruit is oblong with round base. Shoulders are equal and fruit is beakless. Skin is medium thick smooth, yellow, flesh firm, fibreless pleasant flavour. Taste is very sweet. Stone is medium covered with fine fibre. It is a regular bearer. Fruits ripens from June-July. TSS 19-20 percent.

Fazli

This cultivar originated in Bhagalpur area of Bihar. It spread to North and West Bengal due to its well-sized fruits. Tree is vigorous and spreading. Large-sized fruits with stone heaving little fibre. The fruits remain light green even at ripening. TSS is 17-18 percent. In Punjab fruits ripen in August. In Bihar it ripens in July.

Langra

A very important cultivar of North India after Dusehari. It originated as a chance seedling in Banaras. Tree is very vigorous and spreading. It is alternate bearer requires more planting distance due to its vigour. Heavy yielder. Fruit size is medium, light green at maturity. Very strong and pleasant flavour. Stone has fine fibre all over. In Punjab it ripens in end July. TSS 19- 20 percent.

Samar Bahist Chausa (Chausa)

This is one of the best late-ripening cultivar of North India. It originated is a chance seedling in Malihabad (U.P.). The tree is vigorous and spreading. It is also an irregular bearer. Fruits are of medium size with equal shoulders, skin medium-thick, flesh firm, and fibreless. Quality of fruit is very good. It ripens from July to the end of August. TSS of pulp 19-20 percent.

Propagation of Mango ;

Mango can be grown through seeds or multiplied vegetatively by using several techniques like simple inarching, budding, stone grafting, etc. But, a technique of veneer grafting has been standardized at I.A.R.I., New Delhi for easy and successful propagation of mango. Earlier to this, approach grafting (inarching) used to be adopted which was very cumbersome and was not suitable for large scale multiplication work.

Veneer grafting involves the use of detached scion material which can easily be transported from one place to another and also top working of established mango orchards has now become possible through it. Stooling is also being tried for standardization of rootstock.

Mango Orchard

Planting of Mango ;

Time of Mango Planting; The best time for planting throughout the country is during the rainy season, but it can also be planted in Feb./March (during the spring season) provided there is assured irrigation.

Required Spacing for Mango; Planting distance of 10 m x 10 m is sufficient for racial cultivars, however, a hybrid like Amrapali is planted closer i.e. 2.5 m x 2.5 m apart.

Note; Growing mango in the model scheme, a spacing of 8m. x 8m. with a population of 63 plants per acre has been considered best in accord with some studies.

Method of Planting; Planting is done in the pits of 1x1x1 m size which are dug at marked places. Pits should be filled with original soil mixed with 20-25 kg of well rotten F.Y.M., 2.5 kg of single superphosphate, and 1 kg of muriate of potash/pit. In the top two-thirds portion, the proportion of manure and soil is kept 1:3. This mixture should be mixed with 200-250 gm of Aldrex or BHC dust, if there is a chance of termite attack. While planting, graft joint should be at least 15 cm above the surface. Plants should be placed at the same height or depth in which they were in the nursery.

Training and pruning of Mango ;

Training of plants at the initial stages is very essential to give them proper shape. At least 75 cm of the main stem should be kept free from branching and the first leader branch may be allowed only after this height. The main branches should be spaced in such a way that they grow in different directions and are at least 20-25 cm apart. Removal of deadwood and thinning of over-crowded and crisscrossing branches after 4 to 5 years is very essential to obtain good results.

Flowers appearing up to four years should be removed. It has been recently demonstrated at IIHR, Bangalore, and subsequently at other research centres in the country that pruning can considerably dwarf the mango tree.

Manuring in Mango cultivation ;

During non-bearing stages, 100g N, 50 g P2O, and 100 g K2O per plant per year of age should be applied.

However, for a 10-year-old and above a constant der 1 kg N 500 g P2O, and I kg K2O should be applied annually.

In some light sandy soils, the formation of gum on the main trunk as well as on all other branches has been noticed which can be checked by the application of 100 g copper sulphate mixed with 100 g lime to be soil below the canopy

Fertilizer should be applied soon after harvesting the crop to induce vegetative growth in the otherwise exhausted trees. Nitrogenous fertilizers may be applied through the foliar spray of 3 percent urea solution before flowering if the soil is sandy.

Irrigation Requirement in Mango Cultivation;

Young plants must be irrigated frequently for proper establishment. In the case of grown-up trees, irrigation at 10 to 15 days interval from fruit set to maturity is beneficial for improving yield. However, irrigation is not recommended for 2-3 months prior to flowering as it is likely to promote vegetative growth at the expense of flowering.

Intercropping in Mango Crop;

Inter crops such as vegetables, legumes, short duration and dwarf fruit crops like papaya, guava, peach, plum, etc. depending on the agro-climatic factors of the region can be grown. The water and nutrient requirements of the intercrops must be met separately.

Flowering and fruiting in Mango;

Flowering in the south and west India commences in December whereas in December north India during Feb/ March. It produces the inflorescence terminally. Each consists of 2000 4000 flowers. Two types of flowers are found male and
hermaphrodite. It is hermaphrodite flowers that produce fruits after pollination and fertilization. Such flowers are found from 2 to 70 percent based on variety, temperature, etc. Commercial cultivars in north India like Dashehari, langra, and Chausa are self-incompatible and, therefore, need to be cross-pollinated by inter-varietal plantation. The extent of fruiting depends on several factors like flowering time, percentage of hermaphrodite flowers, the extent of fruit drop, etc.

Fruit drop in Mango Crop;

In certain commercial varieties of mango, fruit drop is a serious problem and causes great loss to the growers. In north India, the process of fruit drop may be divided into three phases e.g. Pin-head-drop, post-setting drop, and May drop.

Fruit drop at the initial stage may not affect the yield much but the same at later stages drastically reduce the return to the grower.

There are many causes e.g. deficiency of nutrients, lack of soil moisture, hormonal imbalances, stormy winds, etc. Hormonal imbalances, being the latest concept, could be checked by foliar sprays of NAA @ 20 ppm, 2,4-D @ 20 ppm at pea size stage of fruits, however, the stormy winds cannot be controlled.

Alternate Bearing in Mango;

It is also known as biennial bearing and irregular bearings. It is a very serious problem in mango. In this, a tree carries an optimum load of crop in one year but in the following year, it fails to flower and fruit and thereby produce an economic crop. This problem is more acute in some varieties while there are few varieties that are more or less regular bearing ones. Unfortunately, most of the commercial varieties of north India are susceptible to this malady, whereas south Indian cultivars like Bangalora, Banganpalli, etc. are regular bearers. It has been observed that there should be sufficient amount of nitrogen and more of carbohydrates in the shoots which will produce flowers. Apart from this, the level of auxin like substances and inhibitors should be high whereas the level of gibberellin-like substances below. The shoots cannot flower unless this balance is maintained. Investigations are still going on to maintain this balance through the application of chemical substances in different concentrations and periods. To control, spraying of Ethrel at 200 ppm mixed with 0.1% urea five times beginning from the middle of September at monthly intervals has been recommended during the off-year. The evolution of hybrid varieties like Mallika, Amrapalli and Ratna may be helpful in solving this problem.

Mango Malformation;

It is a serious problem in mango which poses a great threat to the mango industry, particularly in northern India. The complex nature of this disease is obvious by diverse claims made for the cause of this disorder. eg physiological, mites, viral and fungal. Until now both the causes and control are not clearly understood. It is of two types: vegetative malformation or bunchy top and floral malformation. Physiologically, the level of inhibitors and auxin like substances used to be high and low respectively in the infected shoots. Foliar spraying of NAA at 200 ppm during October-November followed by pinching of the first flush has helped to control the malady, yet a more acceptable treatment is to be evolved.

Plant Protection in Mango Crop ;

The Mango plant is prone to damages by a large number of pests, diseases, and disorders. The recommended control measures for the most important and common among them are briefed below :

Mango hopper:

Two sprays (at panicles emergency and at pea size of fruits) of carbaryl (0.15%), monocrotophos (0.04%) or phosphamidan (0.05).

Mealybug:

Ploughing interspaces in November and dusting 2% methyl parathion @200 g per tree near the trunk and fixing 20 cm wide 400 gauge polythene strips around the trunk with grease applied on the lower edge in January as prophylactic measures and two sprays of monocrotophos (0.04%) at 15 days interval as control are needed.

Powdery mildew; Two to three sprays of wettable sulphur (0.2%) or Karathane (0.1%) at 10-15 days interval.

Anthracnose; Two sprays of Bavistin (0.1%) at fortnight intervals.

Malformation;

One spray of 200 ppm NAA in October followed by de-blossoming at bud burst stage in December – January.

Fruit drop: Regular irrigation during fruit development, timely and effective control of pests and diseases and spraying 20 ppm NAA at pea size of fruits.

Harvesting and yield ;
Grafted plants start producing fruits from the fifth year of planting. No fruiting should be encouraged before this period. Fruits mature 90-100 days after flowering. The proper stage of maturity of fruits may be judged either by a change in color or by dipping the fruits into water. Fruits change their color from dark green to yellow in several varieties.

In the second method, fruits are dipped in water and if they do not float it is understood that fruits are ready for harvesting. The yield of fruits varies considerably according to be variety, climatic conditions, plant population, etc. A 10-year-old grafted tree yields 400 to 500 fruits whereas a 20-40-year-old grafted tree produces 1500 to 3000 fruits every year.

Post-Harvest Management in Mango Crop;

Storage;

The shelf life of mangoes being short (2 to 3 weeks) they are cooled as soon as possible to the storage temperature of 13oC. A few varieties can withstand a storage temperature of 10oC. Steps involved in post-harvest handling include preparation, grading, washing, drying, waxing, packing, pre-cooling, palletization, and transportation.

Packaging;

Mangoes are generally packed in corrugated fiberboard boxes 40 cm x 30 cm x 20cm in size. Fruits are packed in a single layer of 8 to 20 fruits per carton. The boxes should have a sufficient number of air holes (about 8% of the surface area) to allow good ventilation. and a drip irrigation system etc. has also been considered.

Explore Further;

Cultivation of Papaya

Cultivation of Banana

One thought on “Mango Cultivation in India; A Full Information Guide”

zoritoler imol
September 24, 2023 at 12:03 am

I am very happy to read this. This is the type of manual that needs to be given and not the accidental misinformation that’s at the other blogs. Appreciate your sharing this best doc.