agotechnigues for cultivation of coconut

1. Agro techniques for coconut Dr. P. Subramanian

3. Productivity levels of major plantation crops in India Source ( Nampoothiri, 1998) 125 16 4 Kg/tree Cashew 900 350 65 Kg/ha Cardamom 13465 1100 283 Kg/ha Black pepper 9 5 1 Chali (kg/palm) Arecanut 471 175 44 Nuts/palm Coconut Super potential yield Res. Station yield National average Unit Crop

5. Agrotechniques Proper site selection Use of good quality seedlings Timely cultural operations Optimal use of inputs

6. CLIMATIC REQUIREMENTS Temperature :Mean annual temp :27° C Diurnal variations :5 to 7° C < 15° C abnormalities of fruit Rainfall : 1800-2500 mm/year : well distributed Can with stand occasional water logging Insolation :120 hours/month 2000 hours or more per year Humidity :80-90% RH ideal <60% - affects opening of stomata Altitude :Up to 600m above MSL Higher elevations near equator Latitude :20° N to 20° S 90% Production

8. NURSERY MANAGEMENT Early flowering Seedling vigor - correlated Nut yield Copra production Time loss Poor quality Loss of money Coconut being perennial and cross pollinated Selection of seed nuts/seedlings is important and difficult . Garden selection Mother palm selection Seedlings selection 1. Heavy bearer >80 nuts (Unirriga) Early germination (not V. fav. Cond) >120 Nuts (Irriga) Early split. Of leaves 2. Free of pest/diseas . >150 g copra 6 leaves 10 cm girth Cont. high yilder avoid >60yrs. Age 15 to 20 and above Raising of seedlings: Flat - raised bed vertical/Horizontal sowing

9. POLY BAG NURSERY 1969 Ivary coast. 40x40 cm or 60x40cm 500 gauage 8-10 holes 15 to 16 kg soil (Top) Compost : Top soil 1:1 Coir pith : Top soil 1:1 Sand : Top soil 1:1 Advantages Transplanting shock (X) Expected early flowering, Vigorous seedling Disadvantage Transportation is costly and More labour Maintenance  Shade mulching  Remove 5 month nuts (not germinated)  Pest/weed, Irrigation 10 mm  Fertilizer 40:20:40 kg/ha

10. WATER REQUIREMENTS : SEEDLINGS IN NURSERY Favourable Moisture around the seed nut is essential a. Quick germination b. Vigorous growth Light and frequent irrigation Sandy soils : Alternate days during summer Sandy loam and laterite soil: Once in three or four days Approx. 10mm each irrigation Small nurseries: Pot watering Hose pipes Large Nurseries: Sprinklers

12. SPACING Square system 7.5m x 7.5m (177 palms/ha) Triangular system: 7.4m x 7.4m x 7.4m (200 palms/ha) Rectangular system: 6.5m x 9.0m (170 palms/ha) Planting depth Pit size 1 x 1 x1 m Time of planting Monsoon season

16. Fertilizer recommendation for coconut (g/tree) 540 160 220 270 80 110 3 rd Year K 2 O P 2 O 5 N K 2 O P 2 O 5 N 200 80 40 330 110 50 SEPT-OCT. 400 135 800 120 170 4 th Year onwards 270 40 50 2 nd Year 135 Planting May-June 1 st Year MAY-JUNE

17. FOLIAR ANALYSIS Critical levels suggested/for talls N : 1.7-1.8% P : 0.12% K : 0.8-1.0% Ca` : 0.3% Mg : 0.2% Leaf No. 14.

18. P Application – based on Soil test 320 160 Skipped <10 10-20 >20 Fertilizer Application g/palm/year Av. P Status (ppm)

19. INFLUENCE OF P SKIPPING ON YIELD OF PALMS 100 109 114 NS 98 95 101 NS 107 103 107 NS 111 104 116 NS 103 102 100 NS Zero P 2 O 5 160 g P 2 O 5 320 g P 2 O 5 CD (5%) V IV III II I Yield of nuts/palm/year Treatments

20. INFLUENCE OF LONG TERM EFFECT OF CULTIVATION, HERBICIDES AND MANURING 112.1 39.7 T6 Control (No manuring and tillage) 107.2 43.3 T5 Weed control using herbicides only 156.3 53.1 T4 Tillage only 202.9 90.5 T3 Inorganic + forking the Basin 246.5 96.7 T2 Organic + Tillage 315.3 110.4 T1 Organic + inorganic + tillage No. of F.F/palm/year Nut/palm/year Treatments

21. Yield of green matter, nutrient content and amount of nutrients added by different green manure crops Calopogonium muconoides Pueraria Stylosanthes gracilis Mimosa invisa Sesbania speciosa Centrocema pubescens Crotolaria anagryroides 18.62 4.51 20.51 2.12 0.27 2.81 3.39 63.02 9.21 43.43 1.75 0.24 2.54 6.90 15.64 4.51 31.32 1.12 0.17 2.70 5.18 67.90 21.62 111.67 2.00 0.34 3.96 12.62 59.06 16.54 99.33 1.63 0.24 3.3 14.35 59.06 16.54 99.63 1.63 0.24 3.3 14.35 51.91 7.92 40.50 2.80 0.23 2.63 7.14 K P N K P N Nutrient addition (kg/ha) Nutrient composition (%) Mean yield of green matter t/ha Name of the crop

22. WATER USE IN PLANTATION BASED CROPPING SYSTEM EVAPORATIVE DEMANDS WATER REQUIREMENT: DEPENDS WATER FOR GROWTH & YIELD FOR ONE OR NUMBER OF CROPS MONOCROP CROPPING SYSTEM SOIL COVER LESS MORE EVAPORATION MORE LESS EROSION MORE LESS MOISTER RETENTION LESS MORE More for CS DRIP/BASIN Less for monocrop SPRINKLER/PERFO - NO DIFFERENCE.

23. EFFECT OF MOISTURE STRESS 1 . Increase in the rate of frond shedding & slowing up frond production (reduction in LA & light interception) 2 Greater stomatal resistance Reduced transpiration rate Lower leaf water potential 3. Fewer number of inflorescence Number of female flowers/inflorescence (Abortion of spadices) Shedding of buttons and young nuts 4. Smaller sized nuts and low copra content

24. IRRIGATION MANAGEMENT DEPENDS ON a. Soil characteristics Water holding capacity Texture, structure, depth Topography, infiltration rate and Depth of water table b. Climate Rainfall, temperature, RH, Wind velocity, radiation c. Crop characters Rooting pattern/depth, Kc value; d. Method of irrigation

30. Response of different yield groups in Coconut to summer irrigation (Red sandy loam soil) 31.3 (74.2) 23.4 (33.8) 31.0 (57.4) 39.3 (130.1) 28.8 (214.0) Increase 73.5 94.8 85.2 69.5 42.2 Post irrigation 42.2 70.9 54.3 30.2 13.4 Pre irrigation Mean High (61-80 nuts) Medium (40-60 nuts) Low (20-40 nuts) Poor (below 20 nuts) Yield of nuts/palm/year in the yield categories Particulars

31. Water – optimize Micro irrigation Drip irrigation – Directly to the root zone Rate at which the crop can take up Limited to crop water requirement Low rate of application Soil moisture maintained at a desired range Application efficiency 90% (25-30% S.I)

33. WETTED FRONT AND VOLUME OF ACTIVE ROOT ZONE WETTED AS INFLUENCED BY PLACEMENT OF EMITTERS 13.6 18.2 1.382 1.846 44 52 64 90 Surface Sub-Surface % of Active R. zone Absol. (m 3 ) Horizontal (cm) Vertical (cm) WETTED VOLUME WETTED FRONTS TREATMENT

34. Approximate wetted volume of active root zone of Coconut basin as influenced by quantity of irrigation water (Dhanapal et al 1995) Continued up to 30 days 21.5 2.190 19.1 1.910 25 18.6 1.890 76.7 1.700 15 13.7 1.390 13.5 1.370 7 28.6 2.906 5 12.3 1.250 11.0 1.114 4 21.85 2.222 3 13.1 1.336 6.3 0.637 3.1 0.319 1 %of Active R. Zone Absolute (m 3 ) %of Active R. Zone Absolute (m 3 ) %of Active R. Zone Absolute (m 3 ) 100% Eo Wetted volume 66% Eo Wetted volume 33% Eo Wetted volume Days

35. SOIL MOISTURE CONTENT (%) AS INFLUENCED BY SURFACE VS. SUB-SURFACE PLACEMENT OF EMITTERS 6.8 8.6 9.8 11.6 - 14.3 13.3 12.2 12.9 11.3 9.8 11.8 - 16.8 14.2 12.4 14.7 11.6 10.8 11.6 - 18.4 16.7 13.5 16.9 12.5 11.8 11.6 0-25 25-50 50-75 75-100 s.s s s.s s Sub-surf surface 50 cm 25 cm 0 (cm) Initial SM % Distance from Emitters Horizontal Soil Depth (cm)

36. Nut and copra yield (kg/ha) of coconut as influenced by irrigation & mulching in sandy soil 2093.7 2321.7 2087.0 2115.4 398.5 (-82%) 481.3 1841.0 1869.2 NS 66.7 69.9 62.0 62.0 25.8 (-62%) 12.3 54.0 60.5 4.5 Irrigation T1: 66% of Eo drip T2: 100% of Eo drip T3: 133% of Eo drip T4: Basin T5: Rainfed CD (5%) MULCHING No Mulching Mulching CD(5%) Copra yield (kg/ha) (Av. 1998-99) Nuts/palm/year (5 years pooled data) Treatment

37. Nut yield and Female flower production (Number /palm) as influenced by irrigation in WCT under laterite soil 9.5 25.6 NS NS CD (P=0.05) 52.6 157.4 30.8 79.5 T5: Rainfed control 98.2 225.5 31.6 78.6 T4: Basin irrigation at 100 per cent of E 0 applied once in four days through hose pipe 89.8 200.8 24.9 66.0 T3: Drip irrigation at 100 per cent E 0 daily 96.5 214.7 30.1 73.2 T2: Drip irrigation at 66 per cent E 0 daily 68.2 184.5 28.2 79.9 T1: Drip irrigation at 33 per cent E 0 daily Nut yield Female flowers Nut yield Female flowers Average of 1993-99 Pre-experimental (During 1991-93) Treatments

38. Fertilizers - Optimise - Through micro irrigation Fertigation -Increases the fertilizer use efficiency - saving in fertilizer cost -Reduced labour requirement -Supply - crop demand - Uniform- precise – direct application to root zone - Micronutrient deficiency can be corrected

39. Water & nutrient use efficiency - show dramatic increase through the (Tisdale & Nelson., 1995) synergism existing between them Benefits of water –nutrient interaction - enhanced by optimising the rates, source and method of fertilizer application following most suitable water application methods

41. STUDIES ON FERTILIZER APPLICATION THROUGH MICRO IRRIGATION TECHNIQUE IN COCONUT AND ARECANUT Treatments Nuts / palm / year 98-99 ’ 99-2000 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 No fertilizer 55.2 61.5 104 97 82 25% N:P:K (Drip) 89.2 93.4 111 93 88 50% N:P:K (Drip) 94.3 95.3 137 112 102 75% N:P:K (Drip) 91.5 110.6 114 111 99 100% N:P:K (Drip) 101.4 112.8 127 120 97 100% N:P:K (Soil) 93.2 107.4 123 123 101 CD (5%) 21.3 16.09 NS 13.7 6.8

42. Effect of treatments on growth parameters 13 14 18 12 10 7 No of palms flowered Total leaves Leaves cal. Year Girth Height Treatments 46 11 115 851 100 % N P K (SOIL) 43 11 114 856 100 % N PK (DRIP) 50 13 118 748 75 % N PK (DRIP) 41 11 112 792 50 % N PK (DRIP) 46 10 118 882 25 % N PK (DRIP) 41 8 95 545 No Fertilizer

43. EFFECT OF SEA WATER AND FRESH WATER IRRIGATION ON YIELD OF COCONUT 42.2 43.0 30.0 52.6 60.8 80.5 67.1 53.6 SANDY SOIL Irrigation with sea water Irrigation with fresh water Un irrigated SANDY LOAM SOIL Un irrigated Sea water + Fresh water (2:1 ratio) Sea water + Fresh water (1:2 ratio) Sea water Fresh water Mean yield Nut/palm/year Treatment

44. SOIL MOISTURE CONSERVATION 1. Reducing run-off: Contour bunding Terracing Linear trenches across the slope 2. Mulching: Coconut husk, coir dust, Green leaf, dried coconut leaf 3. Addition of organic manure/tank silt. 4. Husk burial 5. Cover cropping

45. Effect of mulches on the survival of coconut seedling and on soil moisture 2.18 53 16 Control 3.75 76.7 23 Earthen pitcher, 10 l/week 2.57 50.0 15 Black polythene 600 gauge 2.37 56.7 17 Black polythene 400 gauge 3.87 83.3 25 Rice husk, 10 cm thick 4.41 86.7 26 Coir dust, 10 cm thick Soil moisture % Survival % Survival no(Out of 30) Treatments

47. Burial of coconut husk in palm basins

48. Mulching palm basins with coconut leaves

49. Burial of coir pith in palm basins

50. Run off 5334.8 Rainfa11 Absolute control Irrigation as per farmers practice with grass in the interspaces Cover crop with vegetables Drip irrigation daily @66% of Eo for coconut with grass in the inters pace Trench filled with coconut husk with 2 lines of pineapple border Catch pit with pineapple border Half moon type with pineapple border Treatments 237.49 101.54 151.80 84.74 18.45 42.53 43.30 Run off (mm) 1.59 2.85 1.90 4.45 0.35 0.80 0.81 Run off(%)

51. Soil and nutrient loss 28.50 12.52 7.98 2.73 Absolute control 6.09 9.11 4.24 1.11 5.20 2.55 K 4.85 3.76 3.05 0.09 0.62 0.04 P N Irrigation as per farmers practice with grass in the interspaces Cover crop with vegetables Drip irrigation daily @66% of Eo for coconut with grass Trench filled with coconut husk with 2 lines of pineapple border Catch pit with pineapple border Half moon type with pineapple border Treatments 1.20 2.31 1.18 0.20 0.50 0.56 Soil loss(t/ha) 1.33 3.91 3.05 0.36 1.58 1.62 Nutrients loss (kg/ha)

52. Coconut yield (Nuts/palm/year) and percent increase over pre experiment period 2004-05 90 35 52 87 79 49 70 87.5 79 48 Irrigation as per farmers practice with grass in the interspace T7 -2.7 36 36 Absolute control T6 73 51 30 Cover crop with vegetables T5 181 72 31 Drip irrigation daily @ 66% of Eo for coconut with grass in the inters pace T4 126 71 35 Trench filled with coconut husk with 2 lines of pineapple border T3 96 41 25 Catch pit with pineapple border T2 63 66 43 Half moon type with pineapple border T1 2003-04 1995-2000 % increase Average nut/palm Treatments

53. Trench filled with coconut husk with two rows of pineapple

55. Contour trench filled with coconut husk

56. Half moon shaped bund stabilized with pineapple

57. Half moon bund in farmers field in west coast

63. ******* Thank You ***********