- Apple is one of the most important temperate fruits originating in the Middle East over 4000 years ago. It is now widely cultivated globally with China as the largest producer. - In India, apple cultivation is concentrated in Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland. Himachal Pradesh accounts for about 90% of India's total apple production. - Apples are a good source of nutrients and contain vitamins, minerals and fiber. They are consumed fresh but also used to make juices, jellies, wine and other products. Proper harvesting, post-harvest handling and storage help maintain quality for up to 8 months.

1. SUSHRITA NAYAK
PH.D. SCHOLAR
OUAT
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2. APPLE
Malus sylvestris
Family:-Rosaceae
Apple is the most important temperate table fruit of the
world.
It is also called as “king of temperate fruits”
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3. ORIGIN& DISTRIBUTION:
Apple is originated in the Middle East more than 4000 years
ago .It is the fourth most widely produced fruit in the world after
banana, orange &grape. China is the largest apple producing
country in the world . The area under apple cultivation in india
has increased by 24% from 1.95 lakh ha to 2.42 lakh ha in 2001-
02.It is mostly grown in the states of Jammu & Kashmir ,
Uttaranchal, Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland . In Himachal
Pradesh apple is the most important crop accounting for about
90% of the total horticultural production.
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4. State-wise Area , Production & Productivity of
Apple during 2001-02:-
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State Area
(‘000 Ha.)
Production
(‘000 MT)
Productivity
(MT/Ha.)
Jammu &
kashmir
90.1 909.6 10.1
Himachal
Pradesh
92.8 180.6 1.9
Uttarnchal 51.8 59.3 1.1
Arunachal
pradesh
6.7 8.5 1.3
Nagaland 0.1 0.3 3.3
All India 241.6 1158.3 4.8

5. Economic Importance & Nutrional Status
 Apples are mostly consumed fresh but a small part of the production is
processed into juices , jellies , canned slices.
 They are also used in making beer , wine and other beverages.
 There is a saying “AN APPLE A DAY,KEEPS THE DOCTOR AWAY”
 One medium apple with skin contains 0.47 grams of protein, 95 calories and
4.4 grams of dietary fibres.
 Minerals: P-195 mg , Ca-11 mg , Fe-0.22 mg etc
 Vitamins: Vit A-98 iu , Vit B1-0.031 mg, Vit B2-0.047 mg, Vit c-8.4 mg &
others in small amount.
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7. Botany:-
It is a deciduous tree , generally
standing 1.8 to 4.6 m (6 to 15 ft)
tall in cultivation and 39 ft (12m)
in the wild.
 The leaves are alternately
arranged dark green coloured
simple ovals with serrated margins
and slightly downy undersides.
Flowers are white with a pink
tinge ,5 petaled with an
inflorescence consisting of a cyme
with 4-6 flowers .The central
flower of the inflorscence is called
“THE KING BLOOM”.
The fruit is a pome , with red
skin and pale yellow-white flesh.
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9. VARIETIES:-
 In apple there are two types of varieties i.e. DIPLOIDS and
TRIPLOIDS .
 The diploids have generally plenty of pollen and are self- fruitful.
 The triploids on the contrary are self-unfruitful and producive only
when they are pollinated by diploid varieties. |Golden delicious and
Red gold are recommened pollinizers in apple.
 Diploids-Red delicious , yellow delicious , jonathan etc
 Triploids-Baldwin , Beauty etc.
 The cultivar Ambri is indigenous and extensively grown in kashmir
valley .
 In apple some early maturing and good quality hybrids were
developed at various research stations in india.
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11. Some of the hybrids developedand their parentageare:-
 Lal Ambri - Red Delicious × Ambri
 Sunehri - Ambri × Golden Delicious
 Ambstarking – Starking Delicious × Ambri 81
 Ambroyal – Starking Delicious × Amri 84
 Ambrich – Richared × Ambri 15
 Chaubattia Princess – Delicious × Early Shanburry
 Ambredred – Delicious × Ambri 57
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12. CLIMATE:-
 Most of the apple varieties require 1000 to 1500 hours of chilling at
below 7°C during winter to break the rest period . These conditions are
available at an elevation of 1500 to 2700m above M.S.L. in the Himlayan
ranges. By and large the average temp. should be around 21 to 24°C
during active growth period. The areas with frost free spring and
adequate sunshine during summer with out wide fluctulations in temp.
are most suitable for apple cultivation . Well distributed rainfall of 100 to
125 cm through out the growing season is most favourable . Long
droughtr spells during fruit development , excessive rains and foggy
condition at fruit maturity hampers fruit size and quality.
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13. Soil:-
Loamy soils rich in organic matter having a pH of 5.5 to
6.5 with gentle to moderate slope, proper draiange and
good aeration are most suitable.The soil should be free
from hard subsrata and water logged conditions. The
presence of lime in the soil is good for apple cultivation.
PROPAGATION:-
APPLE PLANTS ARE COMMERCIALLY RAISED BY VEGETATIVE MEANS,
SINCE SEEDLING PLANTS ARE NOT TRUE TO TYPE . APPLE IS
GENERALLY PROPAGATED BY BUDDING OR GRAFTING ON SEEDLINGS
OF CRABAPPLE, GOLDEN DELICIOUS ETC . SHIELD BUDDING IS DONE
WITH BUDS OF CURRENT SEASONS GROWTH IN JUNE . “MALLING IX” IS
USED TO CONTROL THE VIGOUR OF THE PLANTS AND HAVE
RESISTANCE TO WOLLY APHIS .
CRAB APPLE MALUS BACCATA IS MOST COMMONLY USED ROOTSTOCK
OF APPLE IN INDIA.
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14. PLANTING:-
1.Planting season - Planting is usually done in the month of January and february.
2.Spacing – The average number of plants in an area of ha. can range between 200 to 1250 . Four
different categories of planting density are followed viz. low(<250 plants/ha) , moderate (250-500
plants/ha) , high(500-1250 plants/ha) and ultra high density(>1250plants/ha) . In meadow orchading
>70,000 plats are planted per ha.
3.Planting method - Square or hexagonal system of planting is followed in the valleys
whereas contour method is usually followed in slopes.In the month of Oct-Nov , pits of 1m×1m×1m are
prepared for planting. In each pit 30-40kg of FYM, 500 g of SSP and 50 g Malathion dust are added
after mixing properly . After a month of planting is done, one irrigation should be provided immediately
after planting.
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16. NUTRITION:-
Farmyard manure @10kg/year is applied along with other fertilizers. The ratio of
N,P and K which is to be applied in an orchad of optimal fertility is 70:35:70
g/year (age of the tree). After 10 years of age, the dose is stabilized at 700:350:700
g of N,P and k/year . The standard fertilizer dose of N,P and K in an “off” year
(when the crop load is low) is 500g , 250g , 400g respectively . On some trees
deficiency of zinc , boron , manganese and calcium may be observed which is
corrected with the application of appropriate chemicals through foliage spray .
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17. IRRIGATION:- The water requirement of apple is
114cm per annum , which can be scheduled in 15-20
irrigations. In summer irrigation is provided at an interval of
3-4 weeks . At least 8 irrigations are to be provided during
critical period (April-August) i.e. main requirement after
fruit set .
Training & pruning:- Timely pruning and training
operations is essential for growth and good productivity . The
standard trees are trained on modified central leader system
so that plants receive proper sunlight . Spindle brush system
is suitable for high density planting under mid hill
conditions. Pruning is essential to maintain a proper balance
between vegetative growth and spur development . Proper
pruning of weak and undesirable branches/twigs is necessary
after six years of plantation .
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19. INTERCULTURAL OPERATIONS:-
Weed management- Application of glyphosate @ 800 ml/ha or Gammaxone
/paraquat (0.5%) as post emergence herbicide suppresses weed growth
for 4-5moths .
Mulching- Mulching with hay or black alkathene is found to be effective in
controlling the weeds in cool climates and also conserving moisture .
Use of dry grass or oak leaves has also been found to be effective in
conserving soil moisture .
Inter-crpping- Green manuring crops viz. sunflower and bean may be cultivated
in the earky years of plantion in order to improve soil texture and
nutrient status of soil .
Growth regulators - Use of G.R. is essential for good flowering and proper
coloration in fruits . Heavy bearing in apple usually results in small-
sized , poor quality fruits and sets in alternate bearing cycle . Fruit
thinning is essential in pollinizing varieties . Chemicals like
carbaryl@750-1000ppm or NAA@10-20ppm at petals applied for the
purpose.
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20. Harvesting- Since apple is a climacteric fruit ,the maturity of fruits doesn’t
coincide with ripening . The fruits usually don’t attain full ripe edible
quality on the tree while harvesting . The fruits should be harvested at
proper picking maturity to attain proper edible quality at ripening. There
are several reliable maturity indices which can be adopted singly or in
combination for proper fruit harvesting. They are –
-TSS of the fruit pulp
-Ease in separation of fruit from the spur
-Change in ground surface colour from green to pale
-Change in seed colour to light brown
-fruit firmness
-Days from full bloom to harvest
yield- A full bearing tree yields from 40-100 kg fruit. The bearing generally
commences after 5 years of planting and continues for about 50 years.
Several varieties of apple show alternate bearing.
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21. PLANT PROTECTION:-
Pests-
Wolly aphids :
Use resistant rootstalks M 778, M 779 , MM 104 , MM 110 , MM 112 .
The patrasite Aphelinus mali and the coccinellid predators should be
conserved in the field.Apply carbofuran 3% G @ 100g/tree or spray
any one of the following insecticide
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INSECTICIDE DOSE
Chlorpyrifos 20% EC 2.5 ml/lit
Malathion 50%EC 1.0ml/lit
Oxydemeton-Methyl25%EC 1.0ml/lit
Quinalphos 25%EC 2.0ml/lit

22. DISEASES-
APPLEscab: To control apple scabs follow the spray schedule:
1.silver tip to green tip – Captafol or mancozeb or 2g/lit
2.Pink bud or after 15 days - Mancozeb 2g /lit
3.Petal fall - Carbendazim 0.5g/lit
4.10 days after petal fall - Mancozeb 2g/lit
5.14 days after fruit set - Captafol 2g/lit
Add stickers like Triton or Teepol at 10ml/10 lit of spray fluid. Use
low volume sprayers .
Lichens: Spray quick lime 1kg/20 lit of water after pruning to control
lichen growth .
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23. Post harvest management :-
1.pre-cooling:- The fruits are placed in a cool and ventilated place to
remove field heat before packing . Fruit surface must be free from moisture
before grading , wrapping or packing in cartoons .
2.grading:- Grading of apples is done according to fruit size and quality .
On the basis of fruit size , apples are graded manually in 6 grades. On the
basis of fruit colour , shape , quality and appearance apple fruits can be
graded in three or more quality grades . These grades are designated as
AAA,AA and A ; A,B,C ; or extra fancy , fancy class I and fancy class II .
3.storage:- Apples have a long storage life compared to other fruits and
can be stored for a period of 4-8 months after harvesting . The fruits can be
kept in cold storage at a temp. of about -1.1° to 0 °C and 85-90% relative
humidity .
4.packing:- Apples are usually packed in wooden boxes having the
capacity to accommodate 10 or 20 kg fruits . Corrugated fibre board cartroons
are also used for packing .
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