Plant nursery

Plant Nursery- Y. Rahul Reddy Page 1
UNIT-I
INTRODUCTION IN PLANT NURSERY
Nursery:
It is an area, in which new saplings are raised and nourished until they are ready for
sale or transplanting at a permanent place in a field. Raising of seedlings in a nursery is
important for various reasons.
Importance of nursery:
• It is possible to grow and maintain a large number of plants per unit area.
• Small and expensive hybrid seeds can be raised more effectively due to better
care and management.
• When seeds are sown in seedbeds, their germination percentage increases and
the vigour of the seedlings also improves.
• The management of seedlings can be done in a better way with minimum
care, cost and maintenance as the nursery area is small.
• Manipulation of growing conditions for plants becomes easy.
• Better and uniform crop growth can be obtained in the main field by selecting
vigorous and healthy seedlings.
• Off-season sowing of seeds becomes possible, which ultimately results in
fetching more returns.
• The seed requirement of nursery raised crops is less as compared to direct seed
sowing of the same crop due to better management.
• Sowing seeds in a nursery allows additional time for doing preparatory tillage in
the main plot. Harvesting of the previous crop can also be prolonged, if needed.
• Management of insect-pests, diseases and weeds is easy in a nursery.
TYPES OF NURSERY:
Nurseries are classified on the basis of duration, plants produced and structures used.
ON THE BASIS OF DURATION
Temporary Nursery:
This type of nursery is developed only to fulfil seasonal requirements or a targeted
project. Such a nursery is, usually, small in size and is set up for a short period after
which it is abandoned. Temporary nurseries are mostly used for raising seedlings of
vegetables and flower crops. Such nurseries are found near the main planting area.

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Features:
• It is constructed for a short period and is small in size.
• Intensive manuring and fertilization is not necessary in such a nursery as it is
constructed at a site rich in humus.
• As it is located near a planting site, the distance between the nursery and the
actual planting site is less.
• No major transportation is required, and if any, the cost is less.
• Special supervision is not required in the maintenance of such a nursery.
However, security aspects must be taken care of.
Advantages:
• Mortality or injury due to shock of lifting and transportation of seedlings is
negligible due to less distance between the nursery and actual planting site.
• Initial investment in a temporary nursery is less as compared to a permanent
one.
Disadvantage:
Because of its temporary nature, basic facilities like irrigation may not be adequate.
Therefore, special arrangements need to be made in order to keep the plants and
seedlings in healthy condition.
Permanent Nursery:
In this type of a nursery, the plants are nourished and kept for a longer period of time
till they are sold out or planted permanently in a ﬁeld. The area covered under such a
nursery is larger than a temporary nursery and it has all features that are required in a
permanent nursery.
Some of the important cultural operations carried out in the permanent nursery
throughout the year are as follows:
• It requires a large area and must be well connected by road.
• Such type of a nursery requires intensive management and supervision.
• High initial cost is involved in the establishment of such a nursery.
• Permanent nursery comprises ofﬁce, store, mother blocks, nursery beds, protected
structures, irrigation source, electricity, transportation facilities, packing yard, manure,
cattle and machinery shed.
Advantages
• Greater range of planting stocks, such as seedlings, grafted plant, budded plants,
layers, rooted cuttings, etc., are available.
• Being permanent in nature, it becomes a perpetual source for the supply of
planting material for many years.
• Being concentrated at one place, its supervision and management is better due to
the availability permanent staff.

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• The initial production cost is reasonable but
proﬁts go up in the long run.
Disadvantages
• The initial investment cost is high.
• The transportation cost is more.
• Such a nursery needs intensive labour management.
• It must be backed by a large market for the sale of plants and seedlings.
• It requires skilled human resource round theyear.
ON THE BASIS OF PLANTS PRODUCED
Ornamental nursery:
Seedlings, rootstock and scion material of ornamental plants are raised and
conserved for further use in such a nursery. It includes mother blocks of
ornamental plants, which are used in layering, as well as, producing scion material
for budding and grafting. The raised and flat beds of the nursery are occupied by
seedlings of various annuals, perennials and rootstocks of ornamentals. A separate
block of the nursery consists of vegetative and reproductive phase of bulb and tuber
crops. Cuttings of different climbers and creepers are also planted here for rooting.
An ornamental nursery also houses many indoor and outdoor potted plants. The
blocks of seedlings of cut and loose flowers, seasonal, bonsai, climbers and creepers
are managed individually here.
Vegetable nursery:
Planting material like seedlings of vegetables, rooted cuttings (asparagus and sweet
potato), rhizomes (ginger), tubers (potato) and bulbs (onion and garlic) are raised and
conserved in such a nursery.
Fruit plant nursery:
In this nursery, seedlings and cuttings of rootstocks, budded plants, grafts, layers and
cuttings of fruit trees, such as mango, lychee, ber, bael, guava, sapota, etc., are raised
and conserved. This nursery has mother blocks of different fruit crops, which are
used as scion material.
Forest nursery:
Different species of trees and climbers planted in forests and used in ‘social forestry’,
for example plantation along roads, gram panchayat land, gardens, etc., are mostly
propagated by seeds. In short, social forestry refers to forests or plantations set up by
communities and tribes. Rootstock of different forest plant species and mother plants
are raised in a forest nursery. Seedlings of big trees like margosa, gulmohar, amaltas,
kanchan, tamarind, amla (gooseberry), oak, eucalyptus, etc., are commonly found in a
forest nursery.

ON THE BASIS OF STRUCTURE USED
Open field nursery:
Such a nursery is established in open areas without any permanent structure. Usually,
raised, flat or sunken seedbeds are prepared. These are vulnerable to natural
environmental conditions.
Hi-tech nursery:
Such a nursery is established under protected structures. The protected structures in
which the nursery can be successfully raised are as follows.
Thatched roof: In this type of nursery, a thatched roof is constructed over the nursery
beds, which protects the seedlings from damage caused by extreme wind, rain,
heat,etc.
Shade-net:
Such a nursery is raised under shade-net houses. To give different amount of shade to
plants based on their requirements, shade-nets of different colours and mesh sizes are
used as covering material.
Poly-tunnel:
The nursery is covered with a plastic film or sheet to form a tunnel. It is miniature
structure, which produces greenhouse-like effect. Besides not being expensive, it is
easy to construct and dismantle. The seedlings are protected from cold, wind, storm,
rain and frost. Due to modified conditions, there is better germination and plant
growth.
Greenhouse or poly-house:
It is a framed structure covered by poly-film or shade-net so that the plants can grow
under partially or completely modified environment. Such structures are ventilated
and may have temperature and humidity controlling devices. The seedlings are raised
inside the structure on raised beds or in plug-trays, and also for hardening of tissue
cultural plants.
BASIC FACILITIES FOR A NURSERY:
Layout:
No standard blueprint for designing a plant nursery exists. On the contrary, each nursery will
have a unique design based on distinct needs, resources, and requirements. Generally a good
nursery should consist of water tank/pond, water pump/pump house, seed and fertilizer store
room, implement shed, germination/mother bed area; potting/container filling area, seedling
raising area, worker mess/hall, office room, propagation structures, compost area, etc. A nursery

is usually arranged in a series of beds with pathway between them. An open area is needed at
one end, where work such as sieving of soil and filling of containers can be done. Usually a
room/shelter is required for staff and the watchman, and where equipment can be securely
stored. Layout should be in a way that enables operations to flow logically through the nursery
so as to save labor and time. Roads and paths within the nursery should be carefully planned.
The nursery facilities should be kept clean. Every effort should be made to control weeds in and
around the nursery as weeds may host insects and pathogens.
Components of a Good Nursery:
The nursery site should be located in the nutrient rich/medium soil, near to water source,
free from soil pathogens and insects, availability of cheap and skilled labors and has good
access to the main road for easy transportation. The site should be on gently sloping area and
away from other tall crops: this is important for good drainage as well as to encourage air
circulation. An appropriate site must be selected for the most effective, efficient, and
economical design of a nursery. The purpose and target of plants to be produced will decide the
site selection and its improvement. Careful observation of site conditions and an assessment of
past and present climatic records are important. If desired, make a list of potential nursery sites
and compare them using a decision matrix.
Plant Propagation Structures:
For propagation, framed structures such as green house, poly tunnels, culture room,
hardening chamber and mist chamber are some important structures. A greenhouse is a
framed, infrastructure covered with a transparent material in which crops can be grown under
at least partially controlled environment. Various designs of greenhouse viz., shade net house,
plastic film green house, glass house and natural green houses may be designed according to
the need and resource availability.
Shade Net House:
A shade net nursery usually has 20 m x 10 m dimensions. It is erected using GI pipes as a
support. UV stabilized HDPE green or black colour shade net of 50 to 75% shade intensity is
used to cover the nursery area at a height of 6.5 feet. Wire grid is provided at the top of the
structure as support for shade net. To prevent insect entry, 40 mesh UV stabilized nylon insect
proof net is fitted on all the four sides of the nursery. Provision is also made to pull polythene
sheet over the pro-trays in the event of rainfall by way of making low tunnel structure. For
preparing low cost polytunnel structure, 3/4" LDPE pipes and 400 gauge UV stabilized
polyethylene sheet are used. Sometime bamboo poles and polysheets may also be used.
Glass/Greenhouses:
Glass house is preferred when the greenhouse is to be placed against the side of an existing
building. It makes best use of sunlight and minimizes the requirements for roof supports.
Consolidation of interior space reduces labor, lowers the cost of automation, improves
personnel management, and reduces energy consumption. Glass greenhouse is seldom used

today because they are not adaptable to automation. The construction cost of glass house is
more than that of plastic film greenhouses. Several styles of glass greenhouses are designed to
meet specific needs.
Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS-2008) Related to Nursery
Different systems and standards of nursery are available for control the quality
measures. Since agricultural practices are highly localized occupations they display a lot of
variability in cultural practices and varietal preferences across regions. Further, with the
opening up of the world market, there is a flow of trade in the agricultural products. It is,
therefore, necessary to define and assign certain common minimum standards to facilitate trade
in these products and to win the confidence of the consumers within the country and outside.
This draft Indian Standard (Part 1) (Doc: FAD 22 (1949) C) is first in a series of Indian
Standards on Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) to be developed.
General Quality Standards for Nursery Plants:
• The shoot and root development of nursery plant should be in proper ratio. The
nursery plants should be free fromweeds
• Color of leaf, morphology of leaf should be in proper standard in accordance to
variety and species
• The nursery plant should be free from disease and pest and have a vigorous growth.
• The graft union should be healthy and the size of scion and rootstock should be equal
• After shifting and transporting, seedling should not show symptoms like leaf drying,
yellowing, stress, etc.
• At present, there is no legislation to regulate production and sale of seedling and vegetative
propagules by nurseries. A mechanism to ensure the quality of planting material needs to be
developed through registration and quality control.

UNIT-II
NECESSITIES FOR NURSERY
1. Nursery bed types and precautions to be taken during preparation.
Nursery bed
It refers to a land, which is made free from weeds, stumps, stones, pebbles, etc., and is
used for sowing of seeds to raise seedlings and multiplication of different species of
plants through asexual means.
Preparation of the nursery bed
Nursery beds can be prepared in three different ways.
Sunken bed
• The soil of the seedbed needs to be sterilised by soil solarisation or with
chemicals to avoid contamination by pests and diseases.
• The soil of the nursery bed is thoroughly mixed with rotten farmyard manure.
• This type of nursery bed is prepared in dry and windy areas.
• In dry areas, the bed is kept 10−15 cm below the
ground level, which helps in conserving water.
• Sunken bed facilitates the deposition of irrigation water or rainwater for a longer
time.
• In case of water scarcity, this type of bed helps to conserve the moisture.
• Such a bed can be easily irrigated during dry season.
• A sunken bed provides protection to the seedlings during high wind conditions
as they are covered.
Level bed
• The soil of the seedbed must be sterilised by soil solarisation or with
chemicals to avoid contamination by pests and diseases.
• After soil preparation, the recommended dose of manure and fertilisers is
mixed in the nursery bed.
• For efﬁcient management, the whole area is
divided into uniform size of small beds.
• Usually, a flat bed is 1-metre wide and has length according to the slope of the
ﬁeld.
• Irrigation channels are prepared between the rows of the beds through which
each bed is connected. These also act as drainage channels in case of heavy rain
or excess irrigation.
• Such a bed is prepared during non-rainy season (summer and winter) so that
there is no waterlogging.

• Adequate drainage provision is made and preference for sandy or sandy loam
soil is given when preparing a flat bed.
Raised bed
• Such a nursery bed is prepared during the rainy season.
• The land is levelled and made free of weeds, stumps, stones, pebbles, etc.
• The soil of the nursery bed is thoroughly mixed
with 5−10 kg per sqm rotten farmyard manure.
• This type of bed is prepared about 15 cm high from the ground level. The width
is kept at 1−1.5 m and length 3−5 m. This enables adequate drainage during
rains and checks water stagnation.
• A space of 3−4 cm is left between two beds in order
to carry out cultural practices smoothly.
Precautions to be taken during the preparation of
nursery bed
A nursery bed needs to be prepared carefully so that uniform and
healthy seedlings are obtained for planting. The following precautions must
be taken while preparing a nursery bed.
• The nursery bed is, generally, used to germinate sown seeds or for
rooting of cuttings planted in the soil. Besides nutrition, sufﬁcient
moisture and aeration are important factors that affect seedling
growth.
• The nursery bed must be prepared in fertile soil rich in organic matter
content, having adequate drainage and aeration. Soil having more water
retention capacity does not need frequent irrigation.
• Excess irrigation in sunken or flat bed may lead to rotting of seeds,
seedlings and damping-off incidence. Watering of the bed depends on
the type of soil. Sandy soil needs frequent watering.
• Soil-borne infections caused by nematodes, insect-pests and pathogens
may be avoided by treating the soil in different feasible ways.
• Generally, the width of the nursery bed must not be more than 1
metre and the length must be according to the slope of the soil, so
that when irrigated, the water reaches every corner of the bed and
the whole bed gets irrigated.
• Since the seedlings are tender and prone to heat shock, the beds must be
prepared at a site receiving partial shade. In tropical and subtropical
India, direct sunlight facing site must be avoided.
Soil treatment
Soil or any planting medium used in the nursery may be contaminated by
various pests. The presence of pests in the medium causes huge losses to the
crop in the nursery, and the infection caused by the pests may be carried to

the field through seedlings or adhering medium on the roots. It is, therefore,
advocated that the medium used for the nursery must be free from infections.
The different methods adopted for soil treatment are as follows.
Soil solarisation
It is an environment-friendly method to control soil-borne plant pathogens,
including bacteria, fungi, nematodes, insect-pests and weeds. Solar energy increases
the temperature of the soil, which helps control various soil-borne pathogens. The most
appropriate time for soil solarisation is May−June when the temperature reaches 47 ºC or
above. This treatment causes physical, chemical and biological changes in the soil.
Procedure
• Dig soil at a site where seedbeds are to be prepared.
• Remove all weeds, stumps, stones, pebbles, etc.,
from the soil.
• Crush the clods and bring it to fine tilth.
• Level the plot for preparing seedbeds.
• Irrigate the site thoroughly and cover it with a black polythene film of 200
gauge for 5–6 weeks during summer as wet soil conducts heat better than dry
soil and makes soil organisms vulnerable to being killed by heat generation.
• Make the covering airtight by covering the margins with compressed wet mud to
check the loss of moisture and prevent the entry of air from beneath the
polythene sheet.
• The nursery bed may be prepared at the treated site or soil may be used for
filling pots or poly bags.
Formalin solution treatment
• Formalin solution is used to sterilise the soil. It is prepared by adding 2.5 ml
commercial grade formaldehyde per litre of water and the soil is drenched @ 45
litre of solution per m2 to saturate the top soil surface up to a depth of 15–20
cm.
• The drenched area is covered with a polythene sheet of 200 gauge so that the
fumes of formalin penetrate into the soil to kill the pathogens.
• The polythene cover is removed after 48 hours.
• The soil is raked so that the fumes of formaldehyde gas escape from it.
• If poly-house, soil is treated with formalin, the doors and side covers of
the poly-house must be opened to allow formaldehyde gas to escape.
• The bed is kept open for 7–10 days prior to seed sowing. It must be ensured that
there are no fumes of formaldehyde gas prior to seed sowing.
Soil treatment by fungicide
• Fungicides like captan or thiram @ 5 g/m2 are used to control soil-borne

pathogens.
• These fungicides can also be used as soil drench by preparing a solution of
2.5−3 per cent and drenching @ 4−5 litre/m2.
Soil treatment by insecticide
• Insecticide, such as chloropyriphos @ 2 ml/litre of water is applied to a depth of
15−20 cm in the soil to kill insects, including ants, white ants and their eggs,
nematodes, etc.
Use of bio-agents
• Certain biological agents like trichoderma are used to control soil-borne
pathogens.
• Bio-agents @ 10–25 g/m2 are mixed in the soil, and after 2–3 days, the seeds
are sown.

2. Growing media, nursery tools and implements, and containers for plant nursery.
Growing medium
The material in which plants grow in pots is known as
‘potting material’, while the substrate or medium used to
grow plants is called ‘growing medium’. The choice of
the type of potting material is important as the growth of
plants largely depends on it.
Functions of growing medium
• It supplies nutrients, air and water to the roots of
plants.
• It retains necessary water in the soil, while excess
is drained out.
• It provides physical support to plants.
• It facilitates maximum root growth.
Characteristics of growing medium
• The medium must have adequate aeration,
drainage and water-holding capacity.
• It must not be too heavy to lift.
• The medium must be slightly acidic to neutral, i.e.,
pH of 6 – 6.5 being satisfactory in most cases.
• It must be free of weeds, pests and pathogens.
• It must be easily available.
• It must not be too expensive.
Types of growing medium
The main function of growing medium is to supply nutrients, air and water to the roots
of a plant. It supports the plant physically and holds it in upright position, allowing
growth against the gravitational force. For the above two functions, it is necessary that
the medium facilitates the growth of roots within it. The chemical composition, as well
as, physical structure of the medium favours the growth of the plant. Different types of
growing medium are used as per the requirement of plants.
Garden soil
Light and sandy loam soil must be used as growing medium, while silty or clayey
soils are not preferred due to poor aeration and stickiness. The soil contains both
organic and inorganic matter. When the soil is used as a medium, it may contain
disease-causing pathogens, along with weed seeds, which is a serious problem in
growing crops. The soil is easily available and comparatively a cheaper medium
used in a nursery (Fig. 2.1).

Sand
Large particle size makes this medium more porous, aerated and well-drained. The
water-holding capacity of this medium decreases with an increase in the size of the
particles. The usual size of sand is 0.05–2 mm.
Quartz sand is a useful growing medium but it lacks in nutrient content. It is
relatively inexpensive and heavy. Generally, it is mixed with soil and used as a well-
drained porous medium (Fig. 2.2).
Compost
Compost is formed due to the decomposition of organic matter. Leaves, grass
clippings, bagasse, litter, wood waste, rice husk, sawdust and farmyard manure are
some of the common ingredients used for preparing compost. Compost contains
nutrients that plants need for growth. Vermicompost is a supplement that is added to a
growing medium.
Peat
Peat consists of residues from marsh swamp and organic nitrogen. It helps in fast
vegetative growth and is commonly used for growing newly rooted cuttings or newly
germinated seeds
Coir peat or coco peat
Coir peat is obtained from coir’s ﬁbre dust. It is acidic in nature and has a pH of about
5. It has a high water retention capacity.
Sawdust
It is the by-product of sawmills. It is easily available and cheap. It is poor in nutrient
content but can be used after adding nitrogen.
Tools: Axes, crow bar, wheel barrows, boxes, plastic buckets, watering cans, wire cutters,
digging forks, hammer, nails, hoes, hand pruning knives, budding knives, respiratory masks,
sprayers, saws, scissors, secateurs, budding and grafting knives, budding and grafting tape,
germination trays, khurpis, iron pan, spade, forks, etc.
Containers:
Made up of polythene (bags, pots, and root trainers), clay (pots) or iron
material. Polybags are the cheap containers, while root trainers are user friendly, easy to
handle and transport.

3. Seeds and other vegetative materials used to raise nursery.
• Sowing healthy seeds or seedlings leads to the healthy and better harvests. Present
agriculture technologies enforces to produce sturdy and healthy seedlings
• Some of the seeds of vegetable crops like tomato, brinjal, capsicum and cucurbits are
first raised in nursery under protected conditions to achieve maximum germination
count and healthy plant establishment and then transplanted to main field.
• Farmers and nursery managers are raising seedlings in plug trays or portrays to produce
the healthy seedlings. Soil less media with coco-peat, vermiculite and microbial
consortium is usually used to sow the seeds and the rooting media. Sowing is done
manually and also with seed sowing machine.
• Vegetative parts of plants such as leaves, stems, and roots are used for propagation.
These plants may be taken from single mother plant or other plants. The vegetative
methods most often used to produce trees are cuttings, air layering, grafting and micro-
propagation. It requires the explants from the improved/selected mother tree.
4. Outlines of vegetative propagation techniques to produce planting material.
Cutting:
Cutting is a detached vegetative part of a plant, which on separation and planting is able to
regenerate the missing parts and develop itself into a new plant. It is an inexpensive and quick
method of propagation. A large number of uniform plants can be produced using few parent
plants. It does not involve specialized skills. The method is named after the part of plant used for
cutting, e.g., stem, root and leaf.
Types of cutting:
(i) Hardwood cutting
(ii) Semi-hardwood cutting
(iii) Softwood cutting
(iv) Herbaceous cutting
Layering:
It is an attached method of propagation. In this method, roots are allowed to develop on the
covered portion of the stem while still being attached to the mother plant. After the emergence
and development of the roots, this portion is separated from the mother plant and allowed to

grow as a new plant on its own root stem. Such root stem is known as ‘layer’.
Types of layering:
(i) Simple layering
(ii) Compound or serpentine layering
(iii) Trench layering
(iv) Mound layering or stooling
(v) Air layering
Grafting:
Grafting is the joining of parts of plants together in such a way that they unite and continue to
grow as a single plant. The part of the plant that becomes the upper portion or top of the new
plant is called the scion and the part which becomes the lower portion that includes the root is
called the stock or root stock. All methods of joining plants are called grafting. Several grafting
methods viz., cleft, saddle, veneer, approach, root, whip and tongue methods are practiced, while
cleft or wedge grafting is the most common field level practice which assures more success.
Budding:
Budding is the process of inserting a single mature scion bud into the stem (rootstock) in a way
that results into a union and continues to grow as a new plant. It is also a type of grafting.
Types of budding:
There are many methods or techniques of inserting bud into the rootstock. Some of the common
methods are as follows.
i. T-Budding
ii. Patch budding
iii. Ring budding
iv. Forket budding
v. Fluet budding
vi. Chip budding

5. Sowing methods of seeds and planting material.
Methods of seed sowing
Broadcasting
In this method, seeds are broadcast on nursery beds, after which the beds are covered
with sieved farmyard manure (FYM) or decomposed compost. However, this method
has disadvantages too, such as the seeds cannot be placed at a desired place and
comparatively more quantity of seeds is required.
Line sowing
It is an appropriate method of sowing seeds in a nursery. Sowing in lines improves
germination and quality of seedlings. In this method, each seed gets independent space,
and grows healthy and vigorously. Here, the diseased seedlings and weeds can be
easily managed.
Procedure
On a leveled bed, shallow trenches of certain depths are made with the help of a stick
width-wise at adequate spacing. This depends on the size of the seeds. Small seeds are
sown at shallow depths and low spacing between rows and vice versa. The seeds
are, generally, sown at a depth of 3–4 times of its diameter. They are placed singly in
rows. Small seeds are mixed with sand for even distribution. The trenches are then
covered with fine soil. The beds require light irrigation from sowing to transplanting by
means of a fine rose can. Mulching of seedbeds by polyethylene sheet, paddy straw,
etc., helps in quick and uniform germination of seeds. Mulches must be
immediately removed after germination.
Seed sowing in plug-trays (pro-trays)
High-value and hybrid seeds are preferred to be sown in
plug-trays (pro-trays) instead of open field nursery beds.
Pro-trays are made of soft plastic having shallow plugs.
These plugs are filled with planting medium. Coco peat, a
by-product of the coir industry having high water-holding
capacity, is commonly used as a medium in pro-trays.
Procedure
In this technique, plugs are filled with coco peat.
Depressions of 0.5 to 1 cm are made at the centre of the
plugs with the help of fingertips for sowing the seeds.

One seed is sown in each plug. The seeds are placed in
the depressions and covered with coco peat.
These pro-trays are covered with a polythene sheet and kept like that for few days
or till germination starts. After germination, the polythene sheet is removed and water
is sprinkled with a fine nozzle can. Annual seeds are commonly sown in pro-trays
filled with coco peat or other growing media.
Potting, de-potting and re-potting
Pots
Ornamental plants are grown in a variety of pots, depending on the choice of a person,
including plastic, clay, cement, ceramic, etc. Pots are used for growing house plants
(indoor and outdoor). Clay pots are the most popular, easily available, highly porous
and cheaper than other type of pots. Size is an important factor while selecting pots.
For specimen plant display, the pot size needs to be at least 30 cm in diameter. The
size of the plant and its growth habit are to be considered before selecting a pot. Potting
refers to transferring of plants from seedbed or poly-bags to pots, containing the
potting mixture.
Potting mixture
The potting mixture must be light in weight and have adequate water-holding capacity.
It must allow drainage and supply adequate nutrients to plants. The mixture needs to
be free from insect-pests and soil-borne pathogens. For ferns and bulbous plants, the
mixture needs to be highly porous in nature, comprising coarse sand, light garden soil
and leaf mould. Neem cake and bone meal may also be used in small quantities as
nutrients.
Potting
Potting is the process of planting new plants in pots containing suitable mixture for
their growth and establishment. It is a simple operation but requires a certain degree of
skill and practice. The following points must be taken care of while potting a plant.
• The size of the pot must be suitable to set the plant.
• Before filling the pots, crocks of 3−5 cm must be placed at the drainage hole
to avoid clogging, followed by a 5−8 cm layer of coarse sand.
• The pot is filled with the potting mixture, leaving
2.5 cm from the rim, for holding water.
• The pot can now be used for sowing seeds, potting of plants or cuttings.
• For planting, a healthy and well-rooted plant is carefully dug out from a nursery
bed.
• The plant is placed with the ball of earth in the centre of the pot.
• Fill potting mixture all around the ball of earth, and press it firmly and
uniformly. Care must be taken that the ball of earth is not pressed too hard as it

will break and damage the roots.
• Water the plant with a fine nozzle can immediatelyafter planting.
• Place the potted plant in a cool and shady place for establishment.
• Staking is also provided, depending on the plant type, to support the plant.
• Deciduous house plants are planted in February–March, while evergreens are
planted in July–August.
De-potting
De-potting is the removal of a plant from a pot for planting in soil, bed or another pot.
As roots are sensitive and prone to injuries, care needs to be taken while de-potting the
plant. It is better to de-pot the plant along with the soil attached to its root system. This
soil, if needed, can be removed carefully after de-potting.
Procedure
The pot needs to be watered before de-potting. The pot is lifted by the right hand palm
spread over the top of the soil, holding the stem between the second and third finger,
and the thumb along the side of pot. The pot is then turned upside down. If
necessary, a gentle tap is given on the rim of the inverted pot against a solid base or on
the edge of bench to loosen the earth ball. The whole earth ball with the intertwining
roots of the plant will come out as a single piece and kept outside carefully. Before
transferring the plant to a new pot, the lower old and finer roots along with some old
potting mixture are removed.
Re-potting
The first step in re-potting is de-potting. A de-potted
plant needs to be re-potted in a fresh pot. For better
growth of house plants, re-potting and transplanting of the
established plants are done once in a year or two, depending
on the type of plants and their growth habit. Re-potting is
done when the plants have become pot-bound or overgrown,
and also the potting mixture has become devoid of essential
nutrients, resulting in poor growth of the plants. Depending
on the plant type, it is done in February−March or
September−October. During re-potting, the old potting
mixture is replaced and the overgrown roots are pruned.
Procedure
• Prune the plant lightly before re-potting to remove
excess shoot growth.
• All adhering crocks along with some amount of
the old mixture must be carefully removed from
the base of the earth ball.

• Decayed, dead, dried, twisted and unwanted roots are removed with a sharp knife
or secateurs. The plant is placed in a new pot at the same depth in soil at which it
was in the old pot. The pot is ﬁlled with fresh potting mixture, and then watered.

UNIT-3
1. Seasonal activities and routine operations in a nursery.
1) Potting the seedling: -
Before planting of sapling in the pots, the pots should be filled up with proper potting mixture.
Now a days different size of earthen pots or plastic containers are used for propagation. For
filling of pots loamy soil, sand and compost can be used in 1:1:1 proportion. Sprouted cuttings,
bulbs, corms or polythene bag grown plants can be transferred in earthen pots for further growth.
All the necessary precautions are taken before filling the pots and planting of sapling in it.
2) Manuring & Irrigation: -
Generally sufficient quantity of nutrients is not available in the soil used for seedbed. Hence,
well rotten F.Y.M / compost and leaf mould is added to soil. Rooted cuttings, layers or grafted
plants till they are transferred to the permanent location, require fertilizers. Addition of fertilizers
will give healthy & vigorous plants with good root & shoot system. It is recommended that each
nursery bed of 10 X 10m area should be given 300 gm of ammonium sulphate, 500 gm of Single
super phosphate and 100 gm of Muriate of potash. Irrigation either in the nursery beds or
watering the pots is an important operation. For potted plants hand watering is done & for beds
low pressure irrigation by hose pipe is usually given. Heavy irrigation should be avoided.
3) Plant protection measures: -
Adoption of plant protection measures, well in advance and in a planned manner is necessary for
the efficient raising of nursery plants. For better protection from pest and diseases regular
observation is essential. Disease control in seedbed:- The major disease of nursery stage plant is
“damping off”. For its control good sanitation conditions are necessary. Preventive measures like
treatment with 50% ethyl alcohol, 0.2% calcium hypo chloride and 0.01% mercury chloride is
done. These treatments are given for 5 to 30 minutes. Some of the seed treatment are as follows:
i) Disinfection – The infection within the seed is eliminated by use of formaldehyde, hot water or
mercuric chloride. ii) Hot water treatment – Dry seeds are placed in hot water having a
temperature of 480C – 550C for 10-30 minutes. iii) Protection – In dry seed treatment organo
mercuric and non-mercuric compounds like agallal, aretan –6, and tafasan-6. For this the seeds
are shaken within the seed container. While in wet method, the seeds are immersed for certain
period in liquid suspension. iv) Soil treatment – Soil contains harmful fungi, bacteria, nematodes
and even weeds seeds, which affect the growth and further development of plant. These can be
eliminated by heat, chemical treatment. For that soil is disinfected by heating to the temperature
of about 600C for 30 minutes. v) Chemical treatment – the chemicals like formaldehyde, methyl
bromide, chloropicrin, vapam are used. Other diseases like rust, powdery mildew, leaf spot,

bacterial blight, yellow vein mosaic are also observed. For control of these diseases Bordeaux
mixture, Carbendazime, Redomil can be used. Tricoderma viridi a bio-fungicide can also be tried
out.
4) Weed control: -
Weeds compete with plants for food, space and other essentials. So timely control of weeds is
necessary. For weed control weeding, use of cover crops, mulching, use of chemicals
(weedicides) are practiced. Pre-emergence weedicides like Basaline or post-emergence
weedicide like 2; 4-D and Roundup are useful.
5) Measures against heat and cold: -
The younger seedling is susceptible to strong sun and low temperature. For protection from
strong sun, shading with the help of timber framework of 1 meter height may be used. Net house
and green house structures can also be used.
6) Packing of nursery plants –
Packing is the method or way in which the young plants are tied or kept together till they are
transplanted. So they have to be packed in such a way that they do not lose their turgidity and are
able to establish themselves on the new site. At the same time, good packing ensures their
success on transplanting. For packing baskets, wooden boxes, plastic bags are used. In some
parts of the country banana leaves are also used for packing the plants with their earth ball. This
is useful for local transportation.
7) Sale management –
In general the main demand for nursery plants is during rainy season. A proper strategy should
be followed for sale of nursery plants. For that advertisement in local daily newspapers, posters,
hand bills, catalogue and appointment of commission agents can be followed.
2. Nursery management – Watering, weeding and nutrients; pests and diseases.
Watering:
The single most important factor in germination and seedling production is water but too
much water can be just as harmful as too little water. The quantity of water required depends
on the size of the nursery, the kind of soil, the species, the number of seedlings and the
irrigation method practiced. More water is needed in arid region nurseries because the sandy
soils have a low water holding capacity. For a nursery of about one hectare area, the estimated
water requirement is about 60,000 l per day during the dry season. To avoid drying of
seedlings, a reliable and continuous supply of water should be ensured by the facility of

storage of water for at least 3 days supply. It is also necessary to ensure the quality of water
used for irrigation. Normal pH water area the best suited, while water with more than pH of 7
favors attacks of 'damping off' fungi. Watering preferably in the mornings and avoiding the
mid-day period when the sun will cause excessive evaporation. The visible symptoms of over
watering are slight to severe yellowing and stunted growth. Sometimes large groups of
seedlings exhibit 'wave' formations where the watering system is not supplying water
uniformly to all the plants. This condition should not be confused with blocks of plants with
stunted growth which is normally caused by a deficiency of nutrients. Wilting is one of the
early signs of under watering. Hand watering with cans fitted with a rose spray or knapsack
mist nozzles are the obvious methods for small nurseries. The ideal system for large nurseries
is overhead sprinkler irrigation as it is easily controlled and provides the most uniform method
for the application of water.
Weeding:
Weeds are any plants present in the cultivation area which is out of our interest. They compete
with the seedlings for nutrients, water and light. and suppress the growth of young plants
because the weeds are usually more vigorous and grow at a faster rate. The most troublesome
are grasses or dicotyledonous plants that grow from a root stock. If such a weed is cut off at
the ground level, it will sprout again and continue to grow from the carbohydrates stored in its
root tissue hence the need to remove the whole plant. Since it is more difficult to eradicate
weeds after they have invaded seedlings growing in containers and in transplant beds, both the
potting soil and the pre-filled containers may be watered in advance so that the germinated
weeds can be removed in advance of transplanting. For this purpose, containers should be
filled up to 4 weeks in advance of transplanting or direct sowing operations if weed free
potting soil is not available. A thick hedge around the nursery helps keep out weed seeds that
is otherwise brought in by wind.
Nutrient Management:
Sixteen plant food nutrients are essential for proper seedling development. Each is
equally important to the plant, yet each is required in vastly different amounts. Among them
the primary (macro) nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium) are most frequently
required in nursery. Any deficiency of nutrients will be expressed by seedlings through
deficiency symptoms; accordingly the relevant fertilizer should be applied as per requirement.
For general nutrient support, FYM and compost are mostly used in nurseries where the
available soils are either too sandy or too heavy and of low quality. It helps to build a good soil
structure, improves water holding capacity of the soil and provides nutrients for plants. It
greatly reduces the need for chemical fertilizers and, when mixed with small amounts, dilutes
the fertilizer, making it available in much larger useful quantities. It is therefore an economic
way of using available chemical fertilizers and is itself a natural fertilizer, very similar to
humus. The leaves of seedlings planted with unfinished compost usually turn yellow because
the plant cannot acquire all the nutrients it needs whilst the immature compost continues to
absorb what little nitrogen that might be available. Adding of well decomposed manure in the
nursery mixture will assure the production of quality and healthy seedlings. In order to boost
the rhizome growth, phosphorous must be added while application of urea will resulted foe
good vegetative/ foliar growth of seedlings. Meanwhile, using of bio-fertilizers such as

Azatobactor, Azospirillum and Phosphobacteria @ 5 to 10 g and vermicompost, VAM @ 10 to
50 g per container raised seedlings are also suggested to boost the growth of seedlings.
Nursery Pests and their Management
A major injury to nursery stock is also caused by various groups of insects. These
insect pests have been divided into three categories viz., major nursery pests (white grubs,
cutworms, termites and crickets), minor nursery pests (defoliators, sapsuckers, grasshoppers)
and non-insect pests (nematodes and vertebrate pests). Generally the damage caused by the
insects may be controlled by maintaining better sanitation of the nursery area, adoption of
suitable cultural practices and need based application of chemical and biological pesticides.
White Grubs: The adult white grubs feed on leaves and larval stage of the grub (during
monsoon months feed on roots. It is a major pest in Teak, Mango, Sal and leguminous seedling
at Bihar, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu states. Deep ploughing, soil
solarisation, poisoning and using light traps are some control measures against white grub
attack. Application of 200 g phorate or 50 ml of chloropyriphos mixed in 50 ml water may be
used to spray for one bed. Foliar spray of host trees available in the nursery vicinity with
0.05% monocrotophos or 0.03% quinalphos can also helpful in controlling the adult
population.
Cutworms: It damages the young seedlings soon after germination and is also a feeder of
young leaves. Seedlings of Pine, Cedar, mango, sapota and Casuarina species are the most
preferred by cutworms. Nursery site flooding and collection of cutworm after heavy rains are
some preventive measures to avoid cutworm damages. Dusting of seed bed with a mixture of
quicklime and ash or 1.5% quinalphos will control the insect.
Termite: They cause damage to seedlings either by primary attack (tap root destroy),
secondary attack (follow up attack after draught, pathogens, etc.) or complementary attack and
damage the seedlings which make it weak and subsequently it is susceptible for other
pathogen and pest attacks. The termite attack can be controlled by keeping the nursery cleared
of wood debris, using well decomposed FYM and application of termiticides such as
chlorpyriphos.
Crickets: The nymphs and adult stage cricket come out at night and cut off all the
seedlings, low branches and drag the piece to their tunnels for feeding the young crickets.
Ficus, Casuarina, Eucalyptus, Sisham, teak, rubber and mango seedlings are commonly
affected by crickets. Deep ploughing during nursery site preparation, application of 200 g
phorate or fenitrothinon 5% dust per bed can control the pest.
Minor and Non-insect Pests: Defoliators (beetles, weevils and caterpillers), grasshoppers and
sapsuckers (green leaf hopper, white flies, thrips) are the minor pests. They can be controlled
by the application of 100 g dose per bed of phorate 10%, or spray of formulation of any
systemic insecticide eg. dimethoate 30 EC.
Nematodes, rat, squirrel, hare, deer, mite and birds are some important non-insect
pests. Poison bating by rodenticide such as Zinc phosphide, proper fencing and manual scaring
are the best methods to reduce damage by them. Other than the disease and pest damages, the

natural events like frost, chilling, drought, fire and non-availability of nutrients also cause
stunted growth/death of seedlings.
Nursery Disease and their Management
The seedling stress symptoms like damping off, wilt, root rot, rust and powdery mildew are
caused by pathogen infection and results in stunted growth of seedlings. These pathogens may
be soil, seed or air borne in nature. Nurseries established in the recently cleaned land
hardly invite parasitic organisms. Stunted growth of seedlings indicates the loss of soil
fertility, excess watering and dumping of seedlings in shady areas.
As a preventive measure sterilization of nursery mixture, pre-treatment of seeds with
fungicide such as Captan can control the disease. If the disease occurs, the casual pathogen
may be identified by expression of symptoms and accordingly fungicide may be applied.
Table 9 listed the important nursery diseases and their control measures.
Table 9. Important nursery diseases and their control measures
Symptoms
Integrated Nursery Disease Management
• Selection of apparently healthy seeds/propagules for seedling production
• Seed dressing with 0.2% Carbendazim/Methyl thiophanate/Benomyl/Thiram
• Sowing in sterilized/fumigated, clean beds and adequate watering
• Using sterilized budding knife, secateurs, and scissors during budding and grafting
• Transplanting seedling after root dip for 3-5 min in 0.02% Carbendazim solution

• Healthy planting material maintenance by keeping them under proper sunlight,
watering and clean environment
• Frequent examination of seedling health and removal of diseased stocks
• Foliar spray of 0.2% Carbendazim/Dithane M-45 at regular interval
3. Common possible errors in nursery activities.
• Containers not filled properly
• Cylindrical shape of container not maintained
• Container not in upright position
• Soil or sand used in germination beds not changed after each production cycle
• Sowing seed too deep
• Lifting transplant seedlings individually and wrenching them
• Exposure of seedlings to air after lifting
• Bad transplanting and delayed transplant to container beds
• Leaving air space around the root of the young seedling after transplanting
• Bad root pruning while transplanting
• Inadequate attention paid to root pruning in transplanted containers before
transporting to field
• Same knapsack sprayer used to apply weedicides and fungicides
• Hardening off process starting too late or neglected
• Dumping of seedlings in nursery without placing them as per species, size, etc.
4. Economics of nursery development, pricing and record maintenance.
Economics of Nursery Development
Presently nursery is considered as a small entrepreneur activity. When this venture
provides profit to the investors, then only it will be considered for practicing. The following
fixed (Table 10) and variable costs (Table 11) associated with establishment of nursery and
expected return by seedling production activity will be helpful to assess the cost benefit ratio
of this activity.

Record Management
Records of all purchases (seed, chemicals, media, etc.), observation of data (sowing,
germination dates and germination per cent, growth, etc.), labor engagement and attendance,
sales, pest and disease outbreaks, permanent and temporary stocks (including species wise
seedling stocks) and movement register are required to be maintained upto date. Various
records of expenditure and income are recorded in different book viz., purchase book, sales
book, ledger, cash book, dispatch register, etc.
It is advisable to maintain books of accounts for the following reasons:
• They provide up-to-date nursery business information and guideline for planning
• They help to analyze the performance of the nursery activity
5. Online nursery information and sales system.
Online Nursery Information and Sales Systems
The Nursery Management Information System (NMIS) was first designed in 1970s to
support the nursery programs in USA, mainly for tracking the seed collection, storage, sowing
of seed, seedling inventory, seedling lifting, grading and culling, packing of seedlings for
storage, shipment and distribution of seedlings. NMIS consists of a source subsystem for
managing and maintaining source material for products and a products subsystem for
managing and maintaining product inventories. Source (includes seed as well as other types of
plant propagation materials) was originally developed as a means of tracking information
received through processing. At the end of the day, the data recorder will downloaded to
NMIS and a daily inventory checklist of report is produced for execution of activities by the
nursery manager. The system has the provision of orders entered by the clients along with their
contact details, grading specifications, special services, job codes, and amount of request. After
an order is entered, an order confirmation report will be sent to the client for review. When all
orders have been entered, a surplus for sale report will be created. Currently an Oracle®
version of the source subsystem is in use, while some nurseries have been using a MS
Access® version. Recently nursery systems are designed with Active Server Page (ASP), VB
as front-end and MS-Access as back-end. Interactive mode with customization of
modifications, updates, revision, inventory e-learning, etc. are also linked with the system due
to the GPS and real time data transfer technology.
Much software for nursery sale, inventory and management are available in the market.
Nursery Sales and Inventory Management (http://www.nurserysoftware.com) is one of the
most comprehensive software for managing a wholesale plant growing or re- wholesales
operation in Oregon City, USA. Likewise, www.enuresry.in is an Indian web platform provides
websites or web stores for landscapers, plant nursery owners and gardeners to showcase and
sell plants over web. One can use this software to support their nursery. There are web sites
act as a platform which gives a "smart availability list" service for growers and suppliers of
plant material. By signing up for an account, one can quickly publish the plant material for
sale through this portal. This service provides not only a public availability list in which the

plants are published in a large alphabetical list organized by Latin name, but also the private
availability list particular to one nursery. The public availability list allows any customer to
find the available plants and easily send a request for quote, whereas the private availability
list can be sent to the already registered customers to keep them updated while also preventing
them from browsing over to a competitor's list. Meanwhile the private availability list can be
linked to the concerns web site, signature file in emails, blog, business card, mailings, etc. It
has the feature viz., unlimited number of content plants to store, multiple marketing formats
for sales, multiple labelling formats, accommodates poor man's laminating and icon pricing
boxes, e-bay made automatically, integrate map quest into pages with screen capture utility,
editing features with cut and paste from the web directly into nursery management database,
upload and download to picture share and information library, lifetime membership to library
uploading and downloading, many plant care tracking features, complete records and logs for
all plants, fertilizer, tonic and organic pesticide recipes, store videos, streamlined collection
and storage of plant information and use of this in all marketing and labelling purposes, etc.
Other than the above common platforms for nursery information management, several
private owned (http://www.hccnursery.com of HCC Nursery, Bostic, North Carolina, USA;
http://www.indiannuresry.net of The Indian Nursery, Howrah, West Bengal, India),
government departments (http://stg3.kar.nic.in/forest_enursery of Karnataka Forest
Department) managed and specific species wise portals (http://www.manakcitrus.co.in
for citrus plants; http://www.rose-gardening-made- easy.com for rose plants) were also
available online. They are designed as online nursery store to exhibit seedling availability,
pricing, ordering, etc with the core aim of connecting the nurserymen and the buyers to
perform selling. But the nursery level record and resource management is mainly done
manually, which is time, energy consuming and offers scope for inaccuracy. The development
of nursery management system (NMS) for stock management has been underway under a DST
funded project at CAZRI, Jodhpur. The following Fig. 9 shows the home and mange stock
pages of administrator in NMS.
Likewise, setting-up of a Indian “Horticulture Information System” (HIS) through a
network using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) from District level linked
to state Horticulture department and at national level with Ministry of Agriculture as focal
agency to coordinate, organize, analyze and consolidate the data is proposed by the National
Horticulture Mission. It is to have horticulture information service centre at district level to
collect data and linked it with State and Central organizations to collate the data. A uniform
methodology should be evolved by various agencies in all the states regarding process for
collection of data, use of same format, so that the data will be collected in uniformity for its
completeness, updating reliability and validity at all levels. For this purpose, NHM has
proposed to establish a “National Institute of Horticultural Management and Data base”.
Besides providing academic inputs and training at apex level, the proposed institution will
undertake research and consultancy assignment on policy issues specially related to WTO and
international business, data collection, maintaining the portal, data analysis, sharing, etc.

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