Mango Plantation with mixed farming done on 1 acre generates had a return potential of Rs. 15,000-20,000 annually for first 3 years from farming activities.From 4^th year onwards incomes of around Rs. 30,000 from mangoes gets added. From 10^th year onwards this combined income from farming and mangoes can reach up to Rs. 1 lakh annually which would continue till the 25^th to 30^th year.

Simultaneously the timber plants at the margins of the field would create an asset worth lakh after 10-15 years.Mango Plantation programme under MGNREGA selects  only those families which have agriculture as their prime source of income and more than 1 family member are ready for implementation and nurturing of the plants. One family shall undertake mango plantation on lands which is of 0.25 – 1 acre area for convenient management of the plants.

Guidelines for selection of plot

The slop of the land shall be 8% or less and the soil shouldn’t be rocky. Irrigation facility for round the year shall be there or the plot shall have some water source like river, well, pond etc. within a range of 100 metres. The planned area shouldn’t be too far away from the village-road or farmer’s household to ensure smooth supply of materials as well as easy access by the beneficiary. There shouldn’t be any legal dispute over the selected land; neither shall there be too many timber plants around it.

Model of Mango Plantation

There are two models of Mango Plantation, Model-1 This model applies for families having a patch of 0.25-1 acre of land; Model-2 This would apply for those patches of land wherein 4-5 farmers jointly plan to undertake plantation. In this along with hedging of the plot, cattle preventing trench shall also be prepared. In a plot of 1 acre a total of 112 mango plants and 96 timber plant of native species can be planted.

For Mango plantation plants like Aamrapali, Malda, Langda or Mallika shall be selected as they have greater produce as well as greater demand in the market.

Encirclement:Encirclement by planting local plants and bushes like Putush, Sindwar, bamboo etc. is made around the edges of the selected land.

Cattle Prevention Trench

The trench is dug maintaining 1 feet distance from the encirclement. The top of CPT is 6 feet in width and the bottom is 3 feet with 4 feet depth. A bund of 6 feet width at the bottom and 3 feet on top with a height of 4 feet is made 1.5 feet besides the dug trench from the soil of the trench.

30*40 Model Formation

The prime objective of this formation is to prevent soil erosion in the land with 3-8% slope as well as moisture conservation.The indigenous/timber woods are planted 2.5 metres away from the CPT and bund layout and plantation encirclement. For this 1”*1”*1” pit is dug which is 2.5 metres away. The soil coming out of the pit is mixed with 3kg cow-dung manure is refilled into the pit.

Between 15^th July ad 15^th August the plant is planted in the pit after putting 20gm of Furadon and 10gm of 3G/Thimet. Plants like Gamhar, Acacia, Shisham and Saagwanetc could be planted as timber woods.

Layout of Mango-pit and excavation

The row mango plant should be 5 metres or 15 feet away from the row of timber woods. Two mango plants shall be 5 metres or 15 feet away. The orchard should have straight layout and for this an expert shall be consulted with. For plantation the pit shall be dug out in the months of February or March as during these months the soil isn’t too stiff. The pit hall be dug in the dimension of 3” *3” *3”. During unearthing of the pit, the soil from the first foot and the remaining 2 feet shall be placed separately.

Pit Filling

The pit shall be filled in the month of June. Before filling up the pit termite treatment through Pyrethrum/Chloropyriphons or equivalent shall be mixed in the soil with a proportion of 4ml/litre. The top 1 foot soil shall be first used to fill up the pit. Per pit 2-3 basket of cow-dung manure weighting approximately 20kg or 7kg of vermi-compost, 1 kg of Neem or Karanj Cake, 0.5kg of bone meal or SSP and 1 kg of Dolomite shall be mixed with the soil being used t fill up the pit. The whole of the unearthed soil shall be put back into the pit as during rainy season the soil will get compressed, or else water logging might take into the pit.

Plantation

 The plants shall be planted in the month of July as during this month sufficient water is available and this moisture is helpful in the plant’s growth. After 10-15 days of pit filling with the help of hoe or shovel plant the tree in the middle of the pit. After planting the trees the nearby sol shall be sufficiently compressed in a premedical shape. In absence of sufficient moisture, irrigate the plant after plantation.

Giving H-Support to the Plants

To ensure proper growth of the trunk, to prevent the breakages around the graft and prevention of moulds around the graft, H-shaped support shall be given at a height of 2.5-3 feet. For the support strong wood shall be used with which the plant shall be tied loosely using jute rope to ensure that the trunk isn’t disturbed in the winds.

Farming within the Orchard (Inter-cropping)

The mango plants start giving returns after 3 years of plantation. The vacant land between the plants allow for simultaneous vegetable cultivation which keeps the farmer’s interest in the orchard intact as well as inflow of additional income. Cultivation of vegetables and pulses in particular also ensures that the fertility of the soil improves. Intercropping can include vegetables like watermelon, tomatoes, gourds, cauliflower, ladyfinger etc. along with pulses other than pigeon peas. When the canopy of the trees has completely developed the vegetables that can grow in shade like ginger and yam can be done.

The mango plants after planation needs special attention during Kharif months of August to October and Rabi months of November to February of the first year, Kharif month of July to October, Rabi months of November to February ad Zaid seasons of March to June of the second year.

Plucking fruits/ Storage/ Marketing 

When the fruits starts to turn light yellow and the stock length is 1cm then the farmers shall pluck the fruit and shall keep it in upside down position for 2-3 hours to prevent the juicy coming out of the stock to touch the fruit and make the contact surface of the fruit black.

Before the fruit is boxed, they shall be kept separately and wiped with a clean cloth. Then they shall be arranged and packed in a cardboardbox. Fruit’s similar size and value should be ensured before packaging. Fruits packed after being wrapped in newspaper or brown paper prevents bee infestation as well as appears better.

Input Summary

In past 6 years LEADS has had a coverage of mango plantation mentioned as under

1. Total farmers – 2727
2. Total area – 669 acres
3. Total mango plants – 74892
4. Total timber plants – 18000

Mango Plantation