Litchi Fruit Farming in India - How to Grow Litchi

Litchi is the subtropical evergreen table fruit that thrives in India. This fruit is native to China and introduced in India at the end of the 17th century. India is the 2nd largest producer of litchi fruit after China. Bihar is the largest producer of litchi in India. This fruit is very famous for its pulp and pleasant flavour. This fruit is being consumed as dried and canned fruit. The litchi juice is an excellent source of protein, vitamin C, calcium and phosphorus. This fruit belongs to the “Sapindaceae” and genus “Litchi”.

How to Grow Litchi Fruit Farming?

Starting commercial litchi cultivation is easy and simple, just like growing other crops. Litchi plants are very hardy and strong, requiring less care and other handling. When you start growing any plant, you need to know the various essential sections that would be useful for profitable litchi fruit cultivation. We can provide information related to the most reliable tractors in litchi cultivation. We can recommend the Farmtrac 45 tractor, which is helpful in the complete cultivation procedure. 

Climate Requirement for Litchi Growth

Litchi thrives best in moist climatic conditions and requires well-distributed rainfall. This fruit tree’s optimum temperature for its best growth and yield is 30 ºC to 32 ºC, and it does not tolerate frost. Dry, hot summer winds damage the fruit crop during wet spring, and mild winter is most favourable for its fruit development.

Suitable Soil for Litchi Fruit Farming

Farmers grow the fruit tree on a wide range of soils. However, well-drained deep loam soil is rich in organic matter and best suitable for its cultivation. They even thrive best in light sandy loam soils, and lime content in the soil is also helpful for its growth. The Ideal soil pH range for the highest yield is 5.0 – 7.0.

Propagation in Litchi Fruit Farming

Seed Propagation: This is not a common method of propagation. It takes a long time, around 7 to 10 years, to establish a litchi tree.

Vegetative Propagation: This is the common propagation method in litchi fruit cultivation. In this method, litchi is propagated successfully by grafting and cutting. The best and most common practice adopted worldwide is the air layering method.

Land Preparation, Planting in Litchi Fruit Farming

You should level the land thoroughly and clear from previously grown crops. You should plough the land 2 or 3 times with a desi disc plough and harrow. Install wind breakers as hot & dry summer winds will affect the fruit harvest. Tall trees like Eucalyptus, Jamun or Mango should be planted in the proper direction along the field’s boundaries to block the winds. You usually do the Air-layering at the beginning of the monsoon, and you can separate the air layers from the mother plant after 60 to 75 days. The best time for planting is August to September, and in the case of irrigation, you can do the planting in spring and early summer.

Dig pits of size 1 m x 1 m x 1 m with a spacing of 10 m between plants and rows, and these pits should be dug a few weeks before planting. Generally, a class system of plantation is followed in the cultivation of litchi fruit. You should fill the pits with 25 kg of cow dung manure (FYM) and 2 kg of bone meal, and 300 g muriate of potash per pit. Pouring soil from the old litchi orchard will be beneficial. Once planting is done, irrigation should be done to settle the soil.

Weed Control

Keeping weed-free during the initial years of growth after planting is essential. Therefore, ploughing of litchi orchards should be done with soil turning plough and harrow once after the rainy season in October and secondly in June or July after harvesting litchi fruits. Mulching will also control weed growth at the base of the plant.

Irrigation Requirement in Litchi Fruit Farming

Carry about 2 to 3 irrigations at the interval of 45 to 60 days during winter for fruit-bearing litchi trees. In the case of hot summer months, irrigation should be given at 2 weeks intervals. You can adopt drip irrigation systems for better use of water. However, a basin or ring system of irrigation is recommended in case of abundant water.

Pruning of Litchi Fruit 

Pruning is usually necessary to give the plant proper shape, and dead or diseased branches and damaged shoots should be removed frequently as part of the pruning process. At harvest, the portion of the fruit seedling should be removed to promote new growth. In heavy vegetative growth, both root and shoot should be pruned.

Intercropping in Litchi Fruit Cultivation

Farmers should consider intercropping for additional income during the first 4 years as litchi is a long crop that takes about 5 to 6 years at the fruiting stage. The main advantage of intercropping is to enrich the soil.In addition, intercrops like cucumber, bitter gourd, moong dal, and peas can be cultivated.

Equipment Requirement

When you want to get information about litchi fruit cultivation, you should also know the equipment that will help to boost the yield. Cultivators, Tillers and tractors are crucial factors in litchi fruit farming. However, you can choose the Eicher 241 tractor and any other. 

For further information regarding litchi farming in India, stay tuned with us.

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