Dussehri mango production likely to dip this year
Unlike the previous year, when UP’s mango belt witnessed record production of Dussehri mangoes, this year’s output may touch an all-timelow due to poor flowering, say mango growers in Malihabad.
“The yield is poor this time. This was not expected at all,” said Mohammed Miyan, a mango grower in Malihabad, having a total of 23,589 hectare land for mango farming.
“In January, we saw good flowering, which though unseasonal, was a good sign. It gave us hope that this year the crop is going to be as good as last year’s. But the hope was dashed as the flowering began to shed from February onwards,” said Miyan.
He said poor flowering may push mango prices up, burning a deeper hole in consumers’ pocket.
However, a few farmers said poor yield was expected this year as mango tree is a biennial tree.
Dr Shailendra Rajan, director ICAR-Central Institute for Subtropical Horticulture (CISH) that trains farmers in getting maximum yield, too hinted at poor yield this year.
“The crop is not as good as last year. We are getting frequent reports from the farmers in this regard,” he said.
Rajan said temperature could also be a major cause of poor yield. “Climatic conditions play a crucial role, especially during flowering phase. This year the mango belt experienced temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius during night hours that kept the pollinators at bay, thus affecting the crop,” he added.
He said the ideal temperature for mango crop is between 16 and 20 degrees Celsius.