A lease of life for old plantations

Farm View

 Old age-induced decline in productivity is not the bane of plantation sector alone. Horticultural farms also suffer from it. The problem is rather acute in mango plantations where nearly one-third of all orchards are over 45 to 50 years old and have become economically unviable.

 The orchardists usually refrain from replanting because of the long time the plants take to yield returns. However, a new technology has been developed to rejuvenate old and unproductive plantations without going in for fresh planting or disrupting income generation from the garden.

 The Lucknow-based Central Institute of Subtropical Horticulture (CISH) has tried and perfected the simple technique of reviving the vitality of aged mango gardens. This was successfully tested on the 45-year old Dashehari trees in a mango orchard in Kakori village, Lucknow.

 Buoyed by the success of the technology, several organisations are now coming forward to promote it in various mango growing regions of the country.

 The problem with older plantations is that these tend to become too dense as trees intermingle. As a result, the penetration of sunlight is hindered with significant reduction in photosynthesis that is crucial for plant