• Healthy and disease free mango grafts are necessary for

successful mango plantation. Raising healthy grafts is a tedious

process involving production of root stocks as well as scions stick,

grafting, hardening, etc.

• Due to the difficult management practices and skills, farmers

prefer buying grafts from reliable nurseries, providing healthy

seedlings, in required amounts and at reasonable cost .

• Irrigation system, finance, land, structures, labour, planting

material, chemicals and fertilizers etc are some of the resources

required for raising healthy nursery plants.

Introduction:

Information about nursery resource management at right time is

important for the success of a nursery enterprise.

Credit /Finance:

• Nursery production for horticultural plants is highly capital intensive

including timely availability of finance for day to day activities in a

nursery.

• Credit can be obtained from Government Agencies like National

Horticultural Board, National Horticulture Mission, Nationalized

Banks, Cooperatives banks etc.

Resources Management:

Land: • Mango nurseries can be successful venture in Mango growing

areas. Mango Nurseries should be avoided in areas where

infestation of mango pests like aphids and leaf hoppers are

more dominant.

• Availability of sufficient space for all nursery activities enables

proper management resources. Land must be laid out well into

various sections and sections must be connected by pathways.

• Land can be purchased or leased. It is one of the costliest input

in a nursery enterprises.

Resource Management:

Planting Material: • Planting material in mango includes stones for rootstock

production and scion sticks from mother plants of desired

varieties.

• Fresh, Bold, heavy weight, disease and pest free stones of local

mango trees should be collected before monsoon and used for

rootstock production.

• Mother plant block should be looked after well. Mother plants of

various varieties in demand should be collected from authentic

sources like Agricultural Universities. Healthy and pest free

scion stick should be selected from mother plants for grafting.

Resource Management:

Structures: • Mango Nursery is raised in Shade

net house or Poly tunnel.

• These structures efficiently other

resources like irrigation.

Shade Net House in Mango Nursery

Farm Yard Manure (FYM): • FYM is part of nursery media and a cheap source of nutrients. It

improves physical condition of soil, water retention, aeration.

• Best quality FYM should be used for production of nursery

plants.

Resource Management :

Fertilizers: • Water soluble as well as conventional fertilizers are used in

nurseries as a source of plant growth nutrients.

• Fertilizers are applied by hand or through irrigation water. Water

soluble fertilizers are also applied as foliar sprays for better

absorption.

Irrigation: • Irrigation water is the most important resource in a nursery. It

should have a good quality and abundantly available.

• In case of limited supply of water micro irrigation, subsurface

irrigation systems must be used.

• Rain water harvesting can be effective in nurseries in case of

limited water availability.

Resource Management:

Plant Protection:

• Insecticide like Phorate 10 G is mixed in the media to prevent

from termites. Mango stones treated with copper oxy-chloride to

control seed borne diseases in nursery.

• Mango seedlings and grafts are infested by insects pests like

mango stem borer, mango leaf hopper, etc. Regular spraying of

Chloropyriphos (Radar) 2 ml and Carbendazim (Bavistin) 1 gm / 1

liter of water is essential.

• Timely application of control measures can control diseases and

pests without adversely affecting growth of nursery plants.

Resource Management:

Media:

• The media consists of Garden soil,

well decomposed FYM and sand

mixed in 2:1:1 proportions.

Trays and Containers:

• Mango stones are either sown on raised beds or in poly bags.

• Mango stones sown on raised beds need to be transplanted into poly

bags before grafting while those sown in poly bags need not be

transplanted.

Resource Management:

Media filled Poly Bag

Labor: • Mango nursery requires skilled

as well as unskilled labors to

carry out various nursery

operations.

• Skilled labor are required to

perform operations like grafting,

training, pruning, media

preparations, care of mother

plant etc

Resource Management:

Skilled Labors Performing Grafting in Mango.

• Unskilled labor performs activities like bed preparations, bag

filling, sowing, spraying, etc.

Future Technology:

• Technological advancements like new propagation methods, safer

chemicals, better management practices, etc need to be adopted

to maximize production, quality and profits.

• The day to day operations in nursery become difficult to perform

due to expensive labourers. Operations like bag filling, sowing,

irrigation, climate control, spraying etc. can be mechanized.

Resource Management: