Establishing A New Orchard
Variety & Rootstock
Before the establishment of a new orchard, it is very critical to select the appropriate combination of rootstock and variety. Every farmer is blessed with different and unique resources and may differ from farmer to farmer. Hence, choosing the variety and rootstock combination on the analogy of others may not be a good decision always. Hence, first of all, it is important to analyze the resources you have viz. soil type, water availability, climatic conditions, site/aspect, the owner’s time investment for the orchard, initial money investment, etc. There are high-color strain apple varieties available with Ambika Apple Nursery.
Climatic conditions
Height above mean sea level is one of the important criteria from which we can determine the prevailing climatic conditions of that area. But it may not be always true, as in some low-lying areas chilling requirement is fulfilled by nearby snowbound hills.
Pollinizers
A good fruit yield can only be expected when we have an adequate ratio of pollinizer varieties in our orchard and the layout of these pollinating varieties is equally important. There should be at least 03 types of pollinating varieties in the orchard preferably prolonging the blooming period.
Irrigation Facility & soil type
After the selection of variety and rootstock for your orchard, it is important to create the irrigation infrastructure according to your water discharge at the source before the plantation. Preparation of small recharge pits in orchard prove beneficial in drylands. Soil plays a critical role in the successful survival of your orchard. Working on the soil during the initial time will definitely pay you a handsome dividend. In old replantation sites, the soil must be treated with soil sterilant.
Spacing of plants
Interestingly, it is a very common question from the growers regarding the spacing of plants. Spacing of plants depends upon the type of variety and rootstock to be used, training system to be adopted, Soil Type, and irrigation facilities. Hence, detailed planning is needed before planting an orchard.
