Book Cultivation Cardamom PDF
Book Cultivation Cardamom PDF
Book Cultivation Cardamom PDF
FOR CARDAMOM
Elettaria cardamomum Maton
Cultivation Practices for Cardamom <<<
CULTIVATION PRACTICES
FOR CARDAMOM
Elettaria cardamomum Maton
Published by
Spices Board
Ministry of Commerce & Industry
Government of India
Cochin – 682 025
Copies - 6000
January 2009
Printed at
Niseema Printers & Publishers, Kochi - 18
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Introduction
Varieties
Two varieties of cardamom plants are identified and they are Elettaria
cardamomum Maton, variety major comprised of wild indigenous types of
Sri Lanka and Elettaria cardamomum Maton, variety, minor comprising of
cultivars like, Mysore, Malabar and Vazhukka. These types are grown in
different tracts and are mostly identified on the nature of panicles, size of
plants and other morphological characters. Cardamom varieties are highly
location specific.
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Cultivar Malabar
These cardamom plants have medium size and attain two to three
meters height on maturity. The dorsal side of leaves may be pubescent or
glabrous. The panicles are prostrate and the capsules are globose to oblong
shaped. This type of cardamom plants is better suited to areas of 600 to
1200 meters elevation. ëMalabarí type is considered as relatively less
susceptible to thrips. This type is mostly cultivated in Karnataka. It can thrive
under low rainfall and short duration rainfall conditions. Malabar types are
cultivated to a lesser extent in Kerala (Kannielam tract) and Tamil Nadu
(Lower Pulney hills).
Cultivar Mysore
Plants belonging to this type are robust and attain three to four meters
in height. The leaves are lanceolate or oblong to lanceolate and glabrous
on both sides. The panicles are erect and the capsules are ovoid bold and
dark green in colour. They are better adapted to altitudes ranging from 900
to 1200 meters from sea level and thrive well under assured, well-distributed
rainfall conditions. This type is mostly cultivated in Kerala in certain pockets
of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Cultivar Vazhukka
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Cv. Mysore. Its leaves are deep green, oblong to lanceolate or ovate, panicles
are semi-erect (pendent) and capsules are bold, globose or ovoid in shape.
It is extensively cultivated in Kerala and Tamil Nadu at elevations ranging
form 900 ñ 1200 meters above sea level.
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then mixed with wood ash and dried in shade. 175-200 grams seed is required
to raise quality seedlings required for one hectare. Seeds are to be sown as
early as possible, preferably within 15 days after extraction since seeds
looses its viability on storage. Sowing in September gives maximum
germination under field conditions; winter and peak southwest monsoon
period should be avoided. Even under ideal conditions, the germination is
often less than 50 per cent only.
Breaking of hard seed coat through seed treatment with acid or similar
chemicals improves germination. Acid scarification with 25 per cent nitric
acid for 10 minutes to break the seed coat will enhance germination. The
seed is ready for sowing the next day.
Sowing can be done in lines in rows at a distance of 10 cm. Seed rate
is 30 to 50 grams per 6x1 meter size bed. After sowing cover the bed with
thin layer of fine soil and then with mulch material, such as potha grass or
paddy straw. Avoid the contact of mulch material with the soil by spreading
the mulch over tree twigs laid across the bed. Water the beds to sufficient
moisture conditions. Once sprouting is observed, remove the mulch and
cover the bed with thinly sliced mulch material in between rows. To protect
the seedling from direct sunlight, provide overhead pandal. Germination
commences 20 to 25 days after sowing and continues for further 30 to 40
days. Seedlings when reach four-six leaf stage (five-six months after sowing)
is transplanted to secondary nursery
Secondary Nursery
There are two methods of raising seedling in secondary nursery: They
are bed and polybag nurseries.
Bed nursery: Prepare beds as in primary nursery. A layer of cattle manure
and wood ash may be spread on the bed and mixed with soil. Seedling of
three to four leaf stage from the primary nursery beds can be transplanted
in the secondary nursery at a distance of 20 to 25cms. Mulching and watering
of beds should be done immediately after transplanting. Over head pandal
can be erected to protect seedlings from direct sunlight.
Poly bag nursery: Black HM/HDP bags of size 20x20cm having minimum
100gsm thickness with three to four holes at the bottom can be used for this
purpose. Fill the bags with potting mixture in the ratio of 3:1:1 of jungle
topsoil, cow dung and sand. The bags may be arranged in rows of convenient
length and breadth for easy management. One healthy and disease free
seedling at three to four-leaf stage can be transplanted into each bag.
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walls at 10-20 meters intervals across the slope and also making water-
collecting trenches along drainage channels at selected intervals will be
helpful in non-landslide prone areas. However, any mechanical/permanent
soil conservation measures should be adopted based on scientific soil/
topography/rainfall based parameters under expert advice, as unscientific
based structures may lead to land sliding.
Forking and mulching
As far as possible, the entire plantation and particularly the plant base
are to be kept under mulch for reducing evaporation loss, suppress weed
growth and to maintain optimum soil temperature. It is very essential to
keep the plant base mulched (5-10 cm thick), except during periods of heavy
monsoon (June to September). Through adopting the best soil management
practices, the soils will remain loose and friable. However, in situations where
soil has become compact and hard, forking the plant base to a distance up
to 90cm and to a depth of 9-12 cm may be beneficial to enhance root
proliferation, better infiltration of summer showers and for improving soil
aeration. Forking could be done with the cessation of north east monsoon
during November/December taking care to cause least damages to the root
system.
Trashing and pruning
Trashing consists of removing old tillers, dead rhizome and dry leaves
and leaf sheaths. This operation may be carried out once in a year at any
time after the receipt of the pre-monsoon showers, in May. Pruning is the
operation undertaken with sharp sickles for removing the dead and hanging
leaves from the pseudo-stem. Care should be taken not to peel off the leaf
sheath from the Pseudo-stem. This operation may be done during January
and during September, which coincides with the peak thrips population.
The resultant plant materials obtained through pruning can be used for
mulching.
Earthing up
Whenever, the top soil covering the plant base is washed away and
the rhizomes and roots are exposed, earthing-up of the plant base with top
soil is recommended during November/December, before the withdrawal of
north east monsoon. While carrying out this operation, care should be
exercised to ensure that only top soil is used, and it is evenly and thinly
spread at the base covering only half the bulb portion of the rhizome. This
operation helps to keep the top 10 to 15 cm soil loose and friable enabling
easy root penetration and water percolation.
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Lime application
The cardamom soils are generally acidic in nature. However, soil test
results indicate that in major areas of cardamom cultivation, the pH of the
soils decreased to levels that need immediate corrections over a period of
last 15 years. Application of lime/dolomite is essential if pH of the soil is
<5.5. Though the quantity of lime is to be arrived at by assessing the lime
requirement of the soil, for practical purpose, application of agricultural lime
is recommended @ one kg per plant per year for soils with pH below 5.0.
Lime is to be applied in one or two splits during May and September. Fertilizer
shall be applied only after 15-20 days of lime application.
Manures and fertiilser application
Cardamom responds to both manuring and fertilizer application. A soil
test based judicious manuring schedule is to be arrived at to achieve optimum
production on sustainable basis. Soil sampling procedure is given in
Annexure I. Long term manuring studies that is being carried out at ICRI,
Myladumpara indicate that an integrated nutrient application is beneficial
for sustainable production in cardamom.
Application of Organic Manures
Application of mature farmyard manure/ Compost @ 5-10Kg per plant
may be made during May/June along with rock phosphate (180 grams per
plant) and muriate of potash (90 grams/plant). The manures should be
thoroughly mixed with surface soil after application. Under irrigated condition,
manuring can be done in two splits, one in May and the subsequent
application during September. Organic manures such as neemcake (one
kg per plant), bone meal (one kg per plant) or vermicompost (one kg per
plant) have beneficial effect on root proliferation and plant growth and also
helps to reduce nematode and root grub infestation.
Schedule for the use of NPK fertilizers.
a) Soil application
Age of plants Rainfed areas Irrigated areas
(Kg/ha) (Kg/ha)
First year of planting Nitrogen -25 Nitrogen -25
Phosphorus -25 Phosphorus -25
Potassium -50 Potassium -50
(2 split application) (2 split application)
Second year of planting Nitrogen -40 Nitrogen -60
(Non-stabilized yield) Phosphorus -40 Phosphorus -60
Potassium -80 Potassium -80
(2 split application) (3split application)
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Zinc (Zinc sulphate) shall be applied as foliar spray @ 250 g /100 litres
twice a year.
Under high production technology, where crop is harvested from 18
months onwards, fertilizer recommendation for full-grown plantation could
be adopted from the second year onwards. Fertilisers would be applied in
smaller doses in four or more splits after every harvest or combining both
soil and foliar application of fertilsers. Whenever, the plant growth is affected
due to root damage (root grub/fusarium disease/soil compactness), foliar
application of DAP (two per cent) + MOP (two per cent ) could be adopted.
Restrain fertilizer application on disease infected plants.
Time and Method of application.
i) Time of application: Soil application - May/June
September/October
December/January
Foliar application - August/September
October/November
December/January
ii) Method of application:
Soil application
After removing the mulches around the plant base, the fertilizers may
be applied in a circular band of width 15 cm, leaving 30 cm from the plant
base and thoroughly mixed with the top five to seven cm of the surface soil
with hand fork. The fertilizer-applied area may be covered again with mulches.
Foliar application
The spray solution, containing the fertilizer in the prescribed proportions,
may be applied to the foliage of the plant covering both sides of the leaves.
The plant should have sufficient turgidity at the time of foliar application lest
it would wilt. A clear sky or even a cloudy condition may be considered
suitable for undertaking foliar application. Avoid very dry/hot periods or noon
hours for foliar spraying.
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Use of Micronutrients
Micronutrient survey conducted by ICRI showed that zinc deficiency is
widespread in cardamom soils and Boron deficiency is observed in certain
areas. Application of Zinc to the foliage is found to enhance not only
cardamom growth and yield but also the quality of the produce. Hence, it is
recommended that Zinc may be applied as a foliar spray as Zinc Sulphate
@ 250 grams/100 liters of water during April/May and Sept./Oct. Zinc should
be applied ALONE and NOT to be mixed with any insecticide/fungicide/
fertilizer since zinc may precipitate and become unavailable to the plants.
Soil application of boron in the commercial grade borax at the rate of
7.5 kg/ha is recommended in boron deficient areas. It may be applied in two
doses along with NPK fertilizers.
INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT IN SMALL CARDAMOM
Small cardamom is infested by several insects, mite and nematodes.
Among the insect pests thrips, capsule/panicle/shoot borer, root grubs and
root knot nematode are the major pests. Minor pests are white fly, shoot fly,
scale insects, early capsule borer (only in Karnataka), hairy caterpillar,
lacewing bug, red spider mites, etc. Minor pests like white fly, shoot fly,
scale insects and red spider mites may become major pests under wrong
use of chemical pesticides. With integrated pest management (IPM) all the
major and minor pests on foliage can be managed effectively (Table.1-3).
An exclusive IPM is given for managing soil pests like root knot nematodes
and root grubs (Table 4). Maintaining optimum shade (50 per cent) in
cardamom plantation reduces /minimizes major and minor pests in
cardamom.
Major pests
Cardamom thrips [Sciothrips cardamomi (Ramk.)]
Thrips is the most destructive and persistent pest of cardamom and
found in all cardamom growing area. It colonise and breed in different parts
of the plant such as unopened leaves, leaf sheaths, flower bracts and flower
tubes. Adults and nymphs of the insect cause damage to panicle and
capsules. Thrips lacerate the surface tissues with mandibles and suck the
exuding plant sap. Injury to panicles result in its stunted growth, and the
injury on tender capsules develop as scabby growth on capsules. Affected
capsules appear malformed, shriveled and sometime with gaping slits. Such
capsules have less number of seeds, seeds are underdeveloped and inferior
in aroma. Affected capsules fetch a very low price in the market. Thrips
infestation results in nearly 45-48 per cent crop loss.
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Adult insect is greyish brown, 1.25 to 1.5 mm long and with two pairs of
fringed wings; females lay minute eggs below epidermis which hatch out
into nymphs in 8-12 days. Nymphs grow by feeding on plant sap; after passing
through three larval (nymph) and a non-feeding pupal stage they become
adults, thus completing the life cycle in 27 to 33 days. Population of the pest
is maximum in summer (February-May), minimum in rainy periods (June-
July) and low in August-December.
The moths feed on nectar and do not cause direct damage to cardamom.
A female moth lays about 20-35 eggs singly or in groups of two or three on
leaf margin, leaf axils, panicles and racemes.
Eggs hatch within five-six days. Emerging larvae bore into tender
panicles or unopened leaf spindle or immature capsules. When panicle and
racemes are attacked, portion ahead of the site of entry dries off. In case of
the capsules, the larvae feed on the seed and the capsules become empty.
At a later stage the larvae bore into the shoots. They feed the central core of
the pseudostem resulting in decaying of the central spindle and the
characteristic dead heart symptom develops. A fully grown larva is 30-35
mm long with pale purple body and black head. After a prepupal period of
two-four days, it becomes a brown pupa. Adult emerges in about 11-15
days from pupa through the bore hole. The life cycle is completed within 41-
68 days during summer and prolongs upto 123 days in post monsoon period.
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(Biological insecticide) solution through the bore hole is also a method for
controlling larvae in pseudostems.
Adult of the pest is a small beetle four ñsix mm length shiny metallic
blue, green or greenish brown colour. Females are bigger than males. They
are seen on cardamom leaves during morning and evening hours but do
not feed on cardamom. The beetles feed on leaves of jack (Artocarpus
heterophylla, mango (Mangifera indica), guava (Psidium guajava), dadeps
(Erthrypina lithosperma), etc.
Grubs (larvae) feed on roots, become mature in 45-60 days; they are
short and stout, íCí shaped. Pupation takes place in an earthen cocoon.
The pest completes life cycle in 65-102 days during first generation (March-
August) and 73-111 days during second generation (September-February).
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Chemical control:
Insecticide sprayed for thrips / shoot
borer can also reduce grubs by direct
killing of adults as well as deterring the
beetles from egg laying.
Biological control:Spray of fungus
suspension (Beauveria bassiana @
108 spores/ml) on adult beetle.
Early stage GrubApril/May &
September/October Chemical control:Chlorpyriphos
20 EC 0.04 per cent a.i. (200 ml in 100
liters of water; two-five liters drenching
at plant base).Phorate 10G 20-40
grams per clump (to be applied within
four-six inches around the clump).
Biological control:Soil application of
Metarhizium anisopliae (@ 108 spores
/gm) 25gms/plant mixed with
compost.Local strain of EPN
(Heterorhabditis indica) application @
1,00,000 nematodes (ijs) / plant.
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Egg, larva and adult are the different stages in the life cycle of the pest.
Second stage larvae infect rootlets and induce formation of giant cells called
galls. Larvae moult thrice and form adults. Female secretes a gelatinous
matrix into which eggs are extruded.
Frequent change of nursery beds will help to reduce nematode infection
in nurseries. In case of infection in nurseries, application of carbofuran @
80 grams per six square meter bed will control the pest. In plantation,
carbofuran @ 60-80 grams per plant or 20-40 grams of phorate with 300-
500 grams of neem oil cake per plant in May-June and /or September bring
down nematode infestation. Increasing the root biomass with application of
compost/ vermicompost result in sustained management of the pest.
Deficiency of micronutrient, zinc in the soil may also show symptoms of
nematode infestation viz, narrowing of leaves. Foliar spray of zinc sulphate
at 500ppm (250grams /100 liters water) corrects the zinc deficiency and
reduces nematode infestation.
Minor pests
Cardamom whitefly [Singhiella cardamomi]
Whitefly is considered a minor pest, but severe infestation is noticed in
plantations where Synthetic Pyrethroids is used consistently or higher than
the recommended concentration of insecticides are used or when more
frequent insecticide spray than the recommended level or when mixing of
two or more insecticides are done or when spraying with one or two
insecticides of the same brand throughout the year.
The adult fly is a small soft bodied insect about two mm long with two
pairs of white wings. Female lays eggs on the lower surface of leaves; eggs
are cylindrical, pale yellow when freshly laid and gradually turn brown. There
are four nymphal stages. The first instar larva crawls on the leaf and finds
out a feeding site in the lower surface of leaves and all the later stages are
completed at that spot. The nymphs are elliptical and pale green to yellow.
The nymph and adult suck sap from leaves and the leaf becomes yellow
and subsequently dry leading to drastic reduction in yield. The nymphs and
adult excrete sticky honey dew which drops on to lower leaves., black sooty
mould develops on these, which interrupts photosynthesis of the leaves.
Puparia, which adhere to the leaves after emergence of adults, appear as
scaly patches on lower surface of affected leaves. The life cycle is completed
within two-three week.
The flies are attracted towards yellow colour. Yellow plastic sheets
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coated with castor oil or grease will serve as sticky traps. By placing such
yellow sticky traps (YST) between rows of cardamom plants, population of
adults can be monitored as well as controlled. Nymphs can be effectively
controlled by spraying a mixture of neem oil (500ml) and Triton (500 ml)/
soap solution in 100 liters of water on the lower surface of leaves.
Hairy caterpillars
They are a group of defoliator caterpillars on of cardamom and are
polyphagous. Eight species of hairy caterpillars have been found to damage
cardamom plants. Among them Eupterote undata, E. fabia, E. cardamomi,
E. canairica, E. mollis and E. blanda are more destructive. They occur
sporadically, feeding shade tree leaves at early stages and cardamom leaves
at later stage. Moths emerge in June-July and lay about 300-400 eggs on
the under surface of leaves of shade trees. Eggs hatch in 15-25 days. Larval
stages extend up to three months. When the north eastern monsoon ceases,
caterpillars drop down to cardamom and start feeding on its leaves. Larvae
make cocoons within which they pupate.
Larvae can be collected and destroyed. Since they congregate on tree
trunks during day time, mechanical control becomes easy.
Shoot fly [Formosina flavipes]
The adult fly lays cigar-shaped white eggs in between leaf sheath and
pseudostem on the top whorl. Emerging maggots (larvae) enter the
pseudostem reach down the base by feeding the core tissue resulting in
drying of the terminal leaf (Dead Heart Symptom). Infestation is more on
plants in open area; the pest activity starts during November and is at its
peak in March-April. The spray given for the major pests like thrips and
borer also keeps down shoot fly infestation.
Lace wing bug [Stephanitis typicus]
It is a polyphagous pest and seen as a group. Nymphs and adults are
found on lower surface of leaves. They suck the cell sap from leaves, resulting
in greyish yellow spots on leaves. Adult is a small dull coloured bug with
transparent lace wings. Damage is very severe in summer months in certain
isolated pockets in open areas.
Red spider mites (Tetranychus sp.)
Red spider mite is a minor pest and occurs on cardamom in small
numbers during summer months without causing serious damage. The mite
becomes serious pest only in plantation where insecticide spray is too
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5. Honeybee hives having infected larvae may be removed from the hive.
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Leaves turn pale and their tips become yellow. Gradually, these
symptoms spread over the entire leaf extending to leaf sheath resulting in
wilting of seedlings. The collar portion decays and the entire seedlings die.
Infection spreads in the nursery beds resulting in death of seedlings in small
patches. In grown up seedlings, rotting extends form the collar region to the
rhizomes resulting in their decay and ultimate death of the plant. The disease
is caused by soil borne fungi such as Pythium vexans and Rhizoctonia
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d) Drench the nursery beds with Copper oxychloride (COC) (0.2%) at the
rate three to five liters per square mater.
Two to three rounds of COC may be drenched at 15 days interval.
DISEASE MANAGEMENT IN PLANTATION
ëKatteí (Mosaic) Disease
The disease is prevalent in all cardamom growing areas in India. It is
one of the major diseases of cardamom.
ëKatteí disease affects plants of all ages. The first visible symptoms
appear on the youngest leaf of affected tillers as spindle shaped chlorotic
flecks. Later, these flecks develop into slender discontinuous strips of pale
green and dark green margin. As the disease advances, subsequent leaves
show characteristic mosaic symptoms. The leaf sheaths and pseudostems
also show mosaic pattern. Mature leaves formed before infection does not
develop symptoms. The infection is systemic in nature and gradually spreads
to all tillers of affected plant. Immediately after infection, there is no growth
reduction but within one to two years after infection, there is a gradual
reduction in clump size. In advanced stages, the affected plants produce
shorter and slender tillers with a few shorter panicles. ëKatteí affected plants
do not die but the plants give very poor yield. The yield reduction has been
found to be 70 per cent within three years after infection.
The disease is systemic and it is caused by cardamom mosaic virus.
Viral particles are present in all parts of affected plants excepts in mature
seeds. The disease is not transmitted through seeds or by mechanical means
either by contact or through cutting tools. The disease is transmitted by the
common banana aphid Pentalonai nigronervosa Coq. Even a single aphid
can pick up and transmit the virus within a few minutes without incubation
period in the vector. All stages of the vector viz., the nymphs, winged and
non-winged forms of adults can transmit the disease.
Initial inoculums enter a non-diseased plantation through infected
planting material. Once the disease enters a plantation the spread is internal
through the vector. Disease incubation period (time required for symptom
expression) in the plant varies from 35 to 120 days is different months.
Usually during summer, delayed appearance of symptoms is noticed. ëVector
population is high from December to May.
Management of ëKatteí disease
As long as katte inoculum is present in the field, any formulation of
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Leaf blight
Leaf blight or drying of leaves in patches is observed during October to
February months. In areas covered by severe fog the severity is more. Brown
dry areas of varying sizes develop on the lamina. It is caused by Phytophthora
meadii . It can be controlled by one or two rounds of spraying with one per
cent Bordeaux mixture or 0.2 per cent Aliette or 0.5 per cent Akomin
(Potassium Phosphonate).
Pseudostem rot
This disease is generally seen during the post- monsoon period and
may last up to summer months. Round to oval shaped brown lesions develop
on the pseudostem. These later elongate and as infection proceeds deeper
layer of the pseudostem gets discoloured. The Pseudostem breaks at this
point. The disease is caused by Fusarium oxysporum. Spraying with 0.2
per cent Bavastin 0.2 per cent or Hexaconazole 0.2 per cent will control the
disease.
Root tip root
This disease also occurs during post monsoon period. The severity is
more during summer. The symptoms are development of rotting of the root
tips followed by die back of roots. The lower leaves of affected tillers become
yellowish and gradually dry off. Fusarium oxysporum is the causal agent.
Spraying and soil drenching with 0.2 per cent Bavistin or Contaf 0.2 per
cent (drenching only) are the recommended control measures and the
applications may be repeated at 15 ñ 20 days intervals.
Panicle wilt
Drying symptoms appear on panicle tips, leading to die back of the
panicles. The disease is more prevalent during post monsoon period. It is
caused by Fusarium sp. The suggested control measure is spraying with
0.2 per cent Bavistin.
Application of consortium of bioagents (Trichoderma and Psuedomonas
in a mixture) as spray and drenching before disease appearance is feasible
in reducing disease incidence and spread.
HARVESTING AND POST HARVESTING
Good quality of the produce can be achieved through timely harvest
and adoption of scientific post harvest operations. The flowering in cardamom
starts after one or two years after planting depending upon the type of planting
materials employed in planting. Flowering in cardamom continues normally
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for a protracted period of six to eight months. It takes 120 ñ 135 days to
form a ripened capsule under favourable environmental conditions. Lack of
synchronised flowering necessasitates several rounds of harvest at an
interval of 25 to 30 days. By and large, harvesting starts from June ñ July
and continues till January ñ February in Kerala and Tamilnadu whereas in
Karnataka it commences in August and continues till December ñ January.
It is a laborious process in cardamom and accounts for nearly 60 per cent of
cost of production
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turning of capsules under sun drying. Black coloured blanket kept on the
capsules spread under the sun will augment the drying process and also
provides green colour to the cured produce.
Cleaning, Grading, Packing and Storage
Dried capsules have to be polished either manually or with the help of
machines before marketing. Polishing is done by rubbing the dried capsule
in hot state against the hard surface. Polishing machine are also available
which can be operated either manually, or with electric motor. Motorized
machines like Carpol can be used for polishing as well as grading of capsules
having desired mesh. Agmark grades and Indian specifications or standards
are on the basis of important quality factors like colour, weight per volume
(liter), size and percentage of empties, malformed, shrivelled and immature
capsules. After grading, cardamom capsules can be stored over long
duration. For efficient retention of green colour during storage, cardamom
should be dried down to a moisture level of 10-12 per cent. Use to 300
gauge black polythene lined gunny bags improves the storage efficiency.
Store the commodity in wooden boxes at room temperature preferably kept
in the curing house for better storage effectively.
Annexure I
SOIL TEST
Spices Board has set up soil testing laboratories for testing cardamom
growing soils and giving fertilizer recommendation. At present, the soil testing
laboratories are functioning at the Indian Cardamom Research Institute,
Myladumpara, Kerala and at the Regional Research Station, Saklespur,
Karnataka.
Why to test the soil?: Soil testing provides precise information about the
fertility of the soil for making fertilizer recommendation. Needed quantities
of fertilizers of the right kind can be applied at the minimum cost. Balanced
application of nutrients will ensure a better economic return to the grower.
How to collect a soil sample: Only 5 to 10 grams soil is used for each soil
test. So care has to be taken to collect representative soil samples.
Otherwise, precision in analysis and interpretation will have no value. While
collecting the samples, the following points have been taken note of:
1) Sample should be collected form a field once in three to four years
preferably during FebruaryñApril.
2) Total area should be divided into different slopes such as gentle,
medium, steep and swampy area. Each category should be again
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divided into approximately plots of five acres and if there are certain
pockets where plants are very poor in growth, those pockets should be
sampled separately.
3) Soil samples should be taken from root zone in the row, leaving 30cm
from plant base.
4) The selected site should be cleaned from weeds, dry leaves and other
mulch materials.
5) With the help of spade (mammatty) soil can be cut in an angle from
both sides, which will from a V shape pit at a depth of 15cm, and the
cut soil should be removed.
6) With the help of a knife, soil should be scraped from both the sides of
V shaped pit in a thin layer along the cutting in full depth. Auger can
also be used for soil sample collection.
7) From each five-acre plot around 10 samples may be collected diagonally
and all these samples should be gathered into one in a big polythene
sheet. Then mix it well, remove plant materials and spread the soil in a
square shape in thin layer. Then make four quarters by drawing diagonal
lines and discard any opposite two quarters and again mix the remaining
two quarters. Do the same processes until your sample become 500
grams.
8) The soil should be packed in polythene or cloth bag after shade drying
for one to two days and tied properly. Planterís name and address and
field number may be given in a small piece of paper and kept inside the
bag. For each five acres of land one sample should be send to the
Research Station of Spices Board as soon as the soil is collected.
Information proforma available with field offices of the Spices Board
should be filled in and sent along with the samples collected.
Precautions
O Avoid contamination by keeping soil samples away from stored fertilizer.
O Avoid areas recently fertilized, old trenches, marshy spots, near trees,
compost pits or other non-representative locations.
O Avoid taking samples between rows.
39
Cultivation Practices for Cardamom <<<
Annexure II
Preparation of Bordeaux mixture
Dissolve 1 kg of copper sulphate in 10 liters of water.
In another vessel, slake one kg of quicklime by adding small quantity
of water preferably warm water. (One to 1.25 kg of lime can be taken if the
lime is not of good quality) when slaking is over, add five liters of water and
stir well to get a uniform suspension of lime. Transfer the limes suspension
thus prepared through a sieve to quantity of lime solution kept separately.
Add 10 liters of the copper sulphate solution to the 90 liters of lime
solution with constant stirring. To test the correctness of the mixture, dip a
brightened iron knife for a minute in the mixture. If the knife remains bright,
the mixture is correctly prepared. If the knife turns rusty brown or if its
brightness is lost, add more lime suspension, correctly prepared Bordeaux
mixture will turn red litmus to blue and turmeric powder to orange red in
colour.
Precautions
2. For dissolving copper sulphate or Bordeaux mixture, use copper,
wooden or earthenware or plastic pots or drums.
3. Use fresh quicklime,
4. Bordeaux mixture should be passed through a sieve before transferring
to the sprayers.
5. Spraying of Bordeaux mixture should be done on the same day of
preparation.
40
PESTS OF CARDAMOM
Healthy roots