By Eniola Abdulroqeeb Arówólò.
Mango farming business is very lucrative. It is regarded to be one of the leading crop farming.
Mangoes have a good flavor and delicious taste and a high level of vitamin A and vitamin C.
Guidelines:
SITE SELECTION/LAND PREPARATION
Cut down trees, shrubs/grasses and clear the land for planting. Mango can grow in a wide range of soil and weather conditions. For better yield and optimum growth, it is ideal to plant them on a sandy loam soil. But they can also grow very well on a clay soil though very difficult from the start but once established will fruit abundantly.
The soil should be well loosened and deep in other to allow easy root penetration. Mark and stake the places to dig holes.
PLANTING/PROPAGATION
Mango fruits can be propagated either through seed or grafting. The trees grown from seeds produce fruits with stingy pulp and mild taste of turpentine. Spacing is 10m by 10m for the traditional while grafted seedlings is 4m by 2m.
The hole should be dug 60cm by 60cm. You start by filling the already dug hole with topsoil that is mixed with manure in the ratio of 1:1. Then use water for the mixture.
Mango should be cultivated when the rains are just starting. Transplant the seedlings to the main field when they are between 3-6 months old.
PRUNING
You can prune mango tree by cutting out the leading tree when it is about 90cm high. It will help in increasing the production of side branches. After the production of the branches you prune the branches to low hanging.
In order to open up the tree you have to remove dead branches and those that won’t bear fruits. Prune frequently to keep them short especially after every harvest.
You have to remove dead branches and those that won’t bear fruits. Prune frequently to keep them short especially after every harvest.
IRRIGATION
The proper irrigation for Mango seedlings should be when there is shortage of rain or drought. Water them in dry season so the tree can grow well and be fully established.
PEST/DISEASES IN MANGO FARMING
In mango farming, pests are not really a problem. Common pests are cococous spp. that affect the plant leaves and fruits. It can be controlled by applying Rogor 40EC at 15mls per 10 litres of water.
WEED CONTROL
Weed should be removed from the farm very quickly as they are bad competitors. A delay in weeding will make the seedlings grow well. Weeding should be 3 times a year but at maturity 2 times will be fine.
HARVEST/YIELD
Grafted mango seedlings take 3 years to fruit and mature while seed propagation takes about 8 years. They more the grow the more mango trees produce more fruits.
A tree of 20 years will produce 300-600 fruit in a year. Mango trees are cross pollinated, they bring out so many flowers that are heavily shredded with only 0.1% staying to maturity. Traditional mango yield 2-3 tonnes/ha in a year while hybrid yields 10% higher.
For a commercial mango farming you don’t have to wait for the fruit to become completely ripe to soften before harvesting. Harvest them when they are still greenish by plucking the fruits from the tree manually. Preserve the mangoes in shelves in a cool ventilated place. Mango can only be preserved for a week in a low temperature.
