Have you been wondering why your pomegranate trees produce flowers profusely, yet fail to give luscious and marketable fruits you desire?
If you are looking for a solution to this persistent problem, then you are in the right place. We have the ultimate solution to vanish your worries – Bahar Treatment. Don’t stop here. Read further to know why, when and how to perform this cultural practice (Bahar treatment) to transform your pomegranate orchard with abundant and flavourful fruits.
Bahar treatment is a horticultural practice which involves controlling vegetative growth by pruning and inducing flowering at specific desired season to improve yield and fruit quality.
Pomegranate trees have the ability to flower throughout the year as long as they receive sufficient moisture in the soil. However, allowing continuous flowering leads to irregular fruiting with smaller size, making it commercially unfeasible with low yields. Therefore, pomegranate trees are subjected to Bahar treatment to regulate their flowering and fruiting patterns.
In tropical conditions, pomegranate cultivation experiences three distinct flowering seasons: ambia bahar, mrig bahar and hasta bahar. The choice of flowering season is determined based on factors such as irrigation water availability or rainfall, market demand and incidence of pests and diseases in the specific area.
It is physiology of the plant system in perennial crops that stress promotes flowering, so in case of pomegranate the science of forcing plants for moisture stress is considered.
Step – 1: Stop giving irrigation at least 30-35 days prior to bahar treatment in case of light sandy soil and 40-45 days or even 2 months in case of sandy loam soil.
Step – 2: Prune the trees for proper canopy (40 – 45 days after stopping irrigation).
Step – 3: Within 2 days after pruning, spray Ethrel 2.5 ml/lit + DAP 5 gm/lit of water on the pruned trees for defoliation, and just after defoliation (80 – 85% leaf fall), light pruning (15-25 cm) is done.
Step – 4: Within 2-3 days after pruning, apply the required amount of nutrients* to the soil. The nutrients suggested below is for 2 – 5 year crop and subsequently the quantity of the nutrients or fertilizers have to be increased based on the crop age and plant size.
Nutrient | Manure/Fertilizer | Dosage (per plant) |
Organic | FYM | 20 kg |
N | Ammonium Sulphate | 2 kg |
P | Single Super Phosphate (SSP) | 1.6 kg |
K | Muriate of Potash (MOP) | 1.3 kg |
Zn | Chelated liquid zinc | 3 – 5 ml/lit of water |
Mg | Magnesium Sulphate (0.2%) | 2 gm/lit of water |
B | Boron 20% | 1 gm/lit of water |
Step – 5: After applying the above nutrients and cover them with soil i.e., earthing up and then give light irrigation. The quantity of water to the plants in first irrigation after applying manures and fertilizers may be little more (8 – 12 liters/plant based on plant age and size) but for next two consecutive days the quantity of water must be half of quantity provided in the first one.
If the above steps are followed timely and without fail, it will result in profuse flowering and better fruit set. Initially more male flowers appear and subsequently, hermaphrodite flowers appear and produce fruits. Regular plant protection (Pest & Disease) measures should be followed throughout the cropping season.
(NOTE: Bahar treatment should be done to the crop age of more than 18 months and based on plant growth.)
Ginger (Zingiber officinalis) one of the oldest known spices, is esteemed for its aroma and pungency. It originated in South –…
Soybean also known as Golden Bean or Miracle Crop due to their high protein and oil content. Soybean is a…
Ensuring food security for our nation is a top priority, and it all starts with proper storage of food grains.…
Strengthening women's empowerment and leadership in agri-food systems is now recognized as a vital imperative to enhance agricultural productivity, bolster…
The Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) scheme, launched in the fiscal year 2015-16, falls under the purview of the Ministry…
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has taken a significant step…