Late flowering may hamper mango production
BINDIYA CHARI
PANJIM, FEB 9
Last season the mango production suffered in a big way due to vagaries of weather and indications are that this year too, probably, mango production will not be anything better due to late flowering.
Last season saw drastic decline in both mango as well as cashew yield. In 2008-09 Goa produced only 8000 metric tonnes of mangoes as against 18894 metric tonnes in 2007-08.
Normally, mango trees start flowering in the months of December and January and sometimes little early – in the month of November. But due to change in climatic conditions, flowering has been delayed this year, confirmed Agriculture Department.
Delayed flowering means fruiting will be behind schedule with a possibility that fruits will be ready for harvesting during the onset of monsoon.
What is worse is that some trees are yet to undergo the phase of flowering.
“There has been only 60 per cent flowering so far when by now it should have been 100 per cent. However, things will be clear in the next twenty days”, said S S P Tendulkar, Director of Agriculture speaking to Herald on Monday.
ECONOMICS: Under normal conditions, mangoes start arriving in the market by March but it is during subsequent two months (April-May) that common man can afford to buy mangoes as prices drop and mango yield is at its peak.
Farmers stand to lose their crop if it is not ready in time and harvested by mid-May. They can hope to save their crops only if the arrival of monsoon is delayed for some reason.
CASHEW FARMERS: Cashew farmers are also doubtful of earning a good yield, this season, again due to late flowering of cashew trees. Flowering has been incomplete but here, the situation is little better there’s around 85 per cent flowering in the State, according to the Agriculture Department.
Last season, the cashew production dropped to 13000 metric tonnes as against 21942 metric tonnes in the preceding year.