The delay in flowering of mango trees in Konkan area due to cyclone Ockhi may hit production of mango this summer. According to agricultural scientists, delayed availability of mango in market will also in turn hit the price of the fruit as compared to previous years.
According to the scientists, cyclone Ockhi , which came in early December, damaged the flowering seeds of mango trees.Hence, delayed second flowering, especially in Konkan region, has impacted the fruit initiation to some extent. When contacted Vikas Patil, the joint director of agriculture (JDA) said,"Because of adverse climatic conditions, this year, we have seen delayed flowering in mango trees which will lead to late entry of fruit in the market. This is expected to impact the prices of the fruit in the market. We have advised farmers to spray potassium nitrate on their orchards to increase the size of the fruit and to avoid premature dropping of the fruit."
Sharad Paranjape, president of Kelashi Mango Grower Association, Ratnagiri, said,"Regular flowering of mango trees generally begins between September and October and that stage was adversely affected by the unseasonal rain and cyclone. Now, we have to depend on the second flowering session of mango trees, which started later. Hence, we are expecting mangoes to hit the market by mid April and the agricultural department has taken care to ensure this."
Chandrakant Rajapurkar, who owns a mango tree plantation with over 1,000 trees in Ratnagiri, said, "The day and night temperature variation led to an increase in the fruit dropping prematurely from the tree. Recurrent flowering often leads to the late entry of mangos in the market. This year, mangoes will enter the market only by April. We had experienced an alternate bearing season last year and therefore, this year, we are expecting some good returns though the crop availability was affected due to adverse climatic conditions.”
{{/usCountry}}Chandrakant Rajapurkar, who owns a mango tree plantation with over 1,000 trees in Ratnagiri, said, "The day and night temperature variation led to an increase in the fruit dropping prematurely from the tree. Recurrent flowering often leads to the late entry of mangos in the market. This year, mangoes will enter the market only by April. We had experienced an alternate bearing season last year and therefore, this year, we are expecting some good returns though the crop availability was affected due to adverse climatic conditions.”
{{/usCountry}}According to the agricultural department, in Konkan region, the department is expecting an average yield of two ton mango per hectare.