Horticulture: Fruit, Vegetable, Floriculture and Orchard Management
What this domain covers
This domain tests horticultural crop groups, propagation methods, orchard layout and management, and the commercial potential of fruits and flowers in Assam.
Core rules and concepts
- Fruits: banana, papaya, pineapple, Khasi mandarin, Assam lemon, guava, mango, litchi, jackfruit. Vegetables: brinjal, tomato, okra, cabbage, cucurbits, chilli. Flowers: marigold, chrysanthemum, gladiolus, rose, tuberose and orchids; Kopou phul (Rhynchostylis retusa) is Assam's state flower.
- Propagation: seed (papaya, vegetable crops) and vegetative methods such as cutting, layering, grafting, budding, suckers (banana, pineapple) and tissue culture.
- Orchard management: site and soil selection, layout and planting density, pit filling with FYM, training and pruning, manuring, irrigation, mulching, intercropping, plant protection and post-harvest handling.
- A kitchen garden supplies balanced nutrition for the family from a small area.
Worked example
Khasi mandarin is to be planted at 5 m x 5 m. Area per plant = 25 m2, so plants for one hectare = 10,000 / 25 = 400. If about 10 per cent of the area is reserved for paths, windbreaks and a water tank, the plantable area is 9,000 m2 and the number of plants is 9,000 / 25 = 360. Always subtract non-planted area before quoting the final number.
Traps that cost marks
- Confusing grafting (scion attached to a rooted stock) with budding (a single bud inserted under the bark).
- Suggesting seed propagation for banana, which is propagated by suckers.
- Confusing training (shaping the plant frame) with pruning (removing unwanted growth).
- Over-irrigating citrus, which favours root rot and spreads canker.