NURSERY MANAGEMENT OF HORTICULTURAL CROPS

The humid tropical climatic conditions of Andaman & Nicobar Islands

facilitate cultivation of wide range of tropical horticultural crops. Since
many years these crops dominated the agricultural sector are presently
considered as key components for crop diversification. But their
importance has increased in recent years due to increased demand of
quality foods and their economic potential and suitability to the re-gion.
The erratic rainfall pattern and excessive humidity cre-ated problems for
efficient utilization of immense potential of horticultural crops in
Islands. In era of commercial and high value agriculture, horticultural
crops are front runners for bet-terment of small and marginal farmers in
the Islands. Thereore, utilization of new scientific innovation and
interventionin horticultural sector is become imperative for
sustainableagricultural development of these fragile Islands.

Nursery is a place where plants are cultivated and grown to usable size.
The nursery management gained a status of commercial venture where
retailer nurseries sell planting materials to the general public, wholesale
nurseries which sell only to other nurseries and to commercial landscape
gardeners, and private nurseries which supply the needs of institutions or
Since most of the horticultural crops are propagated by the nurseries,
the document covers all the related aspects to nursery for production of
quality planting materials.

1
Tool and equipments:

Conventional nursery :
Spade, khurpi, watering cane, fork, hoe, garden line,
roller, basket, sirki, polythyne sheet, sprayer, alkathene sheet,
nose-cane, duster, sticks, tags etc.
Plug trays, perforated plastic trays, strip peat pots, nurs-
ery stand, sprinklers, protected structures, water pumping
motor, media mixture, rakers, temperature control devices,
humidity control devices, exhausters, media pressure, seed

Location and Layout of Nursery

For selecting an area for establishing nursery it is worth-
while to consider the following points:Nursery should be raised in such
place where no water stagnation is experienced, and have good drainage
system.Land for nursery should be well drained and located at on a high
level.The soil for nursery should be sandy loam and normal in PH
(around 6.5-7.0).The plot for nursery should be selected near to a water
source.Nursery plots should be chosen near the farm building, so that
frequent supervision can be made easily.
Nursery plots should be away from the shady
Nursery plots should be selected at one side of the
field to isolate the other fields for doing cultural practices easily.
Site should be safe from stray animals and exces-

sive diseases and pest attacks.

Raising nursery from seeds and other planting materi-

als is easy and convenient way for ensuring better germina-
tion and root development. The planting material of horticul-
tural crops is multiplied under nursery conditions with proper
care and management for raising healthy, vigorous and dis-
ease free seedlings.

In general, vegetable crops are divided into three groups

based on their relative ease for transplanting. Crops like Beet
root, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, tomato
and lettuce are efficient in water absorption and rapidly from
new roots after transplanting.

Vegetable crops that are moderately easy for transplant-

ing are brinjal, onion, sweet pepper, chilli and celery which do
not absorb water as efficiently as crops that are easy to trans-
plant but they form new roots relatively quickly. The vegetable
crops which are difficult to transplant are cucurbits, sweet corn
which requires special care during nursery raising and trans-
planting.

Most of fruits and tree spices are slow growing and

multiplied in nursery for better seed germination and plant
survival. It becomes convenient to utilize various budding and
grafting tools under nursery conditions. Therefore, most of fruit

crops are multiplied and propagated under nursery conditions.

Besides, the shrubs and herbs of ornamental nature are multi-

plied under nursery conditions for their faster growth and

Necessity of Nursery:

Seedlings not only reduces the crop span but also in-
creases the uniformity of the crop and thus, harvesting as com-

pared to direct sown crops. Transplanting of seedlings also

eliminates the need for thinning and provides good opportu-

nities for virus free vigorous and off-season nursery, if grown

under protected conditions.

It is easy and convenient to manage seedlings un-

der small area.

Effective and timely plant protection measures are

possible with minimal efforts.

Nursery provide favourable climate to emerging

plants for their better growth and development.

The effective utilization of unfavourable period by

preparing nursery under protected conditions.
Effective input utilization for crop production by
reducing initial stage crop infestations and inter-
ferences.

Seed cost of some crops like hybrid vegetables, or-

namental plants, spices and some fruits can be
economized through nursery.

Nursery production help in maintaining effective

plant stand in shortest possible time through gap
fillings.

Requisitions of Nursery Management

Site for nursery should be selected at such places

where abundant sunshine and proper ventilation

Nursery site should be on higher location so that

water stagnation is avoidable.

In humid and rain prone areas nursery place should

be well protected from heavy rains through pro-

tected structures.

The site should be nearer to irrigation facilities and

easily accessible.

It should be protected from stray animals, snails,

Soil should be sandy loam or loamy with PH range

of 6 to 7 and rich in organic matter and free from

pathogenic inoculums.
After sowing the seed in nursery, cover the seeds

with mixture of well rotten compost + friable soil +

sand (2:1:1) and mulch with paddy straw /dried

leaves. Mulch is removed as and when seeds just

emerge above ground.

Nursery bed preparation is an important step in crop

management because it largely affects crop stand and its per-

formance at field level. Therefore, soil should be worked to a

fine tilth by repeated ploughing and spading. Dead plant parts

which are seem to be dwellers of pathogens and pests should

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be collected, removed and burnt. Well decomposed organic

manure @ 40-50 kg/10sqm, should be mixed thoroughly in

Soil treatment is an essential step in a successful nurs-

ery management because it the base for seedlings stand, source

of nutrition and pathogens. In humid Islands damping-off

caused by soil borne fungi like Pythium, Rhizoctonia,

Phytophthora etc, is a common disease in the nursery beds.

Besides, pests like snails, cutworms and termite and mites are

also damages young seedlings.

There are various measures for soil treatment like soil

solarization, chemical treatment, biocontrol treatment etc. Soil

solarization can be done with transparent polythene of 25-100

mm thickness during the hot and dry periods. For this soil

should be moist before mulching because it increases latent

heat and thermal sensitivity for resting of soil borne patho-

gens, harmful pests and weeds which can be reduced to a sus-

tainable level. Chemical treatment of nursery beds can be done

by Formalin solution (1:100:: Farmaline: water) @ 5 lt/sqm. The

treated area should be covered with polythene sheets for 7-8

days and after that it should be remained open for next 7-10
days for facilitation of formalin emission. Besides, the nursery

beds and seeds can be treated with some fungicides like

Ceresan or Bavistin @ 2g/litre before sowing. The insect-pests

can be controlled by treating soil with Chlorpyriphos or Sewin

dust powder (20-25g/sqm) before sowing and or at the time

of nursery preparation. Presently a large number of bioagents

like Trichoderma, Pseudomonas and Bacillus formulations are

available for soil as well as seed treatment which performs as

antagonist to harmful microorganisms. Some of botanicals like
NSK, Neem cake, Karanj cake etc. also can be used for nursery
bed treatment.
Nursery bed preparation

Before sowing seeds the beds should be leveled and

pressed gently to make it firm. Nearly 15-20 cm raised beds of
45-50 cm width are always preferred for raising nursery. How-
ever, its length should be made according to the requirements
or size of plots but should not exceed 5-6 m. In between beds,
drains of about 30-45 cm width are prepared and connected to
the main drain for removal of excess water during heavy pour.

This space facilitates easy movement during intercultural

operations and acts as physical barrier for inoculums spread.
The drains are flooded during dry period to modify microcli-
mate of nursery beds in favour of seedlings.

In recent years various advancements have been made

in nursery management for bed preparation to avoid possi-
bilities of pathogen spread like use of soil less media, plug tray
technique, perforated poly trays etc.

Input management in nursery production

The rooting media and seed or planting materials are
important inputs for nursery production. The rooting media
should be having appropriate physical and chemical proper-
ties for better germination and root development. The media
should be with constant volume and free from living organ-
isms and firm enough to hold planting material properly.
Abundantly available rooting media are sand, coco peat, per-
lite, vermiculite, leaf mold, sphagnum moss, pumic, sawdust
and wood shavings etc.

Seeds are one of the least expensive but most important

factors influencing yield potential. Crop seeds contain all the

genetic information to determine yield potential, adaptation

to environmental conditions, and resistance to insect pests and

disease. One of a farmer's most critical management decisions

is the selection of seed source and variety. The cost of seed

stocks usually is less than 5 to 10 percent of total production

costs. Yet seed stocks can affect the yield potential of a crop

more than any other input factor.

Water Management:

Water is an important resource not only to nursery grow-

ers but to off-farm neighbours. By reducing water use, the pos-

sibility of leaching and loss of nutrients through surface run-

off decreases. Micro, Overhead and pulse irrigation method

are very means of watering larger nursery area. Microirrigation

applies small amounts of water to the root zone area only. It

also promotes compact root development which is important

for subsequent tree survival in the landscape. In container pro-

duction, drip irrigation is often not used because of difficul-

ties of working around and moving containers when drip lines

are present. Drip or trickle system, which uses 60%-70% less

water than overhead systems. Overhead irrigation is designed

to cover a large area, and these systems are the least expensive

to install. However, this method produces uneven water dis-

tribution, which can slow plant growth, encourage disease, and

Pulse irrigation saves water in container production. Tra-

ditional irrigation comes from a long, single application of

water from an overhead sprinkler. In pulse irrigation water is

applied for about 15 minutes, four or more times and a pause

of 30- 60 minutes occurs between applications. It reduces wa-
ter use by about 30% and also minimizes runoff from contain-
ers. During the pause, water fills the pores and wets hard-to-
wet components of the medium. The medium is saturated be-
fore excess drains from the pots.

Nutrient Management:

Nursery growers should test soils/media each year (mid-

summer to fall) to determine fertilizer/organic manure needs
for nursery beds for the following year. Usually in nursery beds
normal fertilizers like urea, Muraite of Potash and DAP are
applied. Timing of fertilization should be given in two spilt
i.e. basal and top dressing (after 10 days) by broadcasting or
foliar spray @ 0.5-2%. Immediate before transplanting, fertili-
zation should be avoided as it encourages diversion of plant
energy toward root development in nursery which has nega-
tive impact on seedlings during exposure for transplanting.
Common source of nutrients in nursery is FYM, compost,
vermicompost, leaf mold, cakes etc. Besides, primary nutri-
ents like nitrogen and phosphorus are essentially applied
through straight fertilizers as these play an important role in
root and shoot development.

Nutrient deficiency symptoms and their corrections

in plants

A. Older or lower leaves affected:

Plants light green light yellow, drying to light brown

colour, stalks short and slender if element is deficient in later
stages of growth. Applying recommended doses of N fertiliz-
ers. If the deficiency is observed during the growth phase, 1%
of urea can be used.

Plant dark green, often developing red and purple colour,

lower leaves sometime yellow; turning to greenish brown black

colour. Stunted shade plants but have stronger stems. Recom-

mended doses of P and foliar spray of 2% DAP or 1 % super

Lower leaves mottled or chlorotic, without dead spots,

leaves may redden as with cotton, sometimes with dead spot

tips and margin turned or curved upwards, stalks slender. Soil

application of Domolite or Gypsum Salt MgSO4 or 7H2O de-

pending upon the deficiency and 0.5% of Gypsum salt as fo-

Spots of dead tissue small usually at tips and between

veins, more marked at margins of leaves, stalks slender. Stocky

appearance of stem with short internodes is also indicate po-

tassium deficiency. Its deficiency is usually not observed in

Indian soils but if occurs than foliar spray of K @1 % KCl or

Spots generalised, rapidly enlarging and generally in-

volving areas between veins eventually involving secondary

and even primary veins, leaves thick, stalks with shortened

inter nodes. Soil application of Zinc Sulphate at 12.5 - 25 kg/

ha and foliar spray @ 0.5% correct its deficiency.

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B. New or bud leaves affected (symptoms localised)

Young leaves of terminal bud at first typically hooked,

finally dying back at tips and margins so that latter growth is
characterised by a cut out appearance at these points, stalks
finally die at terminal bud. Lime application depending upon
the pH and foliar spray of 1 % calcium nitrate (Fruit crops)

Young leaves of terminal bud becoming light green at

bases, with final break down here; in later growth, leaves be-
come twisted, stalk finally dies back at terminal bud.

Young leaves permanently wilted or marked chlorosis;

twig or stalk just below tip and seed head often unable to stand
erect in later stage when shortages are acute. Soil application
of Copper Sulphate at 10kg/ha and foliar spray of 0.5% CuSO4
Slender and weak stems with poor lignification spilling or
cracking on the barks
Sports of dead tissue scattered over the leaves smallest
veins tend to remain green producing a checkered or reticu-
lated effect. Soil application of Manganese sulphate at 25 kg/
ha and foliar spray of 0.2-0.4% MnS04

Young leaves with veins and tissue between veins light

green in colour. It is applied with other fertilizers.

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Young leaves chlorosis, principal veins green, stalks short

and slender, thin and erect stems. Soil application of Ferrous

sulphate at 50kg/ha and foliar spray of 0.5% Ferrous sulphate

(for calcerous soil, only foliar spray is recommended).

Weeds are plants unwanted at a place and time. There

presence in nursery increases competition with seedlings for

nutrient, water, light and CO2 results in lanky seedlings. Be-

sides, some weeds harbour pathogens and insects and also

produce allelopathic effect on crop plants. Therefore, weed

control is very essential requirement for successful nursery

production. It should be integrated, combining the use of me-

chanical, cultural and as necessary, chemical controls. The fol-

lowing methods control weeds in either a nursery field or con-

Select a weed-free field or media for nursery prepa-

ration.

Control weeds in perimeter areas (i.e. fence rows

and windbreaks).
To reduce weed seeds, properly store and compost
manure before applying to the soil.

Use stallbed technique to avoid initial weed infes-

tation.

Mow buffer strips to reduce seeds blown into irri-

gation ponds.

Minimize run-off from weedy fields to ponds.

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Pump irrigation water from deep in the pond to

avoid seeds on the water surface.

Ensure weed-free material is planted.

Do not move weeds between fields on equipment.

Cultivate fields when seedlings are small.

Use shallow tillage (2.5-5.0 cm) if herbicide has been
applied.

A mowed grass strip between nursery rows with a weed-

free strip at the base of the plants 0.5 to 1.0 metre wide can be

maintained by: hand hoeing, mechanical cultivation, mulch-

ing with various organic materials, or herbicide application.

Rodents often overwinter in mulch so, remove it from the base

of plants in the fall and consider appropriate traps. Weed con-

trol with container stock is more difficult than in the field be-

cause there are few effective registered herbicides. In container

stock, the following measures will help:

By hand or manual weeding.

Install a weed barrier of old polyethelene or

geotextile fabric under pots. This prevents weed
germination under the pots.

Keep media components weed-free by covering out-

doors stored components.

If planning to use field soil, ensure that it comes

from a source known to have few weeds and no
herbicide residues.

Use weed discs in pots; these reusable barriers are

made of materials that allow water and air move-
ment while reducing seed germination.

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Disease Management:
In nursery beds usually fungal diseases like damping

off and foliar diseases like anthracnose, blight, leaf spot and

mildews are serious problems. Their control is possible only

through adopting an integrated approach of cultural, mechani-

cal, biological and chemical measures right from management

of seed source to final uprooting seedlings. Though all mea-

sures are difficult to apply but some of them should be fol-

Rooting media sterilisation is essential if it has been ex-

posed or previously used as it may contain undesirable micro-

organisms, insects, and weeds. Steam sterilisation is relatively

expensive but ecofriendly compared to chemical sterilisation

In solar sterilisation, the soil is ploughed thoroughly and

covered with polythene sheet for few days depending on tem-

Nursery beds should be treated with hot/boiling water

before sowing seeds. It will kill most of pathogens and insect

(Bacillus, Pseudomonas, and Streptomyces and fungi

such as Trichoderma reduces fungal plant pathogens)

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If above measures are unable to manage the diseases than

chemicals like copper fungicides 0.2% or Bavistin 0.15% should

be sprayed for fungal diseases and Antibiotics like

Streptocycline should be sprayed for their management.

Because of the variety of plants in the nursery, insect

and disease control poses many challenges. Integrated pest

management (IPM) combines chemical, cultural and biologi-

cal control techniques to address pest problems. Good sanita-

tion and plant health reduce pest and disease problems. The

following procedures make up an effective IPM programme:

Mapping the nursery by identifying plants which

are most susceptible to insects and disease prob-

lems. Note which species and cultivars are affected

Monitoring nursery at least once a week. Pay par-

ticular attention to sensitive species.

Identifying pests and beneficial insects, noting life

cycle stages and population levels.

Making a decision on appropriate control from col-

lected information.

Some selective insect traps are available but yellow sticky

traps can be used to identify pests. Insects should be controlled

at vulnerable stages of their life cycle. When a control is neces-

sary, spot spray permitted chemicals or botanicals only those

plants or species which are infested. Few biological controls

15

are available for use in the nursery but Bacillus thuringiensis

var. kurstaki has been effective against moths. Conserve and

promote beneficial insects by promoting their captive rearing

and releasing in protected area.

It is necessary to maintain vigorous, healthy plants by

using proper culture and management practices to provide

natural resistance to plants. Heavily insect infested or injured

plants should be destroyed as earliest possible. In nurseries

IPM should be plasticized to realize that all culture and man-

agement factors can affect pest population. New concepts like

planting scout plants for pests in border area and use soaps,

oils and botanicals whenever possible are appearing effective

tools for nursery production.

Temperature and humidity regulation:

In humid tropical climatic regions erratic rains create

excess moisture and relative humidity in nursery beds which

is congenial for various diseases and pests. Controlling rain-

fall in not in man's job but it can be managed with protected

structures. But conventional protected structures are not suit-

able for nursery production in humid tropical climatic condi-

tions because inside temperature is much higher than desired

level. The temperature can be controlled with three different

methods i.e. ventilation, shading and intermittent misting or

Therefore, special structures are required for protection

of young and tender plants from heavy rainfall. So, the struc-

tures with proper ventilation from all side should be con-

structed for natural regulation of excess temperature and hu-

16

midity. It can be constructed with covering top with polythene

(200mm) and sides with shadenet material (30-50 percent) or

insect proof nets (45-55 mesh) materials. The inside tempera-

ture can be maintained with intermittent misting or sprinkling.

The timer and misting volume should be adjusted according

to prerecorded inside temperature, humidity, and air move-

ment. But, usually proper ventilation and partial shading are

commonly suggested approaches for temperature regulating

under humid Island conditions.

Fig.1: Components of nursery management

Modern Nursery Management

Nursery development has great scope for the enhanc-

ing production and profitability of horticultural crops in Bay
Islands because of erratic rainfall pattern, low availability of
quality seed material and high cost of seed material. The mod-
ern era of horticultural sector is known for effective utiliza-
tion of hi-twech interventions for different aspects. Hi-tech
interventions in nursery sector are technological advancements
which are capital intensive, minimally environment depen-
dent and having capacity to increase seed performance. Its
management is a technical and skill oriented jobs which re-
quire proper attention at different stages of growth and de-
velopment.

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Components of Modern nursery:

a. Technological information:

Right information about nursery management at right

time to right person is basic requirement for its success. This

can be done with adopting on-farm and/or off-farm exten-

sion activities related to nursery production.

Nursery management is highly skilled and technical job

which requires proper attention and expertise of nurseryman.

Therefore, conducting trainings in form of technology package is better

than split trainings. Besides, technologies and knowledge related to
nursery management can be disseminated through
education/communication modules, print/broadcast media. It can also be
done by establishing techno demo projects for horticultural crops.

c. Programme Management:
Nursery production is a programme which requires

proper planning and monitoring for obtaining healthy seed-

ling and better crop stand. This can be performed by inter-

agency coordination and linkages with concerned stakehold-

Nursery production for horticultural crops is capital in-

tensive intervention. Therefore, nursery growers should be

provided with sufficient amount of credit at right time for its

success. It can be provided from Government sponsored schemes like

National Horticultural Board, High Value Agriculture, National
Horticulture Mission or institutions like Na-

tionalized Banks or Cooperatives.

e. Transplanting operations:

Seedlings are uprooted just before transplanting by irri-

gating beds to loose soil for better uprooting. Transplanted

should be in shady part of day probably in evening hours for

their better establishment and root development. Pre-trans-

planting treatments of seedling with urea or insecticide/fun-

gicide by dipping roots in solution is suggested for establishing.

Hi-tech interventions:
Hi-tech interventions like protected cultivation, micropropagation,
microirrigation, fertigation, use of growth regulators, canopy
management, organic farming, and automatic climatic controls measures
etc. These interventions are used for efficient utilization of inputs and
increasing production.The commercialization of nursery production is
possiblewith efficient and organized marketing structure. This can be
promoted by encouraging participation in Agri-trade fairs, conducting /
assisting market linkage activities etc.

i. Seeds and planting material:

Seed/planting material should be of true-to-type with crop/variety
specific standards. The seed/planting material should be collected from
well recognized nurseries or institutions like NSC, SSC and institute
nurseries. If planting material is imported in Islands than it should be
with confirmation of quarantine regulations.

Model Nursery Layout:

Nursery is the place where all kinds of plants like trees, shrubs, climbers
etc. are grown and kept for transporting or for using them as stock plants
for budding, grafting and other method of propagation or for sale. The
modern nurseries also serve as an area where garden tools, fertilizers are
also offered for sale along with plant material. The area for nursery d
Models for nursery production are
prepared for effective utilization of inputs and to do things in
proper manner. Various location specific models are designed
by institutions for nursery establishment as per their require-
ments (Fig.2). But their some important components which
should be taken into care and provision should be made for
these during planning and layout preparation for nurseries:

Prior to the establishment of a nursery, a good fence with

barbed wire must be erected all around the nursery to prevent
tress pass of animals and theft. The fence could be further
strengthened by planting a live hedge with thorny fruit plants
(like Koranda). This also adds beauty in bearing and also pro-
vides additional income through sale of fruits and seedlings
obtained from the seed.

Roads and paths:

A proper planning for roads and paths inside the nurs-

ery will not only add beauty, but also make the nursery opera-
tions easy and economical. This could be achieved by divid-

20

ing the nursery into different blocks and various sections. But

at the same time, the land should not be wasted by unneces-

sarily laying out of paths and roads. Each road/ path should

lead the customer to a point of interest in the nursery area.

Progeny block/Mother plant block:

The nursery should have a well-maintained progeny

block or mother plant block/scion bank planted with those

varieties in good demand. The grafts/layers/ rooted cuttings/

seedlings should be obtained preferably from the original

breeder /research institute from where it is released or from a

reputed nursery. One should remember that, the success of

any nursery largely depends upon the initial selection of prog-

eny plants or mother plants for further multiplication. Any

mistake made in this aspect will result in loss of the reputation

of the nursery. A well managed progeny block or mother plants

block will not only create confidence among the customers but

also reduces the cost of production and increases the success

rate of grafting/ budding/layering because of availability of

fresh scion material throughout the season within the nursery

itself and there will not be any lag period between separations

Irrigation system:

Horticultural nursery plants require abundant supply

of water for irrigation, since they are grown In polybags or

pots with limited quantity of potting mixture. Hence sufficient

number of wells to yield sufficient quantity of irrigation water is a must

in nurseries. In areas with low water yields and frequent power failures,
a sump to hold sufficient quantity of water to irrigate the nursery plants
is also very much essential along with appropriate pump for lifting the
irrigation water.

In areas where electricity failure is a problem which is more common, an

alternate power supply (generator) is very essential for smooth running
of pumpset. Since water scarcity is a limiting factor in most of the areas
in the country a well laid out PYC pipeline system will solve the
problem to a greater extent. An experienced agricultural engineer may
be consulted in this regard for layout of pipeline. This facilitates
efficient and economic distribution of irrigation water to various
components in the nursery.

Office cum stores:

An office-cum-stores is needed for effective management

of the nursery. The office building may be constructed in a
place which offers better supervision and also to receive cus-
tomers. The office building may be decorated with attractive
photographs of fruit ornamental varieties propagated in the
nursery with details of it. A store room of suitable size is needed
for storing polybags, tools and implements, packaging mate-
rial, labels, pesticides, fertilizers etc.

In a nursery, this component is essential to raise the seed-

lings and rootstocks. These are to be laid out near the water
source, since they require frequent watering and irrigation.
Beds of 1-meter width of any convenient length are to be made.
A working area of 60cm between the beds is necessary. This
facilitates ease in sowing of seeds, weeding, watering, spray-
ing and lifting of seedlings. Irrigation channels are to be laid
out conveniently.

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Alternatively, sprinkler irrigation system may be pro-

vided for watering the beds, which offers uniform germina-
tion and seedling growth.

Rising of seedlings / rootstocks in polybags requires

more space compared to nursery beds but mortality is greatly
reduced along with uniformity. Nursery beds area should also
have a provision to keep the grafted plants either in trenches
of 30cm deep and 1 m wide so as to accommodate 500 grafts /
layers in each bed. Alternatively, the grafts/ layers can be ar-
ranged on the ground in beds of 1 m wide with 60cm working
place in between the beds. Such beds can be irrigated either
with a rose fitted to a flexible hosepipe or by overhead micro
sprinklers.

Potting mixture and potting yard:

For better success of nursery plants, a good potting mix-
ture is necessary. The potting mixtures for different purposes
can be prepared by mixing fertile red soil, well rotten FYM,
leaf mold, oil cakes etc. in different proportions. The potting
mixture may be prepared well in advance by adding sufficient
quantity of superphosphate for better decomposition and solu-
bilization. The potting mixture may be kept near the potting
yard, where potting/pocketing is done. Construction of a pot-
ting yard of suitable size facilitates potting of seedlings or graft-
ing/ budding operations even on a rainy day.

Structures for nursery

Shade houses in nurseries in tropical and sub-tropical regions

offer many advantages like raising of seedlings in bags directly,
protecting the grafts from hot summer months, effective irri-
gation through upside down overhead microsprinklers. The
shade houses made with shade nets (50% or 75%) for regula-

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tion of shade are particularly very useful in arid regions where
the humidity is very low during summer months. The details
of shadenets use is given in the chapter of polyhouses.

ii. Green houses/Polyhouses :

Grafting or budding of several fruit species under polyhouses

or low cost green houses with natural ventilation will enhance
the percentage of graft/bud take besides faster growth of grafts
due to favourable micro climatic conditions of polyhouse. In
green house construction, a wood or metal frame work is built
to which wood or metal sash bars are fixed to support panes
of glass embedded in putty. In all polyhouses/ green houses
means of providing air movement and air exchange is neces-
sary to aid in controlling temperature and humidity. It is best,
if possible to have in the green house heating and self opening
ventilators and evaporative cooling systems.

Plastic covered green houses tend to be much lighter than glass

covered ones with a build up of excessive high humidity.
This is the most inexpensive covering material but it is the short
lasting one. However, UV ray resisting polyethylene film of
various thickness is usually recommended which lasts longer.

This material is pliable and comes in various thickness and

widths upto 6 ft. It is longer lasting than polythene and is more
expensive PVC surface of film tends to collect dust and lower
the light intensity in due course of time.

This is a strong material with excellent weathering properties

lasting for 3-5 years and is unaffected by extremes of heat or
cold though it is costly than polythene film/PVC film.

24

Rigid panels, corrugated or flat fiber glass sheets embedded in

plastic are widely used for green house construction. Fibre glass
is strong, long lasting, light weight and easily applied which is
coming in a variety of widths, lengths and thickness. It is cost-
lier than poly thin film/pvc film.
The hot bed is often used for the same purpose as a green house
but in a smaller scale. Amateur operations and seedlings can
be started and leafy cuttings root early in the season in such
structures. Heat is provided artificially below the propagating
medium by electric heating cables, pot water, steam pipes or
hot air blows. As in the green house, in the hot beds attention
must be paid for shading and ventilation as well as tempera-
ture and humidity control.

These structures are very useful in providing protection from the

sun for container grown nursery stock in areas of high summer
temperatures and high light intensity. Well established plants also
can require lath house protection including shade loving plants
Lathhouses construction varies widely depending on the mate-
rial used. Aluminium pre-fabricated lathhouses are available but
may be more costly than wood structures. Shade is provided by
appropriate structures and use of shade nets of different densi-
ties allows various intensities of light in the lathhouses.

Miscellaneous propagating structures

These are valuable propagating units both in the green house
and out doors and are useful mainly in rooting of leafy cuttings.

This is a structure used to propagate soft wood cuttings, diffi-

25

cult to root plants and shrubs. Here the principle is to spray

the cuttings with a minimum quantity of water. This is
achieved by providing the cuttings a series of intermittent
sprayings rather than a continuous spray. The intermittent
spraying can be done easily by means of a high pressure pump
and a time switch. The pump leads to a pipeline system inside
the propagating structure. The mist nozzles are fitted to these
pipelines and suitably spaced over the propagating material.

These are raised beds or boxes made of brick and mortar, pro-
vided with drainage holes at the bottom. The dimensions of
the boxes are 60 cm high, 120 cm broad and length as required
preferably not exceeding 10 m. Roof structures for planting on
both sides and forming ridges at the centre are constructed on
the top of the nursery beds. These structures may be made
permanent with angle iron or may be made of wood. Move-
able bamboo mats, palm leaf mats are placed over these struc-
tures to protect the seedlin"g from hot sun and heavy rains.
Even shade roofing can be used for this purpose for raising
see dings.

iv. Fluorescent light boxes:

Young plants of many species grow satisfactorily under artifi-

cial light from fluorescent lamp units. Although adequate
growth of many plant species may be obtained under fluores-
cent lamps but not up to the mark compared to good green
house conditions.

Even in green house, humidity conditions are often not suffi-

ciently high for rooting. The use of enclosed frames or cases
covered with glass or plastic materials may be necessary for suc-
cessful rooting. In using such structures, care is necessary to
avoid the build up of disease organisms due to high humidity.
26

Fig.2: Layout of a model ornamental Nursery (By IIHR, Bangalore)

Protected structures
C= Perennial Legume; X= Passion fruit; N=Neem
Fig.3: Proposed layout of commercial nursery for horticulture crops
(CARI, Port Blair)

27

Developments in Nursery production:

Some of the important developments made by Indian

institutions in nursery sector are mentioned here under. These

approaches can be tested under Island conditions for devel-

opment of nursery sector of horticultural crops.

Low cost poly-house technology to raise off-season nurser-

ies of cucurbits and solanaceous vegetables for higher profit
(IARI, New Delhi)

Poly-house is a zero-energy chamber of polythene sheet

(200 gauge) supported on bamboo with sutli and nails, the size
of which depends on the requirement and availability of space.

The sun rays raise the temperature inside the poly-house by 6-

100C through transparent polythene sheet which makes the

environment inside poly-house congenial in December and

January for growing nursery of solanaceous and

cucurbitaceous vegetables for early planting in the open field

during first week of February, when chances of frost are over.

By this technology, the harvesting can be advanced by one to

one and a half months and farmers can get the bonus price by
catching the early market in spring-summer season.

Use of insect proof nylon nets for quality vegetable seedling

production (IIHR, Bangalore)

Leaf curl is a serious viral disease in tomato especially

during hot/summer months. The virus spreads through a vec-

tor- whitefly. To control whitefly feeding on growing seed-

lings in nursery area, a 40-mesh nylon net is used to cover the

nursery area. Thus viral infection is avoided till transplanting

of seedlings in the main field. Viral diseases in chili and capsi-

28

cums like chilly mosaic and leaf curl can also be controlled

during nursery stage by providing nylon net coverage. This

technology can also be used, with 40 mesh nylon nets, to con-

trol Spotted Wilt Virus of watermelon transmitted by thrips.

The technology involves:

Twelve raised beds of 1.2m x 7.5m dimensions are to be

prepared for getting the seedlings for one hectare area of main

field (for tomato). Later the seeds started to germinate in the

beds, 50 mesh nylon nets have to be covered over the beds.

Nylon nets have to be stitched in the dimension of 1.2m width,

8.0m in length and 1.5m in height resulting in a box shape. For

support of the net, Casuarinas or bamboo pads have to be used.

While stitching a net, provision for entry in to the net have to

be made. This entry point should be closable either with straps

or clips, so that entire structure becomes insect proof. The bot-

tom edge of the net have to be buried the soil. A non-walk in

type net coverings can also be prepared with 1-2 feet height

net covering. A movable support system can also be prepared

with ¾" GI pipe or a-iron.

Nursery under shade net:

The Nursery is fully covered with nets, plastic paper,

raised nursery beds, covered with mulching paper. The Ger-

mination trays are filled with coconut fiber mulched fertile

organic manure. The Hybrid seed is shown in the trays and

will be regularly watered and sprayed with pesticides as and

when required. Due to the covering of nursery with shade nets

and paper, the incidence of virus can be minimized, which

can cause major damage to the vegetable crops.

29

Conclusion

The nursery is the place for rearing and multiplying

plants with minimal damage and maximum success. It need

in present era of high value agriculture has increased to a great

extent because it only approach for effective and efficient

utilization of inputs at initial phase of crop plants. Hi-tech

interventions like protected structures, mircoirrigation, plant

growth regulators, soilless media, automatic control devices,

robotics etc have made nursery industry a viable venture. Best

management practices for nursery production address

concerns about soil conservation, pesticide use and water

conservation and protection. But still it is facing a number of

challenges in an effort to produce high-quality nursery stocks

particularly in geographically isolated Islands where timely

input supply is great challenge. However, proper planning and

monitoring have solution for such problems. For this, various

engaged agencies like Department of Agriculture, Central

Agricultural Research Institute, Self Help Groups, and Farmers

needs to work in proper coordination. Thus, nursery sector

have many solutions for horticultural problems of these Islands

but need proper care and attention.