Need to turn mango orchards more fruitful for growers

Mango called the king of fruits is grown in abundance in Pakistan. There is immense scope to further increase its production, provided the chronic problem areas related to its farming are addressed. Despite being on number six in mango production in the world, the country is contributing only 3.2 percent of the global mango export. The country stands at number nine in the list of top mango exporting countries, whereas Netherlands, which does not have even a single mango plant, stands at number two. Amazingly this country imports mangoes and then exports them to other countries.

Over the years, the mango crop in Pakistan has suffered from the negative effects of harsh weather, shortage of water, irrigation water mismanagement, diseases and pest attacks, archaic methods of farming, harvesting and storage etc. Even then, it is the second most abundantly grown fruit in Pakistan after citrus grown over an area of 170,000 hectares.

Discouraged by the losses faced year after year, many farmers have abandoned mango farming and some of them have sold their land to real estate developers. One can take the example of Multan where vast orchard lands have been eaten up by housing societies, including those developed by the Defence Housing Authority (DHA).

The owners of mango orchards have found it to be a better option to make good money by selling off their lands rather than facing losses on a regular basis.

This situation calls for a concerted effort by different stakeholders in order to bring required improvements. But before starting a debate or seeking any suggestions, one needs to look where the country stands in this context.

This extraordinarily delicious fruit is grown mainly in cities like Multan, Muzaffargarh, Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan in South Punjab, Mirpur Khas and Hyderabad in Interior Sindh and some parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa including Dera Ismail and Mardan.

Punjab has the world’s largest mango producing cluster spreading over 377 kilometres from Rahim Yar Khan to Khanewal and beyond on the belts on both sides of Chenab. But despite such advantages and distinctions, it is a pity that the quality and quantity of mango crop is suffering.

So, the question is what to do to make Pakistan the top producer and exporter of mangoes, as well as to make mango farming attractive for wary farmers.

Abid Hameed Khan, an official at the Mango Research Institute (MRI), Multan has something to share. Talking to The News, he says, they are striving at the institute level and hope their projects will be scaled up for the benefit of larger groups. He shares MRI has introduced the concept of Integrated Crop Management (ICM) to mango growers so that they can tackle the issues confronting them.

ICM, he says, includes drip irrigation, proper and timely nutrition for plants, canopy management and integrated pest management. A selected group of mango farmers will attain modern knowledge and farming techniques here and share these with others.

Khan says the institute is lucky to have the financial support of private players like Nestle Pakistan in introducing drip irrigation system on its premises and to farmers. One can irrigate one acre of an orchard in hardly seven minutes, supplying almost 14 litres of water to a plant, which is sufficient for the day.

This saves around 90 percent of the water that goes waste in case old irrigation methods are employed. Besides, water allowed to accumulate around a mango tree for long adversely affects its roots. This situation can be avoided by adopting drip irrigation.

Nestle Pakistan has partnered with the Agriculture Department, government of Punjab to encourage local farmers to take up drip irrigation. Its partnership with MRI has been made with the purpose of showcasing the best farm practices with optimal water usage and improved yield for farmers and researchers from across Pakistan.

In Pakistan, there are well above 200 mango varieties of which the most popular and commercially viable are Chaunsa, Anwar Ratol, Dasehri, Langra, Sindhri, Maldha, and Fajri. In Punjab, different varieties of Chaunsa are grown on most of the orchard land, mainly because of its exquisite taste and long shelf life.

Samer Bahisht (S B) Chaunsa covers 36.9 percent orchard land, Sufaid Chaunsa 12.7 percent and Kala Chaunsa 9.2 percent. The legend has it that the name “Samar Bahisht” meaning “Fruit of Heaven” was given to this fruit by Sher Shah Suri.

There is an increased focus on growing Chaunsa varieties because its long shelf life makes it suitable for exports. Similarly, the trend of growing late varieties in Punjab is becoming popular because it helps expand the export period for this fruit.

Allah Bakhsh, Sustainable Agriculture Specialist, Nestle Pakistan points out that mango farmers are sticking to old methods and need to be introduced to the modern ones to improve the health and yield of the crop. Canopy management, he says, is one example where distance between plants is decreased to make them more productive.

Trimming and pruning of trees are other techniques used to remove unwanted parts so that there is fast growth in the remaining parts, he adds. This also allows sunlight to fall on leaves and other parts of the tree and facilitates photosynthesis and enables air to move through trimmed branches of the tree.

The other priority areas of this project include provision of disease-free seeds and plants grown in plastic pots, advisory services on when and how to use fertilisers and sprays, development of tunnel nurseries and so on. Nestle Pakistan has also provided financial assistance to MRI for development of five such tunnel nurseries.

It is hoped the efforts taken at local and institute level are scaled up with the purpose of making Pakistan the world leader among mango producers and exporters.