Dragon fruit belongs to the Cactaceae family and genus Hylocereus. Dragon fruit is getting tremendous popularity among growers because of its attractive fruit color. The plant is adapted to tropical or arid climates with rainfall of 30 to 40 inches and any kind of soil with organic matter. Dragon Fruit cultivation is gaining more and more recognition as an important crop. It is a nutritious fruit with different variety of uses. The Dragon fruits with red or pink, leathery skin are eaten by spooning out the flesh, or in slices. The beautiful flowers are used for tea or aromatherapy only blooming at night.
In India, the demand for this exotic Dragon fruit is increasing day by day. Dragon fruits are only available in supermarkets, and they sell at a high price. The fruit has high demand in Indian markets, but the supply is limited. So, the organic farming of Dragon fruit in India can be profitable. Thus, farmers are taking a lot of interest in Dragon cultivation. Many states that commercially cultivated Dragon fruits in India are Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Gujarat, Haryana, Maharashtra, and Assam.
There are different types of Dragon fruit the most common varieties are;
Hylocereus undatus – white flesh with pink or red skin
Hylocereus Megalanthus – white flesh with yellow skin
Hylocereus costaricensis – purple/red flesh and pink/red skin
Dragon fruit should be planted in an open field sunny area for best growth and fruit production. The site must be free draining with a sandy loam soil with high organic content. Dragon fruit can be grown in a wide range of soils and soils that are well-drained and high in organic matter are recommended.
Dragon fruit plants can be grown in a wide range of soil types provided it is well-drained. Though, the most ideal soil type is rich in organic matter and slightly acidic. Since the location should be used is sub-marginal, organic fertilizer requirement will be applied to patch up the lacking amount of organic substances in the soil. It prefers sandy loam with high organic matter and grows well in soil having good drainage.
Dragon fruits can tolerate any type of soil, and they grow well in soil having good drainage. A good drainage system is very important for Dragon fruit cultivation. Dragon fruit plant prefers light acidic soil with pH ranging from 5.5 to 6.5. Sandy loam soils with high organic matter are suitable for the cultivation of this plant. Sandy soils with the organic matter also provide a good condition for plant growth.
Generally, Dragon fruit propagation occurs from seed or stem cuttings. Dragon fruit propagation from seed is less reliable and will require patience, as the time from propagation to fruit production take up to 7 years. Propagation is commonly accomplished via the use of stem cuttings. It is multiplied through the seed of vegetative methods.
Seed propagation – Seeds can be used to produce seedlings and the seed are black in color and small. The Dragon fruit seed germinated rapidly if sown soon after extraction. The seed is sown in trays and pots for better germination. The seed propagation carried out that seedlings remain smaller with thin stem even after one year of planting. The seed takes one month for germination. The seedlings take a longer time to become ready for planting. The seedlings remain smaller within the stem even after one year of sowing. Dragon fruit plants produced from seeds are not true to type. Thus seed is not used for commercial multiplication of Dragon fruit.
Vegetative propagation – It can easily multiply through stem cutting. Generally, 20 to 25cm long stem cuttings are used for planting. The cutting should be prepared 1 to 2 days before planting. The cutting must be taken from mother plants during fruiting season. The entire stem segment or 20 to 30 cm long cuttings are used. The base cut of the cutting must be slated. The cutting must be treated with fungicides to prevent diseases. After that, these cuttings are planted in polyethylene bags filled with soil, farmyard manure, and sandbags ratios of 1:1:2 respectively. The sandbags are kept at a shady place for rooting. Excess moisture must be avoided for the prevention of rotting. These cutting roots profusely and become ready for planting with 5 to 6 months.
Dragon Fruit is propagated through seeds or cuttings. There are two methods of cultivating Dragon fruit, the first method is the use of seeds and the second method is using a cutting from the plant sampling. Seeds take a time of 3 years before the plant is large enough to be used so farmers generally opt for the cutting method. The length of the sapling must be 20 cm and it should be cut from the mother plant and left in the shade for 5 to 7 days before being planted in the field.
While being planted the distance between the Dragon fruit plants mainly depends on whether the support used is vertical or horizontal. In vertical support, the distance between the plants must be 2-3 meters while in horizontal support the distance is reduced to almost 50 cm and allows for intensive farming. For appropriate plant growth, the vertical support should be between 1 to 1.20 meters high while the horizontal support must be between 1.40 to 1.60 meters.
The addition of dolomite and organic fertilizer at planting is beneficial. The media consisted of the soil enriched with organic inputs such as FYM (farmyard manure), coir compost, and vermin-compost along with bio-fertilizers.
Even if the Dragon fruit plant can survive with very low rainfall, many months of drought, when good quality fruits are required, a regular water supply is needed. Regular irrigation is very important because it enables the plant to build sufficient reserves not only to flower at the most favorable time but also to ensure the fruit development. Local micro-irrigation is also recommended. Also, the efficiency of the water supplied by this system, micro-irrigation avoids uneven and excess watering that can result in the flowers and the young fruits falling off.
Dragon fruit plants withstand dry periods; they have a fairly high water requirement. Though, excessive soil moisture will result in the development of bacterial and fungus diseases. A dry period (winter and early spring) is required for abundant bloom induction, but once plants flower (late spring and summer); periods of drought can result in poor production. So, periodic watering is recommended from flowering through harvest.
Mulching helps to retain soil moisture, reduces weed problems next to the plant stem, and improves the soil near the surface. Organic mulch with a 2 to 6-inch layer of bark, wood chips, or similar mulch material. Then, keep mulch 8 to 12 inches from the base of the plant stem.
Normally, two types of pruning methods need to be carried out to obtain maximum production of healthy, good-quality Dragon fruits. The first pruning method involves training the growing plants until they reach the trellis. This mainly involves eliminating any lateral stems along the main stem until it reaches the trellis and tying the main stem to the trellis post. Soon after plants reach the top of the trellis, their tips must be cut to induce branching, and the new laterals trained and tied to the trellis.
As the Dragon fruit is a climbing cactus and epiphytic, the vine needs concrete, wooden posts, or wall columns for support. The immature stem should be tied to that column for aerial roots to develop and bound to the column. Lateral shoots are restricted and only 2 to 3 main stems allowed growing. The selected column must have long durability and strength to carry a 100 kg load, hence concrete or hard timber posts are recommended. For this mostly the cement pole/post with 2 meters height is used and it is buried 40 cm in the ground. Steel wires or iron frames should not be used as it can cut and damage the vines. The supporting post must be erected before the planting to make it firm to enable the vine to climb. Four plants must be planted around each post. Planting is done during the rainy season followed by making proper ridges of 50 cm height to give support to the plants. As the vines grow the chances of lodging and fall to the ground increase. So, tying the vines and regular trimming of the lateral branches is an essential operation to avoid this problem. In structural pruning, only the outer leader vine is to be allowed to grow till the vine reaches the top of the trellis.
Dragon fruits are fast-growing and produce extensive growth. Production pruning mainly involves the removal of damaged, diseased, or dead stems and those that reach the soil. Try to choose healthy, strong stems. Dragon fruit plants are vigorous and may require pruning one to three times per year. Cuts can be treated with a fungicide to reduce the incidence of stem rot. Pruning also induces flowering and stem branching. Prune soon after harvest and then remove all pruned stems from the field. The cut stems taken to a location away from the field and composted.
In the semi-arid zone, flowering will initiate in May-June. These flowers bloom at night and are also named as Queen of night. Fruits will be matured 30 to 35 days after flowering. Flowering and fruiting will occur simultaneously.
A combination of organic and complete fertilizer (14-14-14) and urea (46-0- 0) is recommended for Dragon fruit growth. Use more organic and more nitrogen. The ideal is to apply fertilizer every 3 months if possible or every 6 months. Use about 2 kg of organic + 25 g urea + 75 g complete fertilizer per plant.
A combination of organic manure with neem cake and 100g of complete fertilizer (19-19-19) is applied every 3 to 4 months. Regularly prune the Dragon fruit plants to obtain an open and manageable canopy which will induce new shoots for the next cropping season.
Fertilize only occasionally. Even a cutting will take up to 4 months to get a good, strong root system going. However, when it comes to fertilizers, too many fertilizers can easily kill your Dragon fruit plant. For best results, feed them only certified organic inputs only about once every 2 months.
For better crop yield proper nutrient requirement is required in Dragon fruit plantation. The root system can rapidly assimilate even the smallest quantity of nutrients. Fertilizer recommendations include;
The first year – 50 g Urea + 50 g Super phosphate/3 times/year/supporting post.
Fruit bearing stage – 0.5 kg of Urea + Super phosphate (0.5 kg) + 0.5 kg potassium + 20 kg organic fertilizer/ 3 times/year/supporting post.
Additional application of microelements like foliar fertilizer can be used 1 time/ week when the fruits are developing. The fertilizer should be stopped at least 10 days before the fruits be a harvest.
The harvesting time in Dragon fruit mostly falls between July- November which comes in 6-8 flushes. During the initial fruit development period, the outer skin of immature fruit looks bright green in color and gradually turns red as the ripening progress. An additional advantage of the crop is that depending upon the market demand, there is a scope for adjusting the harvesting time. For the local market, fruit can be harvested three to four days after the skin color changes from green to red or pink color, while for far markets/export purposes it can be harvested a day after the color change.
The Dragon fruit requires 27-30 days to fully grow. The fruit must be picked as soon it is fully grown as even a delay of 4-5 days can cause it to rot. The yield can vary depending on the conditions and techniques used. The methods of picking it are twisting it in a clockwise direction and plucking it.
Enterobacteria stem soft rot usually afflicts the tips of Dragon fruit branches. Symptoms appear 15 days from infection, wherein the tips of the plant become yellow. Plants that are deficient in calcium and nitrogen are susceptible to severe infection.
To encourage fruiting, you should give cactus a tall, sturdy trellis to climb. Always remove damaged or dying branches in Dragon fruit plants. Prune the tips of the uppermost branches to encourage more lateral growth and fruit growth.
The growing season of the Dragon fruit plant takes place during the hot months of the summer. Though blooms will occur from July to October, they will only bloom for one night each year. After the flowering occurs, Dragon fruit will begin to form.
Dragon fruit plants can begin flowering in as little as 6 to 8 months. Once the plant is mature, you could see 4 to 6 fruiting cycles a year from a plant that is capable of bearing fruit for 20 to 30 years.
Dragon fruit grows in warm, humid climates and needs little water. They are subtropical plants that need at least 6 hours of sunlight per day.
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