Content
• Cucumber
Cluster Bean
Scientific name- Cyamopsis tetragoneloba
Family- Fabaceae
It is self- pollinated, erect annual, stem angled, leaves trifoliate with white and pink flowers. It is mainly grown for vegetable, dry seed and also as forage. It is very nutritious fodder for livestock.
Growing season- It is a drought tolerant crop and prefer warm climate of 30-40°C. It is grown in sub tropical region like South India where early crop is sown in Feb- March and main crop in June- July.
Seed rate of cluster bean is 30-40 kg with spacing of 45×15cm.
Soil- Sandy loam and clayey loam soil is suitable for growing cluster bean. The pH of the soil must be 7.0-8.5. The water logged condition can affect the crop growth.
Irrigation- One irrigation is sufficient at flowering and pod formation if the crop suffers moisture stress as cluster bean cannot tolerate water logging.
Fertilizer management- 30:60:60 kg/ ha N:P:K with 25 t/ ha of FYM must be applied. ½ N is top dressed at 30-40 days after sowing.
Weeding- In cluster bean two hand weeding is enough at 20-25 and 40-45 days after sowing for weed control.
Some chemicals are also being used i.e; application of pendimethaline 0.75kg/ha a.i. as pre emergence and Imazehtaptr 40 g/ ha a.i. in 600 litres of water as post emergence.
Major disease and their management:
•Bacterial blight- Use resistant varieties or Treat the seed with streptocycline by soaking them in 220 ppm of solution for 3 hours.
•Anthracnose or Alternaria leaf spot- Spraying Mencobez 75WP @ 2 g/ litres of water by repeating this process for 15 days intervals.
Major pest and their management
•Jassids and aphids- They are sucking type insects. To control them apply Imidacloprid @0.2 ml/ litres or Dimethoate @1.7 ml/ litres of water.
•Termites- They eat the stem and root of the plant and demage them. To control them, treat the seed with Chlorpyrifos @2ml/ kg seed. Yield:- Crop grown for seeds gives 10-15 q/ ha and for fodder purpose gives 250-300 q/ ha.
Bitter Gourd
Scientific name- Momordica charantia
Family- cucurbits
Bitter gourd is a vegetable crop which is grown for its immature tuberculate fruit which have a unique bitter taste. It is a good source of vitamin and minerals and cures many disease like asthma, diabetes and blood disease.
Growing season: It is a warm season crop and susceptible to light frost with temperature range of 24-27°C. The seed germinated best when the temperature is higher than 18°C. It mainly grow in Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Kerela, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, etc. Summer crop is sown in January- February and rainy season crop in May.
Seed rate- Bitter gourd require 4-5kg/ ha seed rate with spacing of 2.5×1m.
Soil- Sandy to Sandy loam soil is suitable for growing bitter gourd with alluvial soil and pH range from 6.0-7.0 is optimum.
Fertilizer management:The recommended dose of fertilizer to be applied per hectares is 50-100 kg N, 40-60 kg P2O5, 30-60kg K2O along with 15-20 t/ ha FYM at the time of ploughing . Half of the N and full amount of P and K and applied before planting and remaining N is given at flowering stage.
Weeding- The crop requires 2-3 weeding, first is after 30 days after sowing and next can be done in monthly interval to keep the field weed free.
Irrigation- In rainy season crop, irrigation is not necessary. Mainly the ridges are irrigated before 2-3 days of sowing and later the moisture must be maintained at root zone for tap root development.
Major disease and their management-
•Powdery mildew ( Sphaerotheca fuligine)- The symptoms of this disease is that the powdery appearance is seen on upper leaves and circular patches and spots on lower leaves. To control this Carbendazim @ 1 ml/ litres of water in 2-3 sprays at 15 days interval immediately after disease appears.
•Downy mildew( pseudoperonospora cubensis)- Yellow angular spots are seen on upper part of leaves. The disease spread rapidly and defoliate the plant. To control the disease rapidly, Ridomil is applied @ 1.5g/ litres of water with a protectant fungicide like Mencozeb at 0.2%.
Major pest and their management-
•Red pumpkin bettle- Spray 0.05% malathion or by burning the old creeper.
•Aphids- Colonies of nymph and adult attacks the plant and suck the sap due to which the leaves curl up and get dried. To control them, remove the affected leaves or spray 0.02% Malathion or Dichlorvoe.
Yield- Average yield of this crop is 8-10 t/ ha.
Cucumber
Scientific name- Cucumis sativum L.
Cucumber is a cucurbitaceous summer vegetable. It’s fruit is consumed in raw form as salad with salt and cures constipation and jaundice.
Family - Cucurbitaceae
Growing season- It is a warm season crop and grows best in temperature range of 18-24°C. It cannot tolerate frost. Cucumber is cultivated as summer season crop in January to February and as rainy season crop in June- July.
Seed rate- Cucumber crop requires a seed rate of 2.5-3.5kg/ ha with a spacing 1.5 to 2.5m× 60 to 90cm.
Soil- Cucumber grows in all type of soil from sandy to heavy soil. To get higher yield, loam, silt loam and Sandy loam soil is best. Soil is ploughed for 2-3 times by digging with spade for the preparing of land.
Fertilizer management- Cucumber requires 100:60:60 kg/ ha N:P:K and 10-15 t/ ha FYM at the time of land preparation.
Weeding- The crop should be kept weed free by doing shallow cultivation in the field.
Irrigation- The summer season crop requires frequent irrigation after 4-5 days after sowing and no irrigation for rainy season crop.
Major disease and their management-
•Downy mildew:- This disease is caused by fungus Pseudoperonospora cubensis. The yellow, angular spots on upper part of leaves. To control this disease fungicide like Dithane M- 45 is sprayed.
Major pest and their management-
•Cucumber mosaic virus- This disease is transmitted by aphids. Mottled leaf with roughened surface occur. To control this disease, spraying the Rogor @1ml/ litres of water is recommended.
•Epilachna beetle- The adult and grub feed on leaves and tender parts of plant leaving skeletonized patches. To control this, spraying if Endosulfan @2 ml/ litres of water is recommended.
Yield- The average yield of Cucumbers is 80-120 q/ ha.
Watermelon
Scientific name- Citrullus lanatus
Family - Cucurbitaceae
Watermelon is a summer season crop originated from South Africa. Watermelon juice contains 92% water along with minerals, vitamins, protein and carbohydrates which provides energy to the body and helps in treating cardiovascular and impotency problems.
Growing season- It is a warm season crop which is grown in tropical and subtropical regions. It grows well in temperature range of 25-35°C. It is sensitive to frost and Ideal temperature of 24-27°C is suitable for seed germination and growth of Watermelon plant. Sowing of seeds takes place during November- December.
Seed rate- Around 3.5 kg/ ha of seeds are required for growing watermelon crop with the spacing of 1- 1.5 m for hill sowing and for 2-3.5m for pit sowing.
Soil- The soil suitable for growing watermelon is sandy loam and loamy soil. Plough the land to fine tilth. Raised bed are made of 1.2 m width and 30 cm height for sowing.
Fertilizer management- Apply 20 t/ ha FYM, 55 Kg/ ha P and 55 Kg/ ha K as basal and 55 Kg/ ha N after 30 days of sowing and apply 50 kg FYM along with 100 kg neem cake before last ploughing.
Weeding- Weeding is carried out at initial stage and first weeding is done 25 days after sowing. Once the vines are spread over the ground there is no need of weeding as the vines take care of weeds.
Irrigation- The watermelon beds are irrigated prior 2 days and 5 days after sowing. The vines or any vegetative parts must not be wetted with water as it can withers them. Moisture must be maintained near the roots so that the growth of the fruit must be good.
Major disease and their management-
•Cucurbits phyllody:- The Symptoms of this disease is shortening of internodes and phyllody of flowers due to which infected plant do not bear fruits. Remove diseased plant or apply furadan 1.5kg a.i./ ha after sowing of seeds.
•Fusarium wilt:- Clorosis of leaves in first seen and then wilting of leaves takes place from bottom to top. Use resistant varieties or fumigate the soil before sowing.
Major pest and their management-
•Aphids and thrips:- They suck the sap of leaves due to which they get yellow and fell off. To control them spray thiamethoxam@5g/15 litres of water.
•Fruit fly:- Female fly lays eggs on epidermis, later the maggots feed on pulp and rott the fruit. To manage this pest, remove the affected fruit away from the field or spray neem kernal extract 50g/ litres of water at initial stage.
Yield- Average yield of 25-30 t/ ha is obtained after 120 days.
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