General Information :

• Guava is an ornamental, evergreen shrub or small tree with an open crown,
• The tree often has low drooping branches and root suckers.
• Bark smooth, green to red-brown, peeling off in thin flakes
• Leaves opposite green in color
• Flowers solitary creamy white in color.
• Fruit a berry, globose, ovoid, green to yellow; mesocarp fleshy, white, yellow, pink or red, sour to sweet and aromatic.
• Seeds numerous, yellowish, embedded in a pink or white pulp.

Distribution :

• It is introduce to India  and widely cultivated in all parts of India

Habitat : Natural forest and Riverine ecosystem.

Soil : Well drained soils are the best suited for guava cultivation. It can tolerate salinity and alkalinity.

Soil pH : 5.5- 7

Altitude :Up to 1000 m (MSL)

Rainfall :1000-2000 mm

Temperature : 15-45 deg. C

Terrain : Plain

Habit : Deciduous tree

Natural Regeneration :

 

•  Naturally regenerates by root suckers.

 

Artificial Regeneration :

• Propagation by Layers is used as planting material.

Seed collection and Storage :

• Seed storage behaviour is orthodox; seeds at 6% mc survive 24 hours in liquid nitrogen; no loss in viability following 66 %.
• months hermetic storage at -20 deg. C with 5.5% mc.

Seed Treatment :

• Seed capsules are clipped from trees when the capsules begin to split.
• The capsules are sun dried until they split and then shelled by hand.
• The seed is further dried and then stored in sealed containers in a refrigerator, because viability is lost quickly at ambient air temperatures

Nursery Technique :

Air layering  

• Air layering is also known as ‘goottee’ which is mainly practiced during rainy season (June to September)
• Survival capacity of layers 80-85%.
• For air layering 1 year old branches of 1 to 1.5 m length are selected.
• A ring of bark of 2.5 to 3.0 cm long is removed from 45 cm away from the tip.
• The rooting hormone IBA (root promoting plant growth hormone) @ 4000-5000 ppm is applied at the upper cut end of girdled area.
• The girdled area is covered with moist sphagnum moss and wrapped with polythene tape.
• Rooting starts within 3-5 weeks.
• After 6 to 8 weeks when sufficient roots are visible through the transparent       tape, the layer is removed from the branch by means of cutting the stem below the girdled area in stages
• The polythene film is removed from the finally severed rooted stem and potted and kept in the shade until new leaves appear.
• When the new flushes are produced, the plants can be transplanted in the field.

Plantation technique :

• The planting is distributed from June - December.
• A spacing 5 - 6m in either way is generally followed.
• Plant the layers with the ball of earth in the center of pit of 45 cm x 45 cm x 45 cm size filled with FYM 10 Kg neem cake 1 Kg and top soil.

Care & Disease Control :

All heavy pruning should be done during the dormant/winter season, but some light pruning to open up the plants and remove suckers can be done in the summer, usually in August.

Irrigation :

For proper growth and survival it is necessary to give one or two waterings after planting. This is specifically required in arid regions. Irrigation after planting is not a prerequisite in areas having sufficient soil moisture and precipitation. Higher survival rate and better rate of growth is reported when soil and water conservation measures are also adopted

Recommended Harvest :

• Layers come to bearing in 2 - 3 years.
• The first crop can be harvested during February – July and the second one during September – January.

Yield :

• The crop yields about 25 t/ha.

Agro Forestory :

• Performed very well when intercropped with fodder crops such as maize, sorghum and cowpeas.

Major uses :

• Irrigate copiously immediately after planting, again on third day and afterwards once in 10 days or as and when necessary.
• Pruning is to be done during September-October and February – March to encourage more laterals.

Market details :

• Approximately Rs. 50000 – Rs.60000 /ton

Carbon stock :

0.0053 tC/tree