Geranium cultivation for its fragrant flowers. It is an excellent yielding crop at a low cost. Once its crop is ready, yield can be obtained for 4 to 5 years. Geranium has minimal water requirement, which is also less labour-intensive farming. Oil is easily obtained from Geranium stems, leaves and flowers, which is also a good income source. Every year only 5 tonnes of Geranium is produced in India, while the consumption is around 149 tonnes, so the cultivation of Geranium can be profitable.
What is Geranium
It is a plant native to South Africa, whose chemical name is Pelargonium gravitons. Both its plant and the flowers that grow on the plants are fragrant. This flower is also called the rose of the poor. There is a lot of demand for geranium oil in the market, which is used for other purposes besides medicine. The machine is used to extract the oil from the flowers. Its oil has a rose-like scent, used to make beauty products, aromatherapy, perfumes and scented soaps. Moreover, there are so many implements which fulfil all farming tasks like Disc Plough and others. Also, all types of implements come at an economical price range.
No prime land is required for the cultivation of Geranium. But the climate should be typical for good yield. It can be cultivated easily in areas where rainfall is between 100 to 150 cm. The result is good in dry and loamy soils, and P.H. The value ranges from 5.5 to 7.5.
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Field Preparation
If you want to get yield from the geranium field for a long time, prepare the area properly. First, the field is cleaned, and deep ploughing is done. Remove the weeds present in the field after ploughing. After the first ploughing, apply cow dung and mix the manure in the soil by doing two to three-slant ploughing. After that, soften the ground by using water. By ploughing with a rotavator on soft land, the soil becomes friable. After this, to avoid the problem of water logging, level the ground by putting a flat in the field.
Farm Nutrition
Geranium is a foliar crop, and for the proper development of leaves, a good amount of fertiliser must be given in the field. Three hundred quintals of decomposed cow dung should be applied in the field per hectare. To fulfil chemical fertilisers, spray 60 kg of phosphorus, 40 kg of potash and 150 kg of nitrogen per hectare. In this, 30 kg of potash, phosphorus and nitrogen ratio has to be given at an interval of 15 to 20 days.
Plant Preparation
Geranium plants are transplanted from plant to plant. For this, a pen has to be prepared. Before growing geranium plants, the beds are ready, and the beds should be 8 to 10 cm high. After that, add manure and fertiliser to it. From September to October, the twigs are selected, and those as thick as pencil size with 5 to 7 knots are cut and separated. In the same way, many plants are made from one plant. Finally, sow the cut branches in the field.
Planting Seedlings
After preparing the plants in the beds, they are planted in the field. Plants are transplanted in the prepared area after 45 to 60 days at a distance of 50 cm. Before transplanting the seedlings, they should be treated with Bavistin or Thiram so that the plants do not get fungal diseases.
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Irrigation
Geranium plants require moderate irrigation. Apply water to the field immediately after planting the seedlings so the plants can develop properly. After this, according to the land in the area, give water at an interval of 5 to 6 days. After that, water the geranium plants according to their need. Due to unnecessary watering, the risk of disease in the plant increases.
Cost of Geranium Cultivation
If you cultivate Geranium by sed method, then it costs you 2 rupees per plant. It costs 8 to 10 thousand rupees to prepare the seed. Farmer brothers prepare 20 to 22 thousand saplings from 4 to 5 thousand plants, which can be easily planted in one acre of field. Farmer brothers must spend up to 80 thousand rupees for a crop of 4 months.
Geranium Oil Price
Geranium plants are ready for harvesting leaves after 3 to 4 months. Farmer brothers take 8 to 10 liters of oil yield from one acre of field. The average market price is 20 thousand rupees per kg. 2 lakhs is earned from only 4 months of the crop since this crop gives profit for 4 to 5 years, due to which the yield of the farmer increases.
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