Crop guide

Guava

1. Land Preparation Pits 2 x 2 x 2 ft with farmyard manure, spacing 18 x 18 ft. Guava tolerates a wider range of soil than most fruit, including mildly saline land. 2. Sowing Time & Method Plant in February–March or August–September.

Both Sowing Feb–Mar Harvest Jul–Aug 100–150 maund per acre

Land Preparation

Pits 2 x 2 x 2 ft with farmyard manure, spacing 18 x 18 ft. Guava tolerates a wider range of soil than most fruit, including mildly saline land.

Sowing Time & Method

Plant in February–March or August–September. Varieties: Gola, Surahi, Sadabahar.

Seed Rate & Treatment

Grafted or layered plants from a registered nursery.

Fertilizer

Per bearing tree: 25–30 kg farmyard manure, 1 kg urea, 1 kg DAP, 0.5 kg SOP, split after each crop.

Irrigation

Every 15 days in summer. Withholding water for a few weeks after the rainy-season crop pushes the tree into the more valuable winter crop.

Weed Control

Weed Damage Control Product
Bermuda Grass (Khabbal) Knits a grass mat over the basin and takes the water and fertiliser from guava's shallow feeder roots. Scrape the basin clean, then put the mulch back
Purple Nutsedge (Deela) Pushes up through the mulch after every irrigation and takes the water and food exactly where the tree's roots feed. Pick the tubers out when the basin is hoed
Horse Purslane (Itsit) Covers the basin after the rains and drinks the irrigation before it soaks down to guava's shallow feeder roots. Hoe the basin clean after the rains, while it is still flat and shallow-rooted
Congress Grass (Gajar Booti) Grows tall in the alleys in the monsoon and shades the young plants, taking the orchard's water and feed. Slash the inter-row before it sets seed
Johnson Grass (Baru) Its clumps in the alleys take the orchard's water and fertiliser right through the summer. Dig the clumps out, rhizomes and all, and rake the broken pieces out of the loosened soil and off the field — then dig the regrowth again three to four weeks later; pieces left behind turn one clump into many

Keep the basin clean; mulch to hold moisture.

Insect Pests

Fruit fly is the main problem in the rainy-season crop, which is why the winter crop is more profitable. Mealybug and bark-eating caterpillar also occur.

Diseases

Guava wilt is the serious one — a branch or the whole tree yellows and dies, and the soil stays infected. Remove and burn affected trees and do not replant guava in the same spot.

Harvesting

Pick when the skin turns from dark to light green with a yellow tinge. Guava does not improve after picking, so timing on the tree decides the quality.