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Kinnow mandarin orchard, Punjab Photo: placeholder pending image-fill pass

Kinnow mandarin (Punjab / Rajasthan)

Kinnow is a high-vigour mandarin hybrid of Citrus reticulata, developed in 1935 at the University of California by H. B. Frost as a cross between King (C. nobilis) and Willowleaf (C. deliciosa) mandarins, and introduced into India through PAU Ludhiana in the 1950s. It is the dominant commercial mandarin of north-western India, concentrated in the Abohar-Fazilka-Muktsar belt of Punjab, the Sri Ganganagar-Hanumangarh belt of north-west Rajasthan, and parts of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu. Kinnow has replaced much of the older Nagpur santra and seedless desi mandarin acreage in Punjab and Rajasthan over the past four decades.

Key characteristics

  • Parentage: King mandarin x Willowleaf mandarin (UCR, 1935).
  • Tree: vigorous, upright, dense canopy; commercial yield from year 5.
  • Fruit: medium to large (150-220 g), oblate, deep orange rind at maturity, juicy, sweet pulp with 11-13 deg Brix and 0.7-1.0% acidity; 15-25 seeds per fruit.
  • Maturity: late mid-season; harvest in north India runs from late December through February.
  • Yield: 80-120 kg per tree at full bearing (10-12 years); 20-25 t/ha at standard 6 m x 6 m spacing.

Cultivation

Kinnow is propagated by T-budding on Jatti khatti (a local rough-lemon selection, Rough Lemon Jamberi Rootstock) in Punjab and on rough lemon or Carrizo citrange in Rajasthan and Himachal. PAU Ludhiana recommends 6 m x 6 m spacing (277 trees/ha) on light alluvial soils and 6 m x 3 m on heavy soils. Drip irrigation with two emitters per tree, delivering 60-80 L/day in summer, is standard in the Abohar belt. Annual fertiliser for a 10-year-old tree is 800 g N + 300 g P2O5 + 600 g K2O, split into three doses timed to flowering, fruit set and pre-harvest. Kinnow flowers once a year (Feb-Mar in Punjab) in a ambia bahar-equivalent flush, so deficit irrigation in November-December is used to consolidate flowering.

Pest and disease profile

Citrus canker (Citrus Canker Xanthomonas), citrus greening / huanglongbing (Citrus Greening Hlb Candidatus) and citrus tristeza virus (Citrus Tristeza Virus India) are the principal disease threats; CTV is the major cause of the decline of older Kinnow orchards on susceptible rootstocks. Citrus leaf miner, Asian citrus psylla (Citrus Psylla Diaphorina Citri), citrus blackfly and orchard mites are the main pests. PAU recommends indexed budwood from its accredited nurseries, two pre-monsoon copper oxychloride sprays for canker, and need-based imidacloprid spray for psylla on tender flush.

Adoption and use

Kinnow is consumed almost entirely as fresh fruit; about 60% of Punjab's production moves to Bangladesh and Gulf export markets, the rest to north Indian wholesale mandis. The Abohar-Fazilka cluster runs more than 200 wax-and-grade pack-houses and is the largest organised citrus pack-house cluster in India. Kinnow juice processing is hindered by limonin bitterness that develops on standing, and remains a small share of the crop.

See also: Citrus Nagpur Mandarin Vidarbha, Citrus Tristeza Virus India, Citrus Greening Hlb Candidatus, Rough Lemon Jamberi Rootstock.

Sources

  1. Package of Practices for Fruits. Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana.
  2. Kinnow cultivation. ICAR-Central Citrus Research Institute, Nagpur.
  3. Area and Production Statistics for Horticulture. National Horticulture Board.