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YSR Kadapa sweet-orange (citrus) belt Photo: Devil Imran · Pexels License · source ↗

YSR Kadapa sweet-orange (citrus) belt

YSR Kadapa district is the largest sweet-orange (Mosambi / Batavia) producing belt of Andhra Pradesh and one of the three principal Mosambi clusters of India along with Marathwada (Maharashtra) and Nalgonda (Telangana). The crop is concentrated in the Pulivendula, Vempalle, Rayachoti, Mylavaram, Veerapunayunipalle and Vemula mandals, and forms the backbone of the perennial-fruit economy of Rayalaseema. The Government of Andhra Pradesh has notified Mosambi as a focus horticulture crop for the district under successive state horticulture missions.

Geography and soils

The belt sits in the leeward rain-shadow of the Eastern Ghats with average annual rainfall of 650-750 mm, mostly from the southwest and northeast monsoons. Soils are predominantly red-gravelly loams and lateritic earths underlain by limestone in pockets, with pH 7.0-8.5. Surface and groundwater are calcareous; bore-well irrigation supplements monsoon rains. The combination of light soils, hot dry summers and limited frost makes the belt well-suited to sweet orange.

Cultivation pattern

Most orchards are planted with Mosambi (Citrus Mosambi Sweet Lime) on rough-lemon (Rough Lemon Jamberi Rootstock) or Rangpur lime rootstock at 6 x 6 m spacing, increasingly intensified to 5 x 5 m and high-density 4 x 2 m blocks in newer plantings under YSR HU advisories. Drip irrigation, fertigation and mulching are standard in commercial orchards. Ambe bahar (flowering after January-February drought stress, harvest in October-December) is the dominant bahar in the district, with smaller Mrig and Hasta bahar plantings on irrigation-rich plots.

Pests and diseases

The belt's principal problems are Phytophthora foot rot and gummosis (Citrus Gummosis, Phytophthora Foot Rot Citrus) on poorly-drained patches, citrus psylla (Citrus Psylla Diaphorina Citri) as the vector of greening (HLB), citrus leaf-miner on young flushes and orchard mites in the hot summer. Citrus canker is reported on irrigated, humid plots. ICAR-CCRI Nagpur and YSR HU Tirupati jointly run extension trials in Pulivendula on rootstock evaluation, HLB indexing and integrated nutrient management.

Markets and processing

Harvested fruit is moved by truck to wholesale markets at Pulivendula, Rayachoti, Kadapa town and Bangalore. A growing fraction is contracted to juice processors and pulp units in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Tirupati supplying the ready-to-serve (RTS) beverage industry. APMC Pulivendula and the Pulivendula Fruit Market are the main price-discovery nodes. Marketed surplus is highly seasonal and prone to glut during the October-December peak; YSR HU and APHorticulture have promoted cold storage, grading lines and mini juice units to smooth realisation.

See also: Citrus Mosambi Sweet Lime, Rough Lemon Jamberi Rootstock, Citrus Gummosis, Citrus Psylla Diaphorina Citri, Phytophthora Foot Rot Citrus.

Sources

  1. District Horticulture Profile, YSR Kadapa. Dr YSR Horticultural University.
  2. Andhra Pradesh State Horticulture Database. APHorticulture.