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Kadiyam nursery belt (East Godavari)

Kadiyam and the neighbouring village Kadiyapulanka, on the western bank of the Godavari in East Godavari district (now spanning East Godavari and the new Konaseema district), Andhra Pradesh, form one of Asia's largest concentrated nursery clusters. Hundreds of family-run nurseries propagate grafted mango, sapota, guava, citrus, coconut, exotic fruits and ornamentals, supplying planting material across India by road and rail.

Location and scale

  • Location: Kadiyam mandal, East Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh, pincode 533 126.
  • Scale: hundreds of registered nurseries operating along the Godavari bank, with a combined production reaching into tens of millions of grafts and seedlings per year. The cluster is repeatedly cited as one of Asia's largest nursery hubs.
  • Soil and water: the alluvial Godavari floodplain provides deep, well-drained loam and abundant irrigation, conditions that suit nursery propagation of woody and ornamental species.

Specialisation

Production is concentrated in grafted fruit plants (mango, sapota, guava, custard apple, citrus, jamun), grafted ornamental and avenue trees, coconut and arecanut seedlings, indoor plants, palms and a range of exotic fruit species. Leading nurseries with long histories include Sri Vijaya Durga Nursery (in operation since 1948), Gowthami Nursery (since 1992) and the ARKA Nursery group, which anchor wholesale supply chains to retail nurseries and government horticulture departments across India.

Adoption context

The cluster supplies the certified planting material for new orchard plantings across Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra and beyond. State horticulture missions and centrally sponsored schemes including MIDH route nursery procurement through Kadiyam suppliers. The belt also exports ornamentals and palms to the Gulf region.

Limitations

Quality varies across the cluster; not all nurseries follow rigorous true-to-type identification, and varietal mix-ups have been reported, particularly in mango. Recognised nurseries operating under NHB or state horticulture certification offer more reliable provenance for high-value orchard establishment.

See also: Fruit Research Station Sangareddy, Grafted Brinjal Seedlings, Grafted Ridge Gourd, Kashmir Saffron Corms.

References

  1. ARKA Nursery Kadiyam. ARKA Nursery, Kadiyam.
  2. Grafted Fruit Plant Nurseries in Kadiyam. Justdial East Godavari business directory.