 |
| Production Technology of Oil Palm |
How to Grow Oil Palm
Oil Palm
Botanical name: Elaeis guineensis.
Family: Arecaceae.
Origin:
The oil palm is originated from West Africa.
Importance
Oil palm is the highest oil producer among perennial oil yielding crops. It produces two distinct oils viz, palm oil (extracted from mesocarp of fresh fruits) and palm kernel oil (from kernel). Palm oil has excellent health attributes. It is rich in vitamins A, E and is cholesterol free. It can be used in manufacture of biscuits, ice creams, soaps, detergents and shampoos and also as frying fat. Palm kernel oil has variety of industrial uses .
Variety
Broadly, there are three Indian varieties viz. Dura, Piscifera and Tenera .
Climate
• Oil palm requires a well distributed rainfall of 2500 to 4000 mm per annum.
• Minimum temperature ranges from 22°C to 24°C.
• Maximum temperature ranges from 20°C to 33°C.
• Oil palms require at least 5 to 6 hours of bright sunshine per day for growth.
• 80% of humidity for optimum growth.
Soil
Deep, well drained medium loam soil, rich in humus is the most suitable for oil palm cultivation. Optimum soil reaction is from pH 6.5 to 7.5.
Land Preparation
Land should be made weed free and 2 ploughings should be given to get the soil fine tilth stage. Supplement the field with good organic matter to make the soil rich field.
Propagation
The Propagation in oil palm cultivation is mainly by seeds and seeds are extracted from fruits using depericarper. Preheating of seeds is required for 75 days at 40°C temperature due to their high dormancy. Thereafter, seeds should be soaked in running water and make them to cool down for 4 to 5 days. The seeds start germinating if 10 to 12 days and once germinated, sprouts should be transplanted to poly bags.
In nursery raising, the single stage poly bag system is a very popular propagation method and in this process, a poly bag should be filled with top soil, sand and well rotten manure. Then sprouts should be placed at a depth of 2.5 cm in the center of the poly bag. Regular watering and mulching should be carried for proper growth of seedlings. Use recommended NPK in nursery until they are transferred to the main filed.
Planting and Spacing
Oil palm is planted in triangular system at a spacing of 9 X 9 X 9 m accommodating 143 plants in a hectare. Planting should be done in the pits with size of 60 cm X 60 cm X 60 cm. Planting can be done in any season .
Time of planting
However, the best period is June to December. Seedlings of 10-14 months age are best suited for planting.
Fertilizer Application
|
Year
|
FYM
|
Urea
|
SSP
|
MoP
|
MgSO4
|
|
1
|
50
|
0.87
|
1.25
|
0.66
|
0.12
|
|
2
|
50
|
1.74
|
2.50
|
1.33
|
0.25
|
|
3
|
50
|
2.61
|
3.75
|
2.00
|
0.50
|
|
4
|
50
|
3.00
|
5.00
|
4.00
|
0.50
|
Fertilizers are preferably applied in 3-4 split doses. Application of green leaf manure or compost is advantageous, especially where the soils are poor in organic matter.
Intercultural operation
Weed Control: Regular manual weeding or chemical weeding can be carried out in oil palm cultivation. However, chemical weeding should be done only with recommended herbicides. For effective control of weeds, Glyphosate of 700-750 ml/ha/year or 17 ml/basin should be applied. By spraying herbicide mixtures of Paraquat with Atrazine, Diuron and Monuron on ground can effectively control the weeds and this operation should be carried out twice a year.
Mulching: Mulching can be carried out to conserve the soil moisture and control the weed growth. Mulching can be done with dried leaves, coconut husk, male flowers and empty bunches.
Irrigation
Oil palm requires adequate irrigation, as it is a fast growing crop with high productivity and biomass production. For yielding palms of above 3 years age, a minimum of 150 litres per day is required. In older plantations the requirement goes upto 20 litres per day.
▲ The crop responds well to drip or micro sprinkler irrigation particularly when water is limited.
▲ If drip is installed four drippers have to be placed for each palm.
▲ If each dripper discharges 8 litre per hour, 45 hour of irrigation is sufficient to discharge 160 litre per day.
▲ Drip irrigation increases the productivity by 15-20 percent, reduces wastage of water and requires less power / fuel per irrigation compared to conventional irrigation methods.
▲ It is important to note that any physiological stress shifts sex ratio in favour of male flowers and consequently the productivity is reduced.
Inter crop
During the initial stages of plantation in oil palm i.e. upto 3rd year, some of the light feeder inter crops such as pulses, cereals, vegetables, grasses etc can be grown. Inter crop should be grown 1m away from the basin in 1st year of oil palm plantation. In two year old plantations, it should be grown 2m away, followed by 3m in the third year plantations.
Basin Management
As part of the basin management practice in the oil palm cultivation, basins of 1 meter radius, second year 2 meter radius, and the third year 3 meter radius should be made by removing the soil inside so that soil accumulation can be prevented in the collar region of the palm. For healthy roots, basins should be weed free and clean.
Pollination
The oil palm is a highly crosspollinated crop in which the insects and wind assist pollination. However, wind pollination is not sufficient and the insects like “Elaeidobius kamerunicus” assists in good fruit set and effective pollination. This weevil should be released after two and half year of planting and in case of low vigour and girth plantation, releasing the weevils after three years is advisable.
Disease and insect
• Insects: Rhinoceros beetle and Slug caterpillar, Mealy bugs etc.
• Diseases: Stem rot, Bud rot, Crown disease, Morasmius disease for fruit bunches and Gramodenus fungus, Pestalotiopsis leaf spot, Oil palm wilt etc.
Control
1. a) To control Rhinoceros beetle remove the adult beetles from the infected plants and fill the hole with a mixture of BHC 10% or DDT 10% and fine sand (1:1).
(b) Treat the breeding ground with 50% BHC or Carbaryl 50% at 350 g/3m3.
2. To control the stem rot, prune the diseased frontals and burn them.
3. To control Morasmius disease, remove the unpollinated branches when they show signs of decay and burn them.
4. Gramodenues can be controlled by removing severely affected palms along with roots from the garden. Apply 1 kg Mancoreb or Capton or Thiram in Deep trenches, 1m away from base of the palms.
5. To control the damages of Slug caterpillar, remove and burn affected leaflets and spray the plants with 40 g Carbaryl in 10 litres of water.
Harvesting
The oil palms will be ready for harvesting in 2.5 to 3 years after the plantation in the main field. Determining harvesting time is very important in oil palm cultivation as it greatly impacts the quality and quantity of oil. Harvesting can be done when the fruits on palm turn into yellowish–orange colour and 5 to 8 fruits drop on their own. The final check would be when pressing the fruits hard with finger, orange coloured oil should extrude from the palm fruits.
Harvesting takes place throughout the year and generally done in 10 to 14 days interval with the help of sharp knife or sickle. A stalk length of 5 cm should be left while harvesting the fruit bunches.
Yield
Oil palm starts bearing from 4th year onwards and its economic life varies from 30 to 35 years . The yield of oil palm varies according to age and management . Under average management conditions in a mature plantation ( 8 to 9 years old ), yield of 15-18 tonnes of fresh fruit bunches (FFBs ) per hectare is expected. Under good maintenance and management, yield upto 25-30 tonnes of FFBs per hectare is possible.
Useful Agricultural Websites