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| Cultivation
Practices |
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Chilli |
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The native land of Chilli is considered to be Mexico
with secondary origin in Gautemala. Chilli is an
annual sub herb belonging to the family Solanaceae.
It is also called as hot pepper, red pepper, cayenne
pepper, capsicum, etc. Most of the cultivated varieties
in India belongs to the species Capsicum annum.
Chilli of commerce is the dried pod.
India is the only country rich in many varieties
of chillies with different quality factors. Chilli
is the universal spice of India. It is grown in
almost all the states in India.
Chilli has two important commercial qualities. If
some varieties are famous for red colour because
of the pigment casanthin, others are known for biting
pungency attributed by capsaicin. Chilli imparts
pungency and colour to the dishes. It is an important
ingredient in day to day curries, pickles and chutnies.
It is also a rich source of Vitamin A, C and E and
assists in digestion. It also prevents heart diseases
by dilating blood vessels.
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Chilli requires
warm and humid climate for its best growth and dry
weather during the maturation of fruits. It grows
in wide range of altitudes ranging from sea level
upto nearly 2100 m above MSL. It is generally a
cold weather crop but can be grown throughout the
year under irrigation. Black soils which retain
moisture for long periods are suitable for rainfed
crop whereas well drained chalka soils and sandy
loams are good under irrigated condition.
Chilli is propagted by seeds. Direct sowing is recommended
for rainfed crop under retentive black soils. For
direct sown crop, the seeds are drilled by the end
of July of first week of August. Seed rate is 6.25
kg per hectare. After 30-40 days of sowing, thinning
and gap filling is done on a cloudy day. Plant to
plat distance of 15 cm is maintained in the rows
which are 56 cm apart.
For transplanted crop, seedling are grown in raised
beds and 40-45 days old seedlings are used for transplantation.
For cold weather crop, transplanting is done during
the first fortnight of September. Seedlings are
transplanted at a spacing of 56 X 56 cm or 60 X
60 cm or 90 x 60 cm depending upon the soil fertility.
10 tonnes of Farm Yard Manure is applied as basal
dose per hectare. Sheep penning @ 2500-3000 sheep
per hectare is done if available and neem cake @
3-4 quintal per hectare is applied with fertilizers
at the time of final ploughing. For rainfed crop,
60 kg N, 30 kg P2O5 and 50 kg K2O per hectare are
applied as basal dose at the time of last ploughing.
Whenever green manure crop is raised, phosphate
fertilizer is applied at the time of sowing of green
manure crop. Depending upon the rainfall, a top
dressing of 20-30 kg N per hectare is done in two
split doses by placement.
For irrigated crop, a basal dose of 60 kg N, 60
kg P2O5 and 30 kg K2O are applied per hectare at
the time of final ploughing. After 45 days of planting,
three split doses of 20 kg N plus 10 kg K2O each
are applied at 15 days interval followed by irrigation.
Later on two more split doses of N @ 20 kg per hectare
is given. In the soils where Zinc deficiency is
noticed, Zinc sulphate @ 25 kg per hectare is applied.
Zinc sulphate can also be sprayed @ 2 gm per litre
of water using 1250 gm Zinc sulphate per hectare.
Chilli requires frequent inter cultivation. In direct
sown crop, blade harrow is worked starting from
30th day of sowing. Four intercultivations are needed
at 10 days interval alternated with blade harrow
and tyned harrow or junior hoe. Final intercultivation
is given by the country plough. For an irrigated
crop, intercultivation is given either by junior
hoe or light plough after each irrigation. Intercultivation
is followed by hand weeding to check the weed growth.
Chilli cannot withstand heavy moisture. Hence irrigation
should be given only when necessary. Frequent and
heavy irrigations induce lanky vegetative growth
and cause flower shedding. The number of irrigations
and interval between irirgation depend upon soil
and climatic conditions. If the plants show drooping
of leaves at 4 p.m., it is an indication that irrigation
is needed.
Thrips, mites, aphids, root grubs and pod borers
are the major pests in chillies. Fruit rot &
Die back, bacterial leaf spot, powdery mildew and
mosaic disease ( caused by virus) are major diseases
infecting chilli. |
Harvesting is done
when the pods are well ripened and partially withered
in the plant itself. The harvested pods have to
be kept in heaps either indoor or in shade away
from direct sun light for 2 or 3 days so as to develop
uniform red colour. Then the pods are dried in the
sun spreading them on clean dry polythene sheets,
cemented / concrete drying yards etc. Pods have
to be spread out in thin layers for uniform drying
with frequent stirring which is essential for preventing
mold growth and discolouration. The material has
to be heaped and covered by clean gunny bags / polythene
sheets. The moisture content of dry pods is to be
kept at 8- 10 %. Improved drying system could be
used to ensure cleanliness and uniform colour of
the product.
Well dried pods after removing the extraneous matters
like plant parts, etc should be packed in clean,
dry gunny bags and stored ensuring protection from
dampness. Dunnage has to be provided to stack the
packed bags to prevent moisture ingress from the
floor. Care should be taken to stack the bags at
50 –60 cm away from the wall. Storing chillies
for longer period may lead to deterioration. However,
if cold storage facilities are used, the product
may be stored for 8-10 months. Insects, rodents
and other animals should be effectively prevented
from getting access to the premises where chilli
is stored. |
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