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How to Start an Orange Farming in Nigeria
Oranges are one of the nutritious and succulent edible fruits
seen in orchards or compounds in most parts of the world. Orange
is the commonest fruit that can be grown in a small space or in
the greenhouse if the climatic condition of the residence is not
warm.
Going into the agricultural business of planting oranges is good
but it’s better to have the knowledge of the necessary
requirements that will make you succeed. The best way to grow
healthy orange is to buy a young orange tree or seedling.
You can learn how to plant the orange seed directly in
the soil.
Get a Site for Your
Orange Farm
You can start small and then advance later; you can purchase a
plot of land which can accommodate about 40 to 50 orange trees.
After you have got a suitable land for your orange, the next
thing to do is to clear the bush age get it ready for
plantation.
Check the soil nutrients. If there is lost nutrient in the soil
where you intent growing your fruit, it is during the land
preparation that you have to replenish it.
In selecting a land, there are other factors you have to
consider. Is the farm accessible by vehicles? If not so, it will
be difficult for you to transport your goods to the market or
buyers to come to your farm.
Another thing is the pH value of the soil. Oranges are tropical
fruits that can grow well in most parts of the world, just make
sure that the land (soil) has a normal pH value of 6.0 to 7.0
and that it is fertile enough, though you can increase its
fertility by adding manure and fertilizers.
How many orange trees can be planted in an acre i.e. per unit of
land area?
Orange trees planted typically can produce an estimated average
of 25, 000 oranges while a conventional high-density orange tree
will produce double the yield which is orange fruits per unit of
land area.
Nevertheless, planting 84 citrus trees (orange) per unit of the
land area produces around 100,000 oranges using tree plantation
growing and pruning methods.
Best Soil Type For
Orange:
Oranges are best planted in loamy soil so that water can easily
be drained down into the deep roots and can get absorbed as
well. It is good to have this in mind so as to know when soil
factor affects the plant. Testing the soil before planting is
also a good idea to make sure that it is suitable for growing of
this citrus fruit or not.
Another soil factor to look into is the temperature. The best
for this plant is a room temperature of 26°C is ideal for the
enhancement of orange tree growth.
Note that high temperatures may prove critical to orange tree
output.
Soil texture is also considered as orange trees always prefer
light to medium textured soil for high productivity.
Climatic Condition For Orange:
Orange farming is said to be favorable under a dry climatic
condition. They are therefore grown well in tropical and
sub-tropical regions of the world to a height of 1,500 meters.
Orange trees are therefore said to climate-sensitive plants
because they are associated with specific temperature
requirements. They are grown worldwide but under the right
climatic condition.
Orange Varieties
It is good to know that selecting a choice of highly productive
orange variety is directly proportional to the output and the
income you will make from the fruits.
If you are ready to make a huge income from orange farming,
always target a fast-growing and high yielding variety of orange
which always gives a good amount of output. Considering the
climatic condition of your area, you can select among the best
topmost.
How many times a year does an orange tree bear fruit?
Some orange trees do not produce fruits in a continual process
throughout the year. The fruit cycling takes up to 10 months for
some of the varieties of oranges mentioned above to produce one
crop of fruit in one year.
Citrus blooming season especially the big navel oranges are
usually once in a year during the spring period.
Water is an Optimum Requirement
Just as other plants need water to survive, water is an optimum
requirement that orange trees need to do best. The yield from
orange trees is high when the trees are situated in areas that
receive up to 45 inches of rainfall per year. In a case whereby
they don’t remain saturated for a long period of time, orange
trees can stand up to 60 inches of rainfall.
Though orange trees can tolerate prolonged shortage in water
supply and can produce well when grown under dry conditions but
soil that is dry for a long period tends to reduce the
production quality and the amount of water in the fruits.
Growing Orange from the Seed
It is vital that you know how to grow an orange from seed and
the necessary things it needs. Starting an orange farm with the
seed growing will provide a better experience planting it from
the beginning.
Growing of oranges is best carried out during the raining season
because it needs enough water to grow well and avoid the plants
from dying as well. You can also make use of an irrigation
system to supply enough water that the plant needs.
You can achieve this if you have a proper understanding of
problems associated with growing a plant from the seed. Once you
understand it clearly that it could take the tree many years
(between 4 to 10 years) to bear fruit for the first time and
other problems, you can follow the procedures below.
i. Buy orange fruit
of a variety with seeds then cut open carefully with a knife.
Avoid breaking the seeds inside. Wash gently in running water to
remove the pulp from the orange, soak in water overnight to keep
them moist until you are ready to plant.
ii.
Plant each seed about 1.2cm beneath a well-drained soil surface
prepared in a soil-mix inside a small container that is a ½ inch
deep in moist potting soil. The soil you prepared for it should
be a type that can drain water as quickly as possible when
watered.
iii.
Ensure appropriate sunlight exposure. It will do best whether
indoors or outdoors but should be under the temperature between
24 to 29°C. Sunlight is always the best way to warm the soil to
the correct level.
iv. It
is a good option to add fertilizer at least once in a week to
the soil as you watch the germination of the seeds.
v.
Check the sprouts so as to remove the weaker one amongst them.
An orange seed is likely to give out 3 sprouts during
germination which among them will have a smaller one that is
always slow in growth. This weak sprout is usually cut off while
the 2 fast-growing ones are left in the container.
vi.
Check the seedling always to know when it has grown to be
planted in another container or to an outdoor location where it
will be left for fruit production.
.
Fertilizer Application
One thing is to apply fertilizers to plants and another thing is
to know when to apply it and the suitable one for such crops.
To get a better outcome, try and know what essential nutrients
like minerals that an orange tree needs to grow and develop
well.
This will make you channel your idea on the type of fertilizer
to use so that you will supply the plants with the needed
nutrients to avoid malnutrition.
Orange Tree Care & Management
How you care and manage your orange tree will determine the
productivity strength and how profitable you will find the
orange farming business.
Oranges, just like any other plants are affected by some
diseases and pests, such diseases include rotting of the roots,
gummosis, and others such as collar rot, damping off and twig
blight.
Some of the pests are a snail, citrus leafminer and thrips,
blackfly, etc. Care and management of orange trees simply mean
the prevention of the trees from pests and diseases mentioned
above.
Having this in mind will help you be on the lookout for such
diseases and pests so that you can effectively treat it, control
and manage them on time without much damage to the fruit tree.
How long do orange trees live? is another similar question about
orange farming.
The productivity lifespan of orange trees is much longer among
other fruit trees grown worldwide. A family-owned nursery ( Four
Winds Growers) that is into citrus and edible fruit production
postulated that lifespan of a properly managed citrus tree
including orange is 50 years and above.
Not just that they can stay alive, but will still be producing
fruits which are not common for all fruit-bearing trees.
Harvesting of Orange
Actually, a fully grown orange tree gets mature at the age of
one year and the fruits start falling from their trees when they
ripen as well. The fruits should be picked when they start
falling down and others that are still on the tree should be
plucked down during the first harvest as well.
Experiments from citrus cultivators have shown that the number
of 50 oranges can be obtained per each tree during the initial
harvest. However, after good establishment and proper management
500 number of fruits can be obtained per each tree of the
orange.
How long do oranges take to grow or bear fruit?
People always ask this kind of question which is not wrong at
all. The answer is that it takes 3 for an orange tree that has
been grafted onto rootstock to bear fruits but if you are
growing the orange tree from the seed, it will take up to 15
years to start producing fruits.
The seed starts its growth in a container in which the seedling
is later transferred to a bigger container. Finally, it will be
taken to a ground location where it will stay for like 3 to 4
years before bearing fruits.
For anyone who wants to indulge in this profitable farming
business should know that patience is greatly required because
it is a perennial crop and needs adequate skills in the
maintenance and cultivating of such fruits.
Orange is one of the most consumed fruits in Nigeria. There is
hardly a household in Nigeria that doesn’t consume oranges. Its
demand continues to grow nationwide and globally. As a result,
orange farming forms a profitable business venture for
interested farmers and entrepreneurs.
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