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Taking care of Allium flower bulbs

by Sanjay Chaurasia | | in

You need to take care of Allioum flower bulbs in various areas such as fertilization, watering and weeding.

Fertilization
Perennial species of Alliums should be fertilized at least twice a year. Some species like A.cepa and A.sativum need a heavy dose of fertilizer for better yield. Fertilizer requirement depends on type of soil and agro climatic conditions. Farm yard manure @ 5kg/sqm, Nitrogen 10-15gm/sqm,Phosphorus@5-8gm/sqm and potash@5gm/sqm is generally recommended.

FYM should be added into the soil one month before planting and full amount of Phosphorus (K) and half dose of Nitrogen is added just before planting. Remaining half dose of Nitrogen is added one month after planting. Some of the minor nutrients like Zinc (1-3ppm), Boron (0.5-1.00ppm) is recommended for higher yield and quality improvement.

Watering
It depends upon growing stage of plant, soil type and climatic conditions. Alliums are shallow rooted crop in which roots are confined within 8cm of the soil surface. Irrigation starts when the leaves emerge above the ground or just after transplanting. Delay in irrigation may cause seedling mortality up to 80-90%. Watering is very essential during active growth of plants and it is continued till flowering and bulb formation. Its scarcity at this stage can drastically affect the yield. Simultaneously, excessive moisture favours incidence of purple blotch particularly when the active growth is over. If the field remains dry for a longer period, it may cause bulb splitting and early maturity. Hence frequent light irrigation at weekly interval promotes proper bulb development and better yield.

Weeding
Alliums are planted very closely to keep the crop weed-free. Weeding is necessary especially at the initial stage of plant growth. Hand weeding is practiced in early stage of development but it becomes very difficult and expensive during later stage. Therefore, chemical weed control along with hand weeding is recommended. Timely removal of dead flowers prevents them becoming the host for pest.