Kinnow is an important fruit of Punjab and has a huge contribution in the agricultural economy of Punjab. But the yield and quality of kinnow depend on pruning after harvesting. The main reason for pruning is to make the plant airy and bright. In this, some branches that will bear fruit next year and unnecessary branches are harvested.
Need for pruning
To get good yield and quality fruits from Kinnow year after year, its pruning is very important. There are two main divisions in Kinnow. These eruptions occur in the spring (February-March) and rainy (July-August) seasons. If the weather is favorable, eruption may occur 3 to 4 times.
If not pruned, the plants become very dense due to which sunlight and air are unable to reach inside. Due to this, the inner canopy of the plant does not bear fruit. Fruit yield reduces and its quality also gets affected. The outer fruits of the umbrella get spoiled due to dark storm and heat. For this reason, pruning of Kinnow is necessary every year . Pruning also prevents pests and diseases.
The right time for pruning
Late winter or early spring is the most favorable time for pruning the Kinnow plant. Kinnow should not be pruned at the time of excessive growth.
Method and method of pruning
In a 1 to 2-year-old plant, keep plucking or cutting the shoots emerging from the roots continuously. The branches of 3 to 4-year-old plants should be tender, straight and thorny and the branches touching the ground should be cut. Many gardeners harvest a lot of kinnow, but with this the health of the plant also deteriorates and many shoots are formed. Therefore, the branch that goes beyond the shape of the plant or branches off from the original branch should be cut off.
5-year-old plants start bearing fruits and continue to grow every year. The fruit always appears on one-year-old shoots. Therefore, thin, dry, diseased and unnecessary branches should be removed from 5 to 10-year-old plants. Cutting sick dry branches prevents cancer and fruit fall. The umbrella is fully developed in a 10-year-old plant. Harvest 10-15% of the one-year-old shoots from these plants. With this, there is provision for air and sunlight to enter the canopy of the plant and the branches inside the canopy of the plant also bear fruit. In large and dense gardens of 20 to 25 years old, apart from natural pruning, skylights can be made by cutting 1 to 2 branches on the sunny side.
Keep cutting levels higher in denser orchards (20’×10′). In these gardens, plants get mixed together after 10 years, which leads to the development of pests and diseases. In such gardens, apart from natural pruning, the tight branches of the plant can be cut to a length of 1-1.5 feet. With this, air and sunlight reach inside the plant and the attack of pests and diseases also reduces. But with this method, in the next year after harvesting, many branches emerge from each end of the cut, out of which, except the right branches, the rest should be cut from the root itself.
Many times there is a lot of fruit in one year due to which the yield in the next year is less. To break this cycle, more harvesting should be done in the year with low yield so that next year the fruits come in balanced quantity instead of too much.
Along with the method of cutting, it is also very important to select the tools used for it. Twigs up to one inch thick can be cut with small shears, 1 to 2-inch thick twigs can be cut with large handled shears and branches thicker than that can be cut with a saw. In dense and large orchards, harvesting can also be done by machine.