A fruit journeying from forests to farms in Yadgir

Farmers in drought-hit areas of Yadgir are finding a new solution in the custard apple, writes Vittal Shastri

In the last two years, farmers in the state have taken up cultivation of different horticulture crops, increasing their total cultivation area by at least three lakh hectares, say officials. Some of the popular fruit crops are custard apples, dragon fruit, guava and pomegranate. 

Once found dotting the land in hillocks and forest areas, custard apples are now being cultivated by drought-hit farmers in their agricultural land. 

More farmers are starting to grow these short-duration crops due to their commercial viability. They are using a multi-crop system, rather than the traditional form of agriculture, says Horticulture Department Director Ramesh D.

For instance, custard apples are being grown in farmland in Yadgir, Kalaburagi, Ballari and Vijayapura districts, as well as other parts of North Karnataka. The region is suitable for the cultivation of custard apples, as the fruits flourish in the dry and hot climate. 

Reaping profits

Thirty-year-old mechanical engineer Sandesh Salunke of Havinal village in Yadgir district left his job in Bengaluru, despite having drawn a monthly salary of Rs 1 lakh, to engage in custard apple farming. The fruit has helped him reap a profit even amidst recurring drought conditions. 

Sandesh believes he will earn at least Rs 10 lakh this year from cultivating tropical fruits. Due to rising demand, he also expects a three-fold increase in profit by growing the annual crop in the next few years.

More than 50 drought-hit farmers have started farming custard apples in Yadgir district.

Sandesh began his journey two years ago when he bought 1,500 saplings of golden custard apple from Barshi in Maharashtra, to grow it in his five acres of land. He spent Rs 2 lakh for this purpose and adopted a drip irrigation system to sustain the plants.

Women sell custard apples grown at their farms in Yadgir district.

Now, the farmer gets a yield of 10 kg per tree annually and yield is expected to be increased up to 40 kg in the next 4-5 years. Sandesh has found a market in neighbouring districts as well as Telangana for custard apples, where they are being sold at Rs 150 per kg.

“The custard apple trees can survive for 25 years if organic farming is adopted. The trees can survive only for 10-15 years if pesticides are used,” says Sandesh, adding that he had earlier suffered losses in growing paddy, due to the lack of adequate water supply.

Another farmer, Basavaraj Aladarthi, of Hasanapur village of Yadgir district has also grown 700 custard apple plants in his one acre of land. He has started earning Rs 50,000 annually. 

In Saidapur village, another engineering graduate, Mahantesh Hiremath, has left his job to cultivate custard apple. He has been earning lakhs of rupees from the more than 300 trees in his one-and-a-half acres of land. 

“I planted these trees four years ago. I can expect a revenue of around Rs 8-10 lakh this year. Many farmers are suffering losses in growing tur, sugarcane and paddy due to natural calamities. But this crop helped me avoid such losses,” he says.

Fruit auctions

Horticulture Department Deputy Director S B Goni says that the fruits used to be grown only in natural forest land in hillock regions in the district. The forest department used to auction the fruit by dividing it into eight different blocks. 

Custard apples in Yadgir

Now, custard apples are being grown by the farmers in their agricultural land. In all, the fruits are grown in more than 100 hectares in Yadgir district. This is expected to increase in the coming days due to the growing awareness among the farmers, he adds.

Meanwhile, Yadgir Deputy Conservator of Forests Kajol Patil says the department has earned Rs 10.45 lakh in revenue through the auctioning of custard apples naturally grown in the forest land in the district during the last two years.