Fruits – SS2 Horticulture and Crop Production Lesson Note (Third Term)

Fruit crops are cultivated plants grown mainly for their edible fruits, such as mango, citrus, banana and pineapple.

Behavioural objectives

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

1. define fruit crops and name the four fruit crops studied;
2. state the planting material used for mango, citrus, banana and pineapple;
3. distinguish between grafting and budding;
4. give the spacing recommended for mango, citrus and pineapple;
5. describe the sign that each fruit is ready for harvest;
6. state the general rules for fruit farmers.

Which fruit crops grow well in Nigeria?

The “Big Four” fruit crops grown widely in Nigeria are mango, citrus, banana and pineapple.

• Mango: a large permanent tree crop.
• Citrus: a tree crop that includes oranges, tangerines, lemons and limes.
• Banana (and plantain): a giant herb with no woody trunk.
• Pineapple: a low-growing herb with sharp, spiky leaves.

What are grafting and budding?

Grafting and budding are ways of joining part of a good plant to the root of a strong plant to make one new plant.

• Grafting: a piece of shoot (the scion) from a good plant is joined to the root part (the rootstock) of another plant. Mango is grafted.
• Budding: a single bud from a good plant is fixed onto the rootstock. Citrus is budded.

How are the four fruit crops grown?

Each of the four fruit crops has its own planting material, spacing, care and harvesting sign.

How is mango grown?

Mango is a permanent tree that can bear fruit for over 50 years.

• Planting material: grafted seedlings. A mango seed can be planted, but it takes a long time to fruit.
• Spacing: 9 m × 9 m, because mango trees grow very large.
• Maintenance: prune (cut off) dead branches so the tree stays healthy and sunlight reaches the middle.
• Harvesting sign: the fruit changes from dark green to light green or yellow.
• Harvesting method: use a fruit picker (a net on a long pole) so the fruit does not fall and bruise.

How is citrus grown?

Citrus crops are fruit trees such as orange, tangerine and lime, and they are rich in vitamin C.

• Nursery: seeds are started in a nursery. Most farmers prefer budded citrus.
• Time to fruit: budded citrus fruits in about 3 years, against about 7 years for seed-grown trees.
• Transplanting: move seedlings to the field at the start of the rainy season.
• Spacing: 7 m × 7 m.
• Pest: the citrus leaf miner, a tiny worm-like larva that makes snake-like lines on the leaves.
• Harvesting method: twist the fruit gently or use a clipper. Pulling hard tears the skin and the fruit rots quickly.

How is banana grown?

Banana is a giant herb, not a true tree, because it has no woody trunk.

• Structure: the “stem” is made of many leaf bases wrapped tightly together.
• Planting material: suckers, the young plants that grow at the base of the mother plant. Bananas have no seeds for planting.
• Best sucker: the sword sucker, which has narrow leaves.
• Planting method: dig a hole about 60 cm × 60 cm and add plenty of manure or compost before planting.
• Maintenance: desuckering means removing extra suckers. Allow only one or two to grow so they do not take food from the mother plant.
• Harvesting sign: the fingers are full and the sharp edges on the skin become rounded.
• Harvesting method: cut the whole bunch.

How is pineapple grown?

Pineapple is a low-growing plant with sharp, spiky leaves, often called the “ground fruit”.

• Crown: the leafy top of the fruit, used for planting.
• Slip: a baby plant at the base of the fruit, used for planting.
• Sucker: a baby plant at the bottom of the plant. Suckers grow the fastest.
• Spacing: 60 cm between plants and 90 cm between rows.
• Mulching: cover the soil with black plastic or dry grass to keep it damp and stop weeds.
• Harvesting sign: the bottom “eyes” turn yellow and the fruit smells sweet.

What is the revision table for the four fruit crops?

The table gives the planting material, time to fruit and harvesting sign for each crop.

What are the general rules for fruit farmers?

The general rules help a fruit farmer get healthy plants and good harvests.

1. Be patient: unlike maize or beans, fruit crops take time to bear, but once they start they keep giving.
2. Use manure: fruit crops respond well to old manure such as cow or chicken droppings.
3. Keep the farm clean: pick up fallen fruits and bury them. Rotting fruits attract fruit flies that attack healthy fruits on the tree.
4. Use improved planting material: grafted, budded and sucker plants fruit sooner than seed-grown ones.
5. Handle fruits gently: careful picking prevents bruising, tearing and quick rotting.

Classroom discussion

If you want to start a fruit business and you need your first harvest within one year, which of these fruits would you choose to plant?

Answer: Banana. It is the fastest of the four to produce a full harvest.

Evaluation

1. Define fruit crops.
2. What is a grafted seedling, and why do modern farmers use it for mango?
3. Name the three planting materials used for pineapple.
4. What is desuckering, and why is it done on banana?
5. Why should fallen fruits be picked up and buried?

Assignment

For any two of the four fruit crops studied, write the planting material, the spacing (where given) and the sign that the fruit is ready for harvest.