PUNJAB INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT AND TECHNOLOGY
Topic- Cauliflower
Submitted By Submitted To
Aprajita Kumari Mr. Abhishek Khokhar
Roll No: 2113927
CAULIFLOWER
Local name-Gobhi
Scientific name- Brassica oleracea var. Botrytis
Family- Cruciferae
Chromosome no - 2n=18
Origin – Mediterranean Region
Pollination- cross pollinated
INTRODUCTION
Plant Description:
It is a low growing herbaceous plant, long stalked with loosely arranged leaves
and bearing terminal heads or curds yellow to creamy white in colour which are
the flower clusters or inflorescences. The stem is short and stout.
Nutrional value:
The edible part of cauliflower is known as curd, which consists of a shoot
system with short internodes, branches apices and bracts. The edible portion of
this vegetable is approximately 45 per cent of the vegetable as purchased. it has
high quality of proteins and peculiar in stability of vitamin C after cooking. It is
rich in minerals such as potassium, sodium, iron, phosphorus, calcium,
magnesium etc. It also contains vitamin A (Nath, 1976). Cauliflower contains
92.7 per cent water and the food value per 100 g of edible ascorbic acid 70 mg,
thiamine 0.2 mg, riboflavin 0.1 mg and niacin 0.57 mg.
Area and production:
India is the largest producer of cauliflower in the world. Out of total 5335447
ha of land under vegetables, cauliflower occupies nearly 4.4 per cent area under
cauliflower during the year 1998-99. Production of cauliflower was 4680600
tonnes during the year 1998-99.
State Wise Area, Production and Productivity of Cauliflower
Variety:
1.Kashi Gobhi-25 (VRCF-50)
Indian/tropical cauliflower, November maturity (first fortnight of November
around 25 °C temperature). White compact and hemispherical curd free from
riceyness, leafiness and fuzziness. Marketable curd weight 600-700 g and yield
25-28 t/ha. Recommended for cultivation in Uttar Pradesh, vide Gazette
notification number S.O. 692(E), dated 05.02.2019.
2.Kashi Agahani
Mid-late maturity group, recommended for Punjab, U.P., and Jharkhand,
notified through Central Variety Release Committee
3.Kashi Kunwari
This is an early maturity group variety. Suitable time of sowing is end of June to
July under Indian plain conditions. It can tolerate high rainfall during its
vegetative growth. Curds are semi-dome type, white compact; fine texture and
weight about 300-450 g; a yield of 300-350 q/ha. This has been released and
notified during the XII meeting of Central Sub Committee on Crop Standard
Notification and Release of Varieties for Horticultural Crops for the cultivation
in Punjab, U.P., Bihar and Jharkhand.
Sowing time:
Recommended Sowing Times of Cauliflower (Swarup and Chatterjee, 1972).
Groups Time of sowing of Time of curd maturity
seeds
Early maturity group
1a May-June September
1b First fortnight of July October to mid-
November
Mid-season maturity July-August Late November to mid-
group II December
Mid late maturity September Late December to mid-
group III January
(Snowball type) October Mid-January onwards
Seed Rate:
For cultivation of cauliflower in one hectare, 200-500 g seed would be needed.
Nursery:
100 sq. m nursery area is sufficient for raising one hectare. Apply FYM at 300 kg
and 10 kg of No.5 mixture (9:9:9) along with 50 g of Sodium molybdate and 100
g of Borax. Sow the seeds at 10 cm between rows in raised seed beds after
drenching it with copper oxychloride (2.5 g/lit).
Methods of Sowing:
The sowing should be done in shallow furrows at 10 cm apart. The depth of
furrows may be 1.5-2 cm. After sowing the seed, the furrows are covered with a
mixture of sieved fine manure and soil and the beds are gently levelled at the
surface. The beds should be covered with a proper mulching material like dry
cane grass or polythene before watering. In the initial stage, water is applied
with a water cane over the grass mulch but in later stage when plants are 15-20
days, old watering through furrows may be done. However, the grass cover or
polythene should be removed as soon the emergence of seed sprouts. The beds
should also be covered and shaded for protection against hot sunshine and rains
especially in early season nursery.
Field Preparation:
The soil of the beds is made friable by through digging / ploughing and harrowing
and breaking the clods. The sterilization of soil by drenching, Bring the soil to
fine tilth and pits should be taken at a spacing of 45 cm either way in hills. Form
ridges and furrows at 60 cm in plains.
Transplanting-
Generally, the seedlings are ready for transplanting in 3-6 weeks after seed
sowing, depending upon variety, temperature and soil fertility. In case of early
crop, 5-6 weeks old seedlings have better establishment and less mortality in the
field, while, in mid-season and late varieties 3-4 weeks old seedlings may be
transplanted the planting distance may vary according to the variety, climate and
soil.
Spacing:
Normally, the seedlings of early varieties are planted to 60 cm row to row and
30-45 cm plant to plant distance. The main season and late varieties are planted
at spacing of 60-75 cm between rows and 45-60 cm between plants.
Irrigation:
First irrigation is given just after transplanting.
Further irrigation will depend upon weather, soil type and variety. However,
regular maintenance of optimum moisture supply is essential during both growth
and curd development stage.
For early and mid-season crop, usually, lesser number of irrigations is needed
because of rains. In areas having rainfall, the planting is done on ridges, furrow
irrigation should be given.
Integrated weed management:
Physical method- The intercultural operations should be done regularly to keep
the crop free from weeds and aeration of the root system. Hoeing should not be
deep to avoid injury to the roots. During rainy season, the roots of plants in ridge
planting maybe exposed, which requires adequate earthing. When earthing or
ridging is done, the side dressing of nitrogenous fertilizer should also be done for
healthy growth of the crop.
Biological control-In biological weed control, a “natural enemy” of the plant is
used which is harmless to desired plants. Insects or disease organisms usually are
the natural enemies. Parasitic plants, selective grazing by livestock and rodents,
and highly competitive replacement plants are other forms of biological control
Chemical method- In commercial weed control, basalin @ 2-3 kg a.i/ha + 1.2
hand weeding or tenoran 50 WP @ 1 kg a.i. /ha can be used.
Nutrient management:
Recommended Dose of NPK: 200:125:125 kg/ha
Total Nutrient supplied % requirement
Duration in Fertilizer
Stage Crop stage fertilizer
days grade N P K N P K
(kg/ha)
19:19:19 + 62.66 7.33 11.906 11.906 11.906 10.00 9.70 12.00
MN 15.33
Transplanting to 13-0-45 0.953 - 3.300
1 plant 10 Urea (46% 7.866 - -
establishment N)
Subtotal 85.333 19.913 11.906 15.206
13-0-45 111.333 14.473 - 50.100 56.00 15.30 40.00
12-61-0 31.333 3.760 19.113 -
Curd initiation Urea (46% 204.00 93.84 - -
2 25
stage N)
Subtotal 346.666 112.073 19.113 50.100
Urea (46 % 148.00 68.08 - -- -- 34.00 - 48.00
Curd development N) 120.666
3 35 0-0-50
stage
Subtotal 268.666 68.080 - 60.333
Total duration 70 Total 200.06 31.019 125.63 100 25 100
Plant protection
Cut Worms
Set up light trap in summer months. Spray Chlorpyriphos 2 ml/lit in the collar
region during evening hours.
Aphids
Install yellow sticky trap @ 12 no/ha to monitor Macropterous adults (winged
adult).
Apply pharate 10 % G @ 20 kg /ha or spray neem oil 3 % with 0.5ml tempol/lit
or spray any one of the following insecticides
Diamond back moth
1. Grow mustard as intercrop at 20:1 ratio.
2. Install pheromone traps @ 12 No/ha.
3. Release larval parasite Diadegma semiclausum @ 50,000/ ha, 60 days after
planting
4. Spray NSKE 5 % or cartap hydrochloride @ 1 g/lit or Bacillus
thuringiensis @ 1g/lit at primordial stage (ETL 2 larvae/plant) or any of
the following insecticides.
Integrated Disease management:
Club root: Plasmodiophora brassicae
Stunting and yellowing of plants Leaves become yellowish and wilt on hot
day. Club like swelling of root and root lets Club root is particularly
prevalent on soils with a pH below 7, whereas it has been observed that the
disease is often less serious on heavy soils and on soils containing little
organic matter.
Biological control - Seed treatment with Pseudomonas fluorescens at 10 g/ kg of
seeds, followed by seedling dip @ 5g/ l and soil application @ 2.5 kg/ha along
with 50 kg FYM before planting
Chemical control - Dip the seedlings in Carbendazim solution 2 g/l for 20
minutes. Drench the soil around the seedlings in the main field with Carbendazim
@ 1 g/l of water. Follow crop rotation. Crucifers should be avoided for three years
Leaf Spot – Alternaria brassicae
Leaf spot can be controlled by spraying Mancozeb at 2 g/lit or Carbendazim 1
g/lit.
Leaf Blight- Alternaria brassicae
Leaf blight can be controlled by spraying Mancozeb @ 2.5 g/ litre.
Physiological disorder –
Whip tail- These results from the deficiency of Molybdenum. It is more
pronounced in acidic soil. The leaf blades do not develop properly. In severe cases
only the midrib develops and it can be corrected by spraying 100 g of Sodium
molybdate in 500 lit of water 30 days after planting.
Buttoning- The term buttoning is applied to the development of small curds or
buttons. The plants do not develop normally and leaves remain small and do not
cover the developing curds. Deficiency of Nitrogen and planting the early
varieties late may cause these symptoms. Avoid transplanting aged seedlings.
Blindness- Blind-cauliflower plants are those without terminal buds. The leaves
are large, thick, leathery and dark green. It is due to the prevalence of low
temperature when the plants are young or due to damage to the terminal bud
during handling the plants or due to injury by pests.
Crop maturity: Cauliflower is generally ready for harvest when the heads are
firm and compact, and before the florets begin to separate or turn yellow. This
usually happens about 6 to 8 weeks after the cauliflower head starts to form,
depending on the variety and growing conditions.
Here are some specific signs to look for:
1. Head Size: The cauliflower head should be about 6 to 8 inches in diameter,
although this can vary with the variety.
2. Firmness: The head should feel solid and dense when gently squeezed.
3. Colour: The head should be a creamy white colour. If you see any
yellowing or the head starting to open up, it's a sign that it's overmature.
4. Timing: Cauliflower typically matures in about 70 to 100 days from
transplanting, depending on the variety. It's a good idea to check the
expected maturity time for your specific variety.
Harvesting:
Time of harvesting:
Many crops are harvested very early in the morning to take advantage of the cool
temperature. However, for cauliflower, the appropriate time to harvest is late
morning to early afternoon.
Method of harvesting:
During manual harvesting, a cutting tool (such a scythe) is used to detach the
cauliflower from curd. The curd should not be touched by the hand or by the
cutting tool in order to minimize any physical damage to it. In many countries,
the curd is harvested by cutting the stem with about 6 to 8 leaves still attached.
The harvested curds are directly placed inside collection baskets with liners or in
a plastic crate to be hauled to the collection centre/area. The attached leaves
protect the curd from physical damage during hauling.
Early maturing cultivars - 80-120 /ha.
main season cauliflower - 150-200 q/ha.
Snowball group and other late maturing cultivars - 250- 300 q/ha.
Post harvest management-
Post-harvest handling includes all the primary processes/steps – like raw
material handling, storage, transport, distribution, marketing – that the harvested
crop has to go through to get from the producer to the end consumer. Such
processes add value to the harvested produce. Post-harvest handling is an
element of post-harvest science and technology the goals of which are to reduce
losses, maintain the fresh quality, as well as, assure the safety of crop
commodities used as food and to meet buyers’ specifications and trade
requirements.
Post-harvest losses in cauliflower grown in Nepal have been reported most
recently (2014) to range between 3–25 percent after transporting to the
wholesale market and 5–25 percent during storage/retail marketing. Previous
(2002) loss data was reported at 10–15 percent.
The major causes of losses in the cauliflower supply chain have been
attributed to the following:
a) Pre-harvest factors neglected (non-compliance to Good Agricultural
Practices or GAP).
b) Harvesting at an improper stage of maturity.
c) Direct packing, field heat is not removed by pre-cooling techniques.
d) Inadequate cleaning, sorting.
e) GPHP/GMP adopted by few export sectors.
f) Insufficient grading and sorting.
g) Improper packing.
h) Poor transportation and handling.
Grading- Damaged or diseased leaves should be removed during grading.
Curds with insect damage and other defects should be discarded. The curds are
graded based on their size and colour.
Packaging- Normally the produce is sent to the market loose or sometimes it is
packed in gunny bags. However, it is advisable to pack it in bamboo or wooden
baskets to reduce damage in transit. When packing is done in gunny bags, the
inner leaves covering the curd surface are left intact and rest of outer leaves is
removed. When curds are transported loose, most of the leaves with top portion
are retained and a few outer whorls along with damaged leaves are cut off.
Storage- After harvesting and grading the heads are immediately dispatched to
nearby markets. For storage up to 3 weeks, the optimum temperature of storing
cauliflower crop is 0 C with a relative humidity of 95%. Storage of cauliflower
is generally not recommended for more than 3 O weeks. Wilting, browning,
yellowing of leaves and decay are likely to increase if stored above 5 C. Slightly
immature and compact heads keep better than more mature ones. Cauliflower is
very sensitive to temperature fluctuations during storage and such fluctuation
causes darkening of curds. Exposure to ethylene during storage will cause more
rapid leaf yellowing and abscission. Controlled atmosphere (CA) is not
recommended because it induces off odours and flavours, which can be detected
only in the cooked products.
Cool Chain- Cool chain is essential during the transport of export quality
commodity all the way from the farm to the customer. This helps in maintaining
the temperature inside the box at the same low level as in the cold storage.
