Plantation Crop

In India, it is the Plantation crops which form a major chunk of the crops. They include crops such as areca nut, coconut, cashew, oil palm, coffee, tea and rubber. On the other hand, the smaller plantation crops include cocoa. The total coverage of plantation crops is much less. These plants are mainly confined to small holdings. The plantation crops play a crucial role in view of their export potential and also for their domestic requirements. Plantation crops provide the people of India with employment by eliminating poverty alleviation particularly in rural sector.

India is considered to be one of the largest producers as well as a consumer of cashew nuts. The total production of cashew is around 0.57 million tones. This is grown in an area of 0.24 million hectares. It was in 1990s that the cultivation of vanilla started and its cultivation was mainly confined to Karnataka and Kerala, Northeast region to some extent, Tamil Nadu, Lakshadweep and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. India produces about 101 Metric Tonnes from an area of 7,811 hectare in 2004-05. The area for the cultivation of Coconut is 1.93 million ha. India is the third largest producer of coconut having a production of 12,148 million nuts and productivity of 6285 nuts per ha. There are about 90 coconut-producing countries of the world. The yield of coconut is responsible to place it in the number one position in areca nut production. India is considered to be a treasure house of many different kinds of medicinal and aromatic plant species which are valuable in nature.

Major Plantation Crops in India are:

• Tea
• Coffee
• Rubber
• Coconut
• Cashew
• Oil Palm
• Areca nut

Tea

It was the Britishers who introduced Tea plantation in India. Tea is undoubtedly regarded as an important beverage crop. Tea plantation is mainly done in India. The Indian climate is most suitable for tea plantation as it requires tropical and sub tropical climate. For growing tea, the soil should be properly drained and it should also be rich in organic matter and humus. Since the leaves of the tea are tender in nature, they grow the best in regular showers. These showers should be distributed evenly all year round. Tea plantation needs cheap and skilled labor. It is in Assam, Darjeeling, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Meghalaya, West Bengal, Tripura, Andhra Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh that you can find the major tea plantations. India is not only the largest amount of Tea producers all over the world but it is also considered to the largest exporter of tea in the world.

Coffee

The cultivation of coffee was first introduced on Baba Bundan Hills. Approximately, 4% of world’s coffee production comes from India and this is why, it is considered to be famous worldwide as it provides the coffee addicts with a fine quality of coffee. India is able to produce the Arabica variety. This variety has been specially brought from Yemen. This variety is famous for its taste, good quality and aroma. The Arabica variety has a large market all over the world. It is in the Southern states of India which include Tamil Nadu, Kerala etc that Coffee is grown. The major chunk of coffee which is produced is exported to many parts of the world. The direct rays of sun can be harmful for the growth of coffee. This is why big trees are planted. It is under these big trees that coffee plantation is done to protect it from sunlight.

Rubber

It is in the equatorial region that rubber is grown. It is from latex that Rubber is manufactured. Rubber needs a humid as well as moist climate for proper growth. It also requires a temperature of 25 degree Celsius. The rainfall needed should be ideally around 200 cm annually. It is in the states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Meghalaya that rubber can be seen growing. With regards to the growth of rubber, India is in the fifth place. The state of Kerala is considered to be the largest producer of rubber in India. Rubber is used for manufacturing of tires.

Coconut

Coconut belongs to the family of Arecaceae (palm family). Coconut is the only accepted species in the family of Cocos. Coconut is a term which can be referred to as the entire seed, coconut palm or even the fruit. Botanically, coconut is considered to be a drupe and not a nut. Coconut has been derived from the 16th-century Portuguese and Spanish word coco which means "head" or "skull".

Coconut can be seen growing in the tropic and subtropics area. It is a plant which has is known for its great versatility and also has many uses indifferent parts of the world. Coconut is also considered to be a daily diet of many people. It is different from any other fruits because as they contain a large quantity of "water". Even in their mature form, Coconut still has some water. What’s more we can use the seed nuts to be processed into coconut oil.

Cashew

Cashew is considered to be a tropical evergreen. It is known to produce cashew nut and the cashew apple. It is a family of the Anacardium occidentale and can grow at a height of 14 meters. However, it is the dwarf cashew tree which while growing up to 6 meters which has proved to be more profitable as it is able to provide earlier maturity and higher yields. People usually serve cashew nut as a snack. It can also be used in recipes like other nuts. However, it will still remain a seed.

It is the cashew nuts shell that can be used in many application forms such as from paints to lubricants. On the other hand, the other parts of the cashew tree have been used to cure snake-bites and also many other types of folk-remedies. It is in Brazil that the cashew is grown.

Oil Palm

The oil from palm has more of saturated fats than oils made from corn, soybeans, linseed, safflower and sunflowers. Palm oil is supposed to withstand the extreme deep-frying heat. It can even resist oxidation. Palm oil has no Tran’s fat. The nature of palms of these oil palm is single-stemmed. They are able to grow remarkably well up to 20 m tall. The leaves of palm oil are pinnate. Their length is between 3-5 m. The palm fruit is of reddish in color. It is in the size of a large plum. It can be found growing in large bunches. Ever fruit is has a fleshy and oily outer layer. This is known as the pericarp as it has a single seed known as the palm kernel which is also rich in oil.

Areca nut

The areca nut belongs to the family of areca palm also known as the Areca catechu. It can be found growing in tropical Pacific, Asia and most parts of east Africa. It is also known as a betel nut. It is possible to be chewed when it is wrapped in the shape of betel leaves. In commercial form, it is possible to get areca nut in dried, cured and fresh forms. When it is fresh, the husk of the areca nut is green. This is a nut whose inside is soft enough to be cut with any typical knife. When the fruit is ripe, the husk changes its color from yellow or orange. On drying up, the fruit’s inside hardens to a wood-like consistency.

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