Package of Practices for Cultivation of Rauwolfia (Sarpgandha)

Package of Practices for Cultivation of Rauwolfia (Sarpgandha)

Botanical Name: Rativolfia Serpentia Benth

Family: Apocyneae

Cultivation: It is evergreen shrub of 0.6 to 1 Metre height

Soil:

Well drained medium to deep black soil.- In some pockets sandy loam to laterites.

Climate: Humid, warm climate, shade loving. Rainfall: 300-300 mm.

Sowing:

Crop can be grown either by seed or vegetative propagation.
1) root cutting
2) Root stumps
3) Stem cutting (100 kg cuttings/ha) but indicates that transplanting of seedling gives better yield.

Germination:

50 to 60 % seedlings are raised in the nursery by sowing the seeds at the rate of 7 to 8 kg/ha. Fresh seeds indicate more germinations.

Manuring: Well rotten FYM @ 25-30 tones/ha during land preparations.

Spacing:   45 x 30 cm

Fertilizers:

10 kg N 60 kg P205 before transplanting and followed by irrigation. Two equal doses of nitrogen each 20 kg/ha mixed in soil after 50 to 70 days of plantings.

Seed Collection:

Fruits rnatured during January -"February are collected and immediately kept for drying in shade. Plumpy matter should be removed by rubbing the seeds.

Harvesting:

Plants are dugged out after 2-3 years pf plantation. At the time of digging, soil must be moist, weight of harvested material sjjpnlcll be reduced by 40 % by air drying method and stored in store house.

Yield:

Yield of the dry roots varies from .1800 to 2000 kg/ha depending upon the crop condition (4 kg root/plant). Keep in air tight container in 7-10 cm pieces of root with 10 – 12 % moisture, sell at Rs. 45-50 / kg. Hence gross income Rs, 45,000 ^50,000 and Net income = Rs. 25,000 – 30,000 from 24 months. It is used as anti-hypertensive and sedative drags. Intestional disorder etc. roots contain important alkaloids viz. Ajmatine, Serpentine, Raulfine (0.13 to 0.31 %).