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 %).