Passion fruit, hitherto considered a wild fruit, has suddenly attained commercial value in Kanthallur, where a large number of farmers have shifted to its cultivation.
Passion fruit cultivation is more profitable than farming of orange, apple, or other traditional fruits when labour and production costs are considered. It ensures a steady income for 10 months and traders collect the fruits from the farms themselves.
Yellow and purple
The passion fruit season has started and the farms are full of ripe fruits. Though the dark purple variety is also common, farmers mostly cultivate the yellow ones which are sweeter and have high value in the market. The fruit fetches Rs.80 a kg and organically cultivated ones get Rs.110 a kg, says Sukumaran, a farmer near the Ayyappa temple at Kanthallur.
No pesticides
The vines grow without any special care and there is no need for pesticide application, he says adding that the only requirement is a ‘pandal.’
The farmers grow the plants either using matured vines or seeds. The vines start bearing fruits after six months and there are three main harvest seasons a year. The vines need to be replanted only after six years.
Large-scale cultivation of passion fruits was taken up nearly three to four years ago and Kanthallur passion fruit is considered to be of superior quality.
Tourists visiting Munnar are among the main buyers of Kanthallur passion fruits. Passion fruits from Kanthallur reach markets in Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi.
First in 1977
Passion-fruit cultivation in Kanthallur was started by Scottish farmer Philip Collis in 1977. He introduced the yellow variety of the fruit and farmers slowly shifted to it.
Issac, a farmer near Guhanathapuram, says passion fruit is mainly used for making juice. It is also believed that passion fruit has medicinal properties and is used in the treatment of ulcer. In the State, some farms in Wayanad also cultivate passion fruits.
