Andhra Pradesh has emerged as the third largest producer of flowers in the country.
Chittoor, Anatapur, and East Godavari districts are the major flower producers in the State.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare has confirmed that Andhra Pradesh produced 4.06 lakh tonnes of flowers during 2020-21 kharif. The total extent of land under floriculture in the State is more than 19,000 hectares.
Responding to a question by Rajamahendravaram MP Margani Bharat in the Lok Sabha, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said, “ Andhra Pradesh contributed 15.62% of the total flower production in the country during 2020-21 kharif as per the Third Advanced Estimates of flower production.”
Tamil Naidu, with a contribution of 20.94% of the total production and more than 42,000 hectares under floriculture, is the country’s leading flower producer. It has produced 5.45 lakh tonnes during 2020-21 kharif.
Madhya Pradesh’s contribution is 15.78%.
Maximum yield
The Ministry has also said that Andhra Pradesh has the highest production per unit area (per hectare) among the major producers – Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh – in the country.
“The maximum yield per hectare is between 8 and 10 tonnes in Andhra Pradesh,” says Horticulture Department Deputy Director (East Godavari) S. Ramamohan.
In Andhra Pradesh, flowers, including marigold and jasmine, are despatched to Odisha, West Bengal, and Telangana.
There are a few varieties that are being brought from other States for packing and export from Andhra Pradesh.
The Central government has promised financial assistance under the Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) for wooden and bamboo structures, plastic tunnels, and walk-in tunnels to increase the area under the floriculture.
Disease mapping
Meanwhile, the Floriculture Research Directorate (FRD), Pune, is carrying out a study on disease mapping of the Kadiyam nurseries on the banks of the Godavari in Andhra Pradesh.
The Ministry has also promised to transfer new technologies under the National Agriculture Research System (NARS).
In December last, Mr. Bharat had appealed to the Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR) to revive the Floriculture Research Institute (FRI) at Vemagiri, near Rajamahendravaram. The State government had already allocated 10.77 acres of land for the FRI.
