Dragon Fruit Growing, Profit, Cost, and Yield

Hello friends, welcome back to Gardening Tips!, today we will be discussing commercial dragon fruit growing in India. Dragon fruit is grown commercially in countries like Thailand, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, and Israel.  Now this wonderful fruit is being cultivated in many parts of India as well. Dragon fruit is also called Pitaya (in Spanish). As profits are more in dragon fruit growing, and requires less water compared to other crops, many farmers in India with less groundwater source inclining towards commercial dragon fruit growing.

A step by step guide to Dragon fruit growing practices

In this article, we will be discussing

Soil requirement for growing dragon fruit plants

Climatic conditions for growing dragon fruit plants

Propagation of dragon fruit plants

Planting method of dragon fruit

Irrigation requirement in commercial dragon fruit cultivation

Mulching the dragon fruit plants

Pests and diseases of dragon fruit plant

Fertilizers and manures requirement in dragon fruit growing

The yield of dragon fruit per acre

The cost and profit in 1-acre dragon fruit growing

Marketing ideas of dragon fruit

Uses and benefits of dragon fruits.

Now let’s get into the details:

Soil requirement for growing dragon fruit plants

When it comes to soil requirement, dragon fruit can be grown in all kinds of soils, however, it is better to avoid poorly drained soils or water stagnated areas and flood-prone areas. For a better yield of the crop, choose well-drained sandy loam soils having good organic matter.

Climatic conditions for growing dragon fruit plants

When it comes to climate, dragon plants thrive well in dry and sunny areas. Freezing winters, prolonged cold climatic conditions with heavy frost are not suitable for dragon fruit cultivation. Even though these plants are  sun and heat lovers,  it is a good idea of arranging some kind shade during hot summers to avoid any sun borne diseases.

Propagation of dragon fruit plants

When it comes to the propagation of dragon fruit plants, these plants can be grown from the seed and stem cuttings. However, growing dragon fruit from seed is not viable and reliable; it may take 7 to 8 years to get to the fruiting stage if they are grown from seed. The best method is to grow from healthy stem cuttings. You better get these saplings from certified fruit nurseries or procure from any horticulture department.

Instead of buying saplings from a nursery or any other place, if you have any existing dragon fruit orchard, you can prepare stem cuttings on your own. In stem cutting propagation, you can procure 14 to 40 cm healthy stems and make a slanted cut at the base of the stem. To avoid any fungal disease, make sure to treat these stems with fungicide. Once treated, you must allow the stem to dry for a week in a dry and shaded surface. Now you can use root hormone and plant directly in the field. If you are growing dragon fruit in pots or containers, you can use the same procedure for stem propagation.

Planting method of dragon fruit

Now let us get into the procedure of dragon fruit planting method. As dragon fruit belongs to creeping cactus members, it needs support or stalking while growing, you can accommodate poles for this purpose. On an average, we need 500 poles in 1 acre for planting dragon fruit saplings with a plant to plant and row to row distance of 9 to 10 feet. The land should be cleared off from any weeds, stones or previous crop residues. You can arrange a old tires or iron wheels on top of the poles so that the branches are tied and will have good support.

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The planting should be done on four sides of the poles by digging the pits. In this case, with 500 poles, we can accommodate 2,000 dragon plants in 1 acre of land. The pits should be dug with a measurement of  2 feet wide 2 feet long and 1 foot deep. Before you get the saplings, be ready with land preparation, poles and pits. When you are ready to plant, you must apply each pit with 25 kg of farm yard manure such as cow dung and 1.5 kg of Neem cake powder.

Irrigation requirement in commercial dragon fruit cultivation

Now let us get in to the Irrigation requirement of dragon fruit crop. Dragon fruit is desert plant and it can tolerate drought conditions and be cultivated in low-rainfall areas or with minimal ground water source. However, for better plant growth and fruiting, irrigation should be giving at the time transplantation, flowering and fruiting stage. The number of irrigations depends on soil type, variety of plants, and climatic conditions. Usually, it may require 2 to 3 irrigation in a week in dry conditions and  1 to 2 irrigations in winter conditions, and there won’t be any requirement in rainy season. Avoid too much watering as it causes root rot diseases and results in plant death.  For unique distribution of water supply, and weed control at the plant base, you can adopt a drip irrigation system.

Mulching the dragon fruit plants

Mulching in the dragon fruit orchard helps to prevent moisture loss, controls weeds and minimizes pests. You can use organic mulch like straw or bark wood chips or inorganic mulch like plastic mulch which is widely available online.

Pests and diseases of dragon fruit plant

Now let us see Pests and Disease of Dragon fruit: The main advantages of this crop are to have minimal pest and disease problems in comparison to other crops. Sap-sucking bugs, ants, fruit flies, and beetles are some common insect pests. We are not going in to deep about these and for accurate information of dragon fruit pests and disease symptoms and control, contact nearest horticulture/agriculture department.

Fertilizers and manures requirement in dragon fruit growing

When it comes to Fertilizer and Manures Requirement: It requires adding micronutrients and farm yard manure like cow dung yearly 2 times preferably in June and January.

The yield of dragon fruit per acre

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Well, yield is very important factor and it depends on cultivation practices, variety of fruit, soil type and climate. You can expect first harvest of the crop after 2 to 3 years of plantation. In the first crop, you can expect the yield of 4 to 5 tons per acre and subsequent crops may yield 6 to 8 tons per acre.  Once planted, this crop can give you yield for 20 years.

The cost and profit in 1-acre dragon fruit growing

The cost of dragon fruit cultivation per acre in India would be around 3 to 4 lakhs which include planting material, fertilizers, manures, labour, and drip irrigation, etc.

In the retail market, the dragon fruit is sold at the price of 150 to 200 RS. Remember, At the farm gate, you will get paid less.  When it comes to profit, the income from 1 acre dragon fruit is around 8 lakhs, after taking out the cost, you can get a net profit up to 4 lakhs per acre. You might be thinking why these fruits are so expensive, well, these fruits are rich in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants which can help in weight control, preventing bad cholesterol and controlling asthma and diabetes.

Marketing ideas of dragon fruit

Now let us see how we can market Dragon fruit: Well, as we all know most of the fruits are perishable; we have to make sure to establish a marketing channel well-before we get the harvest. There is couple of options to consider, you can go for contract growing with fruit juice companies, whole sale fruit agents and big fruit retail stores.  Dragon fruit growing required good amount of investments, you should not take a chance without proper marketing practices.

That’s all folks about commercial dragon fruit growing cost and profits. Hope you enjoyed the article, and don’t forget to come back for more gardening information. Thank you!

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