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Nutrient Management
Manuring for pepper vines is to be done in basins taken around the plant, 10-15
cm deep and 30-40 cm radius, depending upon the growth of the plants. Apply cattle
manure / compost / green leaves at the rate of 10 kg / plant / annum, just at the
onset of southwest monsoon and cover lightly with soil. It is desirable to apply
lime at the rate of 500 g/vine in April-May, with the receipt of pre-monsoon showers,
in alternate years.
Recommended nutrient dosage for pepper (3 years
and above)
N: P2O5: K2O g/vine/year
50:50:150 (general recommendation)
50:50:200 (for Panniyur and similar areas)
140:55:275 (for Kozhikode and similar areas)
Note: Apply 1/3 dose for one-year-old plants and 1/2 dose for two-year-old plants.
The fertilizers may be applied in two split doses, the first in May-June with the
receipt of a few soaking rains and the second in August-September. Apply fertilizers
in a circle of radius 30 cm around the vine in the case of plants trailed on erythrina
(murukku) or teak pole (dead standard) soil application of Zinc @ 6 kg/ha as zinc
sulphate or foliar spray of Zn @ 0.5 per cent during flowering and pin head stage
of black pepper is recommended in Zinc deficient areas of black pepper cultivation
for increasing the yield and quality. Application of Molybdenum @ 1 kg/ha is recommended
for areas deficient in soil molybdenum availability.
Apply 10 kg FYM + 500g neem cake + 500 g ash+ 2 kg vermicompost with
biofertilizer- Azospirillum and P- solubilizing bacteria (20g)
Apply PGPR Consortia (50g) consisting of 2 spp. of Micrococcus and 1 spp. of Enterobacter per vine which
helps in growth promotion and disease suppression.
By planting lateral branches (plagiotropes) of pepper, the vine can be grown as
a bush. One-year-old lateral branches with 2-4 nodes are to be planted in nursery
during May-June for pre-rooting after treating the cut ends with 1000 ppm solution
of IBA for 45 seconds. Rooting percentage of laterals is less than 20%. Only well-rooted
and established plants are to be used for transplanting. The rooted cuttings are
to be planted at 3-5 per pit or per pot.
Fertilizers can be applied @ 1.0, 0.5 and 2.0 g/pot of N, P2O5
and K2O respectively at bimonthly interval. Alternatively, application
of 15 g groundnut cake (or) 33 g of neem cake can also meet the N requirement of
the crop. The bushy nature of the plant will have to be ensured by proper pruning
of the hanging shoots. The potted plants are to be kept preferably under partial
shade. It is necessary that re-potting is carried out after every two years.
Irrigating black pepper vines with 8 litres of water through drip per day during
Oct - May enhances yield and quality in bush pepper with high BC ratio. Recommended
for bush pepper grown as intercrop in coconut gardens.
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