Date palms, an alternative crop in Delta district

NAGAPATTINAM: Walk into this farm at Therkupoigainallur in Nagapattinam district and you will be surprised to see the uncommon date palms being cultivated, a first in the entire district. V Thangarasu (64) has become the first person in Nagapattinam to raise the tree, becoming an inspiration even to the Agriculture Department to raise the tree in Delta district, officials said.

So far, date palms have been cultivated in Dharmapuri, Tiruppur and Coimbatore.

"I learnt about date palm cultivation through on-line resources. I planted around 60 saplings of yellow barhi dates in my garden three years ago. The saplings have grown over six feet and have started to bear fruits. I expect a yield of at least 150 kg from each tree by next year," said Thangarasu.

According to officials, Thangarasu has planted saplings with a gap of 24 feet between each. He is also cultivating other types of crops in the bund. He is watering the date palm trees twice a month and is applying organic fertilizers. A kg of yellow barhi dates cost around `300 in the market, and Thangarasu is expecting over `20 lakh every year from the harvest.

His fellow villagers are excited about his efforts and the gains he is making. T Aasaithambi, an ex-serviceman from the village, said, "Farmers usually cultivate vegetables in our village. It is good to see Thangarasu introducing an alternative crop. Other farmers will also try to follow his example."

Thangarasu has bought date palm saplings at a cost of `4,000 per sapling from Nizamuddin Saliah, a date palm farmer in Dharmapuri. Nizamuddin Saliah, from Ariyankulam said, "I had been importing five different saplings from West Asian countries and selling them across India. It is good to know that the cultivation is doing well in the delta district."

S Panneerselvam, Joint Director of the Agriculture Department in Nagapattinam, said, "Nagapattinam district is a cyclone-prone. Date palm trees are more resistant to such natural calamities. They may seem costlier during the initial stages of cultivation. But, the gains during the harvest are worth the effort. Farmers can surely learn from Thangarasu about cultivating date palms as an alternative crop."