Custard apple – Fruit garden

Custard apple (Annona squamosa), otherwise called sugar apples and sweetsops, develops as a deciduous tree. The Custard apple tree achieves 10 to 20 feet tall, creating 3-inch-long, green, heart-molded natural product canvassed in knocks. The velvety substance tastes sweet with mint or custard insights. Custard apple tree needs a tropical atmosphere to survive the winter in the ground, so it is best to develop it in a holder situated in a warmed nursery or inside in a south-bound window with no less than six to eight hours of direct daylight every day.The Custard apples is devoured fundamentally new, as they have a rich velvety, sweet flavor. They are exceptionally heavenly, nutritious, rich in sugar, protein, and phosphorus, with a profoundly absorbable mash. They are additionally utilized as a part of sweets and in the formulas of juices, sorbets, pastries, wine and frozen yogurt. The dried unripe natural products, seeds and leaves powder are utilized as bug sprays. The leaves, stems and seeds contain strands, oils, and different alkaloids.

Scientific Name: Annona squamosa
Common Name: Custard apple

How to grow and maintain custard apple:

Soil:
It is undemanding when it comes to soil type. Sitaphal cultivation (common name in the Indian subcontinent) can be done in poor, stony soil of pH level 7-8. Though it grows in a wide range of soils, from sandy, clay to loam, but the healthiest and the productive tree is grown in fertile, loose, deep and neutral or slightly alkaline soil that is not sandy with good drainage and aeration. Furthermore, the drainage is essential to prevent diseases. The growth is directly related to the content of organic matter in the soil.

Watering:
Water frequently in the spring and summer months when flowering and fruiting occur. To encourage maximum fruit size and quality, water the container whenever the top half-inch of soil is dry during this period. Reduce watering after the fruit is harvested in the fall. Allow the the top two inches of soil to dry between waterings during the tree’s dormant period.

Fertilizer:
Application of complete fertilizer in the initial years of planting is recommended. Once the tree matures enough and able to set fruits the use of 3: 10: 10 fertilizer significantly increases the flowering, fruit setting, and harvest. As for organic fertilization, sugar apple responds well to the application of organic matter from its earliest period of growth. The application of organic fertilizer improves the texture of soil and its condition and facilitates root development. It is recommended to apply 60 to 80 kg of aged manure or compost annually.

Weeding:
Growing sugar apple tree requires weed management. It causes the biggest drawbacks during young stages. The control can be manual, mechanical, or inert, with the use of herbicides or by doing a combination of methods. You can also do mulching to stop weeds. The best way is to weed regularly and prevent the growth of other plants near the base of the tree.

Harvest:
Pick the fruit when the white, yellow or red tint appears between the rind segments. The flavor is best when the fruit is picked while it is still immature.