Guthi
A small, elliptical, brown sapota of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, with soft, gritty, less juicy pulp (NHB). A medium-height conical tree. PKM-1, a Tamil Nadu selection from Guthi, gives a thin-skinned, sugar-rich fruit.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Sapota (Chikoo)
- Type
- Grafted variety (on khirni rootstock)
- Season
- All seasons
- Starts bearing
- Fruiting starts about year 3; economic yield from year 7 (NHB, all sapota)
- Expected yield
- No kg-per-tree figure published
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- Disease resistance
- No special resistance claimed
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Guthi is a traditional South Indian sapota, listed by NHB for Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. NHB describes a tree of medium height and conical shape, with small, elliptical, brown fruit. The pulp is soft, brown and gritty, less juicy than other varieties, with a slight aroma. Guthi is better known today as a parent. TNAU's PKM-1 (1981) is a clonal selection from Guthi, a dwarf tree with thin-skinned, elliptical-oblong fruit of about 80 g, 23% TSS (NHB) and profuse bearing. PKM-2 is Guthi × Kirtibarthi and PKM-3 is Guthi × Cricket Ball. We found no yield or fruit-weight figure for Guthi itself.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Guthi only if you already know it in your area and your buyers take it. NHB describes small brown fruit with soft, gritty, less juicy pulp, and gives no yield. If you farm in Tamil Nadu, look at PKM-1 first: it is a selection from Guthi, with thin skin, 23% TSS (NHB) and profuse bearing on a dwarf tree. Pick Pala for a very sweet small fruit that comes in about 195 days. Pick Cricket Ball for big fruit.
Sowing & cultivation
- Sowing timePlant at the onset of the monsoon (NHB). TNAU gives June to December.
- Spacing10 × 10 m, or 6 × 6 m until the canopies meet and then remove alternate trees (NHB). TNAU gives 8 × 8 m (156 plants a hectare), or 8 × 4 m (312 plants) for high density.
- Sowing methodPlant a grafted plant, not a seedling. TNAU uses approach grafting on khirni (Manilkara hexandra) rootstock, with the graft joint at least 15 cm above the ground. Pit about 1 m on each side, filled with topsoil first, then subsoil mixed with FYM, 1 kg superphosphate and 500 g sulphate of potash (NHB). Stake the graft, shade it, and remove rootstock shoots below the joint.
- IrrigationUse the basin method and widen the basin as the canopy grows. Water every 6–7 days in summer and every 8–10 days in winter while plants establish. Drip saves 40% water and raises yield: two drippers of 4 litres an hour at 50 cm from the tree for the first 2 years, then two more (NHB).
- FertilizerPer tree (Maharashtra Dept. of Agriculture, via NHB): year 1: 20 kg FYM, 300 g N, 150 g P, 100 g K. Year 2: 30 kg, 450 g, 225 g, 200 g. Year 3: 40 kg, 600 g, 300 g, 300 g. Year 4: 50 kg, 750 g, 375 g, 300 g. Year 5: 60 kg, 900 g, 450 g, 400 g. From year 6: 70 kg FYM, 1000 g N, 500 g P, 500 g K. Rainfed: apply at monsoon onset. Irrigated: all the FYM and half the fertiliser at monsoon onset, the rest in September–October, under the canopy.
- HarvestingFruiting starts from year 3, and economic yield comes from year 7. Pick when the brown scurf gives way to a yellowish corky-brown colour and a scratch shows no green and no latex. Sapota ripens after picking, but fruit picked too early is poor, and fruit picked late softens fast. Pick by hand or with a net-bag harvester on a pole (NHB).
Soil & climate
Soil
- Suitable soil
- Deep alluvium, sandy loam or well-drained medium black soil. Shallow clay over a hard pan, or soil high in lime, is unsuitable (NHB).
- pH
- 6.0–8.0
Climate
- Temperature
- 10–38°C
- Rainfall
- 1,250–2,500 mm
- Climate
- A warm, humid climate (above 70% humidity) suits it, and a coastal climate is ideal. It grows up to 1,000 m. Above 43°C flowers drop (NHB).
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- A medium-height tree, smaller than the tall Cricket Ball
- The parent of PKM-1, PKM-2 and PKM-3, three TNAU releases
- Listed by NHB for Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu
Things to consider
- The fruit is small, brown and gritty, with less juicy pulp (NHB).
- No yield or fruit-weight figure is published for Guthi itself. Its selection PKM-1 has the numbers.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Andhra Pradesh
- Tamil Nadu
If you want Guthi's tree, ask for PKM-1
Guthi's weak point is its fruit. NHB says the pulp is soft but gritty and less juicy, and the fruit is small and brown.
TNAU made PKM-1 from Guthi in 1981. NHB lists it as profuse bearing, with medium, elliptical-oblong, thin-skinned fruit that is rich in sugars: 23% TSS and about 80 g a fruit. TNAU calls the tree dwarf.
Side by side: Guthi gives small fruit with gritty pulp and no published yield. PKM-1 gives 80 g fruit with 23% TSS and, in the Periyakulam trial, the most fruits per tree of 19 genotypes, 1,690.
If you farm in Tamil Nadu, ask the nursery for PKM-1 with a bill. If your buyers specifically ask for Guthi, taste both before you decide.
Where the planting material comes from
This variety is a grafted plant: the variety on top, joined onto a rootstock below. Seed out of its fruit will not come up as this variety, so it cannot be kept as seed. Buy grafted plants from a registered nursery or a government farm, so the plant is true to the variety and free of disease.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Sapota (Chikoo) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Starts bearing | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baramasi | A traditional sapota to plant only if you can see it bearing; its selection CO-2 has the numbers | Fruiting starts about year 3; economic yield from year 7 (NHB, all sapota) | No kg-per-tree figure published for Baramasi itself (its selection CO-2: 175 kg a tree, per TNAU) | West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh |
| CO-3 | A compact, heavy-bearing Tamil Nadu sapota that flowers through the year | Bearing commences from the 4th year (NHB) | Up to 157 kg/tree/year (NHB, TNAU) | Tamil Nadu |
| Cricket Ball (Calcutta Large) | Large, round, sweet fruit, where size matters more than fine pulp | Fruiting starts about year 3; economic yield from year 7 (NHB, all sapota) | No kg-per-tree figure published; the biggest fruit in two trials (123.2 g and 135 g) | Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh |
| DHS-1 | A big-fruited, heavy-bearing sapota for the dry north of Karnataka, where one trial gave 156 kg a tree | Fruiting starts about year 3; economic yield from year 7 (NHB, all sapota) | 156.25 kg/tree in one north Karnataka dry-zone trial of older trees | Karnataka |
| Guthithis page | A traditional medium-height sapota; for most farmers its improved selection PKM-1 is the better plant | Fruiting starts about year 3; economic yield from year 7 (NHB, all sapota) | No kg-per-tree figure published | Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu |
| Kalipatti | A soft, sweet table sapota for the markets of western India, planted for market acceptance rather than for the biggest fruit count | Fruiting starts about year 3; economic yield from year 7 (NHB, all sapota) | 350–400 fruits/tree on a fully grown tree (NHB) | Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka |
| Pala | A quick-ripening, very sweet small sapota for local markets in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu | Fruiting starts about year 3; economic yield from year 7 (NHB, all sapota) | High yielding (NHB); no kg-per-tree figure published | Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu |
Tools for this crop
The numbers you need next: how much seed to buy, whether the lot germinates, what the fertilizer bill looks like and what Sapota (Chikoo) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Sapota (Chikoo) plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Sapota (Chikoo) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Sapota (Chikoo) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Sapota (Chikoo) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Sapota (Chikoo) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
What is PKM-1, and how does it differ from Guthi?
PKM-1 (1981) is a clonal selection from Guthi made at TNAU. NHB describes profuse bearing, medium-sized, elliptical-oblong fruit with thin skin, rich in sugars, TSS 23%, average fruit weight 80 g. TNAU says the tree is dwarf. In the Periyakulam trial it had the most fruits per tree, 1,690. Guthi itself has small fruit with gritty, less juicy pulp.
Which varieties come from Guthi?
PKM-1 is a clonal selection from Guthi. PKM-2 (1992) is Guthi × Kirtibarthi, with 95 g fruit and 26.3°Brix per TNAU. PKM-3 (1994) is Guthi × Cricket Ball, with a vertical growth habit and large oval fruit. All are Tamil Nadu releases from TNAU. If you want a Guthi-type tree with better fruit, look at these first.
Is Guthi a compact tree for a small plot?
NHB calls it a tree of medium height and conical shape, not a dwarf. TNAU calls its selection PKM-1 a dwarf tree. For a small plot, ask for PKM-1. NHB's general spacing is 10 × 10 m, or 6 × 6 m until the canopies meet, and TNAU gives 8 × 4 m for high density.
Does Guthi sell well?
We cannot say. NHB lists Guthi but gives no price or buyer data, and it describes the pulp as soft, gritty and less juicy. Ask two or three local buyers to taste a sample, and compare the price with Pala and Cricket Ball, before you plant a block.
Sourced from: Varieties — NHB, Sapota, Planting — NHB, Sapota, Manuring and fertilization — NHB, Sapota, Irrigation — NHB, Sapota, Harvesting — NHB, Sapota, Soil and climate — NHB, Sapota, Sapota — TNAU Agritech Portal, Horticulture: Fruits, Sapota varieties — TNAU Agritech Portal. editorial policy.