Pala
A popular, high-yielding Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu sapota with small oval or egg-shaped fruit borne in clusters and very sweet pulp (NHB). Its fruit averaged only 32.09 g in an Andhra trial, the smallest of 11 cultivars, and was ready in about 195 days.
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
- High yielding (NHB); 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
Pala is a popular, high-yielding sapota of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu (NHB). Fruits are oval or egg-shaped, thin-skinned, borne in clusters, with the apex broadly pointed and very sweet pulp of good flavour. They are small. In the Andhra trial of 11 cultivars Pala fruit averaged 32.09 g, the smallest, and its seed was the smallest too, 2.11 g. It was also among the quickest, taking about 195 days from fruit set to harvest, against 258 for Cricket Ball. Pala is also the local name of the khirni rootstock (Manilkara hexandra) used to graft sapota, so check which one a nursery means.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Pala if you sell in Andhra Pradesh or Tamil Nadu and want very sweet fruit that comes quickly, about 195 days from fruit set. NHB calls it popular and high yielding. Expect small fruit, 32 g in the Andhra trial, so picking and sorting cost more per kilo. Pick Cricket Ball if you want big fruit (123–135 g), or Kalipatti if you want soft pulp for western India's markets.
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
- Popular and high yielding in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu (NHB)
- Very sweet pulp of good flavour, and fruit borne in clusters (NHB)
- Quick from fruit set to harvest: about 195 days, against 258 for Cricket Ball
Things to consider
- The fruit is small, 32.09 g in the Andhra trial, so one kilo is about 31 fruits to pick and sort.
- Seed is 6.6% of the fruit by weight there, a bigger share than in Cricket Ball (4.7%).
- NHB and the trials give no kg-per-tree figure for it.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Andhra Pradesh
- Tamil Nadu
Count the fruit before you count the kilos
Pala is a small sapota. In the Andhra trial its fruit averaged 32.09 g, against 123.2 g for Cricket Ball. One kilo of Pala is about 31 fruits. One kilo of Cricket Ball is about 8.
That changes your costs more than your yield. Picking, grading, packing and counting all go up with the number of fruits, so a Pala crate costs about four times the handling of a Cricket Ball crate of the same weight. Your own fruit may be a different size, so weigh 20 of them.
Before you plant a block, ask your buyer whether he pays by weight or by count, and what he pays for the small size. If the price per kilo does not cover four times the picking and grading, a sweeter fruit will not save the margin.
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 |
| Guthi | 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 |
| Palathis page | 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
Is the Pala variety the same as the Pala rootstock?
No. TNAU names the rootstock for grafting sapota as Manilkara hexandra, called Pala in the local trade (it is the khirni tree). The Pala variety is a sapota (Manilkara zapota) with small, oval, sweet fruit. When you order plants, say 'Pala variety, grafted' and ask what rootstock was used.
How many Pala fruits make a kilo, and why does it matter?
At 32.09 g a fruit, about 31 fruits make a kilo. For Cricket Ball at 123.2 g it is about 8. So a worker picks, grades and packs nearly four times as many Pala fruits for each kilo. This is a sum from one trial's averages. Count your own fruit before you set a picking rate.
How fast is Pala from fruit set to picking?
About 195 days (194.66) in the Andhra trial, one of the three quickest of 11 cultivars. PKM-1 took 189 days and Singapore 192. Cricket Ball took about 258. A shorter time on the branch means you can go back to the same tree sooner, but pick by the maturity signs and not by day count.
Why is Pala fruit borne in clusters a plus or a minus?
NHB notes that Pala fruit is borne in clusters, unlike Kalipatti, which is borne singly. Clusters can mean many fruits in a small space, which suits the high yield NHB reports. But crowded small fruit is slower to pick and grade. NHB gives no picking-time data, so time a few trees yourself.
Can I grow Pala outside Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu?
NHB lists only those two states, and gives no results from elsewhere. Sapota in general suits a warm, humid climate with 1,250–2,500 mm rain, and flowers drop above 43°C. Elsewhere, ask your KVK and plant a few trees before 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.