I am not talking about mango, banana or coconut trees, I am talking about trees which produce fruit in 2 years only and about trees which are sold for their costly wood and some of them harvested only in 4 years. They are the most expensive trees in India so do have a look at them.
Mango banana and coconut trees need years to mature and start producing fruits after 3 to 4 or 5 years. Let’s think differently and check out some other promising non-traditional trees. However, they are also grown historically but not famous because of the preference for fruit farming in India.
5 best tree for farming in India
The below trees are not given in the top to bottom order instead first fruit trees then trees grown for their wood were introduced.
Dragon fruit tree
It is a short heighted tree and starts producing fruits commercially only in 2 years. By planting 500 trees in one acre farmers are earning around 5 lakh. These trees are widely grown in Maharashtra, Kerala and entire south Indian regions. It is a cactus species therefore farmers also started growing this tree in Rajasthan.
It is a humid temperate tree and grows well in humid regions therefore it can grow almost in all regions of India including plain regions of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh but avoid planting dragon fruit trees in higher hills of low temperature.
Drumstick tree
Drumsticks are also known as moringa trees and are one of the easiest growing trees throughout the region without demanding regular water, maintenance or specific conditions. These trees are cultivated for pods and leaves and farmers are easily able to produce 12 to 20 tons pods per acre. Moringa leaves are sellable at Rs 20-25 per kg and one can earn around Rs 145400 from one acre farm. They can be grown throughout India due to weather adaptive nature.
Sandalwood tree
After fruit trees now let’s talk about trees that are sold for their costly woods. While talking about the most costly trees in India, sandalwood trees come first in the mind of every person. The problem is that people are confused and obsessed with the myth that the Sandalwood plantation in India is banned by the government which is not true.
The fact is anybody can grow this costly tree in India but they need to get permission during the harvesting time. It is good to sell the tree through a government channel to avoid any illegal drama. Apart from this host plant selection is a major issue in this farming which also increases the farming cost. By planting only 350 Sandalwood trees one can earn around Rs 2 crore even after selling the wood at government price.
Agar tree
Most people are not aware of this tree and they think Sandalwood is the most expensive tree in India but they are wrong. The agarwood tree is the most expensive tree in India and has been listed among the top 5 expensive trees in the world. Agar trees are not grown everywhere; they need a heavy rainfall region to survive, moreover, they are also banned in some states of India.
So it is good to visit the forest government department of your region before starting agarwood cultivation in India. Resin production is valuable and the biggest challenge in Agarwood farming. This tree needs 8 to 10 years to produce resin and one can earn around 8 crore rupees from one acre land only if able to collect all the good quality resin.
Mahogany tree
This tree is continuously growing in popularity among farmers for the last 3 to 5 years. However, most farmers are not aware of this tree. It can be harvested between 8 to 12 years and 12 to 15 years is the idle time. One must choose an African mahogany tree only to achieve the correct prices during the selling time. One African Mahogany tree price after 10 years in India is around Rs 15000 to Rs 20000. By planting 500 trees one can easily earn Rs 75 lakh to 1 crore.
The best thing about this tree is it does not need any care and maintenance. It needs care for the initial two years only after that you can withdraw regular watering as well. Similar to Neem and Malabar neem trees its leaves contain medicinal properties so it is a self-fertiliser tree and uses its fallen leaves as a fertilizer.
Therefore it also does not need regular fertilizer by farmers. Mahogany timber is used for making high-quality furniture, ship decks, boats, and musical instruments like guitars, veena, etc. Mahogany use in multiple sectors is the main reason behind its expensive price.
Poplar tree
Poplar plantation in India is done widely in Punjab, Uttarakhand, UP and North Indian regions. South Indian people are hardly growing this tree but they should try this tree in their region. The latest poplar varieties named 110 and 111 need only 3.5 to 4.5 years to get ready for harvesting. They are so that the price of Rs 1500/quintal and one tree worth is around Rs 25000 to Rs 3000.
By planting 500 trees farmers can earn Rs 2500 x 500 trees = Rs 12,50,000 in just 4 years from 1 acre farm which is more than any mutual funds, pf or lic returns. The price of the wood sapling is rupees 30 so the planting cost will be around Rs 30 x 500 = Rs 15000 which is decent. Moreover, it does not demand water like eucalyptus trees.
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