Abstract
The most common and traditional method of applying fertiJizer to fruit trees is through the soil. This comprises digging the soil under the plant canopy, mixing fertilizer with the soil followed by irrigation. The disadvantage of this method is that it is labour intensive and has low efficiency of fertilizer use by the plant. Sometimes, the nutrients are directly sprayed on the plant foliage, from where they are absorbed by the plant. This method is also laborious as the spray operation becomes difficult in case of large and tall trees. In the method reported here, only a small quantity of the nutrient solution is required that is all used by the plant, thus making it very economical. For fertilizing fruit trees by the stem injection method, four holes, one on each side, were drilled in the stem about a meter above the ground level at an angle of 45 degrees with the help of a gimlet (small hand drill). The debris from the holes was cleaned by inserting and pulling out the gimlet repeatedly.
