An overview of potential applications of GIS in horticultural crops: Special reference to fruit yielding trees

Abstract

Among horticultural crops, fruit crops play an important role in nutritional value and income security of the world. With increasing population, there is tremendous pressure on establishment of new orchards with the introduction of non-traditional fruit crops to meet the ever rising demand. However, the successful performance of orchard depends on the application of advance technology. Therefore, it is critical that a potential fruit grower makes correction decisions based upon sound information on agro-ecology, management of fruit orchard and marketing chain. One potential solution in making appropriate decision in orchard development and post-harvest management is the automated Geographic Information System (GIS), a computer-assisted system for the capture, storage, retrieval, analysis, manipulate geographic data in various formats and display of spatial data. GIS is a kind of precision agriculture which is helping in increase productivity with minimal input which inturn increases the cost-benefit economics of agricultural crops including fruit orchards. In the paper, potential use of GIS techniques in land suitability, climatic, ecological suitability, nutrients management, yield monitoring, germplasm management and pest and diseases management and marketing of various fruit crops are reviewed. Few constrains of GIS technique are discussed.