Jatropha Curcas Seeds

Why Jatropha curcas seeds ?

In an age where concerns about rising fuel prices & dwindling energy resources are making headlines around the world, the value of using renewable and eco-friendly fuels has gained wide prominence. Bio-Diesel is a term used to describe environmentally safe & low-polluting fuels for standard combustion & turbine engines. Derived from vegetable oils, they are a safe & viable alternative to non-renewable, heavy polluting fuels.

Advantages of Jatropha curcas seeds

• Jatropha curcas seeds is easy to establish & with a speedy growth rate requiring minimum care.
• Jatropha curcas seeds does not need intensive care and very minimal input is required to sustain its growth.
• Can be grown on all kinds of soil varieties, and it grows even in wastelands.
• Drought-Resistant properties. Jatropha curcas seeds can be planted in the harshest of desert weather & on any type of soil.
• Plantation of Jatropha curcas seeds in rural areas helps in- Employment generation, Sources of alternate energy & providing increased earnings.
• Jatropha seeds can be used to increase green cover through the reclamation of wastelands and infertile lands.
• Jatropha curcas seeds is highly suited to preventing soil erosion.
• It does not inhibit the growth of other crops.
• With a high micorrhizal value in its roots, Jatropha helps in extracting phosphates from soil.
• Improves soil fertility by fallen leaves throughout their life cycle.
• Other than its use as bio-diesel, it even has medicinal as well as other uses.
• Generates net income for 30-35 years @ Rs.10,000/acre/year approx. from 4th year onwards .
• Rapid Growth in voluminous quantities.
• With high oil extraction potential of about 31-37%.
• As a Bio-fuel, it can be used in any diesel engine without modification.

Life Cycle of Jatropha

Jatropha Curcas is a drought-resistant plant, that grows well in the harshest of conditions and poorest of soils. Easy to establish, jatropha has a speedy growth curve, & produces seeds for well over for 50 years. Jatropha Curcass can grow in the harshest of conditions and in the most inhospitable of climates. A highly drought-resistant species, jatropha is specially adapted to arid and semi-arid conditions.

Jatropha is a wild crop in large areas of India and thrives even in infertile soil. Obtaining good crops can come with minimum effort. Depending on the quality of soil and rainfall measures, oil can be extracted from Jatropha nuts inside five years. With potential oil content of over 42%, Jatropha is indeed a good source of biodiesel. Jatropha oil burns flames that are devoid of smoke content.

Botanical Features
A small tree or shrub with smooth gray bark growing between 3 to 5 meters in height, and can attain heights up to 8 to 10 meters under good conditions.

Leaves
Large green, alternate to sub-opposite, three-to five-lobed with spiral phyllotaxis.

Flowers
Petiole length: 6-23 mm. Ion conditions suitable for continuous growth, an imbalance of pistillate or staminate flower production effects better results in a higher number of female flowers.

Fruits
Fruits of Jatropha are produced in winter, when the shrub is relatively leafless, or in case of excellent soil and moisture conditions, may produce several crops throughout the year. Inflorescence yields a 10 or more ovoid fruits.

Seeds
Seeds mature when the capsule changes from green to yellow, after two to four months. To optimize production of seeds with the maximum oil content of up to 42%, care needs to be taken while selecting seeds. Jatropha Curcus seeds are ideally collected from plants aged over 30 years.

Seed Treatment
The Identified jatropha seeds are soaked in a mixture of water mixed with 1% Potassium Chloride for a period of thirty hours. After the soaking, the seeds are treated with Psudomonous or Tricoderma Veridi at 4 Gms / Kg. of seed, along with a rice gruel paste and are dried for over two hours in the shade. Prior to sowing, seed bags are filled with a mixture of red Soil, Sand and organic Compost at 1:1:1 ratio. DAP and Bio Fertilizers are also added to the mixture. The seeds are watered regularly and within two months 2 months, saplings are ready for plantation.

Planting
Suitable land has to be identified without water logging possibilities and not present a clay soil for Jatropha. Plants are watered once in a week until establishment then watered only if there is a failure in the natural monsoon cycle.

Managing Growth
The growth of Jatropha plants as with other growing plants have to be managed through a system that includes:

• Application of Fertilizers
• Using Growth Promoters
• Pruning Unwanted growth
• Pest Control & Disease Control Measures

Flowering Stage
Flowering occurs during the wet season and in perennially humid regions, flowering occurs all through the year. Seeds mature in about three months after flowering.

Harvest
The maturity stage of Jatropha takes over 60 days from the onset of flowering.

Advantage
Jatropha plantations can generate incomes upwards of Rs. 25,000/- per hectare to over Rs.50, 000 from the fifth year of cultivation. The low gestation periods & high yields make them particularly suited to the needs of the biodiesel industry as well as for the development of farming communities & individuals.