Horticulture
Also called: Horticulture output · Topic: Major Crops of India: Distribution and Conditions · NCERT: Class 10, Ch 4 "Agriculture"
Meaning
Horticulture means growing fruits, vegetables, flowers, spices and plantation crops. These crops earn more money per hectare than grains do, and they improve people's diets. Since 2012-13, India's horticulture output has been larger than its foodgrain output. In 2020 India was second after China in fruits and vegetables. It leads the world in banana and mango (verify current).
Example
Different regions specialise in different fruits:
- oranges: Nagpur in Maharashtra, and Cherrapunji in Meghalaya
- bananas: Kerala
- pineapples: Meghalaya
- apples and walnuts: the Himalayan states of Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh
Don't confuse with
- Plantation agriculture: this means growing one crop, such as tea or rubber, on large estates. Horticulture is the wider group. It includes plantation crops as well as fruits, vegetables and flowers.