http://www.greenpeace.

org/india/en/news/about -the-sandalwood-tree/ About the Sandalwood Tree

Feature story - September 10, 2004BANGALORE, India Sandalwood Santalum album Shiri Gandha Chandana Aninditha - Arishta Phalam - Bhadhrashraya Sarpavasa Chandrakanta Gandhasara Thailaparna - Malayaja what names ! More than sixty are listed, each more imaginative than the other.

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Sandalwood tree The sandalwood tree can grow in almost any part of India (which is why any Indian will recognize the fragrant wood, even though they might refer to sandalwood by one of its many aliases.) The sandalwood tree flourishes in regions where the climate is cool with moderate rainfall, plentiful sunshine and long periods of dry weather. Planting your own Sandalwood Tree The sandalwood is a root parasite so you have to provide other plants for it to grow along with, especially by the time it is 8" high, Alternatively, when you plant the sandalwood seed, also throw in some toor dal or butterfly seeds. Plant the sandalwood seed " to 1" below the soil and water it lightly everyday. If you don't have access to a strip of soil, you can plant the seed in a soil bed or a pot, or recycle a milk-bag by punching holes in it, adding soil and turning it into a tiny planter. You can move it to a larger bag or a larger pot as required, and gift the sapling to someone else if you run out of space. Mix red earth, farmyard manure (cattle manure) and sand in a ratio of 2:1:1 i.e 2 parts of red earth, 1 part of manure and 1 part of sand. Silt also provides very good nourishment to plants. The seeds will start sprouting only in 4 to 8 weeks so don't stop watering if you don't see results - and don't over water, because that certainly won't hasten the process! The soil should always be moist, never water logged, so after it has sprouted, water it only on alternate days. Eventually, if you have no place to transfer the plant to, you can keep the sandalwood tree in a large container (cement chilla /pot/etc) in your balcony or terrace, strip compound. When your saplings are about one month old, transplanting them to a larger area will give them a much higher chance to survive and thrive.

Clear an area for planting and dig a pit about 30cm3 in size. Plant the sandalwood seedlings along with the host seedlings - keep a distance of 2.5 to 4m between two sandalwood plants. Usually, sandalwood is transplanted in the months between May and October. To prevent contamination of local varieties, plant these seeds only in urban areas, not in protected forest areas. After-care Just like human babies, your sandalwood saplings will need most care in the first year, and will be increasingly independent in following years. You will need to weed around the plants and work the soil for the first year, and, if necessary, in the second year too. In case the host plants outgrow the sandalwood seedlings, tip them a little to provide enough light to the seedlings. If any climbers surround your seedling, cut and remove them. Ideal Soil Sandal trees grow mainly on red ferregenuous loam, overlying metamorphic rocks, chiefly gneiss. They can tolerate shallow, rocky ground and stony or gravelly soils, voiding saline or calcareous soils, and are not exacting about the depth of the soil. Rich and moist soils such as well-drained alluvial soils, do not support sandalwood well; the heartwood in such trees will be deficient in oil. Trees grown on poor soils yield better oil, though they cannot withstand water-logging. Parasitism The roots of sandalwood saplings attach themselves to the root of the host plant with the help of haustoria. There are also instances of sandal thriving off other sandal trees too. Sandalwood grows well with hosts such as Acacia, Albizzia, Bombusa, Cassia, Erythrina, Erythroxylon, Gossypium, Pongamia, Semecarpus, Strychnos, Tectona, Thespesia, Vitex and Zocypus in natural forest Spike disease has been reported to be transmitted form hosts, such as Lantana, Acanthaclous Ocimum Dedroclamus, Dodonea, Vinca and Eucalyptus. Climate The tree flourishes best between altitudes of 600 and 1050 m, though it may go up to 1350 m and descend as low as 360m. The important sandal tracts lie in places where rainfall varies from 60-160cm. In general, the sandal tree flourishes in regions where the climate is cool with moderate rainfall, plentiful sunshine and long periods of dry weather. The ideal temperature for its growth is between 12 and 30C.

How to Grow Sandalwood Tree

67 By sanunewa

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Sandalwood Tree cutivation

There is an increasing need to select tree species and cultivate them or obtain essential oil, wood, fuel wood, fodder, biomass and other products sandalwood can provide those needs. Many of the tree species provide more than one type of useful product used either directly by man as timber, fuel wood, building poles, gums, resins, oil or industrially processed as charcoal, pulp weed, plywood and other. One of the remarkable tree genus that has come into our garden is sandalwood, which is highly prized for its wood and essential oil. The plant is acknowledged as one of the most precious perfumery items from antiquity to the modern time. Besides perfumery and carving idols, the plant is highly used in medicines too. The sandalwood paste is applied to local inflammations and as cure for headaches, hemicranias and fever. It is also applied to skin diseases and for making good complexion. It is also used as a remedy for gonorrhea, chronic cystitis and urinary infection. Hindu, Muslims, Buddhists use sandalwood powder as incense in their religious ceremonies and rituals. Rich people sometimes employ sandalwood for cremating their dead in Hindu cultures. Sandalwood: Procedure Shoot tips of Sandalwood were collected from a five year old tree. The shoot tips were washed for one hour in running water followed by a surface washed with a drop of teepol. The shoot tips were washed thoroughly in distilled water. Aseptically the tips were sterilized with 0.1% Mercury Choride (HgCl2) solution for 5 minutes and again washed with sterilized water 4-5 times to make explants free from steriliant. The tips were excised and inoculated in the MS (Murashige and Skoog) medium supplemented with BAP(6-Beny1 Aminopurine) 5 mg/1, NAA (Napthy1 Acetic Acid) 0.10 mg/1 and 10% coconut water.the pH of the medium was adjusted to 5.5 to 5.8. The cultures were incubated in fluorescent ight with a day length of 12-16 hours. The temperature of the incubation room was adjusted to 25-30C. Sandalwood: Result The culture shoot tips developed green small embryoides after 2 months of culture. These green embryoides developed in the plantlets when sub cultured in MS media supplemented with low concentration of BAP 1.0 mg/1 and KN (Kinetin) 1.5 mg/1 and 10% coconut water after 2-3 months. The plantlets were sub cultured for mass propagation. For rooting, plantlets were washed and dipped in 0.1% IAA (Indole Acetic Acid) for 5 minutes. The plantlets were rooted in non-sterile sand. However, rooting was observed in sand, but the percentage was

not encouraging in comparison to other tissue cultured sand rooting plants. So in vitro rooting could be adapted. For mass production, as the plant is root parasite. Nevertheless, tissue culture method is very useful to produce the desired quality plants in large number and high yielding varieties can be produced, both for public and private sector. So far, the results achieved are still at the laboratory sage and they need to be scaled up for industrial use. Furthermore by in vitro methods disease resistant varieties can be produced and healthier trees can be released for the benefit of the growers.

Tarikere farmer has 1,800 sandalwood trees to his credit

Farmer with a difference DH News Service,Tarikere: This is the story of a phoenix who rose from the ashes. This is, in fact, a success story of a youth who has shown that where there is a will, there is a way. There is no farmer in Tarikere - a semi-Malnad area - who is not admired by areca. Areca is the breath of the people here. Tarikere without areca is unimaginable. There are people who had a happy life by growing areca. There are also people who lost everything by doing the same. T N Vishukumar of Dorenalu village was earning a revenue of more than a lakh per year by growing areca in an area of 4.22 acre. But he could not save his plantation due to the severe drought that hit the region in between 2002 and 2005. He also incurred a loss by growing pacholi, stevia and aloevera. Vishukumar who knew that agriculture in India is a gamble with monsoons, decided to make up his loss by growing sandalwood, teak, mango, sapota, coconut, silver tree and the like. Usually, farmers grow something expecting annual income. If one grows areca, he should wait for 8-10 years for the yield (income). However, Vishukumar grew survey trees which provide Rs one lakh income per acre in a span of four years. He also grew silver trees which again provide Rs 10 lakh income per acre in a span of 10 years. Usually, teak and sandalwood are rain and climate based trees, and hence, Vishukumar thought of growing teak which value more than two crore in 20 years and more than 10 crore in 30 years. By growing them with zero cultivation and zero management, he has emerged a model farmer. Now, he has 1,800 sandalwood trees, 1,800 teak trees, 3,600 silver trees in his farm, besides a nursery consisting mango, vanilla, sapota, areca, teak, sandalwood, coconut, silver and survey plants. People from various corners of the State are coming to Tarikere and feel amazed of Vishukumars achievement. They are now looking forward to grow sandalwood by getting both information and plants from him. Many people have already ventured into the task. However, many have doubts whether government permits to sell the sandalwood trees once they are grown up or how to get permission to prune them. Answer is here: Sandalwood trees were the property of the government some years ago, but now the rule has changed. As per the Section 108 of the Karnataka Forest (Amendment) Act 2001, sandalwood tree grown in a specific land is the property of the owner of the land. Hence, anybody can grow sandalwood without any apprehensions, he says. The State government is giving subsidy to grow sandalwood through State Medicinal Plants Authority and Horticulture Department. Those who are willing to grow sandalwood can avail loans up to Rs 30 lakh from nationalised and rural development banks. Interested may contact: T N Vishukumar, Hajimastan, Kemmannugundi road, Kodicamp, Tarikere taluk, Chikmagalur district. Mobile: 97391-21848; E-mail: sandalvishu@gmail.com.