Where is cinnamon cultivated

Cinnamon can be grown in a wide range of soils, from organic -rich loamy soils to poor sandy loam soils. Quality of bark in cinnamon is a very important factor in its cultivation so It is better to have an organic matter in the soil for better quality production of cinnamon.

Cinnamon cultivation requires well-drained soils for higher yields. You may be interested in Taiwan Guava Farming in India. It is usually propagated through seed and vegetative propagation through cuttings and air layers are generally practiced in cinnamon cultivation. Fruits are collected from the cinnamon tree and the seeds are removed and cleaned and sown without delaying as cinnamon seeds have very less viability.

Cinnamon seeds are sown in polythene bags containing a mixture of sand or in sand beds, soil and well-powdered dried cow dung in a ratio. Irrigation should be done regularly and the seeds start germinating within 10—21 days.

Artificial shading should be provided for the seedlings till they become 6 months old. Should dig the Pits of 50 cm at a spacing of 3 meters by 3 meters. They should be filled with organic compost and-topsoil before plantation. To get the better establishment of seedlings, cinnamon should be planted from June to July to take advantage of monsoon.

One-year-seedlings are planted. In each pit, 4 to 5 seedlings can be planted. The seeds are directly dibbled in pits in some cases that are filled with organic compost and soil. Partial artificial shade in the initial stages of cultivation is beneficial for the healthy and rapid growth of cinnamon plants.

This dose is increased gradually to grams N, grams P2O5 and grams K2O for grown-up plants of 10 years and above. Three years after planting: 29 kg of F. The fertilizers are to be applied in 2 equal split doses in May to June and September to October. Two weedings in a year are required from June to July and October to November. One digging of soil around the bushes from August to September is done. Watering is given during summer months twice a week.

The water quantity depends upon the soil moisture level and growth of plants. Cinnamon is mainly a rain fed crop. But an annual rainfall of to cm is preferred ideal for its cultivation.

Coppicing is a method of cutting back the height of the cinnamon trees to the desired height in a commercial plantation so as to manage the plantation more effectively. Afterward, a bunch of side shoots is produced by the main stem and subsequently, the cinnamon plants assume the shape of a low bush of about 2-meter height and a bunch of canes suitable for peeling crop up in a period of about 4 years. Regular peeling operations could be carried in case of seedling bushes, from 4th or 5th year, depending upon the extent of development of peeler shoots.

Normally coppicing is done in alternate years. The b est time for harvesting shoots is from Sep to Nov. Side shoots having finger thickness and uniform brown color is ideal for bark extraction. If the bark separates readily, the cutting can be done immediately.

The stems are cut close to the ground when they are about 2 years old, as straight as possible, 1. Harvested cinnamon shoots are bundled together and transported to the pack house for further post-harvest tasks. In addition, about 75 kg of quilling and feathering are obtained from cinnamon plants.

There are several hundred trees that belong to this group with just a few that make up the majority of the cinnamon available worldwide. The other major type of cinnamon is the cassia cinnamon, which can be Cinnamomum cassia , or C.

Whether or not this type is called cinnamon or cassia, depends on the country you live in. Regulations and customs differ between Europe, America and Asia. Only, when it is mentioned explicitly will you have the other variety, simply because it is the more expensive of the two.

If you look closely at a stick of cinnamon you will notice that it is curled up. Cinnamon is the bark of the tree Cinnamomum. In the countries where cinnamon grows well the trees are left to grow for about 2 years, until the shoots of bark are suitable for harvest.

Instead of having to harvest the whole tree, the bark is harvested by cutting of the shoots of the tree a few centimeters above ground. Once the shoots of the cinnamon tree have been harvested it is time to remove the outer layer of bark from the shoot. This outer layer is not useful for the cinnamon and quite hardy. Once the outer layer has been removed the workers, because most of this work is still done by hand, carefully removed the inner bark layer.

This is what will become your cinnamon stick! These layers of inner bark then need to dry during which they harden out and become shelf stable. Some cinnamon sticks will be just one or two layers of curled up material, others might consist of several thin layers of bark. Which structure you get depends on how the peelers obtain and dry the bark and on the type of cinnamon. Apart from the cinnamon sticks and powder, more on that below you may also find cinnamon chips in the store. It's these shoots that are used to make cinnamon.

Once cut, the shoots are stripped of their bark and the peels are set out to dry in the sun. As this happens, the bark naturally curls into quills sticks [source: Indian Institute of Spices Research]. Once dried, the quills can be cut into sticks and packaged according to a set of shared qualities. The Sri Lankan grading system , for example, divides the quills into four sizes: Alba, which is 0.

Ceylon cinnamon is usually sold in quill form, and it is characterized by a sweet smell and light brown color. It's thin and has a crumbling texture, so it can be ground easily, using a coffee grinder.

Cassia cinnamon can be found in a variety of forms, the most common of which is ground cinnamon, but it's generally too hard to grind at home. In addition to being used for baking, cinnamon flavoring and essential oils often end up in products such as cinnamon supplements and cinnamon-scented bath products, too.

To find out more about cinnamon's many uses, read on.