Azadirachta indica, A. Juss

(Syn. Melia Azadirachta)

Family: Meliaceae

Common Name : Neem

Telugu Name : Vepa, Yepa

General :

Though not a forest tree, it generally grows wild. It grows on a variety of soils sandy to clayey to black cotton soils. Identified by imparipinnate shinning deeply serrate leaves. Neem does best where drainage is good and where sub - soil water level is fairly high.

Flowering :

Scented white flowers in axillary spikes appear in abundance in March-April.

Fruiting :

Fruits ripen from June to August.

Morphology of the Fruit/Seed :

Drupe 1 to 2 cms long, 1-celled, 1-seeded, greenish yellow when ripe. Seeds profusely even from an early age.

Seed Collection and Storage :

Seed Collection from the trees when fully ripe or are swept from the floor under the trees. The pulp is washed off, dried in shade and kept in air tight tin boxes. The seeds do not store well and the viability falls after two weeks.

Seed Biology :

No.of fruits per kg.

No. of seeds per Kg.

Germination percentage

Plant percent

No.of seedlings per Kg. of seed

Germination period in days

2000 to 3000

4500

70 to 90

20 to 60

900 to 2700

150

7 to 21

Pretreatment :

Not required

Nursery Technique :

Depulped, dried seeds are sown in raised nursery beds in lines, 15 to 20 cms a part, seeds 2.5 to 5.0 cms a part in the line and 1 cm deep. Seedlings of 7 to 10 cms tall are produced in 2 to 3 months but are usually pricked out to polythene bags where they are retained for 1 to 2 years.