Resource Book on Horticulture Nursery Management

approach is to expand an existing farm operation. A farmer seeking an alternative crop
has much of the necessary equipment and requires less fixed capital investment.
A plant nursery requires various capital components of expenditure like land, building,
road, fencing, polyhouse, shade net, equipment and machinery, well/tubewell, motor,
irrigation system etc. The cost and expenditure components for non-recurring heads are
included under capital components. For ease of understanding and practical aspects of
establishment of plant nursery an area of 1 hectare is considered. This module will help
the reader to arrive at a firm decision to start his own nursery.
Basic Considerations
� Whether the entrepreneur has skill and knowledge to grow plants
� Whether the entrepreneur has strong will power and right mind set to establish a
nursery
� Whether the entrepreneur has access to adequate means of finance
� Whether the entrepreneur has adequate raw material for establishment of nursery
� Whether there is demand of nursery plants for sale to the farmers or retrading.
� Whether he has land for nursery easily approachable for all the buyers.
The answers to above questions strongly put up by a probable entrepreneur will help
him to arrive at a firm decision to start a nursery enterprise. Capital components are
those components of investments which are required to be incurred for capital intensive
and non-recurring items for establishment of nursery enterprise. The cost for such
component is borne during the establishment phase and further expenditure may be
incurred for maintenance of capital structures.
Capital Components
Nursery is the place where all kinds of plants like trees, shrubs, climbers etc. are
grown and kept for transporting or for using them as stock plants for budding, grafting
and other method of propagation or for sale.
The establishment of a nursery may require following fixed capital components:
1. Fence: Prior to the establishment of a nursery, a good fence with barbed wire must
be erected all around the nursery to prevent trespassing of animals and theft. The
fence could be further strengthened by planting a live hedge with thorny plants (like
Karvanda).
2. Roads and Paths: A proper planning for roads and paths inside the nursery will not
only add aesthetic value, but also make the nursery operations easy and economical.
This could be achieved by dividing the nursery into different blocks and various
sections. But at the same time, the land should not be wasted by unnecessarily laying
out of paths and roads. Each road/ path should lead the customer to a point of
interest in the nursery area.
3. Workshed: Workshed of 5 m x 4 m with thatched roof of locally available
materials like bamboo, wood, etc. may be constructed.
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