Coastal Farmer Makes Agriculture Profitable By Taking Up Integrated Farming Of Exotic Fruits
For Abdul Khader, what began as a small experiment amidst areca nut and rubber plantations has today grown into a diverse garden of exotic fruits.
Published : June 23, 2026 at 7:20 PM IST
Mangaluru: Combining tradition with innovation, a coastal farmer has transformed his land into a garden of exotic fruits. For the last decade, Abdul Khader has been growing rare fruits from countries like Indonesia, Thailand, Taiwan, Brazil, Japan, America and Vietnam in his six-acre areca nut and rubber plantation. He is showing other farmers a new path through integrated farming.
His garden is home to mangosteen, rambutan, dragon fruit, abiu, jaboticaba, water apple, blackberry jambu, white violet, seedless ambata, sweet luvi, Thai pear, various varieties of jackfruit, longan and other rare fruits from many countries.
Khader's family has been in agriculture for decades. Once a big paddy farmer, his family gradually faced a shortage of labour, rising production costs and falling profits. On the other hand, as the areca nut plantations increased, the favourable conditions for growing paddy also decreased. Thus, the family slowly turned to horticultural crops. They had been growing crops like banana, coconut and cocoa along with areca nuts, but ten years ago they took another step forward and started a new experiment by making foreign fruits a part of integrated farming.
Residing on the Karnataka-Kerala border, Khader often visited Kerala orchards to study agriculture. Seeing the farmers there grow foreign fruits along with traditional agriculture and earning a good income, he also adopted the idea.
He started experimenting with a few plants and gradually introduced varieties of fruits from different countries to his garden.
Khader told ETV Bharat, "The vacant space between old areca plantations can be utilised properly. If long-lived trees like mangosteen are planted in the same area, they will bring good income in the future."
He said that mangosteen trees start bearing fruit in about seven years and continue to do so for decades. He claims that this crop is not easily damaged even by standing water and is suitable for the coastal areas. He has observed that these plants are not damaged even when there is a flood in Kerala.
He further said that rambutan, which is native to Thailand, is already popular on the coast. Despite fluctuating prices, it is a good choice for farmers as it is a fruit that is always in demand. Khader believes that if managed properly, it gives good yields.
Similarly, dragon fruit, a desert plant, does not require much water. He explained, "It is a crop that can provide good income year after year without much care. Even if its price decreases, farmers will still benefit because the production cost is low."
Along with traditional jackfruit, Khader is also growing Vietnam super early, Sindoor and other varieties. The Sindoor variety developed by the Kerala Agricultural University gives good yields in three to four years. The fruit of this variety is red in colour and sweeter. It fetches a good price when sold in small packets. In some cases, he has earned up to Rs 1,000 from a single jackfruit.
"If you rely on a single crop, the risk is high. If you grow different crops, even if one crop fails, the other one will hold the farmer's hand," Khader asserted.
He feels that agriculture should not be limited to tradition. "It can be a profitable business if crops are selected keeping in mind market demand, weather and future income," he said.
Khader runs a nursery at his home where he sells the plants he has grown successfully. What began as a small experiment amidst areca nut and rubber plantations has today grown into a diverse garden of exotic fruits.
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