Heard sandalwood is very valuable. Want honest view on years to maturity, legal rules and risk.
Is sandalwood farming worth it and how long does it take to mature?
SSuresh Rao1yr ago · 487 views
6 Answers
🌾Farmer.in Krishi TeamExpert ✓1yr ago
Sandalwood is highly valuable but it is a very long term, high patience crop, not a quick scheme, so go in with realistic expectations. It takes roughly twelve to fifteen years or more for the heartwood to develop enough value, and it is a semi parasitic tree that needs host plants growing nearby to thrive. Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are traditional sandalwood regions. Rules on growing, harvesting and selling have been eased so farmers can now legally grow it, but you must follow your state forest department procedures for registration, transit and sale, so check the current legal process carefully. Risks include theft of the valuable trees, the very long wait, and agents overselling saplings and exaggerated returns. It can pay off well over the long run as an inheritance type asset, often intercropped early. Verify the legal selling process, use genuine planting material with proper host plants, and beware of guaranteed high return sales pitches.
MMahadev1yr ago
Sandalwood is a long game, think more than a decade before real value. I planted it with host trees as advised, it will not grow well alone. Theft is a worry, the trees are valuable so we keep watch and fencing. Treat it as a long term asset, not fast money.
LLakshmi Bai1yr ago
Be very careful of agents selling expensive saplings with big promises. Follow the forest department rules for growing and selling, do not skip the paperwork. Plant host plants alongside. Good as an inheritance for the next generation, not for quick income.
RRamegowda1yr ago
The host plant part is real and people ignore it. Sandalwood draws nutrients from neighbouring plants, so I kept red gram and other hosts around the saplings and the growth was clearly better than the few I planted alone. Without hosts they stayed weak.
NNanjamma1yr ago
Plan security from year one because the value invites theft as the trees mature. We fenced, kept a dog and built good relations with neighbours to keep an eye out. Also keep your registration and records straight with the forest department so the eventual sale is clean.
SShivakumar1yr ago
Do not put all your land into it expecting a jackpot in a decade. I intercropped in the early years so the land earned something while the sandalwood grew. Treat the trees as a slow building asset alongside your normal income, not a replacement for it.