Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Bhopani, Faridabad-121002.
Acacia nilotica (Linn) is a moderate sized evergreen tree with a thin spreading crown and feathery foliage. It is a species of southern Tropical dry deciduous forests and Southern Tropical thorn forests. Farmers adopt this tree for plantation in the agricultural land, wasteland and on field boundaries especially in Haryana, Rajasthan, Punjab and Uttar Pardesh. In last decade, large scale mortality of kikar trees had been observed in most parts of Haryana is causing panic amongst the farmers, foresters, scientists and policymakers because not only the individual get very attractive return for the mature tree planted 15–30 years back but it is also an integral part of agroecosystems in plains of North-western India. A total of 68 trees were found dead in the whole district along roadside/canal side/railway line (49), scattered over farmers field (15) and on bunds (4). Average mortality of kikar was 6.8% in the Faridabad district. The mortality varies from location to location and was 8.5, 7.5, 7.0, 6.0, and 5.0 % in Faridabad, Ballabgarh, Palwal, Hodal and Hasanpur blocks, respectively. Both biotic and abiotic factors were found responsible for the mortality of Acacia nilotica.
