Sandalwood Farming Guide

Sandalwood farming means growing white sandalwood (Santalum album) for its fragrant heartwood. It is a long-cycle crop that needs patience, the right companion plants and good protection. This guide explains the basics in plain language, and how a managed farm like Arogya Vana near Bagepalli, about 2 hours from Bengaluru, handles the work for you.

How sandalwood grows

• A semi-parasitic tree: sandalwood makes its own food but also draws water and nutrients from the roots of nearby host plants, so it is never grown alone.
• Host plants: farmers plant companion species such as casuarina, pulses or fruit trees close to each sapling.
• Heartwood is the value: the scented heartwood forms slowly inside the trunk, so the crop is measured in many years, not seasons.

Soil and water

• Sandalwood generally prefers well-drained red or sandy loam soil and does poorly in waterlogged ground.
• It suits dry, warm climates like the Deccan plateau of south Karnataka.
• Young plants need regular watering; drip irrigation helps save water and keep moisture even.

Planting and care

1. Raise or buy healthy nursery saplings
2. Plant each sapling with a host plant beside it
3. Water, weed and mulch through the early years
4. Prune and manage host plants as the trees grow
5. Watch for pests and disease

Protecting the trees

Because mature sandalwood is valuable, theft is a real risk on any sandalwood farm. Fencing, watchmen and cameras are part of serious sandalwood farming. At Arogya Vana the land has 24/7 security, CCTV and solar fencing.

Legal harvest and sale

In India, sandalwood felling and sale are regulated, and growers generally need to register trees and follow the state forest department's process when harvesting and selling. Rules change, so check the current position with the Karnataka Forest Department or take legal advice. At Arogya Vana, harvest planning is handled centrally by the farm team.

How sandalwood farming returns work

• Long term: the sandalwood itself, at maturity
• Regular: seasonal fruits and vegetables grown between the trees
• Land: you own the plot, in a growing corridor near the proposed SEZ and Greenfield Highway

At Arogya Vana, 70% of sandalwood profit and 100% of fruit and vegetable income go to the owner, subject to terms. Returns depend on tree growth, protection and market price, and are not guaranteed. More detail: how sandalwood farming pays over time.

Or let us farm it for you

Running a sandalwood farm yourself means years of watering, guarding and paperwork. Arogya Vana, by Saptha Ventures, does it for you: agronomist-run planting of white sandalwood with casuarina, fruits and vegetables, drip irrigation, security, and free maintenance for the first 2 years (charges apply from year 3). Phase 1 is sold out, Phase 2 is about 75% sold, and Phase 3 is open.

The Phase 3 plan is ₹25 lakh per 4,400 sq.ft plot: ₹15 lakh for the land plus ₹10 lakh as a managed investment, with returns as per agreement (terms apply). See the plan.

See our managed sandalwood farmland near Bangalore.

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