In Uttarakhand, a state in northern India, high value fruits and plant varieties cultivated under controlled conditions through tissue culture will soon reach fruit growers and farmers. Previously, these growers had to rely on neighbouring states Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir to provide them with these highly coveted plant materials.
The Department of Biotechnology has started tissue culture of kiwi, orchid and brahmi on a small scale at its centre in Haldi. “We have already planted around 300 plants of kiwifruit in the Urgam valley and another batch of over 5,000 plants of kiwi, brahmi, lily and orchid will be planted in December. These should be ready by the winter for tests in the different fields at government orchards. It will take some time before they reach farmers,” said Deepak Kumar, Secretary, Biotechnology.
The Department of Horticulture is optimistic about kiwifruit cultivation due to the prevalence of diverse climatic belts in the state. “We will go in for more varieties of kiwi in keeping with the prevailing climatic conditions in the state. We have hosts of options including introducing low-chilling varieties for lower altitudes, coloured for mid-altitude and sturdy varieties for places where the temperatures is quite low,” said Dr BS Negi, Director, Horticulture.
In Himachal Pradesh, the fruit growers have been mostly growing Abbot and Allison varieties of kiwi.
“This laboratory was set up in 2003 at the cost of Rs 10 million. It will help us immensely if we are able to carry out our experiments in this laboratory, as the fields are also nearby and we can quickly start our plantation,” added Deepak.
(1 Indian Rupee=0.015USD)
Source: tribuneindia.com
