The Hindu : Karnataka News : Saving a mango variety

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Nov 30, 2007
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Karnataka

Karnataka

Saving a mango variety

Farmers desperate to find a way out hit upon the Veneer grafting technique

FINALLY, A WAY OUT: S.R. Lakshmikant Reddy at his mango farm in Hiriyur in Chitradurga district.

Worried farmers of Chitradurga district who had planted Hybrid-13 (Arka puneet) variety of mangoes have reason to feel relieved now thanks to the introduction of a technique called Veneer grafting. The variety, introduced around 10 years ago by the Indian Institute of Horticultural Research (IIHR) to match Alfonsos in quality, was an utter failure. The plant began losing fruit in the early stages. However, numerous farmers had planted the variety. “The variety drasti cally failed to give yield. The farmers who had invested a large sum of money on the plantations, could not reap a single profitable crop for nearly a decade,” said agricultural expert Sitaram Reddy. He said that several farmers actually uprooted the plants, though they had to face loss. According to Deputy Director of Horticulture Department Kadiregouda, the failure of the variety resulted in a loss of nearly Rs. 1 crore every year. However, a few farmers such as Mr. Sitaram Reddy were desperate to find a way out and hit upon the Veneer grafting technique.In this technique, fully grown H-13 mango trees are cut to the size of 3 feet to 5 feet. When the tree develops sprouts, these form the root stock of the graft. Scions (part of the plant that includes the stems and leaves) of the Alfonso variety are then grafted to the root stock. “We have selected Alfonso variety to graft as it matches best with this variety and gives better yield,” said Mr. Sitaram Reddy.

S.R. Lakshmikant Reddy who had invested over Rs. 1 lakh on 10 acres of land suffered crop losses every year. He has now successfully used the new technique. Grafting has been adopted in Bhimasamudra, Chitradurga and Hiriyur.

Looking at the success, the Department of Horticulture has extended financial and technical support to the farmers. The department is giving Rs. 20,000 subsidy for a maximum of 2 hectares of land where the farmers wish to adopt this technique. This comes at Rs. 2,000 an acre of land. The department, this year, has targeted to give subsidy to around 30 hectares of land, while subsidy for 20 hectares of land would be given next year, said Mr. Kadiregouda.

Firoz Rozindar in Chitradurga

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