Low-chill varieties can usher in apple revolution in mid-Himalayas Apple crop grown successfully in Dharamsala; 2,000 plant orchard produces first crop Apple is finally a commercial crop for low-altitude hill areas as Dharamsala. About 2,000 apple trees grown by the Mann Tea estate owners in Dharamsala have started yielding fruits. The first basket of apples was today sold by the manager of the estate Guddu Pathania. While talking to The Tribune, Guddu Pathania said they had started growing apple trees about four years ago in about 55 kanal agriculture land available with them. "We had brought apple shoots from Hariman, a farmer in the Ghumarwin area of Bilaspur. He had first successfully grown apple in low-altitude area of the state," he said. "The trees have started giving fruits in their fourth year. The crop has been really good and it is very encouraging for us. We intend to develop shoots and sell these to other farmers of the Dharamsala region, so that they can grow commercial fruit crop of apple," he said. Dharamsala falls in the mid-Himalayan region and has an average altitude of just of 1,500 m. SC Dhiman, Additional Director, Horticulture, Dharamsala, said besides the Mann Tea Estate owners, many other farmers have also started growing apple in low-altitude areas. He claimed that a farmer in the Dehra area had successfully grown an apple orchard. Dehra subdivision of Kangra district has an average altitude of just 503 m from the sea level. The area witnesses extreme temperatures ranging from 40 to 45 degree Celsius during summers. The apple varieties that have been successfully grown in Dehra and Dharamsala areas are low-chill varieties of apple. Inquiries by The Tribune revealed that the apple varieties that are being successfully grown by farmers in lower hills include the Anna and Golden Dorsett varieties. These varieties were developed in Israel and first introduced in 1959. The low-chill varieties of apple flower in January and February, whereas the varieties sown in high altitudes flower in March and April. The low- chill varieties that are being grown successfully in Dharamsala, bear fruit in June or July, whereas the high-altitude varieties give fruit in September and October. Additional Director, Horticulture, when asked as to what the state government was doing to promote apple in mid or lower Himalayan region, said the department had imported 2,000 low-chill apple saplings from France and distributed these in lower areas of the state. However, the entire apple promotion policy of the state has remained limited to just high-altitude areas of Himachal Pradesh. The apple crop is promoted by the state government in just Shimla, Kullu and tribal areas of Kinnaur and Chamba. It is unfortunate when the low-chill varieties are available since 1959, why the state government does not make concerted efforts to introduce the apple crop in mid-Himalayan regions that include Bilaspur, Kangra, Solan and Sirmaur districts.
Posted on: Mon, 24 Jun 2013 23:14:58 +0000
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