Krishna District Agricultural and Industrial Exhibition Society has developed a full grown demonstrative orchard for the farmers of the district at Vellatur near here on the banks of the Budameru rivulet, readying samples of some exotic varieties.
‘Simaruba’, one of the oil-producing seed having its origin in Latin American nations, grown here was ready for display, society’s horticulture venture coordinator N. Lakshmi Prasad said at a press conference here on Saturday.
Another exotic vegetable grown is large capsicum ( bell pepper ), which is usually imported from Bangalore or other colder regions of the country.
But now, orange, red, and green capsicum are ready on 18.46 acres of land, which was once full of Sodic patches.
The land was given to the society by the Horticulture Department and it cost Rs. 60 lakh to bring it to this state, he explained.
Now, it has become a demonstration orchard, where the horticulturists can be trained on pruning of trees, bushes, and other facets of growing fruit-bearing varieties.
Some of the trees grown are pomegranate, guava, mango, amla, custard apple, and sweet orange.
Grafting
The predominantly North Indian variety ‘Kesari’ and ‘Alphanso’ mangoes have come to fruition and the society proposes to begin grafting to sell them to farmers at lowest possible price.
“This is only to demonstrate that these crops can be tried in any kind of soil in this region successfully,” said Mr. Prasad. Grafting is being tried on guava — Lucknow 49 variety — and grafts will be ready within a couple of months for the farmers to buy.
Adarsha Rythu Ch. Subba Rao said that ‘Simaruba’ can yield oil that was rich in anti-cancer properties, its outer flesh can be turned into 9 per cent alcohol or taken as fresh juice.
“The roots have anti-malarial properties and successfully tried in Latin American nations as they have similar climatic conditions,” he said.
“Simaruba will also be given to farmers once grafting begins within a year,” said Mr. Prasad, and added that farmers could contact them for details over phone numbers: M. Lakshmi Prasad (8008661555) or K. Mallikarjun Prasad (9440431225).
