The city-based Natural Organic Farmers’ Association (NOFA) is poised for adoption of the best horticulture practices followed in Israel if the efforts made by its treasurer Ch. R.K. Prasad bear fruit.
He is in talks with two Israeli firms namely Hishtil and OMRI Products who are leaders in plant propagation and grafting and organic production and processing, for replicating their models of farming in the Krishna district.
The idea is to achieve higher yields of all types of vegetables grown in this region and some fruits like banana and papaya through tissue culture and grafting methods that made the West Asian country a pioneer in horticulture. Priority is given to growing vegetables through grafting technology to be sourced from the above companies, Mr. Prasad said.
Speaking to The Hindu , he observed that the objective was to hand over ‘guaranteed trees’ (plants grown from superior quality seeds to nurseries) to farmers.
By taking these robust trees that can adapt to any climate and soil conditions, farmers could avoid losses incurred in the normal course of converting the seeds into nursery beds and taking them to harvesting stage.“The Israeli companies mastered the cultivation of vegetables and fruits like bananas in shade-nets with minimal quantities of water under extreme heat conditions through the grafting method. The tissue culture and seed multiplication systems that they adopted were phenomenal. The tie-up with Israeli firms may involve the establishment of a tissue culture laboratory at Guntupalli near Vijayawada”, he said.
Tie-up
The NOFA has also sought the expertise of YSR Horticulture University at Tadepalligudem in West Godavari district and is in the process of forging a tie-up with it in the near future.
Besides, Mr. Prasad is trying to rope in S.B. Dandin, Liaison Officer of Biodiversity International, Bengaluru, for advising on latest techniques of horticulture.
The idea is to achieve higher yields of all types of vegetables and fruits like banana and papaya through tissue culture and grafting
