Banana Research Station, Kannara, under the Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) was conferred with the ‘Best Centre Award’ in the All Indian Coordinated Research Project (AICRP) on Fruits, held at Ludhiana, Punjab, recently.
The research efforts of the station in the areas of crop improvement, agro-techniques, and plant protection in banana and jackfruit were well appreciated in the forum. The scientists, P.B. Pushpalatha, Vimi Louis, Gavas Ragesh, and Manju P.R. of BRS, Kannara, presented the research achievements in the review meeting.
The station maintains germplasm of 236 indigenous and exotic landraces, cultivars, endangered species, and wild accessions of banana. The collection is considered to be one of the best banana germplasm in the country and is recognised as National Active Germplasm Site (NAGS). Based on the evaluation work carried out, 28 cultivars belonging to different genomes were identified for large-scale cultivation in the State.
Value-added products
Prominent among them include Manjeri Nendran II, Attunendran, Myndoli, Zanzibar, Big Ebanga, Amritsagar, Popoulu, Karpooravalli, and Yangambi. The centre has also developed two banana hybrids, namely BRS-1 and BRS-2. Utilisation of this varietal wealth is achieved through the development of technologies for the preparation of various value-added products from banana that have great acceptance among the public.
The station is also engaged in quality planting material production in the form of suckers and tissue culture plants. The recommendations of the station for the control of pseudostem weevil, rhizome weevil, nematodes, sucking pests, leaf spot diseases, rhizome rot, and Fusarium wilt have wide adoption among the farming community.
The Biocontrol Lab established at Banana Research Station, Kannara, is renowned for its quality products of several biocontrol agents such as Pseudomonas , Trichoderma , Beauvaria , Verticillium , Entomopathogenic Nemtaodes (EPN) etc. Biofertilizer production is another activity taken up by the centre.
Publications from the station in the form of research and popular articles, books and leaflets is highly useful to scientists, students and farmers. Popularisation of different technologies is taken up through exhibitions, seminars, farmer interactive sessions and mass media.
