There is good news for apple lovers now, like Himachal apple, it will be easily available in Jorhat, adjacent to Daltoganj. Palamu Divisional Commissioner, Jata Shankar Chaudhary on Tuesday launched the cultivation of Hariman 99 varieties of apples being done by Gopal Lal Agarwal, Umesh Agarwal and Akhilesh Agarwal in Jorkat village in Palamu District.
On the occasion, Chaudhary said that the farmer brothers of Palamu would now be able to do apple cultivation with ease. The soil and climate of Palamu are considered suitable for Hariman 99 strains of apples, which are called summer apples, he added.
After technical advice by the scientists of Palamu's Regional Research Center, Chianki, apple cultivation has been started in Jorkat village after trials with some plants at different places of the district.
The Divisional Commissioner said that it is a good thing for Palamu that private investors have started doing commercial farming here. He said that he has been advocating from the beginning that commercial farming should not be left only to the farmers. “Private investors will get better success by stepping up in the field of agriculture. This will also motivate other farmers and private investors. He said that planting of apple sapling in Palamu is a good thing,” he added.
Scientist of Regional Research Center Pramod Kumar Singh said that apple cultivation is being done here under his guidance. “The plant of Hariman 99 is suitable for the climate here. The plant of this distinction gives fruit even at 45 to 50 degree temperature. There is no difference in its taste and colour. The same fruit comes as cold regions. The month of December to January is suitable for planting Hariman 99 saplings. This grafted plant is being planted, which will start giving fruit in two to two and a half years,” he added.
Singh said that if the farmer brothers of Palamu plant tissue culture saplings, then they will start giving fruits within one and a half years. Here the distance between two plants has been kept 12 feet.
Akhilesh Aggarwal, who is cultivating apples, told that his family is cultivating apples on about one acre of land at the same place. He has procured 100 apple saplings from Himachal. Good income is expected in this. He said that this will also be expanded. He said that in most of the land of about 9 acres, he is cultivating fruit plants. In this, mainly tissue culture verma tea, Thai variety guava, saffron mango, Nagpuri orange, mosambi, tissue culture lemon and tissue culture bamboo plants have been planted. Fruits have also started coming in guava. He said that in view of the success of fruit plants, he has made up his mind on apple cultivation.