AGARTALA, Sept 19: Tripura’s Horticulture department has
adopted a new method of potato cultivation by using apical
rooted cuttings to produce quality seeds, an official said on
Tuesday.
In the northeastern state, the farmers usually import potato
seeds from outside the state and are facing challenges due to
poor productivity and pest infection.
“To address the perennial problem in potato cultivation, the
horticulture department has set up a hi-tech greenhouse to
produce quality seeds by adopting apical rooted cutting
which has already become popular in Assam and
Meghalaya”, deputy director of the department, Rajib Ghosh
told PTI.
“Initially, we have set a target of producing 50,000 seeds of
potato from the hi-tech greenhouse set up at Nagicherra
Agricultural Research Centre, 17 km from the state capital”,
he said, adding that the department has already roped in
International Potato Center (CIP) in Peru.
Apical cuttings are rooted transplants produced in a
greenhouse from tissue culture plantlets. Rather than
allowing tissue culture plantlets to mature and produce mini
tubers, cuttings are produced from the plantlets. Once
rooted, the cuttings are transplanted into the field to
produce seed tubers.
Ghosh said the seeds will be distributed among the farmers
to grow potatoes in their farmlands.
“The department aims to attain self-reliance as far as high
yielding variety of potato seeds by using apical rooted
cuttings by next five years because imported seeds from
outside the state are not enough to increase the production
in the northeastern state. We believe the plan will bring
respite to the farmers who are not satisfied with the existing
seeds”, he said, adding that the new technique if successfully
implemented the farmers will be able to sell their potato
seeds on a commercial basis.
Ghosh said the department has already initiated training for
farmers to adopt the new technique of potato cultivation
with active technological guidance from CIP in Peru. (PTI)
