Thaindian News

Lucknow, Dec 28 (IANS) In Uttarkahand’s pilgrimage town Rishikesh, old and unproductive mango orchards owned by the world-famous Tirupati temple trust will regain their lost vigour and produce fruits, with the help of scientists here.
The Central Institute of Subtropical Horticulture (CISH), Lucknow, has undertaken a project to rejuvenate the mango orchards inside the Tirupati temple’s complex in the holy Rishikesh city of Uttarakhand, the institute’s top official said.

“We have started working on the project to revive the productivity of the old mango trees at the temple’s orchards in Rishikesh,” CISH Director H. Ravishankar told IANS.

“Our institute has already tried and perfected the procedural techniques for reviving the vitality of aged mango trees in prominent mango belts of Uttar Pradesh. Now, our scientists will apply the same techniques to the temple’s senile, 50-year-old mango orchards.”

According to scientists, mango trees tend to lose productivity after 40-45 years. The trees become too dense and intermingle. As a result, the penetration of sunlight is hindered, which in turn affects photosynthesis and other important physiological activities of the trees.

Owing to paucity of sunlight, the trees tend to go upward to tap the sun rays. This results in a malformed canopy that adversely affects the productivity, they added.

“Our scientists will visit the orchards this week to conduct on-the-spot assessment that would be required for implementing the techniques for rejuvenation of the old trees,” Ravishankar told reporters.

In collaboration with the state’s Diversified Agriculture Support Project, CISH has successfully demonstrated the rejuvenation of various fruit-bearing trees.

CISH, which is governed by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), carries out research work on various aspects of subtropical fruits including mango, guava and papaya.