Two vegetable varieties of Himachal varsity get national recognition

Solan: Two vegetable varieties developed by the Department of Vegetable Sciences at Dr Y. S. Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry at Nauni have been recognised as top-performing varieties for their consistent performance at the national level.

The temperate carrot variety called Solan Shresth and the French bean variety Lakshmi ban were officially released by the Central Variety Release Committee (CVRC) in New Delhi.

The performance of these varieties was presented by Dr Rajesh Kumar, Project Coordinator of the All India Coordinated Research Project on Vegetable Crops (AICRP VC), at the national release event. Both Lakshami and Solan Shresth were praised for their outstanding performance across multiple regions, the university said in a statement.

The Lakshami bean variety has been recommended for cultivation in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand, while Solan Shresth is suitable for parts of Punjab and Bihar.

These varieties were developed by the university in 1992 and 2016, respectively, and tested under the AICRP on vegetable crops from 2017 and 2019 before being approved for national release.

Ramesh Kumar Bhardwaj, breeder and Principal Investigator at the Solan Centre of AICRP (VC), explained that both varieties performed consistently over three years of testing. Their results were recognised at the 39th and 41st Annual Group Meetings of AICRP held in Varanasi and Srinagar.

Scientists Sandeep Kansal, D. K. Mehta, Kuldeep Thakur, and Rakesh have contributed significantly to the maintenance and mass multiplication of seeds for these varieties.

Director of Research, Sanjeev Chauhan, highlighted the qualities of Solan Shresth, a carrot variety known for its long, attractive, orange-coloured, cylindrical roots with self-cores. It matures early, is smooth with non-hairy roots, and is rich in beta-carotene.

Solan Shresth is resistant to common diseases and pests, and its average root weight is 255-265 g, yielding 225-275 quintals per hectare of marketable produce.

Similarly, Lakshami, the French bean cultivar, produces two to three long, attractive, stringless green pods per node, maturing in 65 to 70 days. It offers a high marketable yield of 150-200 quintals per hectare, with mature seeds that are white with light yellow stripes.

University Vice Chancellor Rajeshwar Singh Chandel praised the contributions of the scientists, noting that the Solan Centre of AICRP has brought great recognition to the university.

He emphasised that the success of these varieties, particularly in terms of their excellent performance and cost-effectiveness, will greatly benefit small and marginal farmers. Both varieties are open-pollinated, making them more accessible to farmers compared to expensive hybrid seeds.