Fruit of the elite, a British legacy

Chiranjit Parmar

Here is a fruit that sells for Rs 100 to Rs 150 a kilogram in wholesale. Its trees start bearing fruits in the third year and you do not have to wait very long like in case of other fruits for the yield? It is nectarine. It has performed exceedingly well at the Bajaura Regional Station of Dr Yashwant Singh Parmar University of Horticulture and Forestry, Nauni. As commercial plantation of the fruit has just begun, it will take many years for its production to reach a saturation point. There is real money in nectarine cultivation. So, plant 50 to 100 nectarine saplings in your orchard this season.

Not new to Himachal

Nectarine is not a new introduction in Himachal. The British had brought some varieties of this fruit along with other hill fruits to India. These still exist in the varietal collections of old research orchards such as Mashobra and Kotkhai. It appears that these varieties did not perform well and were therefore not accepted by growers for commercial plantation.

Trees are not long lived

A few years ago, a private grower in the Kullu valley imported some new nectarine varieties from Europe. A couple of them performed very well, indicating the potential of nectarine as a new commercial fruit.

Inspired by this success, researchers at the Regional Horticultural Research Station at Bajaura also began to experiment with some varieties. They found five varieties — Silver King (early), Spring Bright (midseason), Venus Mussoorie (midseason), Red Gold (late) and Syria (late) — suitable for cultivation in Himachal Pradesh. 

Bajaura researchers also noticed a few other useful qualities of nectarine during the trials. Nectarine trees do not grow large and can be planted 3 m to 3.5 m apart, thus accommodating 435 trees in an acre. The nectarine trees are not long lived and can be removed after 10 to 12 years. 

Profitable crop

Nectarine appears to be a highly profitable fruit crop.  The bearing starts in the second year and a marketable crop can be harvested from three-year-old trees. I have seen three-year-old nectarine trees bearing around eight kilograms of fruit worth Rs 400 in an orchard near Naggar in the Kullu valley, even if these were sold for Rs 50 a kilogram.

Limited market 

One should, however, not forget that nectarine is not a fruit of masses. It is a fruit of the elite and is therefore going to have a limited market. The present prices may not sustain after the production crosses a level. So, profitability may not remain the same for all years to come. But the early birds will surely gain. 

(The writer is a Mandi-based horticulturist)