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A farmer from Himachal Pradesh has developed an innovative apple variety called HRMN 99.
About HRMN 99 apple
- It is an innovative self-pollinating apple variety that does not require long chilling hours for flowering and fruit setting
- It is bigger in size as compared to other varieties, with very soft, sweet, and juicy pulp and striped red over yellow skin colour during maturity.
- Salient features of HRMN-99
- Grows at low altitude at 1800 feet above the sea level and does not require chilling hours.
- Average yield (1 quintal /plant from 7 year old plant)
- Ready to harvest in early June (after three years of transplanting)
- Tolerant to scab disease
- Climate condition: This has spread to plain, tropical, and subtropical areas in various parts of India, where the temperature is as high as 40 -45 ºC during summer.
- Initiatives of other states: Commercial cultivation of this apple variety has been initiated in Manipur, Jammu, low lying areas of Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka Chhattisgarh, and Telangana, and fruit setting has been expanded to 23 states & UTs so far.
- Recognition by National Innovation Foundation (NIF): NIF an autonomous body of the Department of Science and Technology (DST) verified the claims of the innovator and evaluated the distinctiveness and potentiality of the variety by facilitating molecular & diversity analysis studies and fruit quality testing.
Source: PIB
