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GENETIC RESOURCES OF TROPICAL UNDERUTILIZED FRUITS IN INDIA S.K. Malik Rekha Chaudhury O.P. Dhariwal D.C. Bhandari

National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources Pusa Campus, New Delhi 110 012, INDIA

GENETIC RESOURCES OF TROPICAL UNDERUTILIZED FRUITS IN INDIA

S.K. Malik Rekha Chaudhury O.P. Dhariwal D.C. Bhandari

National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources Pusa Campus, New Delhi 110 012, INDIA

The National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR), is a nodal organization under the aegis of Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) for the management of plant genetic resources in India. NBPGR operates as per the mandate of the Government of India and actively contributes to global efforts in ensuring food and nutritional security. The institute also recognizes the need to integrate ex situ and in situ conservation approaches in a network mode with all its stakeholders. NBPGR's mission is to ensure the country's agricultural growth and development by ensuring unrestricted availability of germplasm and associated information for use in research and utilization as per the national and International legislations.

Citation: Malik SK, Chaudhury R, Dhariwal OP and Bhandari DC. 2010. Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India. NBPGR, New Delhi, p.168.

Published by: The Director, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi-110 012 © National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi, 2010

Printed by: Alpha Printographics (India) Mobile : 9999039940, 9811199620

Dedicated to This publication is dedicated to Dr. Rajeshwar Kumar Arora, Former Officiating Director, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR) and Coordinator South Asia, International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (rechristened as Bioversity International)- an excellent plant scientist who dedicated his life to the study of plants, especially in the area of plant genetic resources of underutilized native species

Foreword Indian agriculture, passing through various revaluations has achieved unprecedented development. Production and productivity of many crops have increased manifold. But the challenges of malnutrition, income to farmers and threat of climate change continue, which has to be addressed. In this context, underutilized crops appear to be the crop of future and need focused attention as it can meet nutritional needs and sustain the effect of climate change. The underutilized fruit crops of Indian origin like bael, chironji, jamun, karonda, ker, khirni, lasora, mahua, etc. are directly interwoven in the socio-economic fabric of rural masses and especially of tribes dwelling in remote hot, arid and fragile ecosystems. These potential crops of the future are awaiting their full utilization now. National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR), the nodal national organization responsible for plant genetic resources management in India, has been undertaking explorations and collections in consultation and collaboration with scientists of relevant horticultural institutes of ICAR and SAUs for a holistic approach for PGR collection and utilization. The aim is to ultimately facilitate the PGR utilization by the collaborators and other stakeholders. In this publication the authors have provided the details of explorations and collections conducted by them from various states of India and basic information on origin and distribution, general description of species, propagation methods, cultivars/selections, uses and genetic resource management undertaken at NBPGR and other centres. The information has been generated in the field and experiments conducted on seed physiology and developing conservation techniques in the laboratory are discussed along with information drawn from the available literature. I am sure this publication would be a useful source of information to scientists, especially horticulturists, policy makers, teachers and students and would pave the way for their popularization and utilization. Information on genetic resources and on identified quality genotypes, wherever provided in the text need to be further utilized and germplasm to be established in the field and to be multiplied using vegetative propagation for commercial utilization. I compliment the authors for bringing out this informative publication and to the NBPGR for always championing the cause of plant genetic resources.

Preface India is endowed with a rich genetic diversity of tropical fruits. Many of these fruits have got due attention since time immemorial and became popularised due to their larger appeal and ethos. These fruit species have been grown as commercial crops in organized way in orchards and prospered continuously due to their economic, social and religious importance. Mango, citrus, banana and guava due to the presence of vast diversity and acceptable flavour and taste were supported and improved by local fruit growers and horticulturists for wide adoption. The less important, so-called underutilized fruits remained uncared for and remained confined mainly to natural wild, semi-wild and semi-domesticated conditions albeit with large ever increasing variability. Besides their importance as potential horticulture species these plants are incidentally store houses of genes for adaptation to hot and hardy climates, salt tolerance, diseases tolerance and several essential nutritional values. In the present publication, out of large number of underutilized tropical fruits, only 16 genera have been elaborated based on their diverse usages, potential in horticulture and importance as future fruit crops. The exploration and collections undertaken mainly in the states of Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Jammu and Kashmir and some northeastern states have led to the assemblage of sizeable genetic diversity of 16 fruit species which has still remained untapped. The information originally generated at NBPGR during various surveys, explorations and collections and from interaction with local people, tribals, farmers and forest staff along with laboratory data on physico-chemical characterization and seed physiology, seed storage behaviour and cryopreservation has been presented. Efforts have been made to assemble the basic and relevant information scattered across various publications. Genetic resource management on these species being undertaken under AICRP on Arid Fruits and work being done at various horticultural institutes and state agricultural universities has been duly presented. Authors believe that this humble effort is only a beginning of gigantic task we have ahead to identify the desirable genotypes from this vast genetic wealth based on detailed characterization and evaluation. This would add required value to these resources to make them worthy for intensive utilization. Developing vegetative propagation methods, popularising these species to farmers with due market support for fruits and value added products would only ensure the commercial cultivation of these fruits and bring them in mainstream of Indian horticulture. The role of agricultural scientists and horticulturists is to make these species profitable for farming and provide suitable place in the changing farming patterns due to inevitable climate change which alone would save them from extinction. We gratefully acknowledge everybody who had assisted wholeheartedly in preparation of this publication. We profusely thank all the past Directors of NBPGR who encouraged and spurred us to undertake these studies. Authors welcome any valued suggestion from the readers for the improvement of presented information. S.K. MALIK REKHA CHAUDHURY O.P. DHARIWAL D.C. BHANDARI

Acknowledgments Authors sincerely acknowledge the Indian Council of Agricultural Research and National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources for providing the facilities and funding for undertaking the work on genetic resources of tropical underutilized fruits. We are thankful to Project Coordinator and partners of ICAR funded project on “National Network on Underutilized Fruits” under which some of the explorations and work has been undertaken. Our sincere thanks are due to Dr. O.P. Pareek, Ex-Director, NRCAF (now CIAH), Bikaner, Dr. V. Ramanatha Rao, Honorary Research Fellow, Bioversity International, Rome & Adjunct Senior Fellow, Bangalore and Dr. B.M.C. Reddy, Ex Director, CISH, Lucknow for encouragement to work on underutilized fruits. We sincerely acknowledge the help rendered by following persons for their valuable input: 1. Dr. Z. Abraham, Principal Scientist and Officer In-charge, NBPGR RS, Thrissur 2. Dr. Sanjay Singh, Principal Scientist, CHES (CIAH), Godhra 3. Dr. A.K. Singh, Principal Scientist, CISH, Lucknow 4. Dr. R.A. Kaushik, Head, Horticulture Division, MPUAT, Udaipur 5. Dr. Dhurendra Singh, Senior Scientist, CIAH, Bikaner 6. Dr. N.K. Dwivedi, Principal Scientist and Officer In-charge, NBPGR RS, Jodhpur 7. Dr. R.P.S. Deswal, Associate Professor, CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal 8. Dr. Rakesh Srivastava, Senior Scientist, NBPGR, New Delhi. 9. Dr. Rajwant K. Kalia, Senior Scientist, Centre for Plant Biotechnology, CCSHAU, Hisar 10. Dr. N.S. Panwar, Sr. Technical officer, NBPGR, New Delhi 11. Mr. Rakesh Singh, Sr. Technical officer, NBPGR, New Delhi 12. Mr. Ravish Choudhary, SRF, TCCU, NBPGR, New Delhi 13. Ms. Jyotsna Joshi, SRF, TCCU, NBPGR, New Delhi 14. Dr. Susheel Kumar, RA, TCCU, NBPGR, New Delhi 15. Mr. Digvender Pal, SRF, TCCU, NBPGR, New Delhi 16. Dr. Sushil Kumar, PPV & FRA, New Delhi 17. Mr. Devender Kr. Nerwal, TCCU, NBPGR, New Delhi 18. Mr. Anang Pal Singh, TCCU, NBPGR, New Delhi

Contents i. ii. iii.

Foreword Preface Acknowledgements

1.

Introduction

1

2.

Genetic resource management 2.1 Exploration and collection 2.2 Characterization and evaluation 2.3 Conservation 2.3.1 Conservation strategies 2.3.2 In situ conservation 2.3.3 Ex situ conservation 2.3.3.1 Field genebanks 2.3.3.2 Genebank and cryogenebank conservation 2.4 Nutritional value, market demand and indigenous technical knowledge

3 3 5 7 7 8 9 9 9 11

3.

Description of fruit species 3.1 Aegle marmelos (Bael) 3.2 Buchanania lanzan (Chironji) 3.3 Capparis decidua (Ker) 3.4 Carissa species (Karonda) 3.5 Cordia species (Lasora) 3.6 Diospyros melanoxylon (Tendu) 3.7 Emblica officinalis (Aonla) 3.8 Garcinia species (Kokam, Malabar tamarind and Mysore gamboge) 3.9 Grewia subinaequalis (Phalsa) 3.10 Madhuca indica (Mahua) 3.11 Manilkara hexandra (Khirni) 3.12 Pithecellobium dulce (Manila tamarind) 3.13 Salvadora species (Pilu and Miswak) 3.14 Syzygium cumini (Jamun) 3.15 Tamarindus indica (Tamarind) 3.16 Ziziphus species (Ber)

18 18 25 38 47 54 64 70 75 88 93 100 114 120 132 139 147

4.

Future perspective

154

5.

References Annexure Acronyms

156

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

1. Introduction Southeast Asia is represented by more than 500 species of fruits (Arora and Rao, 1995), while the Hindustani region of diversity represents 344 species of fruits having vast potential for new crops (Arora, 1995). This area has been the center of origin of a number of tropical and temperate fruit species, most of which are still growing in wild or semi-wild state. Despite the vast genetic diversity of these fruits, only important fruits like mango, banana, citrus and guava have gained in the productivity and acceptability by the people. Many of the indigenous tropical and temperate fruits have still remained underexploited due to the lack of awareness of their potential, market demand and low and erratic bearing in many cases. These species have multipurpose uses as fruits, vegetables and also have therapeutic and medicinal properties. Genetic resources of such fruits are facing a great threat of extinction due to climate change, large-scale urbanization and developmental projects. To safeguard the existing diversity of underutilized fruits and to achieve sustainable development based on use of available genetic wealth, promotion and conservation of these species is of immense importance. Organized production and processing for value addition of products would enhance income of small and marginal farmers and also help in on-farm conservation of valuable germplasm. At NBPGR an extensive collection, characterization and conservation programme has been undertaken for identification of promising germplasm and to support the improvement programmes being undertaken in these fruit species. Genetic resources of tropical underutilized fruits have not been given desired attention due to their comparatively less commercial importance and limited research on genetic improvement of cultivars. Opening of the world markets and development of new biotechnological methods of genetic modifications in high value commercial fruits would further keep the attention away from these traditional underutilized fruits leading to great loss in genetic diversity of these fruits. Several other factors such as change in climatic conditions, introduction of new irrigation methods and canals, large scale developmental activities taking place in developing economies like India is leading to alarming loss of genetic resources of these species. These genetic resources are well adapted to the stressed, arid and semi-arid ecosystems having high potential for mitigating inevitable climate change scenario, and hence need immediate attention. In view of the great importance of these underutilized fruit species and urgent need to strengthen the genetic resources and improvement work, Indian Council of Agricultural 1

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Research launched a “National Network Project on Underutilized Fruits” to collect, introduce, characterize, evaluate, conserve and utilize the genetic resources of these species. CISH, Lucknow, CIAH, Bikaner, NBPGR, New Delhi, CHES, Chettalli and CARI, Andaman and Nicobar are the partners in this project. Under this project germplasm of khirni, karonda, bael, jamun, mahua, wood apple, tamarind, Garcinia, etc. have been collected and characterized and several promising genotypes have been identified. There is a need to further evaluate these identified genotypes and release the cultivars for respective areas. In the present publication, sixteen important underutilized fruits namely Aegle marmelos (Bael), Buchanania lanzan (Chironji), Capparis decidua (Ker), Carissa species (Karonda), Cordia species (Lasora), Diospyros melanoxylon (Tendu), Emblica officinalis (Aonla), Garcinia species (Kokam, Malabar tamarind and Mysore gamboge), Grewia species (Phalsa), Madhuca indica (Mahua), Manilkara hexandra (Khirni), Pithecellobium dulce (Manila tamarind), Salvadora species (Pilu and Meswak), Syzygium cumini (Jamun), Tamarindus indica (Tamarind) and Ziziphus species (Ber and Jharber) have been discussed. Besides these some other indigenous species which are of substantial importance in Indian context are Feronia limonia (Wood apple), Phoenix sylvestris (Wild date), Alangium salvifolium (Ban jamun) and Ficus palmata (Wild fig). Genetic resource management and related issues in the 16 Indian tropical underutilized fruits and their related species have been discussed.

2

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

2. Genetic Resource Management 2.1 Exploration and collection Germplasm collection of underutilized fruit crops has received less priority in comparison to the field crops. Germplasm of these fruits species have been collected at various horticultural organizations to identify promising genotypes for high yield and good fruits quality. Overall 2552 accessions of 16 underutilized fruits being discussed in this publication have been collected by various organizations in India and national identity (IC Numbers) have been obtained from the NBPGR since 1976. These include Aegle marmelos (57), Buchanania lanzan (187), Capparis decidua (118), Carissa species (50), Cordia species (134), Diospyros melanoxylon (24), Emblica officinalis (159), Garcinia species (541), Grewia species (36), Madhuca indica (153), Manilkara hexandra (74), Pithecellobium dulce (24), Salvadora species (207), Syzygium cumini (198), Tamarindus indica (248) and Ziziphus species (342). Besides this large number of collections of these fruit species are being maintained in the field genebanks at various national and state institutes and horticulture research organizations where national identity is still to be obtained. Therefore, reporting the exact number of collections and assessment of germplasm diversity in collected germplasm in these fruits species requires collective efforts of various stake holders. Besides the ICAR institutes (Central Institute of Arid Horticulture, Bikaner, Central Institute of Sub-tropical Horticulture, Lucknow) and some state universities, most of these fruit crops are being managed under the All India Coordinated Project on Arid Fruits for developing fruit growing technology to build a viable commercial cultivation in the arid regions and to improve the economic condition of the people, their nutrition and health standard at 13 centres of ICAR Institutes and State Agricultural Universities as detailed below (Table 1): At NBPGR systematic exploration programmes to collect the germplasm of important underutilized fruits have been undertaken since last twelve years. Twenty specific exploration and collection missions have been executed in the north, west, central and south Indian states of Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh (foot hills of Himalayas), Kerala, Karnataka and Maharashtra for the collection of several underutilized tropical and sub-tropical fruits. The targeted fruit species were collected from wild and semi-wild areas of forest, 3

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Table 1. Mandate crops and centres of All India Coordinated project on Arid Fruits Center Name

Crop

Abohar

Date palm

Anantapur

Ber, Custard apple, pomegranate, aonla, phalsa, tamarind

Aruppukottai

Ber, Custard apple, pomegranate, aonla, phalsa, tamarind

Bangalore

Pomegranate, custard apple, fig

Bawal

Ber, pomegranate, date palm

Bikaner

Date palm

Faizabad

Aonla, ber, bael, jamun

Jobner

Ber, aonla, pomegranate

Mundra

Date palm

Rahuri

Pomegranate, ber, custard apple, fig, aonla

SK Nagar

Ber, aonla, custard apple and pomegranate

CIAH, Bikaner

Aonla, Bael

CISH, Lucknow

Bael

CHES, Godhra

Aonla, Ber, palmyra palm, Tamarind

NRC Pomegranate,

Pomegranate

Solapur (Source: CIAH, Bikaner)

marginal forest lands, homestead gardens, orchards and from farmers fields. Details of fruiting period, importance and uses of these fruits species has been provided under the description of individual fruits. During the explorations general field observations, status of natural populations, probable threats to species, breeding behavior and associated indigenous technical knowledge on use was gathered. For collection of germplasm, selective sampling strategy was used and an indigenous collection number (IC number) allotted to an individual accession. In most of these fruits species elite trees were identified based on phenotypic characters. Fruits from selected plants were collected and after initial characterization of fruits the data was shared with the horticulturists to facilitate the utilization of these genotypes. Vegetative cuttings or bud wood was also collected in some of the fruits for establishment in the field genebanks of respective institutes. Area of collection of these fruit species is depicted in the map (Fig. 1). Passport data of individual fruits and variability collected at NBPGR has been described under the individual descriptions of species. 4

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Fig. 1: Collection sites of tropical underutilized fruits from India

2.2 Characterization and evaluation Tropical fruit species are mostly heterozygous due to high degree of outcrossing and require systematic morphological characterization backed by the molecular characterization to study the extent of variability and utilization of existing germplasm. Systematic characterization of physico-chemical characters of available germplasm would provide the extent of genetic diversity in the fruits species and facilitate in identifying the superior genotypes with desired characters. Characterization and evaluation of fruits especially tropical underutilized fruits has not been undertaken in a 5

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

systematic way till now, therefore, selection of elite genotypes or cultivars in most of these fruits is lacking. Another reason for the limited information on these aspects is the less priority to these fruits in comparison to high value major fruit species. Characterization and evaluation work is also limited due to the availability of these fruits species only in the natural wild and semi-wild conditions. Recently, the efforts have been made to undertake the systematic collection, initial characterization and establishment of superior genotypes in the field genebanks for detailed evaluation. Due to the perennial nature and specific climatic and edaphic needs of these fruits it takes many years in flowering and fruiting in field genebanks causing delay in the characterization and evaluation. In some important underutilized fruit species vegetative propagation methods have been developed recently and field establishment of identified genotypes by using the scion from the original sources on local rootstocks have been undertaken. Recently the characterization and evaluation of some collected germplasm and identified cultivars or released varieties of important underutilized fruits namely aonla, ber, bael, jamun, phalsa, khirni, karonda, mahua and tamarind have been undertaken at various locations (Pathak and Pathak, 1993; Singh et al., 1999). Field performance and multi-location trials of indentified cultivars or selections of several arid fruits is extensively being undertaken at various centers of AICRP on Arid Fruits and performance is being reported regularly for recommendation of suitable cultivars for particular region or state (Pareek and Nath, 1996; ICAR website) For physico-chemical characterization the fruits were carried to the laboratory, wherever possible. Due to highly perishable nature of fruits, some of the characterization data has been undertaken in the field during the collection and exploration. Some important phenotypic plant characters desirable in the specific fruit species were also recorded and specified in the passport data. Further the fruits were carried to the laboratory in sufficient numbers to characterize and extract the seeds to be used for various experiments and cryopreservation. During the present study efforts have been made to attempt preliminary characterization of fruits and seeds of the collected germplasm for important qualitative and quantitative characters. For morphological characterization, minimum descriptors developed by NBPGR (Mahajan et al, 2002) were used, wherever available. Information generated have been shared with the concerned horticulture scientists on the elite and promising collections for undertaking further characterization and evaluation of such genotypes for utilization and commercialization. Molecular characterization studies have also been lacking in the tropical underutilized fruits. However, the efforts have now been initiated at several crop based institutes and at NBPGR to characterize the available germplasm using molecular markers to analyze the existing genetic diversity for the efficient utilization of germplasm. 6

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

2.3 Conservation 2.3.1 Conservation strategies Conservation of plant genetic resources is attempted using two basic approaches, the in situ and ex situ ensuring conservation in the natural habitat and in man made genebanks, respectively. Plant genetic resources, comprising a wide range of useful plant species, possess diverse mechanisms of reproduction and regeneration. Selection of suitable conservation strategy depends upon reproductive and breeding mechanism and physiology of seeds and plant propagules. These factors determine the sample size of the propagules to be stored, and the appropriate conservation technologies to be applied. Accordingly, different conservation strategies have been suggested and utilized by conservation biologists for achieving successful conservation of targeted species (Fig. 2).

Fig. 2: Conservation strategies for horticultural genetic resources (HGR)

Conservation of horticulture genetic resources (HGR) and specifically the underutilized fruit species which are still grown as natural wild and in semi-wild conditions would require adoption of complementary conservation strategies where, suitable in situ and ex situ conservation methods are be employed to achieve the successful conservation. Within this group of underutilized fruit crops specific conservation strategy is to be developed and adopted based on extent of genetic diversity available, mechanism of propagation, reproductive biology of species and present biological status of the species. Horticulture genetic resources of underutilized fruits comprise following candidates for conservation based on their biological status and propagation method (Fig. 3). 7

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Fig. 3: Candidates for conservation in HGR and their propagation methods

2.3.2 In situ conservation In situ conservation involves promoting growth of plant species in their natural habitats where evolutionary processes continue to operate, making it a dynamic system. Majority of the underutilized fruits grow in the diverse climatic and edaphic conditions and are adapted to arid and semi-arid conditions. In situ conservation is important for underutilized fruit species still occurring as natural wild or in the semi-domesticated conditions using following two approaches: 1) Conservation in the natural habitats like protected areas and national reserves: Specific area based on presence of natural diversity are to be identified for species found as only natural wild. Priority species in this category are Buchanania lanzan, Capparis decidua, Diospyros melanoxylon, Manilkara hexandra, Salvadora oleoides, S. persica, Tamarindus indica and Pithecellobium dulce. For species where both natural wild and cultivated genotypes are available wild populations are to be protected immediately. Such species are Aegle marmelos, Emblica officinalis, Grewia species, Carissa species, Cordia species, Madhuca species and Ziziphus species. Fruit species and possible protected area for in situ conservation are to be finalized based on diversity maps and biodiversity conservation policy of respective state government. 8

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

2) In situ on-farm conservation would be an ideal approach for conserving local natural selections, cultivars and farmer’s varieties. In some of underutilized fruits local selections or farmers varieties have been developed or identified since time immemorial. These local selections are being grown as isolated plants or in small numbers in the homestead gardens, farmers fields, backyards or in the common panchayat lands in villages. Such selections need urgent attention for further characterization, evaluation and on-farm conservation. Underutilized fruits where such selections are indentified and available are Syzygium cumini, Cordia myxa, Tamarindus indica, Aegle marmelos, Emblica officinalis and Ziziphus species. 2.3.3 Ex situ conservation 2.3.3.1 Field genebanks Ex situ conservation of underutilized fruits is important to safeguard the genetic wealth and to use germplasm for the genetic improvement to develop desirable cultivars or varieties. Field genebanks have an important place in conservation and maintenance of clonally propagated species, tree species with long juvenile phase, species that do not produce true-to-type seed, or produce recalcitrant seeds whose laboratory conservation technology has not been standardized so far. Presently several field genebanks for diverse horticultural species are operational throughout the world. In India field genebanks of citrus, mango, mulberry, oil palm and several other fruit species have been established and are being maintained at state and ICAR horticultural institutions or state agricultural universities at different locations. As far as underutilized fruits are concerned field genebank conservation has been recently undertaken especially under the AICRP on Arid Fruits at various ICAR institutes and their regional stations, some important institutes are CIAH, Bikaner, CISH, Lucknow, CAZRI, Jodhpur, NBPGR Regional Station, Jodhpur, IIHR, Bangalore and at several state agricultural universities and their regional stations namely CCSHAU, Hisar and Regional Station, Bawal, Haryana; MPKV, Rahuri, Maharashtra; GAU, Sardar Krushinagar, Gujarat; RAU, Bikaner, Rajasthan; SKN College of Agriculture, RAU, Jobner, Rajasthan; MPUAT, Udaipur, Rajasthan; ANDUAT, Faizabad, Uttar Pradesh and state horticulture stations at Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and other states. 2.3.3.2 Genebank and cryogenebank conservation Conservation of underutilized fruit species is being undertaken in the laboratory in genebank and cryogenebank at NBPGR, New Delhi. Conservation of plant germplasm in the form of seeds is the most convenient and reliable method being practiced in genebanks. Germplasm of tropical underutilized fruits species where the seeds are relatively larger and have high moisture content at the time of shedding pose problems 9

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

in traditional conservation. Hence, there is need to study their basic seed physiology, longevity and seed storage behaviour. Seed storage behaviour in its simplest form is measured in terms of survival and longevity of seed under various storage conditions. Information on this is available for only about 3% of the higher plant species (Hong and Ellis, 1996). Various research groups in different countries are undertaking research on this aspect mainly on their indigenous species. Seed storage behaviour in several cases is misinterpreted because of scanty data generated on survival and longevity of seed and lack of detailed information on physiological characteristics. Conservationist can recommend and adopt short-, medium- and long-term seed storage only after correct identification of seed storage behaviour. Seed storage behaviour has broadly been divided into three categories. Initially Roberts (1973) defined two categories namely orthodox and recalcitrant. Later another category of seed storage behaviour was designated by Ellis et al. (1990) and termed intermediate, where the behaviour is in between orthodox and recalcitrant. Orthodox seeds can be desiccated to desired moisture contents and can be conserved in the conventional genebanks comprising of cold storage modules maintained at –20oC. While non-orthodox (intermediate and recalcitrant) seeds are not amenable to conventional genebank regimes, being sensitive to desiccation and suffering chilling injury, and thus, require special conservation protocols. Many plant species especially of tropical origin, e.g. rubber, several Citrus species, Garcinia species, jackfruit, cocoa, Madhuca species produce such seeds. Several different methods based on cryopreservation have been developed for genebank conservation of such non-orthodox seeded species (Malik et al., 2004). Cryopreservation, storage of biological materials at ultralow temperatures (-196°C), is the only method available for the long-term conservation of non-orthodox seeds and several vegetative explants such as shoot apices, meristems, dormant buds and somatic embryos. Conservation of germplasm in the form of seeds for underutilized fruits species which are predominantly cross pollinated, only ensures the genepool conservation of these species due to the heterozygous nature of seeds. As most of these species are found natural wild or semi-wild and propagated through seeds in nature, conservation of available genetic variability essentially required for the selection of desired genotypes therefore, needs to be protected safely and timely. In most of these fruit species farmers or local people are propagating progenies of these fruits using seeds as no commercial cultivars are available and even if few have been identified, clonally developed planting material is not available. Once the promising genotypes or cultivars are identified in these species, conservation of their vegetative tissues to achieve true-to-type conservation can be attempted using in vitro methods. It is to emphasize here that conservation of vegetative tissues in these tropical woody species would be an enormous 10

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

task as most of the species are known for their recalcitrance as far as in vitro establishment is concerned and equally difficult task would be to successfully cryopreserve the vegetative tissues excised from in vitro cultures. It is, therefore, recommended to conserve the available genetic diversity of such economically important species in the best possible ways to fulfill the objective of safe guarding these indigenous species from genetic erosion. For genetic improvement and genotype conservation, collected and characterized elite genotypes are presently being conserved in the field genebanks at various horticultural organizations. It is, therefore, emphasized that a complementary conservation strategy (Rao, 1998) involving the use of more than one relevant approach would be the best option for achieving safe conservation of these underutilized fruit species facing severe threat of extinction. In the present publication information generated since last 15 years at the cryolab of Tissue Culture and Cryopreservation Unit of NBPGR, New Delhi on seed germination, longevity, seed storage behavior, desiccation and freezing sensitivity and developing cryopreservation protocols of sixteen genera has been provided in tables 2, 3, 4 and 5. 2.4 Nutritional value, market demand and indigenous technical knowledge Human body cannot synthesize vitamin-C like other animals and depends on food sources to obtain it. Fruits and vegetables are the main source of various vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and soluble fibers. Humans since its evolution, depended heavily on the natural food and diversity of plants growing around them. Such plant species were, therefore, domesticated first. As far as fruits are concerned, these are the last domesticated plants and still several wild fruit species are under domestication once local people recognised them to be important for their use and commercial value (Burkill, 1951-52). People prefer to have fruits with good taste and having less unpleasant tannins and glycosides which are amply available in the wild fruits. Another preference is for the larger fleshy or edible part and no or less seediness in fruits. Many of these fruits are highly perishable and difficult to store in the fresh form. Some of them are not easy to eat out of hand. A few are not acceptable as a fresh fruit, because of high acidity and/or strong astringent taste. However, all these fruits have unlimited potential in the world trade in their processed form. Presently various value added products such as jam, pickles, chutney, squashes, dried form of fruits, pulp etc. are being exported to targeted Indian populations living in other countries. For example Malabar tamarind is being exported to countries wherever Malayalees are settled in the World as this makes an important ingredient of their food preparations especially fish curries. Similarly, other products prepared and processed under small scale industry are exported to USA, Europe and to several other countries as per their demand and found important place in super markets along with other Indian products. Therefore, 11

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Table 2. Effect of liquid nitrogen exposure on germination of seed, embryo

and embryonic axes of different underutilized fruits. Species name

Explant

CMC

Germination substrata/ medium

Viability (%) at CMC BC AC

Aegle marmelos

Seed

4.4

TP, BP

70

65.5

Embryo

5.1

TP, in vitro

70.5

75

Buchanania lanzan

Seed

6.3-12.4

BP, TP, moss grass

50

46.5

Capparis decidua

Seed

6-8

BP, TP, moss grass

77

75

Carissa spp.

Seed

6-8

BP, TP, moss grass

70-80

65-70

Cordia spp.

Seed

6-8

BP, TP

100

95.5

Diospyros melanoxylon Seed

11.96

BP, moss grass

75

80

Emblica officinalis

Seed

6.0

TP

70

72.5

Garcinia spp.

Seed

34.0

Peat moss,

33.5

0

Grewia spp.

Seed

9.2

45

40

in vitro culture BP, TP (Pretreated with 25% HCl for 8 min.) Madhuca indica

Seed

42.2

Moss grass

50

0

Embryonic

20.5

In vitro

35

12.5

6.5

BP, soilrite,

70-100

50

TP, BP

85

82.2

axis Manilkara hexandra

Seed

moss grass Pithecellobium dulce

Seed

6.0

Salvadora oleoides

Seed

9.5

Syzygium cumini

BP, TP, moss grass

40

10

Embryonic axis 8.2

In vitro culture

65

64.4

Seed

Peatmoss,

20.5

0

43.7

in vitro culture Tamarindus indica

Seed

7.5

BP, moss grass

85.0

83.5

Ziziphus nummularia

Seed

3.2

TP

65.5

58.9

BP- Between paper; TP- Top of paper; BC- Before Cryo; AC- After Cryo; CMC- Critical Moisture Content

12

20.36 (±5.39) 7.45 (±0.65) 29.52 (±2.14) 18.45 (±1.48) 24.65 (±1.29) 28.52 (±2.2) 11.82 (±2.85) 45.5 (±1.48) 16.22 (±0.63) 51.55 (±0.53) 37.35 (±1.09) 37.94 (±1.89) 26.36 (±0.89) 50.43 (±4.33) 34.98 (±3.64) 25.74 (±3.65)

Buchanania lanzan

Capparis decidua

Carissa carandas

Cordia myxa

Diospyros melanoxylon

Emblica officinalis

Garcinia spp.

Grewia subinaequalis

Madhuca spp.

Manilkara hexandra

Pithecellobium dulce

Salvadora oleoides

Syzygium cumini

Tamarindus indica

Ziziphus nummularia

Initial moisture content (%)

Aegle marmelos

Species

13 91.66 (2.32)

97.22 (±2.78)

64.0 (±2.20)

89.42 (±6.82)

96.67 (±3.33)

86.11 (±2.78)

81.25 (±0.25)

81.11(±3.09)

100 (±0.0)

73.89 (±3.88)

90 (±0.5)

93.89 (±3.09)

71.66 (±8.81)

97.22 (±2.77)

88.89 (±2.78)

97.22 (±2.77)

Initial viability (%)

5.30 (±1.12)

6.73 (±0.99)

35.37(±0.32)

8.78 (±0.95)

7.00 (±1.41)

10.55 (±0.79)

22.4 (±1.24)

6.06 (±0.25)

31.4 (±2.40)

5.64 (± 0.28)

11.96 (±1.2)

7.30 (±0.63)

9.26 (±1.24)

7.68 (±0.62)

6.02 (±0.08)

5.6 (±0.51)

Desiccated moisture content (%)

Table 3. Desiccation and freezing sensitivity in underutilized fruit species.

90.67 (±5.70)

95.00 (±2.88)

40.00 (±3.44)

71.70 (±4.16)

85.00 (±2.88)

67.78 (±6.40)

50.00 (±2.88)

52.78 (±7.34)

44.5 (±2.78)

58.33 (±4.40)

83.3 (±1.1)

87.89 (±8.30)

54.11(±2.40)

83.33 (±4.81)

75.75 (±3.79)

96.11 (±2.42)

Viability (%) at DMC

86.11(±2.78)

93.89 (±3.09)

0.0

40.20 (±2.34)

75.00 (±4.80)

52.22 (±9.24)

18.30 (±2.40)

50.00 (±7.63)

0.0

51.00 (±2.40)

80 (±1.5)

72.33 (±4.33)

53.33 (±14.17)

78.98 (±2.41)

68.78 (±2.02)

84.44 (±2.77)

Viability (%) after cryoexposure

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Table 4. Desiccation and freezing sensitivity and longevity of seeds as a parameter to ascertain seed storage behaviour in underutilized fruit species. Species

Storage % decline % decline Seed Accessions period in viability in viability storage cryostored at ambient after after LN behavior in the form temperature desiccation exposure ascertained of seed/ (25-32ºC) to CMC by our embryo/ till 50% studies embryonic viability axes (in months)

Aegle marmelos

24 months

1.07

11.60

I*

Seed & Embryo

Buchanania lanzan

5 months

11.68

5.85

I **

Seed

Capparis decidua

6 months

13.50

3.79

I***

Seed

Carissa carandas

3 months

12.57

0.42

I

Seed

Cordia myxa

6 months

5.63

13.67

I

Seed

15

5

I

Seed

10 months

11.49

4.27

O

Seed

Garcinia spp.

20 days

80

100

R

Nil

Grewia subinaequalis

4 months

22.97

1.46

I

Seed

Madhuca indica

7 days

40

80

R

Embryonic axis

Manilkara hexandra

45 days

15.78

10.54

I

Seed &

Diospyros melanoxylon 10 months Emblica officinalis

Embryonic axis Pithecellobium dulce Salvadora oleoides

14 months

11.28

8.5

O

Seed

15 days

15.84

30

R

Seed & Embryonic axis

Syzygium cumini

30 days

80

100

R

Nil

Tamarindus indica

18 months

2.15

1.15

O

Seed

Ziziphus nummularia

24 months

0.90

2.52

O****

Seed

CMC=Critical Moisture Content

*

also reported by Parihar et al, 2010

O=Orthodox

** also reported by Naithani, 2001

I=Intermediate

*** also reported by Agroforesrty Tree database

R=Recalcitrant

**** also reported by Hong et al, 1996

14

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Table 5. Seed longevity and number of accessions cryostored of underutilized fruit species Species

Shelf life i.e. longevity

No. of accessions

at ambient temperature cryostored in the (25-34ºC)

Cryogenebank in the form of seed/ embryo/ embryonic axes

Aegle marmelos Buchanania lanzan Capparis decidua Carissa carandas C. edulis C.grandiflora C. spinarum Cordia myxa C. crenata C. obliqua C. rothii Diospyros melanoxylon Emblica officinalis Garcinia sp. Grewia subinaequalis G. rothii G. tiliaefolia var. tiliaefolia Madhuca indica M. longifolia Manilkara hexandra Pithecellobium dulce Salvadora oleoides S. persica Syzygium cumini Tamarindus indica Ziziphus nummularia Z. oenoplia Z. oxyphylla Z. rotundifolia Z. rugosa Z. xylopyrus

36 months 11 months 14 months 5-6 months

3-4 months

15 months 19 months 30-45 days 6-7 months

7 days 4 months 24 months 2-3 weeks 30 days 20 months 22 months

15

80 127 88 9 1 1 3 24 3 1 9 16 31 0 13 1 1 2 12 46 14 23 12 0 10 15 3 1 15 5 3

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

organised processing and export of these fruits would provide an opportunity to consumers all over the world to enjoy these tropical fruits in the form of processed products. Apart from processing, market potential and strong campaigning is necessary to create awareness and consciousness among the producers and consumers of underutilized tropical fruits. Most of the tropical underutilized fruits are often available only in the local markets and are rarely known in other parts of the country. These fruit species have the ability to grow under stressed and adverse conditions and are also known for their medicinal, therapeutic and nutritive values. Because of their curative and nutritional properties, these fruits have been used by local people for nutrition and curing several diseases. Many of these species have been used as traditional medicinal plants and some of them have found important place in the Indian Systems of Medicine and in Unani, since the time immemorial. Tribal populations particularly children and women of these localities are fulfilling their nutritional requirements by consuming these fruits available freely in their vicinity. In addition, some of these fruits have excellent flavour, juiciness and have very attractive appearance. There is always a good market demand all over the world for new food products especially which are highly nutritious and delicately flavoured. Urban consumers today are becoming increasingly conscious and aware of their health and nutritional aspects of their food due to prosperity and awareness. Demand for natural, herbal and non-synthetic food products is increasing among urban middle and upper middle class of developing and developed countries. There is an increased emphasis by government and non-government agencies to popularise the traditional and natural products. In India the Department of Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (AYUSH), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India has been effectively taking up the cause of protecting and popularising the Indian System of Medicines for the benefit of large population due to its being nature friendly and affordable. Several private organisations have established naturopathy and herbal clinics based on the natural products extracted from these underutilized fruits to increase immunity and also to cure various ailments. In view of all these recent developments in traditional health sector, underutilized fruit plants rich in vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants and with other medicinal properties have bright market future. The underutilized tropical fruits discussed in this publication have an important role to play in satisfying the present day market demands. Nutritional status of fruits being discussed in this publication is given in the table 6.

16

656

100

42.59.4

65

65

Buchanania lanzan

Capparis decidua

Carissa carandas

Cordia myxa

Emblica officinalis

17 2-3.3 6.0

2-3 2.0

Pithecellobium dulce 78.8

-

62

-

Salvadora oleoides

Syzygium cumini

Tamarindus indica

Ziziphus nummularia -

Source: Pareek et al., 1998

0.48

Manilkara hexandra -

0.7

1.37

1.3-1.58

0.07-0.5

1.8-2.0

0.39-1.1

5.9

19.0-21.6

-

Madhuca indica

Grewia subinaequalis 72.4

137

Aegle marmelos

1.8-2.62

Calories Protein (g) (Kcal)

Fruits

1.0

0.6

0.15-0.3

2.0

0.4-0.5

2.42

1.61

0.90-1.82

0.1-0.2

1.0

2.57.4.63

1.23

59.1

0.2-0.39

Fat (g)

93

41.1-61.4

14-16

76

18.2-19.6

27.74

22.69

14.78

15-21.8

12.2

0.51-2.9

20.87

12.1

28.1-31.8

(g)

Carbo hydrates

2.0

2.9

0.3-0.9

2.0

1.1-1.2

-

-

1.2-1.77

1.9-3.4

0.3

0.62-1.81

-

3.8

2.9

Fibre (g)

60

34-94

8-15

630

13

83

45

129

12.5-20

40

21

153.8

279

85

120

34-78

15-16.2

167

42

17

22

39

26.0

60

28

50.8

528

50

(mg)

Calcium Phos(mg) phorus

Table 6. Food value of some promising underutilized fruits per 100 g edible portion

7.0

0.2-0.9

1.2-1.62

8.0

0.5

0.92

1.1

3.1

0.48-0.5

-

-

2.0

8.5

0.6

Iron (mg)

-

-

80

-

25

675

512

800

17

-

1619

-

-

91.6

88

44

5.7-18

2.0

138

15.67

40.5-42

22

500-625

-

9-11

133

5.0

1.1

(mg)

Vitamin Ascorbic A (IU) acid

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3. Description of fruit species

3.1 Aegle marmelos (Bael) Botanical name: Aegle marmelos (L) Correa. Common name: English - Bengal Quince; Hindi – Bael, bel, belli etc. Family: Rutaceae Origin and distribution: It is native to India (Zeven and de Wet, 1982) and found throughout southeast Asia. In India this fruit is grown in indogangetic plains and subHimalayan tracts, north-east India and dry and deciduous forests of central and southern India. Besides occurring as natural wild, bael is commonly grown in the homestead gardens, backyards, religious places and in the farmer’s fields. Main growing states are Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttaranchal and Orissa. General description: Bael is a medium sized tree attaining the height up to 20 ft. with deciduous and hardy nature (Fig. 4A, B). This is a thorny tree with dimorphic branches and trifoliate leaves and erenate leaflets. Flowers are whitish-green, scented and bisexual. Fruits are of small to very large size with varying shape from oblong to ovate, round, globose and elongated containing hard outer cover (skull) and soft creamy pink to reddish pulp full of hairy seeds. Seeds have hard and hairy seed coat, flat in shape and mucilaginous. Polyembryony is also reported in this species. Propagation: Bael is mainly propagated by seeds due to which the vast genetic variability is present in the nature. Vegetative propagation using patch budding, shield budding, and chip budding have been successfully demonstrated. Whip grafting has also been successfully undertaken in bael (Maiti et al., 1999). Cultivars/selections: Some important seedling selections have been made based on place of occurrence namely, Gonda selection, Mirzapuri, Kagzi, Sewan large etc. and NB selections made by ANDUAT, Faizabad and Pant cultivars by GBPUAT, Pantnagar. Some promising selections have also been identified from the germplasm collected from West Bengal (Mazumdar, 2004). Bael fruit is gaining lot of importance and due to the high market demand in the summer months for fresh fruits and squash, organized

18

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

orcharding of this fruit crop is picking up in the parts of eastern Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan and other parts of country. The demand for good planting material of suitable cultivar would also increase in future due to large scale commercial cultivation. Important uses: Bael tree is of historical importance in Indian culture and various uses have been described in the literature. Pulp of the fruit is consumed raw and also processed to make diverse value added products, most common are sharbat, squash, murabba, jam, etc. In the various states fresh juice of bael is sold in the market especially in the summers and taken as soft drink. Dried pulp is also used in several parts of country. Pulp has several medicinal properties and commonly used for the cure of diarrhoea, dysentery and other stomach ailments. Leaves, root and bark also have medicinal properties and used widely in the Indian System of Medicine. The crystalline substance known as ‘marmelosin’ extracted from fruits have therapeutic properties (Mazumdar, 2004). Trifoliate leaves are used in prayer /puja of Lord Shiva.

Genetic Resource Management Collection: Germplasm of bael has been widely collected from several states especially from the parts of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal by ANDUAT, Faizabad, and CIAH, Bikaner, CISH, Lucknow, CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal, CAZRI, Jodhpur and NBPGR Regional Station, Jodhpur. Diversity of bael has been collected from east-central India (Jharkhand and Bihar) and 33 genotypes were collected (Nath et al., 2003). Several promising collections have been identified from the germplasm collected from Faizabad, Basti, Lucknow, Gonda, Mirzapur, Deoria, Varanasi and Agra districts of Uttar Pradesh and evaluated for physico-chemical characters and field performance. At NBPGR explorations for the collection of bael germplasm have been made from wild and semiwild locations of Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. 15 accessions have been collected from various sites as indicated in the Fig. 5. Sizable variability in fruits size, shape, pulp, flavour, TSS, seeds size, shape and colour was recorded. Detailed passport data of germplasm collected by NBPGR is presented in the Table 7. Characterization: Germplasm diversity of bael collected from various districts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have been characterized and evaluated at ANDUAT, Faizabad and Fruit Research Station, Basti. Several promising cultivars and selections have been made based on bearing, medium size of fruit, optimum skull thickness, less number of seeds, less mucilage and fiber content. Some important selections made are NB-4, NB-5 and NB-9, out of these NB-5 has been adjudged the best selection (Pareek and Nath, 1996). Several other selections made from the collected germplasm are

19

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Haryana Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

Fig. 5: Collection sites of bael from Rajasthan, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh

Gonda selection, Mirzapuri, Etawah Kagzi, Sewan large, Deoria, etc. Nath et al., (2003) identified five promising genotypes of bael on the basis of fruit characters and bearing behavior from the germplasm collected from Jharkhand and Bihar. Bael collections made at NBPGR were characterized for various physico-chemical characters and details have been given in the Table 8. A total of 4 varied accessions were characterized for fruit and seed characters. Fruits were large with length varying from 6.28 to 8.14 cm and width from 6.33 to 8.64 cm. Fruit weight showed vast variation, lightest fruit being of 144 gm and heaviest of 378 gm. TSS value ranged from 34.21 to 45.6 ºB. Seeds were small and light weight with length verifying from 0.62 to 0.72 cm and diameter from 1.63 to 1.96 cm. Average seed weight was about 0.1 gm for all accessions. The heaviest fruits with highest TSS were recorded for IC546120 followed by those in IC546131. Conservation: Conservation of genetic resources of bael is being undertaken at various field genebanks of ICAR institutes and state agricultural universities. Sizable collection is being maintained at CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal (10), ANDUAT, Faizabad (22), CIAH, Bikaner (16), CISH, Lucknow (44), GBPUAT, Pantnagar (10), CAZRI, Jodhpur (5) and also at NBPGR Regional Station, Jodhpur. 20

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Basic studies on seed germination, seed storage behavior and longevity have been undertaken at NBPGR. Freshly harvested seeds of diverse accessions showed germination from 60-100% with moisture content varying from 12-20% (Table 3 and 4). The seeds retained viability well upto 2 years of storage at ambient temperature. Intermediate seed storage behavior has been ascertained by our studies (Table 4). Desiccation of seeds to 5.6% moisture content before cryostorage resulted in high survival of about 95% (Table 3). However, exposure to LN resulted in 11% decline in viability indicating chilling sensitivity. Embryos and embryonic axes also survived Liquid nitrogen (LN) exposure with 75% survival (Table 2). A total of 80 diverse accessions including Kagzi, Mirzapuri, Gonda Selection and several wild types have been cryostored in the Cryogenebank at NBPGR. Our results are similar to that reported by Parihar et al. (2010) who observed that seeds had short viability and showed chilling sensitivity as majority of seeds lost viability after 12 months storage at -20OC.

21

MD-06/47

MD-10/1

MD-10/2

MD-10/4

MD-167

MKD-90

11

12

13

14

15

MD-06/20

6

10

MD-333

5

MD-06/37

MD-332

4

9

MD - 843

3

MD-06/32

MD - 827

2

8

MKD-101

1

MD-06/22

Number

No.

7

Collector

S.

22

524046

417234

584553

584551

584550

546130

546120

546115

546105

546103

437021

437020

552950

552934

524057

Number

IC

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Bael

Name

Crop

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Aegle marmelos

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Name

Beal

Bel

Billi

Bille

Bille

Bel

Bel

Bel

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Belpather Wild

Belpather Wild

Bel

Bel

Billi

Billa

Beal

Name

Vernacular Biological

Aegle marmelos

Name

Botanical

Alwar

Udaipur

Udaipur

Udaipur

Udaipur

Sirohi

Sirohi

Udaipur

Chittorgarh

Chittorgarh

Chattarpur

Chattarpur

Neemach

Neemach

Rewari

Status

District

Table 7. Passport data of Aegle marmelos (Bael) germplasm collected from various states

28.17

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

27.86

24.16

24.10

24.34

24.34

24.85

25.17

24.34

24.32

24.32

Madhya Pradesh 24.73

Madhya Pradesh 24.73

Madhya Pradesh 24.43

76.32

73.75

73.41

73.42

73.42

72.87

73.08

73.61

74.40

74.40

79.72

79.72

75.09

74.87

76.50

Latitude Longitude

Madhya Pradesh 24.41

Haryana

State

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-06/22

MD-06/32

MD-06/37

3

4

MD-06/20

1

2

Coll. No.

S. No.

23

546120

546115

546105

546103

IC No.

8.14

7.54

6.28

7.70

Length (cm)

8.64

6.33

6.61

6.51

Fruit Width (cm)

378.08

168.31

144.46

178.66

Weight (gm)

45.60

43.15

34.21

42.70

TSS

0.62

0.64

0.65

0.72

Length (cm)

1.63

1.68

1.67

1.96

Seed Diameter (cm)

0.08

0.07

0.06

0.13

Weight (gm)

Table 8. Characterization data of Aegle marmelos (Bael) germplasm based on fruits and seeds characters

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

24

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.2 Buchanania lanzan (Chironji) Botanical name: Buchanania lanzan Sperg. syn. B. latifolia Roxb. Common name: Chironji, Charoli, Chawar, Achar, Cuddapah almond, Piyal Family: Anacardiaceae Origin and distribution: Chironji originated in the Indian sub-continent (Zeven and de Wet, 1982). The tree is found as natural wild in the tropical deciduous forests of north, western and central India mostly in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra. General description: Buchanania lanzan is medium size tree, upto 40-50 ft. high with a straight trunk (Fig.6A). Trees have the alternate bearing nature as present in the mango. Tree shows deciduous nature for short time in summer and new leaves come in the late May. Leaves 6-10 inches, oblong, obtuse; flowers whitish green, sessile; fruit drupe, green when immature and dark black at ripened stage (Fig 6C, D). Fruits juicy with moderate sweet and acidic pulp. Flowering is in the month of JanuaryFebruary and fruits ripen in April-May. It is a very common tree species of forests of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat. Most of the tribals are collecting the fruits directly from the forest area. Fruits are generally collected at green stage to extract the kernels. Locally chironji is known as achar or charoli and nut is known as guthali. Chironji makes an important contribution to the tribal economy of these states alongwith two other species namely Madhuca indica (Mahua) and Diospyros melanoxylon (Tendu). All these three species are available in the conjunction in the forest and during summers fruits are collected. These trees play very important role in the socio-economic condition of tribal population of this area (Fig. 6E). Propagation: Chironji is propagated through seeds. Vegetative propagation through soft wood grafting and chip budding is successful but rarely tried as there is no demand for planting material for commercial cultivation. Presently the trees are available only in the forest or marginal lands near the villages. It is a highly heterozygous, cross pollinated fruit crop and seedling selections are required to be identified with desirable characters. 25

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Cultivars/selections: No identified cultivars or selections identified in this important minor fruit at present as no organized commercial cultivation is practiced. Work is in progress to identify and release some high yielding, dwarf and suitable selections of chironji at CHES (CIAH), Godhra and CISH, Lucknow. There is an urgent need to identify superior selections /cultivars in chironji for promotion of this highly potential indigenous horticultural fruit crop. Germplasm already collected and preliminary characterized may be used for the further detailed characterization and evaluation for field performance. Important uses: Bark of tree is used for tanning. Fruit is eaten raw having pleasant, sweetish, sub-acid flavour and consumed by local people and also sold in the nearby village markets. Fruits are washed and nuts are dried (Fig. 6F) and stored for selling in the market. Seed is collected and kernel is extracted either at home or in the large quantity taken to the local market for mechanical extraction of kernel by breaking the nut using modified floor mills. Separated seed is an economically important part of the plant used as dry fruit in traditional sweet dishes. Kernel is of very high value and fetch Rs. 300-400.00 per Kg in market. Kernel is rich in protein content (20-30%) and have high oil content (40-50%), which is highly nutritious. Genetic Resource Management Collection: Genetic resources of chironji have not been given due attention till now, therefore, very limited collections have been made. Genetic diversity of chironji has been collected from Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar, Chhatisgarh and Rajasthan by CHES (CIAH), Godhra, CISH, Lucknow and NBPGR, New Delhi. CHES (CIAH), Godhra collected 30 variable accessions from Gujarat (Singh, 2007). At CISH, Lucknow 8 accessions of chironji have been identified and collected from Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh (CISH, Annual report, 2008). Recently, NBPGR, New Delhi have taken up specific exploration and collection missions in the diversity rich areas of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan for the collection of chironji and 74 accessions have been collected. Details of area surveyed and passport data is given in Fig. 7 and Table 9. Characterization: 30 accessions collected from Gujarat has been characterized for physico-chemical characters at CHES (CIAH), Godhra by Singh et al, (2006). 8 collections have been found promising for important horticultural traits and are being evaluated for field performance at CHES (CIAH), Godhra. Germplasm collected from the parts of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar have been characterized for fruit weight, total soluble solids, acidity, protein content and earliness (Rai, 1982). 26

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

Gujarat

Fig. 7: Collection sites of Chironji in Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh

A large collection of 52 accessions were characterized for fruit and kernel character to analyze the existing variability in chironji (Table 10). The fruit length x width ranged from 0.4 cm x 0.8 cm to 1.18 cm x 1.52 cm exhibiting a large variation. The fruit weight also showed variation from 0.21 to 0.66 gm. Accordingly the kernel also had similar variation with length x width ranging from 0.36 cm x 0.54 cm to 1.1 cm x 1.3 cm and weighed from 0.03 to 0.65 gm. Conservation: Chironji is facing severe genetic erosion as a result of activities related to afforestation in tribal inhabitated areas (Singh, 2007). No organized cultivation of chironji is practiced and fruits are directly collected from the natural wild trees occurring in the forest and marginal lands, therefore, the species is facing a great threat. Occasionally the trees are cut partly or completely by the tribals to collect the fruits. Many of the populations have been completely wiped off in the recent past due to developmental activities and want of agriculture land by farmers. There are no standard cultivars available in chironji since little work has been done to exploit genetic resources. A number of seedling strains with a lot of variation provide scope for selection of better varieties (Singh, 2007). When propagated by seed for root stock preparation, 80-85% germination is achieved. Sulphuric acid treatment promoted the seed germination (Singh, 2007).

27

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

In studies at NBPGR a short shelf life of chironji seeds of upto 11 months was noted. Freshly shed seeds showed 7-8% moisture and about 90% germinability (Table 3). Seeds on desiccation to about 6% moisture showed a decline in viability by 11-13%. On exposure to LN, a 8% further decline in viability was apparent. The seeds at 6.02% moisture after cryostorage showed about 70% recovery. Lower recovery percentages were seen for seeds exposed to LN at suboptimal moisture levels. Naithani (2001, pers. comm.) recorded similar observations and reported that Buchanania lanzan seeds stored at fresh moisture content of 16% showed decline in viability to 35-68% after 280 days of storage and those stored at 10 and 7% moisture showed decline in germinabilty (58-88%) on 280 days of storage. The critical moisture content was reported by Naithani (2001, pers. comm.) to be between 6.3 and 12.4%. Based on the desiccation sensitivity and tolerance to freezing, intermediate seed storage behaviour has been ascertained. Naithani (2001, pers. comm.), however, describe recalcitrant seed storage behaviour of chironji seeds. 127 accessions collected from different agroclimatic zones have been successfully cryopreserved at NBPGR (Table 5).

28

552919

MD - 812

MD - 813

MD - 814

MD - 815

MD - 816

MD - 817

MD - 818

MD - 849

MDS-10/16

MDS-10/17

MDS-10/18

MD - 825

MD - 826

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

29

8

9

10

11

12

13

552933

552932

584567

584566

584565

552956

552925

552924

552923

552922

552921

552920

IC Number

S . Collector No. Number

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Crop Name

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Botanical Name

Charoli

Charoli

Chawar

Chawar

Chawar

Chawar

Chawar

Chawar

Chawar

Chawar

Chawar

Chawar

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Status

Name Chawar

Biological

Vernacular

Dhar

Dhar

Vadodara

Vadodara

Vadodara

Dahod

Vadodara

Vadodara

Vadodara

Vadodara

Vadodara

Vadodara

Vadodara

District

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

State

Table 9. Passport data of Buchanania lanzan (Chironji) germplasm collected from various states

22.37

22.37

21.41

21.41

21.41

22.63

21.41

21.41

21.41

21.41

22.25

22.20

22.26

Latitude

75.38

75.38

73.68

73.68

73.68

74.10

73.68

73.68

73.68

73.68

74.19

74.09

74.13

Longitude

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-320

MD-323

MD-324

MD-325

MD-326

26

27

28

29

MD-313

21

25

MD-312

20

MD-316

MD-311

19

24

MD-309

18

MD-315

MD-307

17

23

MD-306

16

MD-314

MD-305

15

22

MD-302

14

30

437014

437013

437012

437011

437008

437004

437003

437002

437001

437000

436999

436997

436995

436994

436993

436990

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Chattarpur

Panna

Panna

Panna

Sagar

Sagar

Sagar

Betul

Hoshangabad

Hoshangabad

Hoshangabad

Hoshangabad

Raisen

Sehore

Raisen

Raisen

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

24.73

24.31

24.18

24.34

23.56

23.42

23.62

21.97

22.62

22.62

22.60

23.00

23.87

23.20

23.33

23.33

79.95

80.19

80.56

79.81

78.11

78.35

78.49

78.08

77.75

77.75

78.45

78.22

75.43

77.08

77.80

77.80

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

RS/NSP-26

RS/NSP-27

RS/NSP-28

RS/NSP-29

RS/NSP-30

42

43

44

45

MD-06/26

37

41

MD-06/25

36

RS/NSP-25

MD-06/24

35

40

MD-337

34

RS/NSP-23

MD-336

33

39

MD-335

32

RS/NSP-22

MD-334

31

38

MD-327

30

31

553223

553222

553221

553220

553219

553218

553216

553215

546109

546108

546107

437025

437024

437023

437022

437015

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/CharWild

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Achar

Hoshangabad

Hoshangabad

Hoshangabad

Hoshangabad

Hoshangabad

Chhindwara

Chhindwara

Chhindwara

Chittorgarh

Chittorgarh

Chittorgarh

Chattarpur

Chattarpur

Chattarpur

Chattarpur

Chattarpur

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

22.46

22.24

22.38

22.38

22.30

22.27

22.24

22.21

24.32

24.32

24.32

24.58

24.86

24.91

24.66

24.53

78.16

78.21

78.23

78.23

78.27

78.36

78.37

78.44

74.40

74.40

74.40

79.70

79.40

79.63

79.78

79.46

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

RS/NSP-37

RS/NSP-33

RS/NSP-34

RS/NSP-35

RS/NSP-11

58

59

60

61

RS/NSP-10

53

57

RS/NSP-9

52

RS/NSP-3

RS/NSP-8

51

56

RS/NSP-7

50

RS/NSP-2

RS/NSP-5

49

55

RS/NSP-4

48

RS/NSP-1

RS/NSP-32

47

54

RS/NSP-31

46

32

553204

553228

553227

553226

553230

553196

553195

553194

553203

553202

553201

553200

553198

553197

553225

553224

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Seoni

Sehore

Sehore

Sehore

Raisen

Raisen

Raisen

Raisen

Narsinghpur

Narsinghpur

Narsinghpur

Narsinghpur

Narsinghpur

Narsinghpur

Hoshangabad

Hoshangabad

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

22.32

22.52

22.52

22.48

23.28

23.07

23.04

23.06

20.47

20.47

20.47

20.50

22.50

22.51

22.42

22.41

79.35

77.43

77.43

77.40

77.34

77.55

77.55

77.54

79.24

79.24

79.24

79.23

79.21

79.19

77.55

78.09

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

RS/NSP-21

RS/NSP-36

74

RS/NSP-17

69

73

RS/NSP-39

68

RS/NSP-20

RS/NSP-38

67

72

RS/NSP-16

66

RS/NSP-19

RS/NSP-15

65

71

RS/NSP-14

64

RS/NSP-18

RS/NSP-13

63

70

RS/NSP-12

62

33

553229

553214

553213

553212

553211

553210

553232

553231

553209

553208

553207

553206

553205

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Chironji

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Buchanania lanzan

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Achar/Char Wild

Bhopal

Chhindwara

Chhindwara

Chhindwara

Chhindwara

Chhindwara

Vidisha

Vidisha

Seoni

Seoni

Seoni

Seoni

Seoni

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

23.24

22.24

22.24

22.24

22.24

22.24

23.40

23.65

21.54

22.00

22.00

22.17

22.19

77.32

78.37

78.37

78.37

78.37

78.37

78.07

78.15

79.31

79.29

79.30

79.34

79.32

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-825

MD-826

MD-849

MD-06/24

MD-06/26

MD-10/16

MD-10/17

MD-10/18

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

MD-816

5

MD-818

MD-815

4

7

MD-814

3

MD-817

MD-813

2

6

552919

MD-812

1

34

584567

584566

584565

546109

546107

552956

552933

552932

552925

552924

552923

552922

552921

552920

IC No.

S.No. Coll. No.

1.09(±0.02)

1.18(±0.02)

1.00(±0.03)

1.43(±0.04)

1.4(±0.03)

1.22(±0.02)

1.08(±0.02)

1.08(±0.02)

1.16(±0.02)

1.16(±0.04)

0.9(±0.03)

0.98(±0.05)

1.22(±0.03)

1.05 (±0.05)

0.94 (±0.02)

Length (cm)

1.00(±0.01)

1.16(±0.03)

0.43(±0.18)

1.03(±0.04)

1.2(±0.00)

1.1(±0.03)

1.1(±0.020)

1.1(±0.020)

1.16(±0.04)

1.16(±0.02)

0.82(±0.08)

1.18(±0.03)

1.16(±0.02)

1.04(±0.05)

1.08 (±0.02)

Width (cm)

Fruit

0.35(±0.01)

0.51(±0.02)

0.31(±0.02)

0.55(±0.02)

0.58(±0.03)

0.44(±0.01)

0.39(±0.01)

0.39(±0.01)

0.47(±0.03)

0.56(±0.02)

0.39(±0.02)

0.49(±0.04)

0.61(±0.03)

0.37(±0.02)

0.44 (±0.02)

Weight (gm)

0.67(±0.02)

0.78(±0.02)

0.66(±0.00)

1.15(±0.02)

1.3(±0.00)

0.74(±0.02)

0.74(±0.02)

0.68(±0.02)

0.76(±0.02)

0.86(±0.02)

0.62(±0.02)

0.54(±0.04)

0.78(±0.03)

0.68(±0.04)

0.70 (±0.03)

Length (cm)

0.51(±0.03)

0.58(±0.01)

0.47(±0.00)

0.83(±0.02)

1.1(±0.00)

0.54(±0.02)

0.58(±0.04)

0.48(±0.02)

0.57(±0.02)

0.66(±0.02)

0.5(±0.04)

0.72(±0.04)

0.54(±0.02)

0.52(±0.03)

0.50 (±0.00)

Width (cm)

Seed

0.07(±0.01)

0.11(±0.01)

0.06(±0.00)

0.24(±0.01)

0.36(±0.01)

0.08(±0.00)

0.09(±0.01)

0.06(±0.00)

0.06(±0.01)

0.1(±0.01)

0.21(±0.09)

0.07(±0.01)

0.25(±0.15)

0.06(±0.01)

0.07 (±0.00)

Wt (gm)

Table 10. Characterization of Buchanania lanzan (Chironji) germplasm based on fruits and seeds characters

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

RS/NSP – 16

RS/NSP – 17

RS/NSP – 18

RS/NSP – 19

RS/NSP – 20

31

32

33

34

RS/NSP – 11

25

30

RS/NSP – 10

24

RS/NSP – 15

RS/NSP – 9

23

29

RS/NSP – 8

22

RS/NSP – 14

RS/NSP – 7

21

28

RS/NSP – 5

20

RS/NSP – 13

RS/NSP – 4

19

27

RS/NSP – 3

18

RS/NSP – 12

RS/NSP – 2

17

26

RS/NSP – 1

16

35

553213

553212

553211

553210

553209

553208

553207

553206

553205

553204

553203

553202

553201

553200

553198

553197

553196

553195

553194

0.9(±0.03)

1.06(±0.04)

0.8(±0.03)

1.04(±0.05)

1(±0.04)

1(±0.03)

0.94(±0.05)

0.86(±0.02)

1.16(±0.05)

0.94(±0.02)

1(±0.03)

1.08(±0.03)

0.96(±0.02)

0.92(±0.02)

1.08(±0.02)

1.06(±0.04)

1.06(±0.04)

1.14(±0.02)

1.28(±0.07)

0.98(±0.02)

1.06(±0.02)

0.9(±0.03)

1(±0.00)

1.06(±0.02)

1(±0.03)

0.92(±0.04)

1(±0.00)

1.12(±0.03)

0.92(±0.03)

0.94(±0.02)

0.98(±0.03)

1.02(±0.02)

0.82(±0.02)

1.04(±0.02)

1(±0.04)

0.96(±0.05)

1.08(±0.02)

0.98(±0.03)

0.29(±0.02)

0.32(±0.01)

0.24(±0.02)

0.28(±0.02)

0.37(±0.01)

0.41(±0.03)

0.28(±0.04)

0.3(±0.01)

0.5(±0.05)

0.29(±0.01)

0.32(±0.03)

0.45(±0.04)

0.29(±0.01)

0.24(±0.02)

0.4(±0.03)

0.33(±0.02)

0.42(±0.02)

0.47(±0.02)

0.46(±0.01)

0.7(±0.03)

0.58(±0.04)

0.6(±0.03)

0.56(±0.05)

0.7(±0.03)

0.62(±0.05)

0.62(±0.05)

0.76(±0.02)

0.76(±0.02)

0.64(±0.02)

0.7(±0.03)

0.62(±0.02)

0.68(±0.02)

0.58(±0.02)

0.72(±0.02)

0.66(±0.07)

0.76(±0.02)

0.78(±0.02)

0.7(±0.04)

0.48(±0.02)

0.42(±0.03)

0.46(±0.02)

0.36(±0.07)

0.52(±0.02)

0.48(±0.04)

0.46(±0.04)

0.52(±0.02)

0.58(±0.02)

0.5(±0.03)

0.48(±0.02)

0.5(±0.03)

0.44(±0.02)

0.44(±0.02)

0.54(±0.02)

0.5(±0.05)

0.54(±0.02)

0.6(±0.00)

0.46(±0.02)

0.08(±0.01)

0.04(±0.01)

0.05(±0.01)

0.03(±0.01)

0.07(±0.01)

0.06(±0.01)

0.06(±0.01)

0.08(±0.01)

0.08(±0.01)

0.06(±0.00)

0.05(±0.01)

0.06(±0.01)

0.04(±0.00)

0.04(±0.00)

0.08(±0.01)

0.05(±0.01)

0.06(±0.00)

0.08(±0.00)

0.08(±0.00)

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

RS/NSP – 21

RS/NSP – 22

RS/NSP – 23

RS/NSP – 25

RS/NSP – 26

RS/NSP – 27

RS/NSP – 28

RS/NSP – 29

RS/NSP – 30

RS/NSP – 31

RS/NSP – 32

RS/NSP – 33

RS/NSP – 34

RS/NSP – 35

RS/NSP – 36

RS/NSP – 37

RS/NSP – 38

RS/NSP – 39

35

36

37

38

39

40

41

42

43

44

45

36

46

47

48

49

50

51

52

553232

553231

553230

553229

553228

553227

553226

553225

553224

553223

553222

553221

553220

553219

553218

553216

553215

553214

1.18(±0.03)

0.96(±0.02)

0.98(±0.04)

1.06(±0.05)

1.06(±0.04)

1.08(±0.03)

1.2(±0.04)

1.1(±0.03)

0.92(±0.02)

0.88(±0.03)

0.98(±0.05)

1.04(±0.02)

1.1(±0.06)

1.16(±0.05)

1.1(±0.00)

1.14(±0.02)

1.52(±0.07)

1.06(±0.04)

1.08(±0.04)

0.98(±0.03)

0.88(±0.02)

1.02(±0.04)

1.06(±0.04)

1.08(±0.04)

1.12(±0.02)

1.1(±0.00)

0.96(±0.04)

0.84(±0.04)

0.9(±0.03)

0.94(±0.02)

1.06(±0.07)

1.1(±0.03)

1(±0.03)

1.1(±0.05)

1.06(±0.05)

1(±0.04)

0.41(±0.04)

0.27(±0.01)

0.65(±0.54)

0.39(±0.06)

0.44(±0.02)

0.42(±0.02)

0.6(±0.02)

0.49(±0.02)

0.26(±0.01)

0.21(±0.02)

0.28(±0.03)

0.36(±0.03)

0.53(±0.06)

0.51(±0.05)

0.44(±0.01)

0.56(±0.04)

0.66(±0.02)

0.42(±0.02)

0.68(±0.04)

0.74(±0.02)

0.64(±0.02)

0.7(±0.05)

0.68(±0.04)

0.73(±0.02)

0.74(±0.02)

0.78(±0.02)

0.66(±0.02)

0.63(±0.02)

0.66(±0.02)

0.72(±0.02)

0.68(±0.03)

0.66(±0.06)

0.7(±0.00)

0.92(±0.03)

1.04(±0.02)

0.64(±0.02)

0.53(±0.02)

0.54(±0.04)

0.48(±0.02)

0.52(±0.03)

0.54(±0.02)

0.57(±0.02)

0.54(±0.02)

0.6(±0.00)

0.54(±0.02)

0.5(±0.00)

0.5(±0.03)

0.52(±0.02)

0.52(±0.03)

0.46(±0.06)

0.52(±0.02)

0.96(±0.04)

0.86(±0.04)

0.52(±0.02)

0.06(±0.01)

0.07(±0.01)

0.28(±0.02)

0.08(±0.01)

0.08(±0.00)

0.05(±0.02)

0.08(±0.00)

0.1(±0.00)

0.08(±0.01)

0.05(±0.01)

0.05(±0.01)

0.08(±0.00)

0.07(±0.01)

0.06(±0.02)

0.07(±0.00)

0.27(±0.02)

0.47(±0.08)

0.07(±0.01)

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

37

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.3 Capparis decidua (Ker) Botanical name: Capparis decidua (Forsk.) Edgew, syn. C. aphylla Roth. Common name: Ker, Teet, Dela, Kair Family: Capparidaceae Origin and distribution: C. decidua is native to Indian subcontinent and distributed as natural wild in the arid and semi arid regions of north-west India mainly in the Indian desert, which covers the parts of western Rajasthan. Besides, this species is widely distributed in the drier parts of Gujarat, Haryana and Punjab. General description: C. decidua is a succulent, spiny bush or occasionally a small tree (Fig. 8A). Branches numerous, divaricating forming a sub-globose crown. Leaves are present only in the young shoots, stipules thorny, nearly straight. Unique feature of this plant is that leaves are produced when soil moisture is depleted to its maximum. Flowers, pinkish-red and rarely yellow. Fruits globose or ovoid berry with many seeds, green when immature and turn shining red at ripening stage (Fig. 8D). It flowers two times a year during February-March and July-August. Seeds show dimorphism with variable morphological features. This species is highly tolerant and adapted well to extreme temperatures and drought conditions. Fruits are directly harvested from the natural wild bushes by local people and sold in the local market for very good price of Rs. 50-60/- per kg. From fully developed bush 5-15 kg of immature fruits are collected. Propagation: Species is occurring in natural wild and propagation is through seeds. Propagation is also reported through root suckers in nature. It can be multiplied by seeds and also spreads by root suckers (Chandra et al, 1994).Vegetative propagation is attempted through hard wood and semi-hard wood cuttings. Cultivars/selections: No identified cultivars or selections have reported in this species till now, however, some promising accessions with good horticulture characters have been collected and established at field genebank at CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal, NBPGR Regional Station, Jodhpur and CIAH, Bikaner. These collections are to be evaluated and suitable selections or cultivars are to be released for organized cultivation of this highly economically important fruit species. 38

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Important uses: Plant produces hard, heavy and termite resistant timber. Unripe fruits are edible and used as fresh vegetable and also pickled in various ways. Fully ripen fruits are sweet and eaten raw by local people. Fruits are rich in proteins, carbohydrates and minerals. Seeds contain approximately 20% of edible oil. Root bark and stem are reported to contain a spermidine alkaloid and isocodonocarpine effective in treatment of asthma, inflammation and cough (Ahmad et al., 1989). Genetic Resource Management Collection: C. decidua germplasm has been collected from Rajasthan, Haryana and Gujarat, 57 accessions have been collected by NBPGR in collaboration with CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal, based on prolific bearing, branches with less or no spines and bold fruit size. 65 collections have been made by CIAH, Bikaner and elite type have been identified. Enormous variability have been reported in plants growth habit, spiny nature, branching pattern, foliage colour, flowering and fruiting behavior, fruit shape, size and colour, number of seeds per fruit etc. There is a need to collect more germplasm of C. decidua from the western Rajasthan and adjoining area of Punjab and Haryana as populations of this important multipurpose indigenous fruits are vanishing fast due to the large scale developmental activities, urbanization and arrival of Rajasthan canal in this area. Due to enhanced irrigation through canal network in several of these districts of Rajasthan, Haryana and Punjab namely Bikaner, Sriganganagar, Suratgarh, Hanumangarh, Sirsa, Hisar, Abohar and Fazilka, wild populations of this species have already been squeezed. Passport data of collected germplasm is given in the Table 11 and locations of collection has been depicted in the Fig. 9. Characterization: Germplasm of C. decidua has been characterized based on plant characters in the field. CIAH, Bikaner have made 65 collections and elite type have been identified based on plants growth habit, spiny nature, branching pattern, foliage colour, flowering and fruiting behavior, fruit shape, size and colour, number of seeds per fruit etc. Prolific fruiting type and genotypes with less or no spines have been identified during exploration in the parts of Haryana and Rajasthan by NBPGR. Accessions IC345829, IC345837, IC345840, IC345842 and IC345845 have been found to be with less or no spines, while accessions numbers IC345819 and IC561789 have been identified for prolific bearing and bold fruits. Some of the accessions have been characterized based on fruit and seed characters (Table 12). A total of 6 accessions were characterized for fruit and seed characters. Fruit showed large variation in TSS, however, length and width did not vary much. The fruit length x width varied from 0.23 cm x 0.26 cm to 0.29 cm x 0.31 cm and seed diameter from 0.23 to 0.88 cm. TSS values ranging from 17.25 to 23.55 ºB were recorded. Sizable variability 39

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Haryana

Rajasthan

Gujarat

Fig. 9: Collection sites of Ker from Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat

was observed in seed size, shape and color in this species (Fig. 7F). Presence of dimorphic seeds have been reported in C. decidua during characterization of germplasm collected from Rajasthan (Paul and Sen, 1987). Seeds weighed only 1/ 10th of the weight of the whole fruits. The heaviest fruits having high TSS and light seeds were seen in accessions IC561789, 561770 and 561795. Conservation: Conservation of ker germplasm is presently being undertaken using ex situ conservation approach at ICAR institutes and state agricultural universities located in Rajasthan and Haryana. Germplasm in the filed genebank is being maintained at CAZRI, Jodhpur (20 accessions), CIAH, Bikaner (65 accessions), CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal and NBPGR Regional Station, Jodhpur (22 accessions). Deora and Shekhawat (1995) mentioned the short seed viability in this species and limited establishment of new seedlings in the nature. Micropropagation of ker has been successfully reported by them with 3-5 shoots per explants using in vitro culture of nodal explants. In studies undertaken at NBPGR, seed germination ranged from 50-90% and moisture from 29 to 30% and lost half of their germinability by 6 months storage at room temperature (Table 4). The seeds on desiccation to critical moisture content of 8% showed 14% decline in viability, however, survival in LN remained 40

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

unchanged. Hence, seeds desiccated to 7% moisture content showed recovery of 80% after cryostorage. Based on short seed longevity and desiccation sensitivity, seeds have been categorized as intermediate in this species. Seed storage behavior has been reported as intermediate (ICRAF Agroforestry Tree Database). A total of 88 diverse accessions have been successfully cryostored at NBPGR, New Delhi (Table 5).

41

MD-08/9

MKD-6

MKD-92

MKD-9

MKD-52

MKD-53

MKD-54

MKD-55

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

MDG-08/20

6

9

MD-08/2

5

MDG-08/27

MD-08/1

4

8

MKD-4

3

MDG-08/26

MKD-3

2

7

MKD-102

1

Number

S.No. Collector

42

345827

345826

345825

345824

345781

524048

345778

561778

561796

561795

561789

561771

561770

345776

345775

524058

Number

IC

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Name

Crop

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Name

Botanical

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Status

Name Teet

gical

cular

Verna- Biolo-

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Rewari

Alwar

Alwar

Bikaner

Jodhpur

Jodhpur

Jaisalmer

Jhunjhunu

Jhunjhunu

Rewari

Rewari

Rewari

District

Table 11. Passport data of Capparis decidua (Ker) germplasm collected from various states

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

State

28.76

28.45

28.45

28.45

28.15

27.86

28.00

28.02

26.03

26.45

26.76

28.04

28.04

28.09

28.09

28.24

tude

Lati-

76.14

75.82

75.82

75.82

76.62

76.32

76.29

73.14

73.05

70.30

70.76

75.44

75.44

76.48

76.48

76.53

tude

Longi-

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MKD-56

MKD-57

MKD-58

MKD-59

MKD-60

MKD-61

MKD-62

MKD-63

MKD-75

MKD-76

MKD-1

MKD-16

MKD-18

MKD-22

MKD-30

MKD-31

MKD-33

MKD-34

MKD-45

MKD-46

MKD-47

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

43

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

37

345819

345818

345817

345806

345805

345803

345802

345794

345790

345788

345773

345848

345847

345835

345834

345833

345832

345831

345830

345829

345828

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Rewari

Rewari

Rewari

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Hisar

Hisar

Hisar

Hisar

Hisar

Hisar

Hisar

Hisar

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

28.24

28.15

28.15

28.34

28.34

28.28

28.14

29.28

28.21

28.08

28.18

28.71

28.71

29.12

29.13

29.13

29.13

28.80

29.04

28.93

28.93

76.27

76.07

76.07

75.99

75.99

76.28

76.14

76.83

76.40

76.31

76.61

76.11

76.11

75.83

75.62

75.62

75.62

75.74

75.81

75.64

75.64

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MKD-81

MKD-82

MKD-37

MKD-38

MKD-39

MD-124

53

54

55

56

57

MKD-71

47

52

MKD-70

46

MKD-80

MKD-69

45

51

MKD-68

44

MKD-79

MKD-67

43

50

MKD-66

42

MKD-73

MKD-65

41

49

MKD-50

40

MKD-72

MKD-49

39

48

MKD-48

38

44

395838

345811

345810

345809

345854

345853

345852

345851

345845

345844

345843

345842

345841

345840

345839

345838

345837

345822

345821

345820

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Capparis decidua

Ker

Ker

Ker

Ker

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Teet

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Bharuch

Jhunjhunu

Jhunjhunu

Jhunjhunu

Gurgaon

Gurgaon

Gurgaon

Gurgaon

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Rohtak

Rohtak

Rohtak

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Gujarat

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

21.70

28.03

28.06

28.19

28.33

28.33

28.31

28.23

28.65

28.65

28.83

28.83

28.83

28.82

28.82

28.82

28.70

28.79

28.79

28.79

72.97

75.36

75.21

75.45

76.93

76.93

77.04

77.07

75.94

75.94

76.47

76.47

76.40

76.14

76.14

76.14

76.07

76.36

76.36

76.36

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-08/9

MDG-20

MDG-26

MDG-27

4

5

6

MD-08/2

2

3

561770

MD-08/1

1

45

561796

561795

561789

561778

561771

IC No.

S.No. Coll. No.

0.28(±0.01)

0.25(±0.00)

0.28(±0.02)

0.29(±0.00)

0.23(±0.01)

0.29(±0.01)

Length (cm)

0.29(±0.01)

0.30(±0.02)

0.26(±0.01)

0.31(±0.01)

0.27(±0.01)

0.30(±0.01)

Width (cm)

Fruit

5.05(±0.17)

4.13(±0.11)

5.55(±0.12)

5.07(±0.06)

4.23(±0.10)

4.33(±0.18)

Weight (gm)

17.25(±0.37)

23.55(±0.36)

23(±1.58)

17.60(±0.23)

19.25(±0.37)

21.80(±0.39)

TSS

Seed

0.32(±0.01)

0.26(±0.02)

0.23(±0.01)

0.88(±0.36)

0.32(±0.01)

0.27(±0.01)

Diam. (cm)

Table 12. Characterization of Capparis deciduas (Ker) germplasm based on fruits and seeds characters

0.49(±0.03)

0.44(±0.01)

0.51(±0.01)

0.57(±0.01)

0.44(±0.01)

0.44(±0.01)

Weight (gm)

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

46

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.4 Carissa species (Karonda) Botanical name: Carissa species- C. carandas L, syn. C. congesta Wight.; C. spinarum L. and C. grandiflora Bert. Ex A. DC. Common name: C. carandus -Karonda, Karmada, Karvanda; C. spinarum – Kaunda, Kalivi; C. grandiflora- Natal plum. Family: Apocynaceae Origin and distribution: C. carandas and C. spinarum are native to India (Index Kewensis, 1985-190) while C. grandiflora is native to South Africa. C. carandus is also grown in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand and Peninsular Malaysia. In India it is found wild in the Western Ghats, Konkan area of Maharashtra and throughout the semi-arid regions. It is widely cultivated in the home gardens, farmer’s fields and orchards as hedge plant and occasionally few plants are grown for commercial purpose. Carissa species has been of much socio-economic importance in the tribal area of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh. General description: Karonda is a small to big shrub usually 2-4 m tall (Fig. 10A). The stem is rich in white latex and the branches contain sharp spines (Fig. 10B). Flowers are small, measuring 3-5 cm in diameter, with white colour. The fruit is a berry, which is formed in clusters of 3-10 fruits. The fruit is globose to broad ovoid in shape and contains many seeds. Young fruits are pinkish white and become red to dark purple when mature. At maturity fruit color vary from white, green and pinkish red depending on the genotype. Seed 3-5 per fruit, blackish brown, flat, eleptical light in weight. Flowering starts in the month of January-February and fruits mature in MayJune. Fruits are generally harvested at immature stage for vegetable purpose, fully ripen fruits are consumed fresh or processed. Propagation: Karonda is usually propagated by seeds and seeds are to be sown immediately after extraction as longevity of seeds is short. Vegetative propagation is attempted using air layering but rarely used for propagation. Softwood grafting success is 40-50% in karonda (Singh and Ravishankar, 2010).

47

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Cultivars/selections: In karonda no known cultivars have been developed, however, few selections based on location and quality of fruits have been identified. Some of the known selections are PK-3, PK-4, Pant Manohar, Pant Dudarshan and Pant Suvarna from Horticultural Research Station, GBPUAT, Regional Station Patharchatta and two selections from ANDUAT, Faizabad namely Maroon colored and White pink blush have been identified. Important uses: Immature fruits are used as vegetable while mature fruits are eaten raw. Fruits are processed as pickle, jam, jelly and marmalade for home use and now commercial preparations are also made for domestic use and for export by food processing companies. The fruit is very sour at maturity but it is sourish sweet when ripe. It is eaten fresh or stewed with salt or sugar. In Rajasthan karonda fruits are commonly cooked with green chillies to make a tasty dish taken with chapattis. Karonda bushes are suitable for hedging in the home gardens and are sometimes grown as an ornamental plant due to its beautiful cherry-like fruits. Fruits are very rich source of iron and vitamin C, therefore, ethnomedically the fruits are used for curing anemia and as an astringent, antiscorbutic and as a remedy for biliousness. A leaf decoction is used against fever, diarrhoea, and ear ache. The roots serve as a stomachic, vermifuge and remedy for itches and insect repellent. Genetic Resource Management Collection: Genetic diversity of karonda is spread throughout India, however, main areas of variability exists in the states of Maharashtra, Bihar, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Orissa, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and in the western Ghats. Aravali Hills of Haryana and Rajasthan mainly the Mt. Abu, Chittorgarh and Sirohi districts are rich in diversity. Germplasm of Carissa species have been widely collected from Maharashtra, 212 collections have been made from Kolhapur (Sawant et al., 2003) and being maintained at College of Agriculture, Kolhapur. Germplasm have also been collected from eight districts of western Maharashtra, one district of Marathwada and one of Goa and 111 accessions from 45 locations have been collected and classified for fruit characters (Ghate et al., 1997). At NBPGR germplasm of C. congesta and C. spinarum have been collected from the natural wild populations of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh (Fig. 11). While C. grandiflora was collected from field genebank of Regional Research Station, PAU, Abohar where two plants of this species are being maintained since last several decades. No work on popularization of this species has been undertaken in India, inspite of bearing promising horticulture traits like bold fruits size with good amount of pulp, bright red colour at ripen stage and very good soursweetish taste (Fig. 10F). The passport data of collected germplasm is given in Table 13.

48

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Punjab

Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

Fig. 11: Collection sites of Karonda from Punjab, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh

Characterization: Collected germplasm of karonda have been characterised for plant type specially less spines, fruit colour, size, shape, bearing, pulp colour, taste, number of seeds per fruit etc. 16 distinct types of karonda genotypes have been identified based on these characters from the germplasm collected from western Maharashtra (Ghate et al., 1999). At MPKV, Rahuri four promising genotypes were identified (Karale et al., 1989). Singh et al. (1999) identified 4 genotypes of Karonda based on colour of the fruits and grouped in to, green, green with purple blush, white with pink blush and maroon. Quality characters of fruits and field performance of karonda selections PK-3, PK-4, Pant Manohar, Pant Sudarshan and Pant Suvarna have been evaluated at GBPUAT Regional Station, Patharchatta (Mishra and Jaiswal, 1998). Based on morphological characterization of fruits and seeds of 8 accessions of Carissa, fruit length, width and weight showed large variation (Table 14). Over all the fruit length varied from 1.05 cm to 2.09 cm, width varied from 0.85 to 1.44 cm and weight varied from 0.40 gm to 2.09 gm. Not much variation in seed weight was recorded as values ranged from 0.02 in IC 546088 to 0.06 gm in IC546100. The largest and heaviest fruits with smaller seed were recorded in accession IC546088. Conservation: Germplasm of karonda and its wild species is being maintained at various field genebanks in the country mainly in the states of Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat. Major centres where germplasm is being maintained are College 49

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

of Agriculture, Kolhapur (212), MPKV, Rahuri; CAZRI, Jodhpur (13); CISH, Lucknow (25 superior genotypes); CIAH, Bikaner (5); ANDUAT, Faizabad; CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal (4); NBPGR Regional Station, Jodhpur. Seeds of karonda have short viability and should be sown just after extraction from fruits (Kumar et al., 2007). Our studies at NBPGR have led to categorization of seed storage behaviour as intermediate. Fresh seeds exhibited 18.4% moisture and 72% germinability. Seeds showed shelf life of 5-6 months with 50% decline in germinability by 3 months (Table 4). Seeds showed slight desiccation sensitivity and high freezing tolerance as on desiccation to 9% moisture, a 12% decline in viability was recorded. Seeds desiccated to critical moisture content between 6-8% showed survival of 6570 % after LN exposure. In Cryogenebank 14 accessions of Carissa spp. comprising 9 of C. carandas, 1 each of C. edulis and C. grandiflora and 3 of C. spinarum have been cryostored (Table 5).

50

MD-06/15

MD-06/17

MD-06/18

MD-06/5

MD-493

MD-06/34

7

8

9

10

11

MD-06/13

4

6

MD-06/33

3

MD-06/14

MD-10/32

2

5

584580

MD-10/31

1

51

546117

470389

546088

546101

546100

546098

546097

546096

546116

584581

IC Number

S. Collector No. Name

Carissa carandas

Carissa carandas

Carissa carandas

Carissa carandas

Carissa carandas

Carissa carandas

Carissa carandas

Carissa carandas

Carissa carandas

Botanical Name

Karonda

Karmada

Karmada

Karmada

Karmada

Karmada

Karonda

Karmada

Karmada

Vernacular Name

Karonda

Carissa spinarum

Karonda

Natal plum Carissa grandiflora Natal plum

Karonda

Karonda

Karonda

Karonda

Karonda

Karonda

Karonda

Karonda

Karonda

Crop Name

Wild

Sirohi

24.76

Rajasthan

Punjab

Rajasthan

24.76

30.15

26.57

24.32

24.32

Madhya Pradesh 24.41

Madhya Pradesh 24.41

Madhya Pradesh 24.41

Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh 23.18

Chittorgarh Rajasthan Ajmer

Latitude

Madhya Pradesh 23.18

State

Chittorgarh Rajasthan

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Sirohi

Ratlam

Ratlam

District

Cultivated Abohar

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Biological Status

Table 13. Passport data of Carissa species germplasm collected from various states

72.69

74.18

74.70

74.40

74.40

74.93

74.93

74.93

72.69

75.14

75.14

Longitude

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Table 14. Characterization of Carissa species germplasm based on fruits and seeds characters S. No. Coll. No.

IC No.

Fruit length (cm)

Fruit width (cm)

Fruit weight (gm)

Seed weight (gm)

1

MD-06/5

546088

2.09

1.44

2.09

0.02

2

MD-06/13

546096

1.28

1.09

0.79

0.06

3

MD-06/14

546097

1.05

0.93

0.40

0.03

4

MD-06/15

546098

1.11

0.85

0.40

0.03

5

MD-06/17

546100

1.43

1.16

0.93

0.06

6

MD-06/18

546101

1.24

1.10

0.72

0.05

7

MD-06/33

546116

1.26

1.11

0.89

0.05

8

MD-06/34

546117

1.35

0.93

0.63

0.05

52

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

53

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.5 Cordia species (Lasora) Botanical name: Cordia species - C. myxa L., syn. C. dichotoma Forst. F. ; C. rothii Roem. syn. C. gharaf (Forst. f.) Ehrenb. and Asch.; C. crenata Delile Fl. Common name: English - Indian cherry; Vernacular–Lasora, Laseda, Gonda, Gondi Family: Boraginaceae Origin and distribution: Native of Northwestern India (Stewart and Brandis, 1992) and distributed throughout country mainly in warmer regions upto altitude of 5,000 ft., it is found as natural wild and occasionally cultivated. C. myxa is grown in the homestead gardens, backyards and farmers fields as isolated tree or few in numbers. General description: Medium sized tree, deciduous, leaves simple, alternate, leathery in texture, variable in shape and size, broadly ovate or cut into margin, tip obtuse, base rounded or cordate. Fruit drupe, rounded or pear shaped, containing sticky pulp in which seed is embedded. Immature fruits are green which turn yellow to pink when mature (Fig. 12A). Flowering occurs during February-March and fruits are harvested during May-June. Tree of Cordia crenata is smaller than C. myxa and fruits are acute and smaller in size. C. rothii is a small spreading tree (Fig. 12F) with long, cuneateoblong, entire leaves, fruits are very small turn shining reddish when mature and highly mucilagenous and sweet. Propagation: Lasora is propagated through seeds, freshly harvested seeds are used for raising seedlings. Vegetative propagation through budding is successful but rarely taken up. Recently it has been reported to be propagated through patch budding with 70-80% success (Singh et al, 2010). Cultivars/selections: There are no identified cultivars or selections available in lasora. Some farmer’s selections are used for raising new plants. There is no organized cultivation of this fruit, however, recently some progressive farmers have started small commercial orchards in Rajasthan and Haryana using local selections (Fig. 12C). Fruits are in high demand for processing as pickle and for other medicinal uses. Therefore, future of this fruit species is very high and commercial cultivation would be picking up especially in the north, west and central India.

54

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Important uses: Unripe fresh fruits are acrid and used for vegetable and pickle. Ripe fruits are eaten fresh. Fruit pulp is rich in carbohydrates, extractive matter and ash. Fruit is highly mucilaginous and used in cough mixture to cure diseases of chest and is given in bilious infections as a laxative. Fruit of lasora fetch Rs. 50-80/- per kg in the urban markets and are always in the high demand.

Genetic Resource Management Collection: Genetic diversity of Cordia species especially C. myxa has been collected by NBPGR from Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. 134 accessions of various Cordia species have been collected. 45 accessions of elite germplasm have been collected by NBPGR in collaboration with CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal from Rewari, Mahendergarh and Bhiwani districts of Haryana and germplasm was established at field genebank at CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal and NBPGR, Regional Station, Jodhpur. At NBPGR 57 accessions comprising of C. myxa, C. crenata and C. rothii have been collected from six states of India. Collected germplasm represented the sizable diversity in fruit weight, shape, size, surface feature, pulp content, seed size, weight and shape. One promising accession with bold fruits, shining surface and prolific bearing

Himachal Pradesh Haryana Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

Gujarat

Fig. 13: Collection sites of Cordia species from various states

55

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

have been identified by local farmers near Kotputli, Rajasthan. Details of germplasm has been given in Table15 and locations of germplasm collections has been presented in the Fig 13. Characterization: Germplasm of C. myxa collected from various sources have been characterized based on morphological traits of fruit and seed characters. Singh et al. (1999) identified two types of lasora fruits based on fruit maturity one early type with small, turnip shaped fruits and another late type with large size and spherical shape fruits. There are no standard varieties of lasora, however, they can be grouped into two on the basis of their fruit size namely bold and small fruits (Kaushik and Dwivedi, 2004). At NBPGR a total of 24 accessions were used for physico-chemical characterization. Characterization data has been presented in the Table 16. Fruits were ovoid to oval in shape. Fruit length varied from 1.41 cm to 2.72 cm and width from 1.29 to 2.92 cm. Fruit weight showed large variation from 1.12 gm to 9.82 gm with TSS ranging from 0.680 B to 1.140 B. Pulp thickness was recorded to range from 0.23cm to 0.56cm. With regard to variability in seed characters and length ranged from 1.01cm to 1.17cm and width from 1.07cm to 1.91cm. Seed weight showed large variation amongst the accessions as it varied from 0.21g to 1.26 g. Among all the accessions seven were found better in terms of economic value for large fruits, higher TSS, pulp thickness and small ligher seeds. These accesions are IC546090 for high fruit length and width, followed by IC564563. Highest TSS were found in accession IC564553, 564548 and 564553. Pulpiest fruits were found in IC564547, 564559 and 564556. The lightest seeds was found in IC564550, 564555 and 564563. Conservation: Germplasm of lasora is being conserved in the field genebank at CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal (30), CIAH, Bikaner (65), NBPGR Regional Station, Jodhpur (73) and ANDUAT, Faizabad. Lasora is generally propagated by seeds. In addition budding can be successfully done on seedling rootstocks during July-September. Detailed studies conducted at NBPGR showed that seeds are shed at about 25% moisture and exhibit high germinability (94%). Seeds exhibit desiccation tolerance (Table 4). However, when exposed to LN, a 14 % decline in viability was recorded indicating freezing sensitivity of seeds which led to its characterization as intermediate seed storage behaviour. Seeds showed 50% decline in viability by 6 months. Seeds with high recovery were obtained on cryostorage between 6-8% moisture content. Seeds of C. myxa (24 accessions), C. crenata (3 accs), C. obliqua (1 acc) and C. rothii (9 accs) has been cryostored successfully (Table 5).

56

57

MKD-84

MKD-85

MKD-86

MKD-87

9

10

11

12

MKD-26

5

MKD-83

MKD-25

4

8

MKD-21

3

MKD-64

MKD-19

2

7

MD-975

1

MKD-51

Number

No.

6

Collector

S.

524043

524042

524041

524040

524039

345836

345823

345798

345797

345793

345791

553682

Number

IC Name

Botanical

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia crenata

Name

Crop

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Cultivated

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Status

Name Gond

gical

Biolo-

cular

Verna-

Rewari

Rewari

Rewari

Rewari

Rewari

Hisar

Bhiwani

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Rewari

Mandi

District

Table 15. Passport data of Cordia species germplasm collected from various states

tude

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

28.02

28.05

28.05

28.05

28.05

29.09

28.79

28.27

28.27

28.27

28.10

76.53

76.58

76.58

76.58

76.58

75.99

76.36

76.14

76.14

76.25

76.51

76.52

tude

Lati- Longi-

Himachal Pradesh 31.35

State

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MDS-16

MDS-17

MDS-2

MDS-20

MDS-22

25

26

27

28

MDS-11

20

24

MDS-10

19

MDS-15

MDS-1

18

23

MD-940

17

MDS-13

MD-938

16

22

MD-937

15

MDS-12

MD-936

14

21

MD-339

13

58

564565

564563

564545

564560

564559

564558

564556

564555

564554

564553

564544

553647

553645

553644

553643

553646

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Lasiyada

Lasiyada

Lasooda

Lasooda

Lasiyada

Looseda

Lasiyada

Lasooda

Lasooda

Lasooda

Lasooda

Lasyada

Lasyada

Lasyada

Lasyada

Lasyada

Wild

Wild

Wild

Cultivated

Wild

Cultivated

Wild

Cultivated

Cultivated

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Bilaspur

Bilaspur

Una

Hamirpur

Kangra

Hamirpur

Hamirpur

Hamirpur

Hamirpur

Kangra

Una

Kangra

Kangra

Kangra

Kangra

Kangra

Himachal Pradesh 31.23

Himachal Pradesh 31.31

Himachal Pradesh 31.25

Himachal Pradesh 31.48

Himachal Pradesh 31.57

Himachal Pradesh 31.46

Himachal Pradesh 31.46

Himachal Pradesh 31.46

Himachal Pradesh 31.47

Himachal Pradesh 31.52

Himachal Pradesh 31.25

Himachal Pradesh 32.13

Himachal Pradesh 31.58

Himachal Pradesh 31.59

Himachal Pradesh 32.01

Himachal Pradesh 32.12

76.45

76.38

76.20

76.28

76.27

76.24

76.20

76.20

76.20

76.15

76.20

76.09

76.28

76.28

76.29

76.11

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-06/6

MD-06/7

MD-06/8

MKD-103

MKD-91

MKD-94

41

42

43

44

45

MD-301

36

40

MDS-9

35

MD-06/45

MDS-8

34

39

MDS-7

33

MD-06/4

MDS-6

32

38

MDS-5

31

MD-06/29

MDS-4

30

37

MDS-3

29

59

524050

524047

524059

546091

546090

546089

546128

546087

546112

436989

564552

564551

564550

564549

564548

564547

564546

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Gonda

Gonda

Gonda

Gonda

Gonda

Gonda

Laveda

Lasooda

Lasooda

Lasooda

Lasooda

Lasooda

Lasooda

Lasooda

Cultivated

Wild

Wild

Wild

Cultivated

Cultivated

Wild

Cultivated

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Jaipur

Alwar

Alwar

Bhilwara

Ajmer

Ajmer

Sirohi

Ajmer

Chittorgarh

Guna

Kangra

Una

Una

Una

Una

Una

Una

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

27.73

27.86

27.96

25.13

26.50

26.57

24.85

26.45

24.93

24.65

Himachal Pradesh 31.50

Himachal Pradesh 31.45

Himachal Pradesh 31.30

Himachal Pradesh 31.28

Himachal Pradesh 31.29

Himachal Pradesh 31.29

Himachal Pradesh 31.27

76.16

76.32

76.81

74.69

74.59

74.70

72.87

74.54

74.66

77.32

76.10

76.06

76.10

76.10

76.11

76.14

76.18

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-06/23

MKD-89

MD - 805

MD - 841

MD-06/31

MD-06/35

50

51

52

53

54

55

MKD-104

MD-339

49

57

MKD-88

48

MD-255

MKD-15

47

56

MKD-95

46

60

524060

423589

546118

546114

552948

552912

524045

546106

437027

524044

345787

524051

Gondi

Gondi

Gondi

Gondi

Gondi

Gondi

Cordia rothii

Cordia rothii

Cordia rothii

Cordia rothii

Cordia rothii

Cordia rothii

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Indian cherry Cordia myxa

Gondi

Gondi

Gondi

Gondi

Gondi

Gond

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Lasora

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Cultivated

Alwar

Pali

Sirohi

Udaipur

Neemach

Vadodara

Alwar

Chittorgarh

Datia

Rewari

Rewari

Alwar

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

Gujarat

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

Haryana

Haryana

Rajasthan

27.96

25.81

25.17

24.34

24.47

21.83

27.90

24.32

25.66

28.02

28.22

27.88

76.81

73.41

73.08

73.61

75.43

73.20

76.45

74.40

78.46

76.53

76.46

76.38

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-06/08 546091

MD-06/23 546106

MD-06/29 546112

3

4

5

61

MDS-1

MDS-2

MDS-3

MDS-4

MDS-5

MDS-6

7

8

9

10

11

12

564549

564548

564547

564546

564545

564544

MD-06/45 546128

6

2.51(±0.03)

2.23(±0.08)

2.31(±0.03)

1.84(±0.03)

2.03(±0.02)

2.28(±0.10)

1.80(±0.05)

2.06(±0.05)

1.80(±0.05)

2.07(±0.03)

2.72(±0.12)

MD-06/7

2

546090

2.01(±0.04)

546089

MD-06/6

1

IC No.

Length (cm)

Coll. No

No.

S.

2.64(±0.08)

2.49(±0.11)

2.61(±0.05)

1.62(±0.01)

2.27(±00.5)

2.38(±0.09)

1.48(±0.03)

1.85(±0.05)

1.48(±0.03)

1.88(±0.03)

2.74(±0.04)

1.82(±0.04)

Width (cm)

Fruit

11.86(±0.12)

9.47(±0.10)

6.78(±0.06)

3.37(±0.04)

9.62(±0.00)

9.33(0.02)

1.91(±0.14)

3.58(±0.25)

1.91(±0.14)

3.82(±0.15)

11.53(±0.57)

3.64(±0.24)

Weight (g)

0.90(±0.19)

1.12(±0.05)

0.88(±0.05)

0.84(±0.04)

0.84(±0.05)

0.9(±0.06)

0.83(±0.05)

0.72(±0.05)

0.83(±0.05)

0.88(±0.04)

0.84(±0.05)

0.88(±0.04)

TSS

1.36(±0.02)

1.31(±0.01)

1.36(±0.01)

1.16(±0.01)

1.58(±0.00)

1.37(±0.01)

1.25(±0.05)

1.61(±0.04)

1.36(±0.06)

1.59(±0.04)

1.66(±0.02)

1.61(±0.04)

Length (cm)

1.62(±0.01)

1.59(±0.01)

1.55(±0.01)

1.07(±0.01)

1.34(±0.01)

1.62(±0.01)

1.16(±0.06)

1.55(±0.08)

1.10(±0.03)

1.26(±0.04)

1.44(±0.05)

1.55(±0.08)

Width (cm)

Seed

0.78(±0.01)

0.61(±0.01)

0.77(±0.01)

1.06(±0.09)

0.97(±0.00)

0.76(±0.01)

0.75(±0.02)

0.86(±0.07)

0.73(±0.03)

0.82(±0.02)

0.95(±0.04)

0.86(±0.07)

1.12(±0.05)

1.01(±0.02)

1.06(±0.01)

0.59(±0.00)

0.63 (±0.01)

0.97(±0.01)

0.39(±0.02)

0.80(±0.03)

0.31(±0.02)

0.55(±0.03)

0.80(±0.03)

0.77(±0.01)

Thickness (cm) Weight (g)

Table 16. Characterization of Cordia species germplasm based on fruits and seeds characters

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MDS-20

MDS-22

23

24

MDS-13

19

MDS-17

MDS-12

18

22

MDS-11

17

MDS-16

MDS-10

16

21

MDS-9

15

MDS-15

MDS-8

14

20

MDS-7

13

62

564565

564563

564560

564559

564558

564556

564555

564554

564553

564552

564551

564550

2.29(±0.08)

2.68(±0.04)

2.40(±0.04)

2.41(±0.04)

2.52(±0.04)

2.12(±0.06)

2.33(±0.11)

2.09(±0.09)

2.43(±0.05)

1.92(±0.03)

1.87(±0.06)

1.41(±0.07)

2.36(±0.04)

2.80(±0.04)

2.14(±0.03)

2.44(±0.06)

2.70(±0.14)

2.39(±0.04)

2.47(±0.09)

2.32(±0.08)

2.92(±0.04)

2.12(±.16)

2.02(±0.08)

1.29(±0.01)

9.82(±0.23)

3.06(±0.32)

6.23(±0.03)

9.15(±0.02)

10.38(±0.14)

7.66(±0.19)

1.32(±0.01)

9.19(±0.08)

13.78(±0.15)

1.14(±0.05)

5.54(±0.01)

1.12(±0.05)

0.86(±0.06)

0.88(±0.06)

0.68(±0.03)

0.86(±0.05)

1.07(±0.03)

0.82(±0.07)

0.92(±0.05)

0.94(±0.09)

1.14(±0.05)

1.08(±0.08)

0.98(±0.08)

0.78(±0.05)

1.56(±0.01)

1.31(±0.00)

1.38(±0.03)

1.75(±0.01)

1.44(±0.06)

1.34(±0.01)

1.30(±0.02)

1.71(±0.01)

1.45(±0.01)

1.06(±0.02)

1.01(±0.01)

1.05(±0.01)

1.33(±0.00)

1.91(±0.02)

1.37(±0.05)

1.12(±0.01)

1.53(±0.06)

1.53(±0.01)

1.62(±0.01)

1.12(±0.01)

1.55(±0.02)

1.34(±0.04)

1.43(±0.01)

1.08(±0.00)

0.96(±0.01)

0.72(±0.01)

0.60(±0.02)

0.85(±0.01)

0.60(±0.04)

0.72(±0.01)

0.73(±0.01)

0.82(±0.01)

0.89(±0.01)

0.65(±0.02)

0.62(±0.01)

0.39(±0.00)

0.87(±0.02)

0.25(±0.01)

0.68(±0.01)

0.95(±0.02)

1.16(±0.04)

0.85(±0.01)

0.21(±0.01)

0.97(±0.02)

1.26(±0.01)

0.64(±0.01)

0.54(±0.01)

0.21(±0.01)

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

63

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.6 Diospyros melanoxylon (Tendu) Botanical name: Diospyros melanoxylon Roxb. Ex A. Dc. syn. D. tupru Buch. Ham. Common name: English- Coromandel ebony persimmon; Vernacular- Tendu, Timru, Kendu Family: Ebenaceae Origin and distribution: D. melanoxylon is native and endemic tree of India and widely found in the peninsular plains and lower hills especially in the dry deciduous forests of central, western and northern India (Stewart and Brandis, 1992). This is the most common species of forests of Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. General description: Tendu is a middle sized tree, height upto 10-15 ft., branchlets, young leaves, inflorescence clothed with soft grey or tawny tomentum. Leaves mostly sub-opposite, coriaceous, 3 - 6 inches long but sometimes much longer upto 12 inches, when full grown glabrous above, tomentose or pubescent beneath. Male flowers tomentose, sessile 3-12 flowers arranged in drooping axillary cyme; female flowers solitary, axillary or extra –axillary, generally 2, opposite to each other, larger than male flowers. Fruit ovoid or globose yellow to light orange when ripe, 1-2 inch across, supported by the flat spreading calyx–lobes with undulating reflaxed edges (Fig. 14C). Pulp yellow, soft, sweet, slightly astringent but edible. Seeds 4-8, compressed, oblong, the back curved, shining and blackish-brown often marked with bands across. Albumen ruminated. Propagation: Tendu is commonly propagated by seeds as this tree species is only found as natural wild in the forests or marginal lands. Germinative capacity of fresh seeds is 89% but falls rapidly with storage (Hocking, 1993). Cultivars/selections: There are no identified cultivars known in this species. Genetic resources of this species has not been given much emphasis and only naturally occurring wild plants are used by local people and tribals inhabited in the forest area.

64

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Important uses: Tendu tree have very important role in the socio-economy of tribal populations of tropical dry forests of India along with other two trees Mahua and Chironji. There are several economic uses of this species and all the plant parts starting from bark, leaves, fruits and seeds are important for various commercial purposes. The fruits called as ‘timru’ by local people are eaten raw and sold commercially in the local markets. The bark is burnt by tribals to “cure” small-pox. Dried powdered fruit is used as carminative and astringent; its tannin content is 15% and that of half ripe fruit is 23%. Dried flowers are reported to be useful in urinary, skin and blood diseases (Hocking, 1993). The seeds are prescribed as cure for mental disorders, palpitation of heart and nervous breakdown. Above all, the leaves of this plant constitute one of the most important raw materials of the “Bidi” industry. which make its leaves highly valued and there is an organised purchase of these leaves by forest department in all the states. Besides being the source of Indian ebony, its wood is also utilized for making boxes, combs, ploughs and beams (Rathore, 1970).

Genetic Resources management Collection: There is not much work done on the genetic resources management of this species. Mostly being a forestry and agro-forestry species plants are taken care by the forest departments of respective states. Horticulturally this species has not been considered as important even though fruits of this species are promising, attractive in color and have good quality with sweet pulp. 13 accessions of D. melanoxylon have

Himachal Pradesh Punjab Haryana Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

Fig. 15. Collection sites of Tendu from various states of India

65

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

been collected by NBPGR from Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh in the form of fruits from the diverse populations. Details of germplasm has been given in Table 17 and locations of germplasm collections has been presented in the Fig. 15. Characterization: There is no much characterization data available for D. melanoxylon, as fruits have not been considered of much horticultural importance. Germplasm collected by NBPGR have been characterized for various fruit and seed characters. The 3 genotypes collected from states of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh have been characterized for fruit and seed characters. The fruits were morphologically characterized for length, width and weight (Table 18). The fruit length varied from 3.2 to 3.7 cm and width from 3.16 to 3.68 cm. The fruit weight ranged from about 28 to 31 gm. TSS in the fruits also showed variation from as low as 19.6 to 22.6o B. The bigger fruits were heavier and also showed higher TSS. The seeds were characterized for length, width and weight. Seed length varied from 2.2 to 2.6 cm and width from 1.28 to 1.39 cm with weight of the seed varying from 1.5 to 2.1 gm. The heaviest fruit with highest TSS was recorded in accession IC552946. Conservation: Tendu trees are growing as natural wild in the forests and marginal lands. Being highly economical species for the local inhabitants and tribals for the collection of fruits and leaves from the wild trees, it is naturally being protected by them and by forest departments in the protected forest areas. Basic studies on seed germination storage behavior has been undertaken at Seed Biology Lab, School of life Sciences, Pt. Ravishankar Shukla University, Raipur and at NBPGR, New Delhi. In studies by Naithani (pers Comm., 2001) a very high moisture content of 38% and 93% viability have been recorded in freshly extracted seeds. On desiccation of seeds to 4.2% moisture content a concomitant decline in viability to 77% was recorded. In studies at NBPGR the freshly harvested seeds showed 28.5% moisture with 90% germinability (Table 3, Fig. 14E,F). On storage at ambient conditions, the viability declined to 50% by 10 months. A decline in germinability was observed with desiccation down to 7% moisture level. This is similar to work reported by Hocking (1993) where the fast decline in the germinative capacity of fresh seeds with storage has been mentioned . In our studies at 12% moisture which is the critical moisture content level, seeds survived LN exposure well with 80% germinability. Desiccation sensitivity and relatively shorter longevity (15 months) has led to its categorization as intermediate seeded species. A total of 16 diverse accessions have been cryostored in the cryogenebank at NBPGR (Table 5).

66

67

MD-06/19

MD-06/21

MD-06/48

MD-274

MD-289

MD-291

MD-292

MD-293

MD-297

RS/NSP-24

NSP/

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

MD - 842

No.

OPD-04-12

NSP/

OPD-04-5

Collector

Number

S.

438461

438454

553217

423631

423627

423626

423625

423623

423608

546131

546104

546102

552949

Number

IC

Tendu

Tendu

Tendu

Tendu

Tendu

Tendu

Tendu

Tendu

Tendu

Tendu

Tendu

Tendu

Tendu

Name

Crop

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Diospyros melanoxylon

Name

Botanical

Timru

Timru

Timru

Timru

Timru

Timru

Timru

Timru

Timru

Timru

Timru

Timru

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Status

Name Tendu

gical

Biolo-

cular

Verna-

Mandi

Kangra

Chhindwara

Chittorgarh

Beawar

Pali

Dungarpur

Dungarpur

Dungarpur

Chittorgarh

Chittorgarh

Chittorgarh

Neemach

District

tude

22.27

78.36

24.90 74.64

25.94 73.86

25.59 73.42

24.21 73.63

23.94 73.85

23.83 73.71

24.32 74.40

24.32 74.40

24.32 74.40

24.43 75.09

tude

Lati- Longi-

Himachal Pradesh 31.65 76.94

Himachal Pradesh 32.10 76.27

Madhya Pradesh

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

State

Table 17. Passport data of Diospyros melanoxylon (Tendu) germplasm collected from various states

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

68

MD-06/19

MD-06/21

MD-842

1

2

3

S. No Col. No.

552946

546104

546102

IC No.

3.70(±0.19)

3.24(±0.02)

3.37(±0.06)

Length (cm)

3.68(±0.17)

3.16(±0.01)

3.23(±0.03)

Width (cm)

Fruit

30.55(±3.40)

27.57(±0.12)

28.49(±0.12)

Weight (gm)

22.60(±0.83)

19.60(±0.61)

21.80(±0.52)

TSS

2.48(±0.09)

2.22(±0.03)

2.60(±0.03)

Length (cm)

1.39(±0.03)

1.28(±0.03)

1.30(±0.02)

Width (cm)

Seed

2.13(±0.12)

1.51(±0.10)

1.60(±0.03)

Weight (gm)

Table 18. Characterization of Diospyros melanoxylon (Tendu) species germplasm based on fruits and seeds characters

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

69

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.7 Emblica officinalis (Aonla) Botanical name: Emblica officinalis Gaertn syn. Phyllanthus emblica L. Common name: English - Indian gooseberry, myrobalan, emblic; Vernacular -Aonla, Amla Family: Euphorbiaceae Origin and distribution: Aonla is originated in eastern Asia, it is believed to be native to tropical southeast Asia, specifically of the parts of central and southern India (Firminger, 1947). It is also available in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Ceylon, Malaya, southern China and the Mascarene Islands. Aonla is an ancient fruit crop of Indian sub-continent and widely used in Indian System of Medicine. This fruit species is still growing as natural wild in forests areas of Vindhyan hills of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, Shivalik Hills and foot hills of Himalayas. It is commonly cultivated in home gardens throughout India and grown commercially in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Haryana and Punjab. General description: Aonla is a small to medium sized tree, normally reaching a height of 10-12 m, natural wild seedlings grow still higher (Fig. 16A). Aonla tree has two types of shoots, the indeterminate and determinate. Indeterminate shoots are longer and attain fresh growth in season and do not bear flowers while determinate shoots come at the nodes of indeterminate shoots and number vary from 3-5 depending upon the genotype. Determinate shoots bear very small reduced, closely arranged leaves giving the impression of pinnately compound leaves. It is a deciduous tree shedding its determinate shoots completely and before this lateral buds develop new shoots to visibly give it a look of evergreen tree. Small, inconspicuous, greenishyellow flowers are borne in compact clusters in the axils of the lower leaves. Male flowers occur at the lower end of a growing branchlet, with the female flowers above them. The fruit is round or oblate, indented at the base with smooth and shining surface, 6 to 8 faded lines from base to apex give the impression of ridges and divided segements in the fruit. Fruit is green at maturity and ripe fruit is greenish-yellow. Fruit is juicy, flesh is thick, fibrous or non-fibrous depending on the cultivar generally wild fruits are small, hard and bitter in taste. Hexagonal stone contains 6 small brown or

70

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

blackish seeds and present in the center of fleshy fruit. Fruit size, texture, fiber content, taste and acidity vary with the cultivar. Propagation: Wild plants of aonla are naturally propagated through seeds and seedling propagated trees have longer life and are less susceptible to diseases (Fig. 16B). While all the cultivated aonla is now vegetatively propagated and various budding (Shikhamany, 2010) and grafting methods have been in practice. Patch budding is recommended being convenient and for high success rate. May to August is the right time for good success in budding. Cultivars/selections: There are several selections and cultivars identified and released in this highly popular economic and fascinating fruit crop of India. Most of the selections have been made from the germplasm collected from Uttar Pradesh by ANDUAT, Faizabad. There has been a lot of work undertaken on evaluation of these released cultivars in diverse climatic conditions. Some of the important cultivars are Banarasi, Chakaiya, Francis (Hathi Jhool), Kanchan, Krishna (NA-5), Neelam (NA–7), Kanchan (NA –4), NA 6, NA 8 and Balwant. Cultivars Anand 1, 2 and 3 have been released for Gujarat. Recently a selection, Goma Aishwariya an early and drought tolerant with less fiber is released by CIAH, Bikaner. These cultivars have been recommended for various regions and states according to their performance, as the area for the aonla cultivation has been substantially increased during last two decades in India. Recently high density planting system in aonla is also experimented and recommended for Gujarat using NA-7 cultivar (Singh et al., 2010). Important uses: Aonla is an important fruit of Indians and consumed fresh, processed and preserved in several ways. Fruits are rich source of vitamin C due to the presence of leucoanthocanins which retard the oxidation of vitamin C. These are rich source of various important minerals namely iron, calcium and phosphorous. Fruits are collected from wild or homestead gardens by tribals and marginal farmers and used at home as vegetable or cooked, pickled or preserved with sugar/jagery for various preparations or sold in the market. Presently commercial cultivation of aonla is practiced at large scale and area is increasing day-by-day in Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. In these states popular cultivars are grown in the orchards and fruits are sold in the local market and also purchased directly by the food processing and pharmaceutical industry. Medicinal uses of aonla fruits are well documented in the Indian System of Medicine and Unani and it is prescribed in various ways to increase immunity and health. Popular way of processing to retain nutritive value are Murabba, Chawanparash and Trifala. However, now several new products have been developed by value addition namely aonla candy, jam, herbal jam, chutney, pickle, squash, juice, sharbat, vinegar etc. Fruit 71

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

powder is also used in preparation of toiletries and cosmetics. Several other processing methods are being developed and research is continuing at various institutes in India to popularise and increase the consumption of aonla.

Genetic Resources Management Collection: Aonla germplasm have been collected by various institutes including NBPGR. Most of the present day cultivars have been released from the selection made from these collections and identified chance seedlings of these genotypes. Extensive elite germpalsm collections have been made from Varanasi, Pratpgarh, Agra, Rai Bareilly, Azamgarh, Sultanpur, Kanpur and Allahabad districts of Uttar Pradesh. 159 accessions of Aonla have been collected from various states of India. 33 genotypes of aonla have been identified by Rai et al. (1993) based on variability in the fruit morphological characters including vitamin C, tannin and fibre content in the pulp from Uttar Pradesh. Characterization: Aonla germplasm have been characterized for various characters of horticultural importance especially plant type with spreading habit, profuse bearing, bold fruits, smooth and shining skin, high pulp, less fiber content, juiciness, tannin content and longer shelf life. Various collections made by ANDUAT, Uttar Pradesh have been characterized and evaluated at Faizabad and various cultivars/ selections from the seedling plants have been identified and released (Bajpai and Shukla, 1985). Rai et al.(1993) characterized 33 genotypes of aonla collected from Uttar Pradesh, based on these characters and 4 promising accessions have been identified. Performance of various important selections and cultivars namely Banarasi, Chakaiya, Francis (Hathi Jhool), Kanchan, Krishna (NA-5), Neelam (NA–7), Kanchan (NA – 4), NA 6, NA 8 and Balwant have been evaluated at various aonla growing locations and accordingly cultivars have been recommended for cultivation in that state. Conservation: Conservation of aonla germplasm has been taken up in the field genebanks at various institutes namely ANDUAT, Faizabad (22), CIAH, Bikaner (50), CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal (6), MPKV, Rahuri (8), S.D. Agricultural University, Sardarkrushinagar (12) and Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, Dapoli. Collections made by these organizations are being maintained in their respective field genebanks for conservation and utilization. Aonla improvement work is extensively being undertaken at various centers of AICRP on Arid Fruits and germplasm is being maintained for characterization and evaluation. Basic studies on seed physiology and storage behaviour of aonla has been taken up at NBPGR, New Delhi and cryopreservation of seeds of natural wild germplasm

72

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

has been successfully undertaken (Table 4). 31 accessions of aonla has been cryopreserved in the cryogenebank at NBPGR. Seeds freshly shed showed 12% moisture content and about 74 % germination. Seeds showed a decline in viability to 50% by 10 months storage. Orthodox seed storage behavior has been observed as seeds had critical moisture content of about 6 % and there was no viability change after cryostorage.

73

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

74

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.8 Garcinia species (Kokam, Malabar tamarind and Mysore gamboge ) Botanical name: Garcinia species- Garcinia indica [Dupetit-Thouars] Choisy; G. cambogia (Gaertn.) Desr. syn. Garcinia gummi-gutta (L.) N.Robson; G. xanthochymus Hook.f.ex T. Anderson and G. cowa Roxb. Ex DC. syn. G. kydia Roxb. Common name: G. indica- Kokam, G. cambogia- Malabar tamarind, G. xanthochymus- Mysore gamboge, G. cowa- Chenkek Family: Clusiaceae Origin and distribution: Genus Garcinia L. has approximately 400 species having dioecious, evergreen trees growing in tropical parts of the world (Maheshwari, 1964; Whitmore, 1973; Richards, 1990a). Approximately 30 species of Garcinia are cultivated and produce edible fruits (Arora, 1998). In India 36 species of Garcinia are reported out of which 16 species of Garcinia are endemic and distributed in the Western Ghats, the northeastern India and in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Eleven species occur in the southern Western Ghats, out of which 6 species are endemic while sixteen species occur in the northeastern India, out of which 2 are endemic and fifteen species are found in Andaman and Nicobar Islands out of which 7 are endemic. G. indica widely occurs in south-western India especially in South Maharashtra, Karnataka and northern Kerala which seems to be its centre of origin. Even though plantations are available, limited wild resources are also seen. G. cambogia is found wild in evergreen forests of western Gharts in south Maharashtra extending southwards to Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. G. xanthochymus is native to India and found in western Ghats, Orissa and Andamans. G. cowa is native to northeastern India and distributed in Assam, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, West Bengal and Orissa. General description: G. indica is a slender evergreen small sized tree going upto the height of 15m. It has drooping branches and tree takes pyramidal shape at maturity (Fig. 17A). Leaves are ovate or oblong, lanceolate 6-8 cm long and 2-4 cm broad. Tree is andro-dioceous producing male and bisexual flowers in separate plants. Obligate agamospermy is reported in G. xanthochymus and facultative agamospermy in G. indica and G. cambogia (Malik et al., 2005a). Fruits are globose or spherical 75

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

2.5-4 cm in diameter, at ripe stage color becomes dark purple, plants with green and white fruits are also reported. Fruits are smooth with shining surface and have large, kidney shaped 5-8 seeds embedded in the soft rind of fruit. Flowering in the month of December-January and fruits are ripe in April-May. G. cambogia is a medium sized evergreen tree attaining the height upto 20 m, like kokam it is also a dioceous tree with rounded crown and horizontal and drooping branches. The berry fruit shape is oval to concave, yellow or red in color at maturity, fruit surface is not smooth it has 6-8 grooves of varied length, width and depth. At distal end the fruit is depressed or have small or long nipple like structure. 6-8 large size seeds are seen inside. It is dioecious tree with a rounded crown that grows from 4.5 to 7.6 m in height with dense foliage. The leaves are large (15.4-30.5 cm in length) and leathery and are oblong to lanceolate shaped. The small flowers (1.3 cm in diameter) are born in a dense cluster of 4-10 flowers and are greenish white in color. Fruits are bright yelloworange, almost round and 5-8 cm in diameter. The fleshy fruit usually contains 5 seeds that are surrounded by a yellow pulp that is edible. Male trees are not seen but pseudobisexual trees are known. Acidic, pleasant fruits are edible, though not very palatable and are used for making sherbets, medicaments, preserves and jams. Dried fruit rind is used as a condiment in West Coastal Karnataka. Gum resin from stem bark and fruit makes a good watercolour (gamboge) used in dyeing. Very old trees are met with in degraded areas but young trees are not to be seen. Genetic erosion has already set in as only isolated trees are seen in degraded forest areas near villages in Karnataka. In Kerala, mostly planted trees are seen in botanical gardens. Propagation: Garcinia species are propagated by seeds as well as by vegetative methods mostly using air layering by softwood grafting using scion from the selected trees. Seeds are highly recalcitrant and are to be sown immediately after extraction from fruits. Occasionally seeds provide two seedlings due to peculiar germination characterstics being shown in these species (Malik et al., 2005a). Cultivars/selections: No identified cultivars or selections are available in Garcinia species. In G. indica, however, some selections and variety “Konkan Amruta” (Selection from Shirgaon Local) was released by Dr. Balasaheb Sawant Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, Dapoli. Commercial cultivation in Garcinia is lacking, it is taken up only at small scale in Kokam and other species are still occurring in the wild or semi-domesticated state and grown in homestead gardens, marginal lands and forest area. There is an urgent need to identify the suitable genotypes for vegetative propagation. Characterization and evaluation of germplasm to release varieties/ selections of Garcinia is underway at NBPGR RS, Thrissur; IISR, Calicut and Konkan Krishi Vidyapeeth, Dapoli. 76

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Important uses: Most of the Indian Garcinia species are economically important having edible fruits. Kokam is a potential under-exploited minor fruit crop, currently gaining much commercial and medicinal importance. The fruit has an agreeable flavour and a sweetish acid taste. Fresh fruits and dry rind is used in curries to give an acidic flavour and also for preparing cooling syrups during summer months (Fig.17C). The seeds yield a valuable edible fat known in commerce as ‘kokum butter’ (Fig.17D). The fruit rind is rich in (-) Hydroxycitric acid (HCA), an important biologically active plant metabolite used as an anti-obesity drug (Heymsfield et al., 1998). It inhibits the conversion of carbohydrates into fats by inhibition of ATP citrate lyase, an important enzyme in Kreb’s cycle (Watson et al., 1969). Several value added products are being prepared from kokam and are popular in Indian and International market such as kokam syrup (Fig. 17C) , kokam agal (brined kokam juice), kokam oil, stearic acid from kokam fat, kokam rind acid, kokam color ointment etc. Malabar tamarind fruits are collected by local people (Fig.18D) and processed further into a value added products and are ready for use by drying the isolated rind on top of the fire places where the smoke passes through the rind and it becomes dry (Fig.18F). When it is almost dry, coconut oil mixed with salt is applied over the rind to make it pitch black and shiny. When it is fully dried the produce is sold in the market or to business men who come for purchasing the same. As women are engaged fully in the collection and processing, Malabar tamarind gives livelihood support to unemployed women in south Kerala. Malabar tamarind is a multipurpose tree grown in the home gardens of Kerala for the acidic fruit rind, which is used as a condiment and garnish. Resin of Malabar tamarind is used as a pigment in miniature paintings and water colours, besides its medicinal use as a purgative. Fruit rind is hydragogue, anthelmintic and emetic, particularly in dropsies. It is also used for polishing gold and silver ornaments and as a substitute for acetic acid for coagulation of rubber latex. The seed oil is used in medicine (Singh, 1993). Its rind is the only richest natural source of (-) Hydroxycitric acid and possesses marked antiseptic properties (Sarah et al., 1992). The derivatives of the acid are potent metabolic regulators of obesity and the unique acid also lowers blood lipids such as cholesterol and triglycerides by triggering the fatty acid oxidation in the liver via thermogenesis. It mobilizes body‘s fat stores and dissolves fat in the liver and also throughout the body paving way for weight management (Majeed, 1994; Muthulakshmi et al., 1999). It is increasingly becoming important industrially, commercially and medicinally, which has not been fully exploited. Fruits of Mysore gambage and chenkek also have important properties and used by local people as fresh fruits and offer processing.

77

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resource Management Collection: Rich diversity of several Garcinia species have been occurring in India. Several exploration and collection trips were undertaken in the Western Ghats, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and northeastern India to collect the germplasm of various Garcinia species. Most of the collections have been made from the Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa. These collections were made by NBPGR and/or in collaboration with Indian Institute of Spices Research, Calicut and University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad and College of Forestry, Sirsi. Exploration and collection of Garcinia species from northeastern Indian states is still lacking where vast diversity of Garcinia species is reported and most of the species are endemic to this region. These collections were made in the form of fruits, seeds or bud wood and established at the field genebank at NBPGR Regional Station, Thrissur. Besides these, efforts were made to undertake studies on natural population structure and male and female plants available in the natural populations. Three species of Garcinia namely G. cambogia, G. indica and G. xanthochymus were collected from these areas while G. cowa was collected from north-eastern India. The passport data is presented in Table 19 and collection sites are shown in Fig. 19. Characterization: Germplasm of G. indica and G. cambogia collected during explorations have been characterized for physico-chemical characters of fruits and field observations were recorded. In kokam the age of the trees varied from site to site. The height and circumference of the trees ranged from 5 – 15 m and 30.0 – 100.0 cm, respectively. The fruits were either spherical or oval and its size ranged from small to the size of a small coconut. The branches were horizontal or drooping. The trunk was vertically multi-branched at the base or single. The fruits were with or without seeds. The rind was either thin or thick. During the rainy season, mature fruits fall to the ground or the nearby brooks. Variability observed in tress and fruits of kokum was wide. Variability was more in branching pattern of trees. The trees were without or with two or more vertically branches from bottom, or with basal branches. The laterals were either horizontal or irregular in nature. Some trees bear fruits twice a year. The colour of the fruits ranged from light red to dark maroon. The aril is sour and sometimes sweet also. In Karnataka seldom kokum trees were seen in household gardens but are seen either wild or in disturbed forests associated with villages or farming communities or farmers namely bettathahola where from the farmers derive mulch for their arecanut farms. In Malabar tamarind extensive variability has been observed in canopy and branching pattern of tree, fruit colour, shape and size. Fruit shape in Malabar tamarind 78

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Fig. 19. Collection sites of Garcinia species from western ghats and northeastern India

varied from oval to concave. The fruit is generally elongated but rounded fruits were also common. Fruits bear ridges and furrows of varied length, width and depth. Two promising accessions were identified IC354028 for fruit weight (161 g); IC354019 for mean rind thickness (15 mm) and mean rind weight of fruit (125 g). Two accessions (IC354047 and 354063) were highly specific with the uncommon pinkish – red colour of fruits and in another accession (IC354070) fruits have remarkably half-smooth surface. Muthulakshmi et al. 1999 also studied standing trees of Malabar tamarind in the homesteads gardens of Thrissur and found the existence of wide variability in vegetative, floral, fruiting and biochemical characters. Compared to the morphological characters of the fruit, variations observed in biochemical characters were limited. They were unable to select trees with high fruit weight, rind thickness, total acidity, (-) HCA, crude protein coupled with low moisture, total phenol, crude fat and crude fibre. 79

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Conservation: Overall 11 species of Garcinia namely G. cadelliana, G. calycina, G. brevirostris, G. cambogia var. conicarpa, G. cambogia var. gummi-gutta, G. cambogia var. papilla, G. imbertii, G. indica, G. keenainia, G. kingii, G. talbotii, G. spicata and G. wightii are facing survival threat in India due to overexploitation for wood, medicine, gum, resin, edible fruits and seed (Kundu, 2006). The increase in the level of endemism from 50% to 65% is an important indication of the shrinking population of these species posing challenge for conservation biologists. Due to severe deforestation and genetic erosion, there is need for its genetic resources conservation. Therefore, the management of genetic resources of Indian species of Garcinia is urgently required. Presence of agamospermy (seed apomixis) in the genus Garcinia is known or suspected in at least ten species which have been further classified as facultative and obligate agamosperms (Richards, 1990a). Seed germination and storage behaviour: G. indica, G. cambogia and G. xanthochymus are semi-wild species which bear large seeds with high moisture content at shedding. Due to apomictic nature of the so called “seeds” of G. indica, G. cambogia and G. xanthochymus (Malik et al., 2005a,b), similar to that reported in G. mangostana (Normah et al., 1992; Teo, 1992), there is an absence of a embryonic axis or any structure akin to it. In view of the capability of the seed parts to regenerate complete plantlets, small seed pieces, in addition to the whole seeds were used for desiccation and freezing sensitivity studies. Freshly harvested seeds of all the species stored at ambient temperatures retained viability for short periods of about 30 days exhibiting that seeds were short-lived further confirming their recalcitrant nature. Seed longevity in all three species could be extended to almost two times by storage at 15OC. Chilling temperature of 5OC was unfavorable and within 10-15 days of storage, loss in germinability recorded was 20% in G. indica, 30% in G. cambogia and 60% in G. xanthochymus. Storage of seeds at freezing temperature of –20OC proved lethal as no survival could be observed after 5 days of storage in all the three species. Longevity of G. xanthochymus seeds was found to be minimum in comparison to G. indica and G. cambogia (Malik et al., 2005b). After 15 days storage at ambient temperature and at 5OC there was substantial and highest loss of viability in G. xanthochymus in comparison to other two species. On Farm conservation: On farm conservation sites for the conservation of two important species of Garcina namely G. indica and G. cambogia have been identified by the NBPGR RS, Thrissur. For kokam, 59 in situ conservation sites were explored in 5 districts of Karnataka, 2 each of Goa and Maharashtra and one of Kerala. Similarly for Malabar tamarind 110 on-farm conservation sites in 13 districts of Kerala have been identified (Abraham et al., 2010). 80

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Field genebank conservation: The NBPGR Regional Station, Thrissur is maintaining 124 accessions of Malabar tamarind, collected from Dakshin Kannad (2 accessions), Uttar Kannad (25), Kodagu (10), Chickmagalur (8), Shimoga (1) and Belgaum (8) districts of Karnataka; Thrissur (17 accessions), Kottayam (3), Kannur (8), Alappuzha (11), Ernakulam (9), Malappuram (3), Kozhikode (3), Kollam (6), Pathanamthitta (5) and Thiruvananthapuram (1) districts of Kerala; and South Goa (4 accessions) district of Goa in the field genebank at Vellanikkara, Thrissur, Kerala a site within the natural distributional range of the species. In the case of kokum, 76 accessions are established in the field genebank, a site nearer to the natural distributional range of the species. These accessions were collected from Karnataka, Maharashtra, Goa and Kerala (Abraham et al., 2010). In vitro conservation and cryopreservation: In vitro and cryopreservation techniques are being used to conserve vegetatively propagated species and recalcitrant seed species to achieve medium to long-term conservation. Most of the Garcinia species have recalcitrant seeds which can not be conserved in the traditional genenbank at 20°C. In vitro multiplication of three horticulturally important Garcinia species was successfully achieved using agamospermous seeds (Malik et al., 2008). G. indica and G. cambogia showed high frequency organogenesis while G. xanthochymus, an obligate agamospermous species, was highly recalcitrant towards in vitro conditions. Commercial exploitation of developed protocols would be useful for generating trueto-type planting material of these species. In vitro conservation of these recalcitrant seed species with extended sub-culture periods upto 11 months has been successfully achieved (Malik et al., 2005 a). Most of the studies pertaining to in vitro culture of genus Garcinia have been conducted in G. mangostana using seed and leaf explants (Goh et al., 1990; Normah et al., 1992; Te Chato and Lim, 2000 and Huang et al., 2000).

81

82

AMG/2002-367

AMG/2002-368

AMG/2002-369

AMG/2002-370

8

9

10

AMG/2002-364

4

7

AMG/2002-363

3

AMG/2002-366

MD/08/274

2

6

MD-153

1

AMG/2002-365

Number

No.

5

Collector

S.

Crop

354049

354048

354047

354046

354045

354044

354043

354042

568666

417221

Garcinia cambogia

tamarind

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

Malabar

cambogia

tamarind

cambogia Garcinia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

Malabar

Garcinia cambogia

Malabar

cambogia

tamarind tamarind

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cowa

Garcinia

cowa

Garcinia

Name

Botanical

Malabar

Cowa

Cowa

Number Name

IC

Muraganahuli

Muraganahuli

Muraganahuli

Muraganahuli

Muraganahuli

Muraganahuli

Muraganahuli

Muraganahuli

Chenkake

Cowa

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

gical Status

Name

Biolo-

cular

Verna-

Chikmagalur

Chikmagalur

Chikmagalur

Chikmagalur

Chikmagalur

Chikmagalur

Chikmagalur

Chikmagalur

Kolasib

East garo hills

District

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Mizoram

Meghalaya

State

Table 19. Passport data of Garcinia species germplasm collected from various states

13.08

13.08

13.08

13.07

13.07

13.07

13.39

13.39

24.30

25.54

tude

Lati-

75.01

75.01

75.01

75.29

75.29

75.29

75.87

75.87

92.68

90.11

tude

Longi-

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

AMG/2002-371

AMG/2002-349

AMG/2002-350

AMG/2002-351

AMG/2002-352

AMG/2002-353

AMG/2002-354

AMG/2002-355

AMG/2002-356

AMG/2002-359

AMG/2002-360

AMG/2002-361

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

83

19

20

21

22

354040

354039

354038

354035

354034

354033

354032

354031

354030

354029

354028

354050

Garcinia cambogia

Malabar

cambogia

tamarind tamarind

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

Malabar

Garcinia

Malabar

cambogia

tamarind tamarind

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

Malabar

Garcinia

Malabar

cambogia

tamarind tamarind

Garcinia

Malabar

Panpuli

Panpuli

Panpuli

Panpuli

Panpuli

Panpuli

Panpuli

Panpuli

Panpuli

Panpuli

Panpuli

Muraganahuli

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Kodagu

Kodagu

Kodagu

Kodagu

Kodagu

Kodagu

Kodagu

Kodagu

Kodagu

Kodagu

Kodagu

Chikmagalur

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

12.47

12.47

12.63

12.63

12.63

12.63

12.07

12.07

12.07

12.36

12.36

13.08

75.41

75.41

75.83

75.83

75.83

75.83

75.72

75.72

75.72

75.72

75.72

75.01

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

AMG/2002-379

AMG/2002-380

AMG/2002-382

AMG/2002-384

32

33

34

AMG/2002-376

28

31

AMG/2002-375

27

AMG/2002-378

AMG/2002-374

26

30

AMG/2002-373

25

AMG/2002-377

AMG/2002-372

24

29

AMG/2002-362

23

84

354063

354061

354059

354058

354057

354056

354055

354054

354053

354052

354051

354041

Garcinia cambogia

tamarind

cambogia

Malabar

Garcinia

Malabar

cambogia

tamarind tamarind

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

Malabar

Garcinia

Malabar

cambogia

tamarind tamarind

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

Malabar

Garcinia

Malabar tamarind

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Panpuli

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Kodagu

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

15.02

14.81

14.81

14.81

15.35

15.35

15.35

14.81

14.81

14.81

14.81

12.47

74.67

74.30

74.30

74.30

74.56

74.56

74.56

74.30

74.30

74.30

74.30

75.41

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

AMG/2002-394

AMG/2002-387

AMG/2002-383

44

45

AMG/2002-391

40

43

AMG/2002-390

39

AMG/2002-393

AMG/2002-389

38

42

AMG/2002-388

37

AMG/2002-392

AMG/2002-386

36

41

AMG/2002-385

35

85

354062

354066

354073

354072

354071

354070

354069

354068

354067

354065

354064

Garcinia xanthochymus

Mysore gamboge

indica

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Kokam

Garcinia

cambogia

Malabar

Garcinia

Malabar

cambogia

tamarind tamarind

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

cambogia

Malabar

Garcinia

Malabar

cambogia

tamarind tamarind

Garcinia

cambogia

tamarind Malabar

Garcinia

Malabar

Zarigehuli

Bele murugalu

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Uppage

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Uttara Kannada

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

Karnataka

15.02

15.09

15.54

15.54

15.54

14.92

14.92

14.92

14.92

15.34

15.02

74.67

74.31

74.43

74.43

74.43

74.19

74.19

74.19

74.19

74.34

74.67

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

86

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

87

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.9 Grewia subinaequalis (Phalsa) Botanical name: Grewia subinaequalis DC, syn. G. asiatica Mast. Common name : Phalsa Family: Tiliaceae Origin and distribution: Phalsa tree is native to Western India (Zeven and de Wet, 1982), and spread throughout south Asia and in the Indian sub-continent. In India it is distributed in the forests of central India and South India and also available in the northern plains and western Himalayas upto the height of 3000 ft. Phalsa is cultivated in the semi-arid regions of Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat and Punjab (Fig. 20 A,B). General description: Phalsa is a bush or small to medium sized tree with long, slender, drooping branches, the young branchlets densely coated with hairs. Young shoots and inflorescences are with a light, whitish bloom on the underside of leaves. Widely spaced leaves are broadly heart-shaped or ovate, pointed at the apex, oblique at the base, up to 8 in long and 6 in wide, and coarsely toothed. Flower buds cylindrical or clavate, flowers yellow and produced in cymes of 3-4, flower 2 cm in diameter densely tomentose, distinctly ribbed, fruit are indistinctly lobed drupes containing 1-2 one celled nuts. The fruit skin turns from green to purplish-red and finally dark-purple when fully ripened. There are two types of fruits, large fruits have 2 hemispherical, hard, buff-colored seeds and small fruits are single-seeded. It is a predominately self pollinated crop. Under cultivation, tree requires annual pruning upto ground level or 4 ft. height. Flowering in the month of January-February and fruits mature in the summer generally in the months of May-June. Fruiting is non synchronous in phalsa (Fig. 20D) and only few fruits mature at a time, therefore, require repeated harvesting. Fruits are highly perishable with short shelf life of few hrs and fruits are need to be consumed or processed within 48 hrs of plucking. Propagation: Phalsa is commercially propagated by seeds and these are sown in the seed beds during monsoon season immediately after extraction from the fruits. One year old seedlings are transplanted in the field and grow fast to give first flush within 15 88

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

months. Cuttings and air layering is also successful in phalsa with 50 and 85% success, respectively, however, rooting in cuttings is difficult. Cultivars/selections: There are no recognized cultivars of phalsa. However, dwarf and tall (vigorous) are two types of genotypes reported (Nehra et al., 1985). Dwarf type has been reported to be more productive. Two types of phalsa cultivars Local and Sharbati are also known. Important uses: Phalsa is extensively cultivated for its sweet and sour fruits, which are consumed fresh as table fruit and sold in the markets during summer months. Fruit possess astringent properties and used for several stomach ailments. The fruits are also processed to make phalsa sharbat when extracted pulp is mixed with sugar solution and squash is prepared after adding some preservatives (generally sodium benzoate). Phalsa sharbat and squash give pleasant and cooling effect in summers and work as an astringent and stomachic agent. Fresh fruits fetch very good price of Rs. 80-100/- per Kg in urban markets and consumed fresh with some salt (Fig. 20E). Use and cultivation of phalsa fruit has been mentioned in the ancient Indian literature and it has been used for various ailments in the Indian System of Medicine. Fresh or dried fruits are suggested to cure heart and blood disorders, fever and diarrhoea. The unripe fruits are said to remove vata, kapha and biliousness. The root bark is used by Santhal tribal population for rheumatism. The stem bark is used for making ropes by local people and mucilaginous extract is used for clarifying sugar.

Genetic Resources Management Collection: Phalsa germplasm has been collected from various parts of country including the states of Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, by NBPGR, New Delhi, CCSHAU, Hisar and Regional Research Station of CCSHAU, at Bawal. 36 accessions belonging to 6 economically important species namely G. hirsute, G. oppositifolia, G. tiliaefolia, G. rothii, G. orantalis and G. subinaequalis (phalsa) have been collected. In Phalsa not much variability is reported due to the self pollination and only two types tall and dwarf have been collected. Germplasm of phalsa is to be identified for bold fruits, small seeds and synchronized fruit maturity and longer shelf life of fruits which are important traits. Areas of collections undertaken have been depicted in the Fig. 21 and in Table 20. Conservation: Gemplasm of phalsa is being conserved in the field genebank at CCSHAU. Regional Station, Bawal and NBPGR Regional Station, Jodhpur. Basic studies on seed physiology and storage have been undertaken at NBPGR, New Delhi.

89

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Rajasthan

Fig. 21: Collection sites of phalsa from Rajasthan

Seeds loose viability after 90-100 days of storage (Chandra et al, 1994). In studies undertaken at NBPGR, seeds were found to show 50% viability after 4 months storage at ambient conditions (Table 4). Seeds were desiccation sensitive as at critical moisture content showed 23% loss in viability. Intermediate seed storage behavior has been concluded as seeds survived LN exposure with 50% viability. A total of 15 accessions of Grewia species have been cryostored in the cryogenebank (Table 5).

90

MD-06/1

MD-06/2

MD-06/3

MD-08/8

1

2

3

4

Number

S.No. Collector

91

561777

546086

546085

546084

Number

IC

Phalsa

Phalsa

Phalsa

Phalsa

Name

Crop

Grewia subinaequalis

Grewia subinaequalis

Grewia subinaequalis

Grewia subinaequalis

Botanical Name

Phalsa

Phalsa

Phalsa

Wild

Cultivated

Wild

Cultivated

Status

Name

Phalsa

gical

Biolo-

cular

Verna-

Bikaner

Ajmer

Ajmer

Ajmer

District

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

State

Table 20. Passport data of Grewia subinaequalis (Phalsa) germplasm collected from Rajasthan

28.06

26.50

26.50

26.45

tude

Lati-

73.21

74.43

74.53

74.54

tude

Longi-

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

92

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.10 Madhuca indica (Mahua) Botanical name: Madhuca indica J. F. Gmel, syn. M. latifolia Macb.; Bassia latifolia Roxb.) Common name: English - Indian Butter Tree ; Vernacular : Mahua, Mahuda Family: Sapotaceae Origin and distribution: M. indica originated in Indo-China region and spread upto Australia. In India it is found in semi-deciduous dry forests of western, central and southern India mainly in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar and Andhra Pradesh. Trees of mahua are retained and preserved in the farmer’s field and marginal lands due to its commercial importance. Therefore, large number of trees exist in the villages or panchayat lands of these states besides large populations in the forests of these states. In south India M. longifolia var. latifolia is found which is very common in western Ghats from Konkan area to Kerala. General description: M. indica is a medium to large deciduous, fast growing tree upto 20m height (Fig. 22A). Tree possesses evergreen or semi-evergreen leaves which cluster near ends of branches, elliptic or elliptic-oblong, pubescent and turn to glabrous at maturity. Young leaves are pinkish red. Flowers white to cream colour with tubular, fleshy and juicy corolla, clustered at the end of branches. Fruits berry ovoid, green at maturity and turn pinkish yellow when ripe. Fruits are pulpy with large ovoid seed, number of seeds vary from 1 to 4, seed color brown to black. Fruits occur in single or bunches up to 30-40 (Fig. 22D). Leaf fall takes place between February to April and at the same time flowering commences. Fruits mature generally in the months of MayJune. Tree blooms at night and in early morning hours flowers fall on the ground and collected by local tribal population for commercial use. In south India M. longifolia var. latifolia is present. There is very less difference in the tree morphology in two species except the shape of leaves which is linear lanceolate. This species flowers in November-December.

93

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Propagation: Mahua is propagated by seeds, which can be put for germination immediately after depulping from mature fruits. Seeds are highly recalcitrant and show vivipary (start germinating within ripe fruit). Vegetative propagation methods have also been developed using soft wood grafting, wedge grafting, veneer grafting and air layering with varying success. Recently vegetative means of softwood grafting with 70-80% success (Singh and Ravishankar, 2010), grafting with 70% success (Singh et al., 2010) and veneer grafting with 90% success (Singh et al., 1999) has been reported. A 80% success in veneer grafting followed by cleft has been achieved at CISH, Lucknow. As no organized commercial cultivation of mahua is undertaken at present, there is not much demand for planting material and trees are naturally grown by seeds. Cultivars/selections: There are no improved cultivars or varieties released in mahua, however, there are some selections identified based on period of fruit maturity by (Singh, 1999), three categories, early (NM- 2), mid (NM-7) and late season (NM- 4 and 9) have been categorized. Similarly, some selections have also been made by Singh et al. (2008) based on physico-chemical characterization of germplasm collected from Panchmahal district of Gujarat. Under the NOVOD Board funded National Network Project, some selections have been made which possess about 45% oil content. Important uses: Every part of mahua tree is used for economical purposes by the local people. In some tribal districts of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, eastern Uttar Pradesh and Bihar this tree with other two tree species namely tendu (Diospyros melanoxylon) and chironji (Buchanania lanzan) plays an important role in the economy of tribal people. Their livelihood is based on the products of these species which are collected from the forests and sold in local market. The bark of mahua is used to cure leprosy and to heal wounds. Flowers of mahua are of high economic value and collected fresh in the morning (Fig. 22B). These flowers are eaten fresh and dried for use in preparation of various dishes. Mostly the dried flowers are used for distillation of “Mahua Liquor” which is very common in the tribal areas (Fig.22C). Mahua flowers yield alcohol @ 340 litres/ tonne flower. Fruit pulp may also be used for alcohol production. Flowers are used as feed for livestock. The flowers are prepared to relieve coughs, biliousness and heart-trouble, while the fruit is given in cases of consumption and blood diseases. Ripe fruits of mahua are nutritious and are eaten raw or cooked and pulp after extraction of seeds is fed to cattle also (Fig. 22F). Seeds are of high economic value as used for the oil extraction. Kernel oil (solid at ambient temperature) is used for skin care and for manufacture of soaps, detergents and used as a vegetable butter. The oil content of the seed varies from 33 to 43% of the kernel weight. Linoleic acid is the major unsaturated 94

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

fatty acid found in pure oil which helps to reduce cholesterol level. There is lack of organized marketing process for mahua produce, it being essentially a forest crop till now. Only local middlemen purchase the dehulled kernels from villages and supply to wholesale markets who supply them to expellers. Oil can also be used as a fuel oil. The seed cake is a good fertilizer.

Genetic Resources Management Collection: Germplasm of Mahua have been collected from Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Bihar and Jharkhand by various organizations. 153 accessions have been collected from various states. Recently, CHES (CIAH), Godhra collected 35 promising collections of Mahua from Gujarat and Singh et al. (1999) collected 9 genotypes of Mahua from Uttar Pradesh. At CISH, Lucknow, based on surveys made in different parts of Uttar Pradesh, 8 accessions have been identified and collected (CISH, website). Studies on reproductive biology has also been undertaken on these accessions. NBPGR, New Delhi have collected 29 accessions of promising mahua variability from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan (Fig. 23 and Table 21). One promising collection with prolific bearing and bunches of approximately 30- 40 fruits have been identified from Rajasthan.

Uttar Pradesh

Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

Fig. 23. Collection sites of Mahua from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh

95

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Characterization: Mahua germplasm collected from various states have been characterized for various physico-chemical characters and field performance. Singh et al. (1999) based on fruit maturity grouped 9 genotypes in to three categories namely early, mid and late season types. Variation in TSS, acidity, vitamin C and vitamin A in fruits and flowers have been reported. Singh et al. (2005) studied genetic divergence in 15 mahua genotypes and MH-32, MH-34, MH-35, MH-26, MH 27, MH 23 and MH 33 collections were reported to be promising in all the traits analyzed. Singh et al. (2005) also characterized and identified 20 accessions collected from Gujarat and collections MH 10, MH 14, MH 35 and MH 63 have been found promising for all the traits. 8 accessions of mahua have been characterized at CISH, Lucknow for various physico-chemical characters. Conservation: Trees of mahua are growing naturally wild in the forest and marginal lands. These trees are valuable and also treated as sacred in some parts of the country, therefore, protected by local people and forest department. Recently, some of the promising accessions are being established in the field genebank at CHES (CIAH), Godhra and at CISH, Lucknow. Mostly plus trees are also conserved at various forest nurseries in mahua growing states. Mahua seeds have been reported to have a very short life of 20 days after harvest (Vanangamudi and Palanisamy, 1989) when viability is lost completely. The seeds are shed at high moisture content (above 50%) and high viability 90-100% and are desiccation sensitive (Varghese et al, 2002). Seeds desiccated to 37.7% lost germinability by 11% and those desiccated to between 14 to 16% moisture lost germinability by 90% of the original (Varghese et al, 2002). Maximum longevity of 30 days is reported when undried seeds are stored at 15OC temperature. True recalcitrant seed storage behavior of mahua seeds have been confirmed by our studies at NBPGR. Seeds were desiccation sensitive as seeds at CMC showed decline in viability to 40% and after cryostorage to 80% (Table 4). However, embryonic axes at CMC of 20.5% showed viability percentages of 35% and 12.5% before and after cryostorage, respectively. Based on this cryoprotocol, 2 accessions of Madhuca indica and 12 accessions of M. longifolia have been cryostored (Table 5).

96

97

18

17

16

15

14

13

395490

395489

395488

395487

395485

395484

546099 436991 436992 436996 436998 437005 437006 437007 437009 437010 546113 395483

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

MD-06/16 MD-303 MD-304 MD-308 MD-310 MD-317 MD-318 MD-319 MD-321 MD-322 MD-06/30 NSP/ OPD-03/11 NSP/ OPD-03/12 NSP/ OPD-03/13 NSP/ OPD-03/15 NSP/ OPD-03/16 NSP/ OPD-03/17 NSP/ OPD-03/18

IC Number

S.No. Collector Number

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua

Crop Name

indica indica indica indica indica indica indica indica indica indica indica indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca Madhuca Madhuca Madhuca Madhuca Madhuca Madhuca Madhuca Madhuca Madhuca Madhuca Madhuca

Botanical Name

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua Mahua

Vernacular Name

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild

Biological Status 24.33 23.50 23.50 23.00 23.00 23.42 23.42 23.42 23.56 24.34 24.94 24.33

Latitude

Madhya Pradesh 23.50

Madhya Pradesh 23.50

Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Madhya Pradesh Rajasthan Madhya Pradesh

State

Sagar

Sagar

Madhya Pradesh 23.42

Madhya Pradesh 23.42

Hoshangabad Madhya Pradesh 23.00

Hoshangabad Madhya Pradesh 23.00

Raisen

Raisen

Neemach Raisen Raisen Hoshangabad Hoshangabad Sagar Sagar Sagar Sagar Panna Chittorgarh Neemach

District

78.35

78.35

78.22

78.22

77.58

77.58

74.77 77.58 77.58 78.22 78.22 78.35 78.35 78.35 78.11 79.81 74.50 74.77

Longitude

Table 21. Passport data of Madhuca indica (Mahua) germplasm collected from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

98

29

28

27

26

25

24

23

22

21

20

19

NSP/ OPD-03/10 NSP/ OPD-03/14 NSP/ OPD-03/3 NSP/ OPD-03/6 NSP/ OPD-03/7 NSP/ OPD-03/19 NSP/ OPD-03/20 NSP/ OPD-03/4 NSP/ OPD-03/5 NSP/ OPD-03/8 NSP/ OPD-03/9

395481

395480

395477

395476

395492

395491

395479

395478

395475

395486

395482

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Madhuca indica

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Mahua

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Chattarpur

Chattarpur

Chattarpur

Chattarpur

Chattarpur

Chattarpur

Chattarpur

Chittorgarh

Panna

Sagar

Sagar

24.94

Madhya Pradesh 24.58

Madhya Pradesh 24.61

Madhya Pradesh 24.84

Madhya Pradesh 24.86

Madhya Pradesh 24.86

Madhya Pradesh 25.11

Madhya Pradesh 25.12

Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh 24.34

Madhya Pradesh 23.56

Madhya Pradesh 23.42

79.22

79.75

79.94

79.08

79.08

79.67

79.32

74.50

79.81

78.11

78.35

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

99

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.11 Manilkara hexandra (Khirni) Botanical name: Manilkara hexandra (Roxb.) Dubard, syn. Mimusops indica A. DC. Common name: Khirni, Ryan, Raina Family: Sapotaceae Origin and distribution: M. hexandra is an indigenous tree to India (Stewart and Brandis, 1992). It is found wild in the forests of South India, North-central India, parts of Gujarat and Rajasthan. In India this species is generally cultivated near villages, backyards and homestead gardens mostly in the parts of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Vidharbha region of Maharashtra and also found as natural wild populations. General description: The tree is medium to large size attaining 50-60 ft. height with en erect trunk, evergreen with spreading growth habit forming a large shady head (Fig. 24A). Leaves coriaceous, shining, glabrous, blade 2-4 inches long, obovate-oblong obtuse, petiole upto 1 inch long. Flowers whitish, in axillary fascicles of 3-6 flowers, peduncles shorter than petioles. It bears yellow shining, oval, sweet edible berry fruits with one or more seeds (Fig. 24B). Tree is well adapted to arid and semi-arid conditions and can tolerate drought conditions. Flowering in the month of October-November and fruit setting during April-May. It is highly heterozygous tree and as such seedlings exhibit a wide range of variations, which aids in the selection of the superior desirable genotypes. Vast genetic variability in tree shape, size and canopy is existing in India. This tree is commonly used as commercial rootstock for sapota. Propagation: The tree is generally propagated by seeds. Recently vegetative propagation methods have also been attempted using softwood grafting and veneer grafting with 75% success (Singh and Ravishankar, 2010). Bed grafting is also being attempted for vegetative propagation of trees by some private nurseries in Gujarat to supply quality planting material to farmers (Fig. 24E). Work on developing suitable vegetative propagation methods for multiplication of some elite selections is in progress at CHES (CIAH), Godhra and CISH, Lucknow.

100

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Cultivars/selections: There is no identified cultivars or selections available in khirni till now. Recently at CHES (CIAH), Godhra and CISH, Lucknow some promising seedlings have been identified and established in the field of genbank for evaluation. Due to cross pollination and predomination of seed propagation over a long period of time in khirni, it gives immense opportunity to select elite trees having promising horticultural traits. In spite of the fact that khirni can withstand adverse climatic conditions and be grown in various types of soil, no attempts to improve its varietal wealth have been made under semi arid regions. Important uses: Fruits and bark of this tree species have economical value as mature fresh fruits are very sweet and eaten raw as well as after drying and bark is used for several medicinal purposes. The seeds contain approximately 25% oil which is used for cooking purposes. The fruit is good source of iron, sugars, minerals, protein and carbohydrate etc. It is commercially used as a rootstock for vegetative propagation of sapota in different parts of the country. In the tribal area of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh this tree plays very important role in the socio-economy and livelihood security of small and landless farmers. Tribals in these villages are collecting fruits from these natural wild trees and selling in the nearby market (Fig. 24C) at the cost of Rs. 30-40/- per kg and each tree provides fruits worth of Rs. 500-2,000/- to a tribal family, which is a substantial support to them. Fresh fruits are consumed by whole family which provides good nutritional support especially the requirement of vitamin A is fullfilled in the children. These fruits being very rich in vitamin A (675 IU) work as a “Vitamin A “capsules for tribal people.

Genetic Resources Management Collection: Specific exploration and collection missions were undertaken in the west and central Indian states of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh for the survey and collection of M. hexandra during April-May in collaboration with CHES (CIAH), Godhra. 64 diverse accessions were collected from 12 districts of these three states (Table 22 & Fig. 26). These collections were made from wild and semi-wild trees growing in the forest areas, marginal forest lands, homestead gardens and farmers fields. Khirni trees have been found to be concentrated in the specific areas forming a population of different sizes. Survey and collection of this species revealed basically 6-7 major populations existing in the explored area where 20 or more trees were growing as a natural wild population at a single location. Largest population of more than 700 trees with vast genetic variability was located near Pritam Pura, in Ratlam district of Madhya Pradesh where trees of this species were spread in few kilometres and all possible variability was recorded in trees size, shape, fruiting behaviour, fruiting time, fruit shape, size, taste etc. Besides this location, Panchmahal, Dahod and 101

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Sambarkanta district of Gujarat, Neemach district (Rampura area) and Dhar district (Mandu area) of Madhya Pradesh, and Sirohi district of Rajasthan posses small to medium sized populations comprising 20 to 100 trees of this species. Germplasm of khirni has also been collected by CHES (CIAH), Godhra and CISH, Lucknow from Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Chanderi area, Guna and Ashoknagar districts of Madhya Pradesh are also rich in khirni diversity. In the farmer’s fields occasionally few trees were found to exist. No commercial or organised cultivation of this fruit species was observed in the area surveyed. All the trees observed were very old (50-150 years), young trees were very rare.

Rajasthan

Gujarat

Madhya Pradesh

Fig. 26. Collection sites of khirni from Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh

Characterization: A large germplasm totalling 47 accessions were scored for 8 characters encompassing fruit length, width, weight, TSS, seed length, width, weight and pulp weight (Table 23). A large variability was recorded in almost all the fruit characters (Fig. 25). Fruit length x width ranged from lowest values of 0.85 cm x 0.28 cm to highest values of 2.5 cm x 2.82 cm. Fruit weight of smallest fruit was 0.64 gm and highest was 7 times higher which was 4.13 gm. TSS value ranged from 15.60 to 31.80 OB which is twice that of lowest value. Seed length x width ranged from 0.75 cm x 0.41 cm to 1.48cm x 1.54 cm. Seed weight showed variation as smallest seeds 102

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

weighed 0.11 gm and heaviest weighed 0.45 gm. The pulp weight had large variation as it ranged from 0.52 to 3.79 gm, a variation which is about 7 times. The accessions with heaviest fruits were IC584560, IC584558 and IC584569. The heaviest fruits with high TSS were found in accession IC584560. In terms of pulp weight IC584561 and IC584558 had high values and showed large fruits. Detailed characterization data is given table 23. Germplasm of khirni has also been characterized for various physico-chemical characters a CHES (CIAH), Godhra and CISH, Lucknow. Field evaluation of some of the promising accessions is also continued at CHES (CIAH), Godhra. Conservation: There is an urgent need to maintain ex situ germplasm collection of khirni as no much work has been undertaken on conservation of this important underutilized fruit species. Some of the elite accessions collected from Panchmahal district of Gujarat has been established at CHES (CIAH), Godhra besides this some collections are being maintained at CISH, Lucknow. As far as conservation in the genebank is concerned diversity collected at NBPGR has been conserved in the cryogenebank at NBPGR through seeds. Seeds showed intermediate seed storage behaviour as longevity is short (upto 4 months). Freshly shed seeds had 37% moisture and 86% germinability (Table 3). Seeds showed 1520% decline in viability after desiccation and LN exposure. Seeds desiccated to 10% moisture showed 52% survival after cryopreservation. A total of 46 accessions of diverse germplasm have been successfully cryostored in the cryogenebank (Table 5).

103

MDS-10/10

MDS-10/11

MDS-10/12

MDS-10/13

MDS-10/14

MDS-10/15

MDS-10/8

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

MD-10/7

5

MD-140

MD-10/6

4

7

MD-10/5

3

MD-139

MD-10/20

2

6

584568

MD-10/19

1

104

584557

584564

584563

584562

584561

584560

584559

395854

395853

584556

584555

584554

584569

IC Number

S.No. Collector Number

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Crop Name

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Royana

Manilkara hexandra Royana

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Botanical Name

Vernacular Name

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Panchmahal

Dahod

Dahod

Panchmahal

Panchmahal

Panchmahal

Panchmahal

Vadodara

Vadodara

Sabarkantha

Sabarkantha

Sabarkantha

Panchmahal

Panchmahal

Biolo- District gical Status

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

State

Table 22. Passport data of Manilkara hexandra (Khirni) germplasm collected from various states

22.37

22.37

22.37

22.37

22.35

22.26

22.34

22.24

22.11

23.58

23.58

23.58

22.52

22.43

Latitude

73.29

73.52

73.52

73.25

73.25

73.28

73.30

73.55

73.31

73.16

73.16

73.16

73.41

73.42

Longitude

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD - 808

MD - 809

MD - 810

MD - 811

MD - 846

28

29

30

31

32

MD-10/28

23

MD - 807

MD-10/27

22

27

MD-10/26

21

MD - 804

MD-10/25

20

26

MD-10/24

19

MD-10/30

MD-10/23

18

25

MD-10/22

17

MD-10/29

MD-10/21

16

24

MDS-10/9

15

105

552953

552918

552917

552916

552915

552914

552911

584579

584578

584577

584576

584575

584574

584573

584572

584571

584570

584558

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Dahod

Bharuch

Bharuch

Bharuch

Bharuch

Bharuch

Vadodara

Ratlam

Ratlam

Ratlam

Ratlam

Ratlam

Ratlam

Ratlam

Jhabua

Jhabua

Jhabua

Panchmahal

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Gujarat

22.82

21.82

21.82

21.82

21.82

21.75

21.83

23.06

23.06

23.06

23.06

23.06

23.06

23.06

23.06

23.06

22.53

22.34

73.98

73.17

73.17

73.17

73.17

73.12

73.20

75.13

75.13

75.13

75.13

75.13

75.13

75.13

75.13

75.13

74.33

73.30

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD - 834

MD - 835

MD - 836

MD - 837

MD - 838

46

47

48

49

50

MD - 824

41

MD - 833

MD - 822

40

45

MD - 821

39

MD - 832

MD - 820

38

44

MD - 819

37

MD - 831

MD-83

36

43

MD-24

35

MD - 828

MD - 854

34

42

MD - 850

33

106

552945

552944

552943

552942

552941

552940

552939

552938

552935

552931

552929

552928

552927

552926

395797

395738

552961

552957

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayana

Manilkara hexandra Khirni

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Royana

Manilkara hexandra Royana

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Dhar

Dhar

Dhar

Dhar

Dhar

Khandwa

Panchmahal

Vadodara

Panchmahal

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

24.47

24.47

24.47

24.47

24.47

24.47

24.47

24.47

24.47

22.32

22.38

22.38

22.38

22.38

21.96

22.62

22.55

22.68

75.43

75.43

75.43

75.43

75.43

75.43

75.43

75.43

75.28

75.40

75.40

75.40

75.40

75.40

73.43

73.69

73.22

73.52

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-06/46

MKD-105

64

65

MD-06/40

59

MD-06/44

MD-06/38

58

63

MD-06/36

57

MD-06/43

MD-06/9

56

62

MD-06/12

55

MD-06/42

MD-06/11

54

61

MD-06/10

53

MD-06/41

MD - 840

52

60

MD - 839

51

107

524061

546129

546127

546126

546125

546124

546123

546121

546119

546092

546095

546094

546093

552947

552946

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Khirni

Manilkara hexandra Khirni

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Manilkara hexandra Rayan

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Alwar

Sirohi

Sirohi

Sirohi

Sirohi

Sirohi

Sirohi

Sirohi

Sirohi

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Neemach

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh

27.86

24.85

24.85

24.85

24.85

24.85

24.95

24.95

25.17

24.41

24.41

24.41

24.41

24.47

24.47

76.32

72.87

72.87

72.87

72.77

72.77

72.64

72.64

73.08

74.93

74.93

74.93

74.93

75.43

75.43

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-811

MD-19

MD-20

MD-21

MD-22

MD-24

MD-28

6

7

8

9

10

11

MD-810

4

5

MD-809

3

108

552935

552931

552929

552928

552927

552926

552918

552917

552916

2.48 (±0.17)

0.63 (±0.01)

1.17 (±0.01)

1.18 (±0.01)

2.78 (±0.12)

2.24 (±0.08)

1.09 (±0.02)

Width(cm)

2.4 (±0.14)

2.04 (±0.04)

2.04 (±0.04)

2.58 (±0.17)

2.9 (±0.09)

2.9 (±0.09)

2.138 (±0.11) 1.14 (±0.09)

1.56 (±0.06)

0.85 (±0.15)

1.89 (±0.03)

2.00 (±0.07)

1.62 (±0.08)

2.26 (±0.13)

MD-807

2

552914

2.00 (±0.06)

552911

MD-804

1

IC No.

Length (cm)

Coll. No

No.

S.

1.19 (±0.23)

1.74 (±0.08)

1.86 (±0.07)

1.89 (±0.31)

1.20 (±0.08)

0.97 (±0.09)

1.64 (±0.10)

1.84 (±0.07)

1.11 (±0.12)

1.12 (±0.07)

1.40 (±0.10)

Weight (g)

Fruit

21.80 (±2.22)

28.00 (±1.10)

30.00 (±0.33)

28.00 (±1.10)

27.00 (±0.63)

23.00 (±2.28)

26.20 (±0.95)

29.00 (±0.40)

26.00 (±0.63)

30.00 (±0.00)

25.20 (±0.33)

TSS

1.2 (±0.06)

1.42 (±0.05)

1.38 (±0.03)

1.30 (±0.01)

1.06 (±0.02)

0.75 (±0.12)

1.22 (±0.05)

1.31 (±0.01)

1.34 (±0.05)

1.48 (±0.06)

1.26 (±0.02)

Length (cm)

1.16 (±0.07)

1.40 (±0.00)

1.24 (±0.05)

0.64 (±0.00)

1.28 (±0.04)

0.55 (±0.02)

1.26 (±0.1)

0.66 (±0.02)

1.54 (±0.05)

1.28 (±0.04)

1.28 (±0.09)

Width(cm)

0.15 (±0.01)

0.15 (±0.02)

0.23 (±0.01)

0.24 (±0.01)

0.17 (±0.01)

0.17 (±0.01)

0.14 (±0.00)

0.15 (±0.01)

0.20 (±0.01)

0.23 (±0.01)

0.18 (±0.01)

Weight (g)

Seed

1.67 (±0.13)

1.04 (±0.22)

1.29 (±0.08)

1.62 (±0.30)

1.03 (±0.08)

0.80 (±0.09)

1.50 (±0.10)

1.69 (±0.06)

0.92 (±0.11)

1.29 (±0.25)

1.22 (±0.09)

Pulp wt (gm)

Table 23. Characterization of Manilkara hexandra (Khirni) germplasm based on fruits and seeds characters

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-46

MD-50

MD-54

MD-10/5

22

23

24

25

MD-37

18

MD -40

MD-36

17

21

MD-35

16

MD -39

MD-34

15

20

MD-33

14

MD-38

MD-32

13

19

MD-31

12

109

584554

552961

552957

552953

552947

552946

552945

552944

552943

552942

552941

552940

552939

552938

2.20 (±0.06)

2.00 (±0.06)

2.26 (±0.04)

1.7 (±0.05)

1.74 (±0.05)

1.46 (±0.06)

1.61 (±0.04)

1.6 (±0.08)

1.42 (±0.02)

1.84 (±0.07)

1.86 (±0.05)

1.38 (±0.05)

1.66 (±0.05)

2.14 (±0.03)

1.22 (±0.02)

1.09 (±0.02)

2.56 (±0.07)

1.76 (±0.13)

1.52 (±0.15)

2.64 (±0.22)

1.27 (±0.01)

2.8 (±0.22)

1.64 (±0.13)

2.82 (±0.18)

1.76 (±0.13)

2.68 (±0.24)

1.31 (±0.24)

1.31 (±0.02)

2.14 (±0.09)

1.40 (±0.10)

1.96 (±0.09)

0.74 (±0.09)

0.77 (±0.13)

1.41 (±0.20)

1.32 (±0.06)

1.78 (±0.26)

0.61 (±0.07)

1.02 (±0.14)

0.86 (±0.06)

0.95 (±0.06)

1.03 (±0.08)

1.82 (±0.14)

25.00 (±0.06)

30.00 (±0.00)

25.20 (±0.33)

29.20 (±0.33)

28.00 (±1.10)

29.40 (±0.36)

20.40 (±1.08)

29.40 (±0.54)

29.20 (±0.33)

30.00 (±0.00)

20.40 (±1.08)

19.00 (±1.67)

30.00 (±0.00)

30.00 (±0.00)

1.11 (±0.02)

1.26 (±0.02)

1.36 (±0.06)

1.32 (±0.03)

1.3 (±0.06)

1.24 (±0.09)

1.03 (±0.13)

1.04 (±0.02)

1.08 (±0.03)

1.12 (±0.12)

1.13 (±0.06)

0.98 (±0.07)

1.23 (±0.05)

1.38 (±0.03)

0.41 (±0.02)

1.28 (±0.09)

1.36 (±0.04)

1.16 (±0.07)

1.08 (±0.07)

1.14 (±0.09)

0.62 (±0.02)

1.2 0(±0.08)

1.12 (±0.04)

0.90 (±0.1)

1.00 (±0.04)

1.04 (±0.04)

1.02 (±0.08)

1.24 (±0.05)

0.16 (±0.02)

0.19 (±0.01)

0.18 (±0.01)

0.22 (±0.01)

0.15 (±0.01)

0.15 (±0.01)

0.18 (±0.01)

0.18 (±0.01)

0.22 (±0.01)

0.17 (±0.002)

0.11 (±0.02)

0.17 (±0.01)

0.14 (±0.01)

0.20 (±0.00)

1.99 (±0.99)

1.67 (±0.06)

1.22 (±0.09)

1.74 (±0.09)

0.59 (±0.08)

0.62 (±0.12)

1.23 (±0.19)

1.14 (±0.05)

1.56 (±0.25)

0.448 (±0.07)

0.91 (±0.13)

0.69 (±0.06)

0.81 (±0.07)

0.83 (±0.08)

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MDS-10/8 584557

MDS-10/9 584558

MDS-10/10 584559

MDS-10/11 584560

MDS-10/12 584561

MDS-10/13 584562

MDS-10/14 584563

MDS-10/15 584564

MD-10/19 584568

MD-10/20 584569

MD-10/21 584570

MD-10/22 584571

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

37

38

39

584556

MD-10/7

27

584555

MD-10/6

26

110

1.45 (±0.04)

1.62 (±0.05)

1.79 (±0.09)

1.76 (±0.05)

1.35 (±0.05)

2.04 (±0.11)

2.38 (±0.05)

2.50 (±0.05)

1.94 (±0.05)

2.34 (±0.09)

2.08 (±0.05)

1.94 (±0.06)

1.46 (±0.02)

1.38 (±0.02)

1.18 (±0.04)

0.76 (±0.07)

1.13 (±0.04)

1.09 (±0.03)

0.91(±0.04)

1.18 (±0.05)

0.88 (±0.02)

1.54 (±0.02)

1.08 (±0.04)

1.36 (±0.04)

1.48 (±0.04)

1.36 (±0.05)

1.08 (±0.02)

1.08 (±0.04)

1.48 (±0.17)

0.64 (±0.08)

1.71 (±0.18)

1.38 (±0.09)

0.82 (±0.09)

1.97 (±0.19)

1.36 (±0.02)

4.13 (±0.20)

1.75 (±0.10)

2.77 (±0.16)

2.99 (±0.12)

2.67 (±0.07)

1.25 (±0.06)

1.16 (±0.02)

24.80 (±2.29)

15.60 (±1.61)

27.80 (±0.77)

18.00 (±3.03)

25.60 (±1.19)

19.40 (±1.19)

24.80 (±0.33)

25.60 (±0.46)

31.80 (±0.52)

31.60 (±1.76)

28.40 (±0.61)

36.80 (±1.11)

28.00 (±0.57)

31.40 (±0.36)

0.99 (±0.02)

1.13 (±0.05)

1.29 (±0.02)

1.31 (±0.04)

0.97 (±0.05)

1.36 (±0.04)

1.35 (±0.03)

1.28 (±0.02)

1.28 (±0.02)

1.45 (±0.02)

1.27 (±0.03)

1.29 (±0.02)

1.11 (±0.01)

1.01 (±0.01)

0.60 (±0.01)

0.52 (±0.01)

0.66 (±0.02)

0.64 (±0.03)

0.51 (±0.02)

0.59 (±0.02)

0.57 (±0.01)

0.86 (±0.01)

0.61 (±0.01)

0.70 (±0.02)

0.76 (±0.01)

0.70 (±0.02)

0.64 (±0.01)

0.58 (±0.02)

0.11 (±0.01)

0.11 (±0.00)

0.18 (±0.02)

0.18 (±0.02)

0.08 (±0.01)

0.16 (±0.01)

0.18 (±0.01)

0.34 (±0.02)

0.1 9 ±0.00)

0.25 (±0.01)

0.45 (±0.12)

0.33 (±0.05)

0.14 (±0.01)

0.14 (±0.01)

1.36 (±0.16)

0.52 (±0.08)

1.53 (±0.16)

1.20 (±0.08)

0.73 (±0.08)

1.81 (±0.19)

1.18 (±0.03)

3.79 (±0.18)

1.56 (±0.10

2.52 (±0.16)

2.76 (±0.12)

2.34 (±0.04)

1.11 (±0.05)

1.02 (±0.03)

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-10/25 584574

MD-10/26 584575

MD-10/27 584576

MD-10/28 584577

MD-10/29 584578

42

43

44

45

46

MD-10/30 584579

MD-10/24 584573

41

47

MD-10/23 584572

40

1.44 (±0.03)

1.96 (±0.06)

1.49 (±0.08)

1.78 (±0.04)

1.46 (±0.03)

1.11 (±0.08)

1.83 (±0.04)

1.42 (±0.01)

1.00 (±0.04)

1.28 (±0.04)

1.00 (±0.03)

1.28 (±0.04)

1.27 (±0.04)

0.58 (±0.04)

1.12 (±0.03)

0.87 (±0.10)

0.99 (±0.07)

0.95 (±0.11)

1.15 (±0.09)

1.94 (±0.17)

1.61 (±0.09)

1.96 (±0.15)

1.45 (±0.10)

1.12 (±0.11)

25.80 (±1.91)

17.80 (±4.95)

27.00 (±2.15)

22.40 (±2.86)

35.00 (±0.00)

24.20 (±3.72

22.80 (±1.78)

18.00 (±2.38)

1.04 (±0.03)

1.32 (±0.03)

1.16 (±0.05)

1.17 (±0.02)

0.87 (±0.14)

1.19 (±0.01)

1.26 (±0.03)

1.12 (±0.02)

0.61 (±0.03)

0.62 (±0.02)

0.62 (±0.01)

0.63 (±0.01)

0.56 (±0.04)

0.69 (±0.01)

0.63 (±0.02)

0.59 (±0.02)

0.16 (±0.01)

0.20 (±0.01)

0.16 (±0.01)

0.18 (±0.01)

0.12 (±0.01)

0.18 (±0.01)

0.19 (±0.01)

0.15 (±0.01)

0.83 (±0.06)

0.75 (±0.11)

0.95 (±0.11)

1.76 (±0.17)

1.49 (±0.10)

1.78 (±0.16)

1.26 (±0.10)

0.95 (±0.10)

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

111

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

112

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

113

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.12 Pithecellobium dulce (Manila tamarind) Botanical name: Pithecellobium dulce (Roxb.) Benth, syn. Mimosa dulcis Roxb. and Inga dulcis (Roxb.) Willd. Common name: English- Manila tamarind, sweet inga; Vernacular - Jungle jalebi, mithi imali, mithi amli Family: Fabaceae Origin and distribution: Origin of this tree species is believed to be in the Central America, but it has been naturalized throughout Southeast Asia, especially in India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. It is found growing in many unattended waste areas of semi-arid parts of India. In India, it is common in dry places of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana and Punjab. General description: Manila tamarind is a small to medium sized tree, growing up to 10 m height. The branches are pendulous and posses short, sharp, stipular spines at the bases of leaves. Leaves are abruptly bipinnate and 4-8 cm long. Each single pair of oblique, ovate, oblong leaflets is 1-4 cm long. The fruit is a pod and is turgid, twisted, and often spiral, 4-10 cm long, about 1-2 cm wide, and weights about 10-20 g (Fig. 27A). It is dehiscent along the lower suture and the valve is pinkish-red or reddishbrown when ripe. The seeds are black, flat and shiny and 6-8 seeds are found per pod. The seed is surrounded by thick whitish and pulpy aril which is edible and sweet in taste. The pulp is generally pinkish white, sweet, dry and some time fluffy. The pods are usually picked by climbing the tree or using a long bamboo pole. When mature the pods split open at the lower suture exposing the edible pulp, therefore, cannot be kept for long and has to be consumed within a few days. Fresh pods are consumed by local people or brought to the local market for selling (Fig. 27B). Propagation: Propagation of Manila tamarind is through seeds, no vegetative propagation is reported. Tree grows natural wild in the marginal and waste lands. Tree is very hardy and can grow well at low and medium altitudes in both wet and dry areas under full sunlight.

114

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Cultivars/selections: There are no identified cultivars or selections available in this species as no organised cultivation is attempted by farmers. Tree is found growing wild in the fallow lands, marginal areas of farmer’s fields and also in the village forest area. There is a need to identify suitable genotypes with big and sweet pods with prolific bearing to be propagated vegetatively by grafting or budding. These clones may be cultivated in home gardens and there are possibilities for commercial development of this species. Important uses: The ripe pods of Manila tamarind are edible and pulp is consumed raw by tribals and local people (Fig. 27B). Fresh pods contain about 50% pulp which is rich in protein, carbohydrate and fiber besides being good source of minerals and vitamins. Pods are collected by local people and tribals and sold in the local village market. The seed contains about 70% kernel which is rich in protein and oil (upto 20%). The seed oil contains 51.1 percent oleic acid, 24.0 percent linolic acid and 24.3 percent saturated acids. The oil is edible and is used for the manufacture of soap and other purposes for which peanut oil may be used. Due to its high protein content, the seed meal may be used for animal feed (Gamo and Cruz, 1957).

Rajasthan

Gujarat

Madhya Pradesh

Fig. 28. Collection sites of Manila tamarind from Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh

115

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources Management Collection: Germplasm of Manila tamarind have not been widely collected in India as the crop has not been given much attention for horticulture. NBPGR, New Delhi made 13 collections from Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh and sizable variability in fruit size, shape, colour and amount of pulp etc. was recorded in the collected germplasm. There is still need to collect the variability from north, central and western part of India for identification of promising genotypes with prolific fruiting, large pods, higher amount of pulp and sweetness. Detailed passport data is given in table 24 and collection sites in Fig. 28. Characterization: The highly twisted attractive fruits showed an average length of 16 cm (Table 25). The width of fruits varied from 1.46 to 4.10 cm. Weight of fruits ranged from 7.32 to 9.27 g. Seeds showed variation in terms of length x width ranging from 0.85 cm x 1.2 cm to 1.16 cm x 1.68 cm. Weight of seeds varied from 0.22 to 1.22 g. Conservation: Manila tamarind an exotic species and presently not much inportant as horticultural crop is a waste land tree species. There is need to identify superior trees for prolific bearing and fruit quality and outstanding clones should be propagated vegetatively by grafting and budding. Based on our studies at NBPGR, New Delhi orthodox seed storage behavior has been exhibited as seeds showed high tolerance to desiccation and freezing and 14 months storage period till 50% viability (Table 4). Freshly extracted seeds showed 38% moisture and 97% germinability. 14 accessions collected from diverse habitats have been successfully cryostored (Table 5).

116

552908

MD - 801

MD - 847

MD - 851

MD-110

MD-23

MD - 845

MD-266

MD-272

MD-273

MD-276

MD-280

MD-288

MD-290

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

117

8

9

10

11

12

13

423624

423622

423614

423610

423607

423606

423600

552952

395737

395824

552958

552954

IC Number

S . Collector No. Number

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Manila tamarind

Crop Name

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Pithecellobium dulce

Botanical Name

Jangal jalebi

Jangal jalebi

Jangal jalebi

Jangal jalebi

Jangal jalebi

Jangal jalebi

Jangal jalebi

Vilayati ambli

Ghia tori

Goras amali

Goras amali

Goras amali

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Dungarpur

Dungarpur

Dungarpur

Dungarpur

Dungarpur

Dungarpur

Udaipur

Mandsaur

Vadodara

Vadodara

Panchmahal

Dahod

Vadodara

Status

Name Goras amali

Biolo- District gical

Vernacular

22.38

22.60

22.65

22.62

21.13

Latitude

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

24.21

23.94

23.91

23.83

23.84

23.83

24.45

Madhya Pradesh 24.03

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

State

73.63

73.85

73.52

73.71

73.72

73.71

73.79

75.03

73.41

73.39

73.52

74.10

73.18

Longitude

Table 24. Passport data of Pithecellobium dulce (Manila tamarind) germplasm collected from various states

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

118

MD-847

MD-851

2

Coll. No

1

S.No

552954

552951

IC No.

15.94(±0.90)

16.06(±2.47)

Length (cm)

1.46(±0.05)

4.10(±0.22)

Width (cm)

Fruit

9.27(±0.47)

7.32(±1.09)

Weight (gm)

1.16(±0.05)

0.85(±0.02)

Length (cm)

1.68(±0.03)

1.20(±0.06)

Width (cm)

Seed

0.22 (±0.01)

1.22 (±0.9)

Weight (gm)

Table 25. Characterization of Pithecellobium dulce (Manila tamarind) germplasm based on fruits and seeds characters

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

119

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.13 Salvadora Species (Pilu and Miswak) Botanical name: Salvadora Linn. - S. oleoides Decne. and S. persica L. Common name: S. oleoides Meetha jal, Pilu and S. persica, Khara jal, Miswak Family: Salvadoraceae Origin and distribution: Salvadora oleoides is distributed in tropical Africa and Asia, extending to Egypt, Mascarene Islands and China. These indigenous trees grow on dry, saline and desert areas of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh. S. persica has wide adaptability from sand dunes of deserts (Fig .29A) to heavy soils, non-saline to highly saline soils and dry regions to marshy and waterlogged areas. It is extremely well adapted to arid conditions and is salt tolerant as well as drought resistant. It is widely distributed in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Haryana, and Punjab and to some extent in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. It is also found in the Sunderban mangroves of West Bengal and in the regions of Chilka laggons. These species inhabit the saline and rocky soils (Bhandari, 1990) and are known to tolerate a very dry environment with mean rainfall of less than 200mm. These species with Capparis decidua form the major arboreal part of the flora of Indian desert and is naturally acclimatized to a harsh climate. General description: S.oleoides is a small evergreen tree with short, twisted trunk and drooping branches (Fig. 29B). It suffers considerably from frost. A dense, almost impenetrable growth is often formed by a parent stem surrounded by a ring of rootsuckers, while seedlings also spring up under its shade. Leaves are fleshy and pungent in smell, shape of the lamina is linear lenceolate, size ranges from 3-10 x 0.3-1.2 cm; flowers are sessile, greenish-white in colour, clustered; and inflorescence is of paniculate spike; fruit drupe, clustered, 0.40-0.45 cm in diameter, red, brown and yellow colour when ripe, pulp taste-sweet with pungency. Seeds hard black brown or light brown in colour, rich in oil. S. persica is a perennial, much branched, evergreen, small or large tree (Fig. 30A) and found in the dry and arid regions of India and on saline lands. Leaves elliptic-ovate or ovate-lanceolate (Fig. 30C-inset), size ranges from 3-6 x 2-4 cm, not fleshy, not pungent; flowers are pedicillate, greenish yellow in colour, scattered; inflorescence is 120

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

of lax panicles; fruit drupe, scattered, 0.30-0.33 cm in diameter, black to dark red when ripe, taste-sweet, aromatic. Seeds hard, different colour white, brown or black, rich in oil. The two species differ morphologically in terms of leaves, flower and fruit that have been well defined by Duthie (1960) and Bhandari (1990). The trees generally flower in March-April and fruit in May-June (Fig. 29C,D; 30A,B,C). The trees regenerate by seeds and root suckers. However, Mertia and Kunhamu (2003) indicated natural regeneration of plants from seeds to be rare probably due to coincidence of seed maturity with onset of monsoon which results in considerable damage to the seeds through fungal attack. Propagation: Natural regeneration is by seeds, coppice, natural layering and mostly by root suckers. The seeds can not be reportedly stored as they do not retain viability and hence it is recommended that fruits are immediately depulped and used for obtaining seedlings (Hockings, 1993). No vegetative propagation method is reported as no cultivation of this species is in practice. Cultivars/selections: Despite the great importance of Salvadora spp., attempts for its improvement and sustainable utilization are by and large lacking and has resulted in gradual decline of the trees from natural populations. There is need for identification of suitable genotypes and work in genetic improvement of these species for use in plantation, forestry and agroforestry system. Important uses: Both the species are multipurpose (Anonymous, 1992) with all plant parts being used. They are medicinally important and possess pharmaceutical applications. Toothbrushes made from roots and small branches of S. persica have been used for over 1000 years for relieving toothache and gum diseases (Ramoliya and Pandey, 2002). Seeds of the two species produce non-edible oil (30-50%) which is extensively used in industrial production of soaps, cosmetics, paints, varnishes and lubricants (Singh et al, 1996) and also has medicinal properties like cure for piles, rheumatism, skin diseases, etc (Kumar and Rao, 2002). It is a good sand binder due to the typical root system and suitable for growing in shelter belts and as wind breaks in desert tracts. The drupe fruits are sweet in taste and are a delicacy with the local populations. The fruit pulp contains glucose, fructose and sucrose in addition to high calcium content. The oil contains lauric acid which forms the basic raw material for industrial production of lauryl alcohol (Chatterjee and Pakrashi, 1995). Indigenous traditional knowledge: In western Rajasthan fruits of S. oleoides (commonly called Mitha Jal) are plucked by local people especially children and women from natural wild populations existing near their villages. Fruits are collected in the 121

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

especially made hanging pots which during collection of fruits are worn in the neck (Fig. 30D). Fruits are eaten fresh generally 5-6 fruits at a time. Fruits are dried for use in coming months. Fresh fruits preferably yellow ones are mixed with sugar balls and kept for few weeks. Later the mixture of pulp and sugar is filtered and concentrated liquid is used as medicine for asthma. Large scale production of pilu fruits in naturally growing trees with TSS as high as 20-25O B and attractive bright red and yellow fruits has lot of potential for commercial exploitation which is till now completely neglected.

Genetic Resources Management Collection: Around 25-30 natural populations of S. oleoides were surveyed during last 7 years in 12 districts of three states namely Gujarat, Rajasthan and Haryana for the study of growth pattern, physical parameters and for the collection of variability. Climatic conditions of all the districts surveyed is typically arid characterized by extremes of temperature (less than +3OC in winters to above +49OC in summer), high wind velocity, severe drought and scanty rainfall (200-300 mm annually). Predominantly trees occur as natural populations consisting of 50-500 trees in each population aged 50-150 years. These populations are scattered throughout the north-west India (Fig. 29A, 31). Survey of these populations revealed rare presence of juvenile plants/ saplings in the vicinity of mature trees. Several populations of pilu in the northwestern Haryana, area adjoining to National Capital Region has already suffered complete destruction due to large scale urbanization. 59 accessions of these two species have been collected from Rajasthan, Gujarat and Haryana (Table 26 and Fig. 31). Information gathered from local people also revealed that these trees undergo profuse flowering but negligible fruit setting has been seen during the last 10-12 years. The major reasons attributed to these have been the changing environmental conditions. Characterization: There are not much reports of characterization and evaluation of Salvadora germplasm. Studies on seed variability in S. persica from Rajasthan were conducted (Prakash et al., 2001). Extensive survey in Rajasthan and Haryana revealed variability in ripe fruit colors of different trees. Shades of yellow, bright yellow, light maroon and maroon were observed. A total of 17 accessions of diverse Salvadora germplasm were morphologically characterized for fruit and seed characters (Table 27). The length and width of each fruit were same as the fruits were almost round in shape. The smallest fruits had length x width of 0.18 cm x 0.14 cm and largest fruits had length x width of 0.29 cm x 0.31 cm. Heaviest fruits weighed 5.07 gm and lightest fruits weighed 0.85 gm which reflects a large variation. TSS in fruits varied from 16.25 to 26.55 ºB. The seeds diameter ranged from 0.4 to 0.14 cm and weight from 0.31 to 122

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Haryana

Rajasthan

Gujarat

Fig. 31. Collection sites of Salvadora species from Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat

0.57 gm. The most promising accessions having large fruits with high TSS are IC561781, 561776 and 561783. There is still need to collect and characterize the germplasm of these species for the identification of superior trees for good quality fruits and high oil content in seeds. Presently there has been no attention paid by horticulturist to explore the possibilities of exploitation of pilu as potential fruit for horticulture. Howerver, the fruits have good potential for processing as squash, jam, jelly etc. as fruit is highly perishable with very short shelf life. Conservation: Despite the great importance of S. oleoides, attempts for its improvement and sustainable utilization are by and large lacking and has resulted in gradual decline of the trees from natural population. Natural regeneration of plants from seeds is rare probably due to coincidence of seed maturity with onset of monsoon which results in considerable damage to the seeds through fungal attack (Mertia and Kunhamu, 2003). Gupta and Saxena (1968) and Hockings (1993) also reported only 28 and 30% seed germination respectively in S. oleoides. Hockings (1993) further 123

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

reported that the seeds loose viability very soon and cannot be stored. Disappearance of genetic diversity of this species acclimatized to such extreme climatic conditions will lead to an irreversible loss to plant genetic resources of this area affecting environment and socio-economic losses. Most of the studies pertaining to Salvadora have been conducted on chemical composition of seed oil and juice and on nutritional and medicinal attributes. In vitro multiplication of Salvadora using various explants like axillary buds and shoot tips has been attempted and an average of 5-10 shoots per explants were developed which were transferred to soil after rooting and hardening (Mathur et al., 2002, Batra et al., 2001). Some problems have been highlighted during clonal propagation including low micropropagation ability, lower rooting rates (Singh and Goyal, 2007). In studies undertaken at NBPGR, seeds of S. persica and S. oleoides were found to deteriorate rapidly after harvest and within 15 days germinability was reduced to 50% with storage at temperatures of 10-15ºC, there was a rapid decline in viability and by 24th day of storage, viability was lost completely in all the samples. Freshly harvested seeds showed 90% germinability and 26% moisture content. On desiccation to 9% moisture content a 16% and with freezing a 30% decline in viability was noted leading to its categorization as having recalcitrant seed storage behavior. Whole seeds desiccated to 8% could be cryostored with 40% recovery. In view of this embryonic axes were desiccated to 6% moisture and successfully cryopreserved with 60-80 % recovery. Excised embryotic axes from the stored seeds showed better viability percentage in composition to whole seeds indicating the presence of some inhibitory substances in the cotyledons, leading to lower viability of seeds. A total of 23 accessions of S. oleoides and 12 accessions of S. persica have been cryostored at NBPGR (Table 5).

124

MKD-20

MKD-23

MKD-24

MKD-27

MKD-28

MKD-29

9

10

11

12

13

14

MKD-12

5

MKD-17

MKD-11

4

8

MKD-100

3

MKD-14

MKD-10

2

7

MD-125

1

MKD-13

Number

No.

6

Collector

S.

125

345801

345800

345799

345796

345795

345792

345789

345786

345785

345784

345783

524056

345782

395839

Number

IC

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Name

Crop

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Name

Botanical

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Peeli peel

Bhuri peel

Bhuri peel

Peel

Bhuri peel

Jal

Bhuri peel

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Khachhar Peel Wild

Khachhar Peel Wild

Peeli Peel

Lal peel

Jal

Lal peel

Wild

Status

Name

Peel

gical

Biolo-

cular

Verna-

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Rewari

Rewari

Rewari

Rewari

Rewari

Rewari

Rewari

Bharuch

District

Table 26. Passport data of Salvadora species germplasm collected from various states

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Gujarat

State

28.28

28.28

28.28

28.44

28.44

28.42

28.08

28.22

28.22

28.22

28.22

28.17

28.22

21.70

tude

76.28

76.28

76.28

76.13

76.13

76.01

76.31

76.46

76.46

76.46

76.46

76.50

76.46

72.97

tude

Lati- Longi-

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

126

MDG-08/17 561786

MDG-08/18 561787

MDG-08/19 561788

MDG-08/21 561790

29

30

31

32

561785

561784

561783

561782

MD-08/16

561781

561780

28

MD-08/11

23

561779

MD-08/15

MD-08/10

22

345850

27

MKD-78

21

345849

MD-08/14

MKD-77

20

345846

26

MKD-74

19

345816

MD-08/13

MKD-44

18

345815

25

MKD-43

17

345814

MD-08/12

MKD-42

16

345804

24

MKD-32

15

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Peel

Peel

Peel

Lal peel

Peeli peel

Lal peel

Peel

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Jaisalmer

Jaisalmer

Jaisalmer

Jaisalmer

Jaisalmer

Bikaner

Bikaner

Bikaner

Bikaner

Bikaner

Bikaner

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Bhiwani

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

Mahendergarh

28.62

28.62

28.65

28.15

28.15

28.15

28.25

Rajasthan 27.00

Rajasthan 26.57

Rajasthan 26.57

Rajasthan 26.57

Rajasthan 26.58

Rajasthan 27.91

Rajasthan 27.91

Rajasthan 27.91

Rajasthan 27.91

Rajasthan 28.02

Rajasthan 28.02

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

Haryana

70.52

70.52

70.52

70.52

71.53

72.53

72.53

72.53

72.53

73.14

73.14

76.04

76.04

75.94

76.07

76.07

76.07

75.88

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-260

MD-261

MD-263

MKD-35

MKD-36

MKD-40

46

47

48

49

50

MD-08/6

41

45

MD-08/5

40

MD-259

MD-08/4

39

44

MDG-08/29 561798

38

MD-258

MDG-08/28 561797

37

43

MDG-08/25 561794

36

MD-08/7

MDG-08/24 561793

35

42

MDG-08/23 561792

34

127

345812

345808

345807

423597

423595

423594

423593

423592

561776

561775

561774

561773

MDG-08/22 561791

33

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Peeli peel

Peeli peel

Lal peel

Peelu

Peelu

Peelu

Peelu

Peelu

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Meetha jal

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Jhunjhunu

Jhunjhunu

Jhunjhunu

Sirohi

Pali

Pali

Pali

Pali

Bikaner

Churu

Churu

Churu

Jodhpur

Jodhpur

Jaisalmer

Jaisalmer

Jaisalmer

Jaisalmer

Rajasthan 28.22

Rajasthan 28.19

Rajasthan 28.19

Rajasthan 24.81

Rajasthan 25.76

Rajasthan 25.76

Rajasthan 25.76

Rajasthan 25.76

Rajasthan 27.06

Rajasthan 28.03

Rajasthan 28.03

Rajasthan 28.03

Rajasthan 25.59

Rajasthan 25.59

Rajasthan 26.45

Rajasthan 26.59

Rajasthan 26.59

Rajasthan 26.59

75.47

75.45

75.45

72.96

73.42

73.42

73.42

73.42

73.21

74.46

74.46

74.46

73.01

73.01

70.30

70.49

70.49

70.49

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MKD-41

MKD-5

MKD-7

MKD-8

MKD-93

MKD-96

MKD-97

MD - 852

MD - 853

51

52

53

54

55

56

57

58

59

552960

552959

524053

524052

524049

345780

345779

345777

345813

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Pilu

Salvadora persica

Salvadora persica

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Salvadora oleoides

Pilodi

Pilodi

Jal

Jal

Jal

Peeli peel

Lal peel

Peeli peel

Lal peel

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Vadodara

Vadodara

Alwar

Alwar

Alwar

Alwar

Alwar

Alwar

Jhunjhunu

Gujarat

Gujarat

22.67

22.67

Rajasthan 27.93

Rajasthan 27.93

Rajasthan 27.90

Rajasthan 28.00

Rajasthan 28.00

Rajasthan 28.00

Rajasthan 28.22

73.37

73.37

76.48

76.48

76.45

76.29

76.29

76.29

75.47

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

128

MD-08/19

MD-08/21

MD-08/22

MD-08/23

MD-08/24

MD-08/25

MD-08/29

12

13

14

15

16

17

MD-08/13

7

11

MD-08/12

6

MD-08/16

MD-08/11

5

10

MD-08/10

4

MD-08/15

MD-08/7

3

9

MD-08/6

2

MD-08/14

MD-08/5

1

8

Coll. No.

S. No

129

561798

561794

561793

561792

561791

561790

561788

561785

561784

561783

561782

561781

561780

561779

561776

561775

561774

IC No.

0.25(±0.00)

0.26(±0.01)

0.26(±0.01)

0.24(±0.01)

0.25(±0.00)

0.25(±0.01)

0.29(±0.00)

0.24(±0.01)

0.23(±0.01)

0.23(±0.01)

0.21(±0.01)

0.22(±0.00)

0.24(±0.01)

0.25(±0.01)

0.24(±0.00)

0.24(±0.00)

0.26(±0.00)

0.27(±0.00)

0.27(±0.02)

0.21(±0.01)

0.25(±0.00)

0.22(±0.01)

0.31(±0.01)

0.26(±0.00)

0.23(±0.01)

0.26(±0.01)

0.21(±0.02)

0.14(±0.02)

0.25(±0.01)

0.21(±0.01)

0.23(±0.00)

0.23(±0.01)

0.20(±0.01)

Width (cm)

Length (cm) 0.18(±0.01)

Seed

Fruit

3.25(±0.02)

4.53(±0.01)

2.65(±0.08)

2.18(±0.03)

3(±0.16)

2.05(±0.02)

5.07(±0.06)

2.90(±0.05)

1.20(±0.02)

3.33(±0.00)

1.88(±0.01)

2.32(±0.09)

2.87(±0.01)

2.07(±0.04)

3.42(±0.01)

0.85(±0.01)

1.08(±0.02)

Weight (gm)

23.20(±0.43)

19.10(±0.10)

16.25(±0.37)

16.55(±0.46)

16.55(±0.16)

22.53(±0.47)

17.60(±0.23)

23.25(±0.66)

21.55(±0.49)

25(±0.19)

21.50(±0.70)

26.55(±0.66)

21.70(±0.46)

24.75(±0.92)

26(±0.45)

24.75(±0.92)

21.55(±0.49)

TSS

0.23(±0.01)

0.29(±0.01)

0.32(±0.01)

0.29(±0.01)

0.31(±0.00)

0.32(±0.01)

0.88(±0.36)

0.29(±0.01)

0.40(±0.01)

0.34(±0.01)

0.14(±0.01)

0.30(±0.00)

0.34(±0.01)

0.29(±0.01)

0.23(±0.00)

0.28(±0.01)

0.27(±0.01)

Diameter (cm)

Table 27. Characterization of Salvadora species germplasm based on fruits and seeds characters

0.41(±0.01)

0.51(±0.01)

0.42(±0.01)

0.40(±0.01)

0.42(±0.02)

0.45(±0.01)

0.57(±0.01)

0.40(±0.01)

0.36(±0.02)

0.45(±0.00)

0.31(±0.00)

0.32(±0.01)

0.40(±0.01)

0.45(±0.01)

0.32(±0.01)

0.31(±0.00)

0.38(±0.01)

Weight (gm)

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

130

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

131

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.14 Syzygium cumini (Jamun) Botanical name: Syzygium cumini (L.) Skeels, syn. Syzygium jambolanum DC.; Eugenia cumini Druce Common name: English -Java plum, Black plum, Vernacular -Jamun Family: Myrtaceae Origin and distribution: The jamun is native to India, Burma, Ceylon and to the Andaman Islands (Zeven and de Wet, 1982) and available throughout Indian plains up to the height of 1300m. It is found grown as a wild and semi-wild in the states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Jamun is widely cultivated in homestead gardens, backyard and as an avenue tree in the all parts of India. Besides, S. cumini other important species in India is S. jumbos (Rose apple or safed jamun) found in south India, West Bengal and Assam. Other species of minor importance are S. fruiticosum, S. javanica (water apple), S. densiflora, S. uniflora (Surinam cherry) and S. zeylanica. General description: The jamun is a medium to large sized evergreen tree with smooth grey bark and attain the height of 20 m (Fig. 32A). Leaves 2 to 4 in long, oblong-oval or elliptic, evergreen, opposite, bluntly acuminate. Young leaves pinkish and turn leathery and dark green at maturity. The sessile whitish-yellow flowers emerge in clusters, have a funnel-shaped calyx and 4 to 5 united petals. Drupe fruit emerge in clusters of different sizes. Fruit oblong or ovoid-oblong, at maturity attain dark purple color, very juicy with 1 or 2 to 5 compressed bold white or green seeds, seedless fruits are also found. Fruit skin is thin, smooth, shining and pulp is whitish purple. The fruit is astringent and taste varies from light acidic to sweet. Flowering is in FebruaryMarch and fruiting in May to July. Vast genetic variability is present in tree phenology, leaves, and fruit characters in India. Propagation: Jamun is commonly propagated through seeds (Singh et al., 2007). Seeds are highly recalcitrant in nature and freshly extracted seeds can be sown for raising seedlings. Seeds germinate within two weeks and can be transplanted during monsoon season in the field. In jamun upto 50 percent polyembryony is reported and 132

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

true-to-type nucellar seedlings are produced (Singh et al., 2007). Vegetative propagation using various budding methods have been successful, however, patch budding has been reported to be the most successful in the months of March in semiarid areas (Singh and Singh, 2006). Soft wood grafting has also been successful for multiplication in Karnataka and Gujarat in the months of June and August, respectively (Singh and Singh, 2006). Cultivars/selections: In jamun there are no standard cultivars available, however, several area-specific local selections have been identified by farmers or local people since historical time. All these local selection or types are based on fruit size, shape, taste, fruiting period and maturity of fruits. One popular type natural selection famous in north India is known as ‘Ra Jamun’ (Singh et al., 2007), which is grown widely. This selection have big sized (2-3.5 cm length and diameter 1.5 -2.0 cm), oblong deep purple, highly juicy and sweet fruits. One late maturing selection with small fruits 1.5 to 2.0 cm length and 1.0 to 1.5 cm diameter with rounded fruits is also common. Some local farmers selections growing in Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh are Badama (large size and very juicy fruits), Kaatha (with small and acidic fruits), Jathi (maturing in June or Jeth), Ashada (maturing in June or Ashad) and still late type Bhado (maturing in August). Similarly several local type selections are found in Konkan area, Pune and Ahmednagar districts of Maharashtra (Keskar et al., 1989) and in Gujarat and Rajasthan. Important uses: Jamun is a very nutritious fruit and consumed fresh or processed for various preparations. Fruit is a good source of iron, minerals, protein and carbohydrate. Fruits are processed for squash, sharbat, syrup, jam, jelly, wine, vineagar and juice. Jamun seeds contain various alkaloids such as jambosin and glycoside which inhibits the conversion of starch in to sugars, therefore, the powdered seeds are useful for sugar patients. Fruits are important in the Indian System of Medicine and recommended for diabetes, heart and liver problems (Singh, 2001).

Genetic Resources Management Collection: Jamun germplasm has been widely collected from throughout India and vast variability has been recorded in tree phenology and fruit characters and flowering and fruiting period. Germplasm have been collected from various parts of Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. Extensive collections have been made from eastern Uttar Pradesh where eight genotypes were examined and characterized (Singh et al., 1999). Survey has been undertaken in Pune and Ahmednagar districts of Maharashtra (Keskar et al., 1989), from West Bengal (Kundu et al., 2001), from Karnataka (Prabhuraj et al., 2002), from North Goa (Devi et al., 133

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

2002). Survey has been made by CISH, Lucknow in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra and Gujarat and 54 accessions have been collected. Singh and Singh (2005) collected 33 accessions from Gujarat. NBPGR, New Delhi have also made extensive collections in the parts of Haryana and Western Uttar Pradesh in collaboration with CHES (CIAH) Godhra and CISH, Lucknow and 20 elite accessions have been collected (Fig. 33 and Table 28).

Haryana

Uttar Pradesh

Fig. 33. Collection sites of Jamun from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh

Characterization: Jamun germplasm collected from various sources as described under collection has been characterized for various horticultural traits such as flowering, fruiting and physico-chemical characters of fruits like fruit weight, pulp content, TSS, acidity etc. On the basis of characterization of collected germplasm several elite genotypes have been identified from Maharashtra, No. 15, 4, 14 and 13 (Keskar et al., 1989), eight genotypes grouped into two categories: ovoid and oblong from eastern Uttar Pradesh (Singh et al., 1999), from West Bengal germplasm Selection 1 (oval shaped large fruits) and Selection 2 (cylindrical shaped medium sized fruit) proved better for yield and quality fruits (Kundu et al., 2001); from Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand the genotypes RNC-26 and RNC-11 were found promising for higher pulp and fruits weight (Devi et al., 2002), from Gujarat 5 genotypes GJ-18, GJ-19, GJ-23, GJ-24 and GJ-25 have been identified for overall performance (Singh and Singh, 2005). 134

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

A total of 20 diverse jamun accessions collected by NBPGR from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh were characterized for fruit and seed characters (Table 29). Fruit length x width varied from 2.12 cm x 5.44 cm to 3.35 cm x 7.52 cm. The lightest fruit weighed 3.04 gm and heaviest weighed 8.84 gm which is depicting a large variation. TSS in fruits was also variable ranging from 5.96 to 14.2 ºB. Seed length x width ranged from 1.62 cm x 3.02 cm to 2.62 cm x 4.30 cm. The pulp weight showed large variation from 1.24 to 6.96 gm. The accessions which showed largest fruits with highest pulp weight were IC537858, 537848, 537846 and 537853. Fruits with high TSS value were found in accessions IC537842, 537854 and 537845. Smallest seeds were seen in accessions IC537860, 537849 and 537850. There is still need to undertake extensive characterization and field evaluation of local selections for release of area specific cultivars in Jamun. Conservation: Germplasm of Jamun is being maintained at very few places in the field genebanks, important field genebanks are CISH, Lucknow, CHES (CIAH) Godhra and MPKV, Rahuri. There is need to establish promising seedling selections and local farmers selections in the field genebanks to conserve the elite germplasm as true-to-type and use them for crop improvement. Being a highly recalcitrant species laboratory conservation in the cryobank is difficult in jamun. Studies undertaken at NBPGR revealed that seeds loose viability very rapidly as by 30 days storage at room temperature, 50% viability is lost (Table 4). Seeds are truly recalcitrant being highly desiccation and freezing sensitive. Freshly harvested seeds shed at high moisture content of 50% showed rapid decline in viability at 35% moisture. At critical moisture level and lower, none of the seeds survived LN exposure.

135

Collector Number

MD-575

MD-576 MD-577 MD-578 MD-579 MD-580 MD-581 MD-582 MD-583 MD-584 MD-585 MD-586 MD-587 MD-588 MD-589

MD-590 MD-591 MD-592 MD-593 MD-594

S. No.

1

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20

136

537857 537858 537859 537860 537861

537843 537844 537845 537846 537847 537848 537849 537850 537851 537852 537853 537854 537855 537856

537842

IC Number

Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun

Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun Jamun

Jamun

Crop Name

Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium

Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium Syzygium cumini cumini cumini cumini cumini

cumini cumini cumini cumini cumini cumini cumini cumini cumini cumini cumini cumini cumini cumini

Syzygium cumini

Botanical Name

Wild Wild Wild badama Wild Wild Wild badama Wild Wild Wild Wild Wild badama Wild badama badama

Wild

Biological Statu

Jamun badama Jamun badama Jamun badama Jaman Wild Jaman Wild

Jaman Jaman Jaman Jamun Jaman Jaman Jamun Jaman Jaman Jaman Jaman Jamun Jamun Jamun

Jaman

Vernacular Name

Sonipat Sonipat Karnal Karnal Karnal Karnal Karnal Sharanpur Sharanpur Muzaffarnagar Baraut Baraut Baraut Gautam Budh Nagar Mathura Mathura Mathura Faridabad Faridabad

Jhajjar

District

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Haryana Haryana

Haryana Haryana Haryana Haryana Haryana Haryana Haryana Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh

Haryana

State

27.69 27.69 27.69 28.11 28.22

28.92 28.77 29.76 29.86 29.86 29.94 29.94 29.93 29.73 29.55 29.22 29.22 29.22 28.48

28.48

77.64 77.64 77.64 77.18 77.2

77.03 76.92 77.01 77.03 77.03 77.14 77.14 77.52 77.41 77.68 77.18 77.18 77.18 77.68

76.64

Lati- Longitude tude

Table 28. Passport data of Syzygium cumini (Jamun) germplasm collected from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-577

MD-578

MD-579

MD-580

MD-581

MD-582

MD-583

MD-584

MD-585

MD-586

MD-587

MD-588

MD-589

MD-590

MD-591

MD-592

MD-593

MD-594

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

MD-576

2

537844

137

537861

537860

537859

537858

537857

537856

537855

537854

537853

537852

537851

537850

537849

537848

537847

537846

537845

2.20(±0.06)

2.12(±0.07)

3.04(±0.12)

3.35(±0.15)

2.62(±0.09)

2.18(±0.09)

2.48(±0.13)

2.44(±0.04)

2.40(±0.10)

2.54(±0.09)

2.46(±0.08)

2.40(±0.11)

2.28(±0.10)

2.98(±0.09)

2.66(±0.07)

2.84(±0.18)

2.6(±0.14)

2.8(±0.14)

2.7(±0.12)

2.30(±0.14)

537842

MD-575

1

537843

Length (cm)

IC No.

S. Coll. No No.

5.52(±0.18)

5.48(±0.07)

7.30(±0.55)

7.52(±0.19)

5.80(±0.24)

6.30(±0.08)

6.80(±0.20)

6.02(±0.16)

6.08(±0.20)

5.62(±0.37)

5.66(±0.25)

5.60(±0.37)

5.86(±0.19)

6.62(±0.34)

6.04(±0.25)

6.44(±0.73)

5.44(±0.23)

5.72(±0.13)

5.82(±0.09)

5.46(±0.17)

Width(cm)

4.63(±0.29)

3.11(±0.15)

5.95(±0.34)

8.84(±0.38)

5.41(±0.47)

4.26(±0.21)

5.25(±0.17)

5.17(±0.24)

6.05(±0.19)

4.57(±0.45)

4.34(±0.34)

4.23(±0.58)

4.70(±0.16)

7.13(±0.60)

5.34(±0.23)

7.04(±1.30)

4.88(±0.27)

5.01(±0.36)

4.51(±0.50)

3.04(±0.17)

Fruit Weight (g)

8(±0.40)

10.28(±0.33)

7.86(±0.21)

6.48(±0.40)

9.40(±0.33)

9.29(±1.07)

9.40(±1.01)

12.94(±0.70)

9.64(±0.89)

11.18(±0.42)

10.78(±0.77)

6.98(±0.42)

9.70(±0.45)

9(±0.57)

7.32(±0.77)

5.96(±0.28)

12.60(±0.45)

10.12(±0.63)

16.52(±0.33)

14.2(±0.46)

TSS

1.90(±0.10)

2.16(±0.44)

2.02(±0.10)

2.62(±0.07)

2.20(±0.11)

1.92(±0.10)

2.24(±0.10)

1.96(±0.08)

1.94(±0.05)

2.26(±0.11)

2.28(±0.08)

2.04(±0.16)

1.94(±0.11)

2.44(±0.08)

2.24(±0.13)

1.62(±0.08)

2.18(±0.08)

2.1(±0.08)

2.12(±0.12)

2.18(±0.10)

Length (cm)

3.88(±0.08)

3.80(±0.23)

4.24(±0.36)

3.35(±0.22)

4.18(±0.22)

3.86(±0.07)

3.64(±0.18)

3.66(±0.19)

3.40(±0.08)

3.96(±0.14)

4.30(±0.16)

3.38(±0.28)

2.50(±0.21)

4.08(±0.27)

3.50(±0.04)

3.02(±0.10)

3.86(±0.12)

3.56(±0.19)

3.7(±0.16)

3.98(±0.28)

Width(cm)

1.35(±0.10)

0.97(±0.05)

4.02(±0.27)

2.05(±0.09)

1.84(±0.20)

1.54(±0.12)

1.88(±0.23)

1.27(±0.13)

1.55(±0.15)

1.72(±0.14)

1.83(±0.04)

1.19(±0.21)

1.09(±0.07)

2.43(±0.28)

2.13(±0.20)

1.43(±0.05)

1.81(±0.15)

1.76(±0.08)

1.74(±0.14)

1.8(±0.14)

Seed Weight (g)

3.28(±0.30)

2.13(±0.11)

1.94(±0.51)

6.96(±0.36)

3.55(±0.37)

2.73(±0.14)

3.54(±0.29)

3.90(±0.20)

4.51(±0.31)

2.84(±0.37)

2.50(±0.33)

2.79(±0.43)

3.62(±0.19)

4.68(±0.43)

3.21(±0.13)

5.65(±1.27)

3.08(±0.25)

3.19(±0.32)

2.77(±0.39)

1.24(±0.28)

ratio

Pulp seed

Table 29. Characterization of Syzygium cumini (Jamun) germplasm based on fruits and seeds characters

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

138

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.15 Tamarindus indica (Tamarind) Botanical name: Tamarindus indica Linn. Common name : English - Tamarind, Vernacular- Imli and amli Family: Fabaceae Origin and distribution: Origin of tamarind has been reported to be in the tropical Africa (Stewart and Brandis, 1992) and it still grows wild throughout the Sudan. It is believed to be introduced into India since ancient time and even occasionally reported as indigenous to India. From India it apparently reached the Persians and the Arabs who called it “tamar hindi” (Indian date, from the date-like appearance of the dried pulp), giving rise to both its common and generic names. Unfortunately, the specific name, “indica”, also perpetuates the illusion of Indian origin (Morton, 1987). It is grown throughout India and being a cross pollinated species vast diversity is available in the states of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Chattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Rajasthan and northeastern Indian states. In Andhra Pradesh alone the total area under tamarind is about 6,099 hectares with estimated annual production of 46,962 tons (Anonymous, 2010). General description: Tamarind is a medium to large, slow-growing, long-lived, evergreen tree with the height reaching upto 80 feet (Fig. 34A, B). Leaves are bright green, pinnate, dense and feathery in appearance and making it an attractive shade tree with an open branch structure. There are usually as many as 10 to 20 nearly sessile 1/2 - 1 inch, pale green leaflets per leaf. Flowers inconspicuous, five-petalled flowers are borne in small racemes and are yellow with orange or red streaks. The flower buds are pink due to the outer color of the 4 sepals which are shed when the flower opens. Fruit a pod 5 - 12 inch long, brown, irregularly curved pods are borne in abundance along the new branches (Fig. 34C). As the pods mature, they fill out somewhat and the juicy, acidulous pulp turns brown or reddish-brown. When fully ripe, the shells are brittle and easily broken. The pulp dehydrates to a sticky paste enclosed by a few coarse stands of fiber. The pods may contain from 1 to 12 large, flat, glossy brown, obovate seeds embedded in the brown, edible pulp. The pulp has a pleasing sweet/sour flavor and is high in both acid and sugar. It is also rich in vitamin B and high in calcium. There are wide differences in fruit size and flavor in seedling 139

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

trees. Two types of terminal shoots have been observed, short ones with an erect habit and long ones with a drooping habit. It is reported that production of flowers varies considerably between selections in India. Those with longer vegetative terminal shoots produce more flowers. The period from flowering to pod ripening is 8-10 months. Ripe fruits, however, may remain on the tree until the next flowering period. Fruits are harvested from April to May. Propagation: Tamarind is generally propagated by seeds, however, vegetative propagation is also successful using veneer grafting, shield (T or inverted T) budding and air layering. Vegetatively propagated trees will usually fruit within 3 - 4 years while seedlings begin to produce fruit in 6 - 8 years. Vegetative propagation has been recently attempted with success in budding (75-80%) and softwood grafting (6075%) by Singh et al (2010). Cultivars/selections: There is not much work undertaken on improvement and selection of tamarind. Marathwada Agricultural University, Parbhani, Maharastra released three varieties of tamarind namely ‘Pratisthan’ (pulp has acid sweet taste, 60% pulp, 8% tartaric acid in pulp), ‘Yogeshwari’ (high yielding type with red pulp, regular bearer, 11.00% acidity) and selection No.263 from Fruit Research Station, Aurangabad (high yielding, regular bearer, 16% tartaric acid in pulp). Other varieties from Tamil Nadu are PKM-1from Horticulture College and Research Institute, Periyakulam, a clonal selection (an early variety with 39% pulp content) and Urigam l, a progeny of more than 200 year old tree identified near Urigam by the Department of Horticulture, Tamil Nadu, providing very long pods and sweet pulp (Pareek and Awasthi, 2002; Anonymous, 2010). Two selections DTS 1 and DTS 2 have been identified by College of Horticulture, Arbhavi (University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad) have also been found promising for various pod characters. Important uses: Tamarind is a multipurpose tropical fruit tree used primarily for its fruits, which are eaten fresh or processed in several ways (Fig. 34E, F), used as a seasoning or spice and the fruits and seeds are processed for non-food uses. Fruit contains upto 73% edible pulp in which major constituents are tartaric acid and invert sugars. Pulp is rich source of calcium, phosphorous, riboflavin, niacin and thiamine. Pulp of tamarind in India is used in several ways as per the locality and food habit of local inhabitants. This is used in the preparations of chutney, tamarind powder, puree, juice concentrate, jam, jelly, candies, pickles and fruit leather. Several value added products have been developed by Central Food and Technological Research Institute (CFTRI), Mysore to increase use, shelf life and value of tamarind pulp. Tamarind seeds are also commercially important and utilized in several ways. Most important is Tamarind Kernel Powder (TKP) which is prepared by fine grinding of tamarind kernel and used for sizing in textile industry. 140

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources Management Collection: Systematic collections and evaluation of tamarind germplasm from India has not been taken up (Pareek and Awasthi, 2002). However, 248 collections have been made by various organizations mainly from the states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, West Bengal and northeastern states. Recently the attention have been given to this crop under the ICAR network project on Underutilized fruits and some promising collections have been made by CISH, Lucknow (5 accessions) and CHES (CIAH), Godhra from Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. Variability of tamarind has also been collected from Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh by State Agricultural Universities and State Forest Departments. NBPGR, New Delhi collected 9 diverse germplasm collections from various states (Fig. 35 and Table 30). Characterization: Germplasm of tamarind have been characterized and evaluated at TNAU, Research Station, Arupukottai where 10 accessions have been evaluated and significant genotypic differences were recorded and T111 Faizabad and PKM1 were found promising for important traits. A total of 5 accessions were scored for recording variability in terms of fruit and seed characters. Reproductive biology and breeding system have been studied in 5 clones of tamarind at IFGTB, Coimbatore. Variability in morphological and physico-chemical characters has been observed in the germplasm collected from Maharashtra (Keskar et al., 1989; Shinde et al., 1995), Karnataka (Challapalli, 1995), Andhra Pradesh (Mastan et al., 1997) and Chhattisgarh (Awasthi and Sharma, 1998). State Silvicultural Division, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh identified 52 high yielding genotypes of tamarind based on morphological and physico-chemical characters of fruits (Pareek and Awasthi, 2002). A red fleshed tamarind tree having sweet pulp (TSS>85%) have been reported in village Faraskot, Dantewada, Bastar district of Chhattisgarh by Awasthi and Sharma (1998). In view of the vast genetic diversity present in India of this important fruit species, there is a still need to systematically characterize and evaluate germplasm from the other parts of India including northeastern states. Germplasm collected at NBPGR, New Delhi have been characterised for some fruit and seed characters (Table 31). The fruit length x width varied from 7.50 cm x 1.76 cm to 11.13 cm x 5.94 cm. The total fruit weight showed variation ranging from 6.4 to 12.93 g. Seed length x width varied from 0.93 cm x 1.02 cm to 1.43 cm x 2.20 cm. The seed weight did not show large variation as it ranged from 0.5 to 0.76 gm. The promising accessions with large heavy fruits were IC552936 and IC552913. In fact largest heavy fruits with small seeds were found in IC552913.

141

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Fig. 35. Collection sites of tamarind from various states of India

Conservation: Germplasm of Tamarind is being maintained at several state Agricultural Universities and state forest departments, UAS, Dharwad (19 accessions), Marathwada Agricultural University, Parbhani, Maharashtra (3 accessions), Aurangabad, Maharashtra (351 accessions), Pune, Maharashtra (118 accessions), Horticulture College and Research Institute, Priyakulam, Tamil Nadu (85 accessions), TNAU, Research Station, Arrupukotti (26 accessions) and ANGARU, Research Station, Anantpur (15 accessions), CHES (CIAH), Godhra and Belgaum, Karnataka (40 accessions). Besides this several promising accessions are being maintained at 142

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

various nurseries of State Forests Departments namely Forest Department, Karnataka (220 plus trees) and Forest Department, Tamil Nadu (328 plus trees). Seed physiology, storage behavior and cryopreservation of tamarind seeds have been undertaken at NBPGR, New Delhi. Seeds are orthodox in nature as they showed complete desiccation and freezing sensitivity and seeds showed upto 50% viability by 18 months storage (Table 4). Freshly shed seeds showed 35% moisture with high viability of 97%. Seeds retrieved from liquid nitrogen showed high viability of 94%. Total 10 accessions of tamarind have been cryostored at NBPGR, New Delhi.

143

MD - 829

MD - 844

MD/07/136

MD-264

RS/NSP-6

6

7

8

9

MD - 806

3

5

MD - 803

2

MD-28

MD - 802

1

4

Collector Number

S. No.

144

553199

423598

558160

552951

552936

395742

552913

552910

552909

IC Number

Tamarind

Tamarind

Tamarind

Tamarind

Tamarind

Tamarind

Tamarind

Tamarind

Tamarind

Crop Name

Tamarindus indica

Tamarindus indica

Tamarindus indica

Tamarindus indica

Tamarindus indica

Tamarindus indica

Tamarindus indica

Tamarindus indica

Tamarindus indica

Botanical Name

Imli

Imli

Change

Khati amli

Khati amli

Imli

Khati amli

Khati amli

Khati amli

Vernacular Name

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Narsinghpur

Sirohi

23.80

21.75

21.18

21.18

24.83 Madhya Pradesh 22.50

Rajasthan

25.38

Madhya Pradesh 24.43

79.21

72.91

90.25

75.09

75.28

73.65

73.12

73.23

73.23

Lati- Longitude tude

Madhya Pradesh 24.47

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

Gujarat

State

West Garo hills Meghalaya

Neemach

Neemach

Panchmahal

Bharuch

Vadodara

Vadodara

Biolo- District gical Statu

Table 30. Passport data of Tamarindus indica (Tamarind) germplasm collected from various states Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

MD-803

MD-806

MD-829

MD-844

3

4

5

MD-802

1

2

Coll. No

S. No

145

552949

552936

552913

552910

552909

IC No.

8.23 (±0.41)

11.13 (±0.24)

10.00 (±0.99)

8.40 (±1.19)

7.50 (±1.03)

Length (cm)

5.88 (±0.19)

5.90 (±0.15)

5.94 (±0.23)

1.86 (±0.04)

1.76 (±0.05)

Width (cm)

Fruit

6.40 (±1.76)

12.93 (±0.84)

8.22 (±1.32)

7.10 (±1.16)

7.66 (±1.48)

Weight (gm)

1.23(±0.04)

1.43(±0.04)

1.10(±0.06)

1.12(±0.04)

0.93(±0.08)

Length (cm)

1.90(±0.13)

2.20(±0.06)

1.56(±0.12)

1.02(±0.07)

1.11(±0.06)

Width (cm)

Seed

0.50(±0.07)

0.76(±0.03)

0.53(±0.06)

0.65(±0.05)

0.57(±0.02)

Weight (gm)

Table 31. Characterization of Tamarindus indica (Tamarind) germplasm based on fruits and seeds characters

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

146

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

3.16 Ziziphus Species (Ber) Botanical name: Ziziphus species– Z. mauritiana Lam, syn. Z. jujube (L.) Lam. non Mill.; Z. nummularia (Burm. F.) Wt. et Arn., Syn Z. rotundifolia Lamk. Common name: English - Indian jujube; Hindi: Z. mauritiana- Ber, Z. nummulariaJharber Family: Rhamnaceae Origin and distribution: The Z. mauritiana (ber) is native to Province of Yunnan in southern China to Afghanistan, Malaysia and Queensland, Australia (Morton, 1987). It is native of South and Central Asia, found throughout the arid and semi-arid tracts (Hocking, 1993). It is cultivated to some extent throughout its natural range on commercial scale and has received much horticultural attention in India (Morton, 1987). Z. nummularia (Jharber) is native to Indian sub-continent and commonly found throughout drier parts of India (Stewart and Brandis, 1992; Pandey et al., 2010). Z. nummularia is common in the dry arid areas of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. Overall the genetic diversity of Ziziphus is high in India and about 20 species are found between 8.5ON to 32.5ON and 69-84OE (Awasthi and More, 2008). General description: Z. mauritiana is a gregarious spiny shrub or a small tree, ends of branches decurved or drooping. Branches and branchlets armed with short stipular spines. The plant is a vigorous grower and has a rapidly-developing taproot. Plant may be evergreen, or leafless for several weeks in hot summers. The leaves are sessile, alternate, ovate- or oblong-elliptic, 2.5-7.5 cm long and 2-4 cm wide; distinguished from those of the Chinese jujube by the dense, silky, whitish or brownish hairs on the underside and the short, downy petioles. On the upper surface, glabrous, dark-green, with 3 conspicuous, depressed, longitudinal veins, and there are very fine teeth on the margins. The flowers greenish- yellow, tiny, on short stalk, in 2’s or 3’s in the leaf axils. The fruit drupe varying in size depending upon the wild or cultivated nature of plant, in wild 1.25-2.5 cm long while in cultivation, the fruit reaches upto 5.00 cm in length and 3.5 cm in width. The shape may be oval, obovate, round or oblong; the skin smooth or rough, glossy, thin but tough, turns from light-green to yellow, later becomes partially 147

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

or wholly burnt-orange or red-brown or red. When slightly underripe, the flesh is white, crisp, juicy, acid or subacid to sweet, somewhat astringent. Fully ripe fruits are less crisp and somewhat mealy; overripe fruits are wrinkled, the flesh buff-colored, soft, spongy and musky. At first the aroma is apple like and pleasant but it becomes peculiarly musky as the fruit ripens. There is a single, hard, oval or oblate, rough central stone which contains 2 elliptic, brown seeds, upto 6 mm long. Flowering is in July to September and fruiting starts from October to January. Z. nummularia is highly prickly, multi stemmed small shrub maximum up to 2 m tall with deep and extensive lateral root system (Fig. 36 A, B). Branchlets bifarous, flexuose, armed with twin stipular spines, one straight slender, very sharp, 6.25-12.5 mm long and second shorter, hooked bent downwards. Leaves on short petiole, ovate, obtuse, denticulate. Flowers 10-20, in axillary, short, compact cymes. Fruits, drupe, globose (Fig. 36C) smaller than Z. mauritiana about 1-2 cm. in diameter, red, glabrous, shining when ripe, kernel rugose, 2 celled with a hard osseous shell (Steward and Brandis, 1992). Propagation: The Indian jujube is widely grown from seeds, which may remain viable for 2 1/2 years but the rate of germination declines with storage period (Morton, 1987). Vegetative propagation in ber is very common and several budding and grafting techniques have been successfully applied by horticulturists. Large scale experiments on suitability of rootstocks using Z. nummularia, Z. rotundifolia, Z. sprina-cristi have been conducted at CAZRI. Best rootstock has been proved to the Z. rotundifolia locally known as ‘Tikdi Ber’ for Z. mauritaina. Grafted plants are less thorny than seedlings. Cultivars/selections: In India cultivated ber (Z. mauritiana) has more than 300 varieties but only a few are commercially important (Pareek and Nath, 1996). These varieties developed as a result of selection in different ecoregions from the progenies emanating from cross pollination between different Ziziphus species and /or between types/cultivars of ber (Pareek, 2001). Some of the important cultivars are Umran, Banarasi, Gola, Illaichi, Punjab Chuhhara, Seb, Kadak, Kaithli, Katha phal, Dandan, Gular Bashi, Kheera, Nazuk and Sanur. Recently some cultivars have been released by CIAH, Bikaner namely Goma Kirti (a highly yielding early maturing variety, which fetches good price in the market. It is resistant to various diseases and pests by virtue of its earliness), Thar Sevika (developed by the hybridization from a cross Seb x Katha), Thar Sevika is an early maturing variety. The fruits are juicy, sweet with a TSS content of 22-24%. Fruits after consumption do not cause throat soaring, which is common in other cultivars. Average

148

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

fruit yield is 30-32 Kg/tree. The hybrid is also suitable for staggered picking which can be done up to third week of January), Thar Bhubhraj, a selection from local material of Bhusavar area of Bharatpur district of Rajasthan and CIAH-Sel-1 is an early maturing cultivar having an average yield potential of 30-36 kg/tree. The fruits are ready for harvesting during last week of December-First week of January. The fruits are very juicy, sweet with a TSS content of 22-23%. Detailed studies by Saran et al. (2007) have identified diverse genotypes to be used as parents for developing disease resistant and smaller stone size breeding material in Indian jujube. Important uses: Cultivated ber is an important fruit of tropics and sold as fresh fruit throughout India and fetch good return to the farmers. Fruit is a rich source of calcium, phosphorous, protein, minerals, vitamin C and vitamin A. Ripe fruit is consumed as popular dessert and processed for various value added products such as murabba, candy, sharbat, squash and powdered fruits after drying are also consuned. Fruits, seeds and bark are important in the Indian System of Medicine and bark is used as a cure for dysentery and boils and fruit as laxative and aphrodisiac.

Genetic Resources management: Collection: Germplasm of ber have been collected from various states and extensive collection have been made for assembling the existing variability. Major emphasis has been on the trees having prolific bearing, large fruits, small stone, earliness, good shelf life, resistance to powdery mildew and fruit fly resistance. Germplasm of various species of Ziziphus has been collected from almost all the parts of India - 137 accessions of Z. mauritiana have been collected from Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Jharkhand and few accessions from Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Jammu and Kashmir and northeastern states of India; 88 accessions of Z. nummularia and 9 accessions of Z. rotundifolia have been collected from drier parts of India mainly Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat; 39 accessions of Z. oenoplea mainly for southern states namely Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu; 15 accessions of Z. rugosa from Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil Nadu and 10 accessions of Z. xylopyrus have been collected from Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Orissa. Besides this several collections have been made by the State Horticultural Departments, State Universities and other organizations and being maintained in the field genebanks. There are still unexplored areas of ber variability from where promising types can be collected for crop improvement programs. Seedling ber trees are found extensively growing wildly in arid and semi-arid areas (Chandra et al., 1994). Areas surveyed (Fig. 37) and collections (10) made by NBPGR, New Delhi and passport data is presented in Table 32. 149

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Characterization: Ber germplasm have been characterized at various locations in India. Systematic characterization and evaluation of germplasm and released varieties have been undertaken at various centers of All India Coordinated Project on Arid Fruits (Pareek and Nath, 1996). Local collections and released varieties have been evaluated for field performance and evaluation at these locations and suitable varieties

Jammu and Kashmir

Rajasthan

Fig. 37. Collection sites of ber germplasm from various states

have been recommended for commercial cultivation. In Maharashtra extensive evaluation have been undertaken at MPKV, Rahuri and improved varieties namely Umran, Kadaka, Sanur No.6, Gola, Illaichi and Punjab Chuhhara have been popularised and pruning technology has been developed for high yield of better quality fruits. Due to continuous efforts of the University scientists and extension workers, ber is cultivated over 30,000 hectares in Maharashtra and 90,000 hectares plantation of improved ber trees in India (Awasthi and More, 2008). Germplasm of various varieties have been evaluated at various other centres namely PAU, RS, Bahadurgarh, (40 varieties), GAU, SK Nagar (64 varieties), CCHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal (49 varieties) and ANDUAT, Faizabad (40 Varieties). At HAU, Hisar 70 cultivars collected from all ber growing areas of northern 150

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

India were established in an experimental orchard in 1967-68 and in 1980, 16 midseason selections from these were evaluated. ‘Banarasi Karaka’ gave the highest yield, 130 kg per tree-followed by ‘Mudia Murhara’ and ‘Kaithli’, and ‘Sanauri 5’ and ‘Desi Alwar’. ‘Mudia Murhara’, ‘Kaithli’ and ‘Sanauri 5’ were recommended of commercial cultivation. For breeding purposes, ‘Banarasi Karaka’ and ‘Desi Alwar’ could contribute high pulp content; ‘Mudia Murhara’, total soluble solids; ‘Kaithli’, high ascorbic acid content and good flavor, in efforts to develop a superior midseason cultivar. Conservation: Conservation of ber genetic resources has been widely undertaken in the field genebanks of various centres of AICRP of Arid Fruits. It is the hardiest cultivated fruit tree whose germplasm is mainly maintained in field genebanks (Shukla et al, 2007). Germplasm collected from various states and selections/cultivars identified are being conserved in the field genebanks for improvement and field evaluation at various institutes. Present status of ber germplasm at important centres is, CIAH, Bikaner (318 accessions), NBPGR, Jodhpur (146 accessions), MPKV, Rahuri (93 accessions), CCSHAU, Hisar (79 accessions), GAU, SK Nagar (75 accessions), CAZRI, Jodhpur (68 accessions), CCSHAU, Regional Research Station, Bawal (47 accessions), PAU, Regional Station, Bahadurgarh (41 accessions), IARI, New Delhi (39 accessions), PAU, Ludhiana (34 accessions) and IIHR, Bangalore (32 accessions) (Vashishtha et al., 2005 and CIAH, Bikaner). In the studies undertaken at NBPGR, orthodox seed storage behavior was found in Ziziphus species which is in conformity with that reported by Hong et al., 1996. Seeds shed at 25% moisture showed high seed germination and when exposed to liquid nitrogen, high survival value of 86% was achieved. More than 42 accessions of different Ziziphus species have been cryostored in Cryogenebank at NBPGR (Table 5).

151

Number

NSP/OPD

No.

1

MD-252

MD-268

MD-270

MD-275

MD-282

MD-287

MD-296

MD-298

MD-574

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

-04-30

Collector

S.

152

471254

423632

423630

423621

423616

423609

423604

423602

423587

438479

Number

IC

Ber

Ber

Ber

Ber

Ber

Ber

Ber

Ber

Ber

Jujube

Chinese

Name

Crop

Ziziphus nummulariaPala

Ziziphus nummulariaBer

Ziziphus nummulariaBordi

Ziziphus nummulariaBordi

Ziziphus nummulariaBordi

Ziziphus nummulariaBordi

Ziziphus nummulariaJhahrberi

Ziziphus nummulariaJhahrberi

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Wild

Status

Name

Ber

gical

Tonk

Ajmer

Chittorgarh

Dungarpur

Dungarpur

Dungarpur

Udaipur

Udaipur

Jaipur

Udhampur

Biolo- District

cular

Verna-

Ziziphus nummulariaJharber

Ziziphus jujuba

Name

Botanical

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Rajasthan

Kashmir

Jammu and

State

Table 32. Passport data of Ziziphus species germplasm collected from J&K and Rajasthan

26.16

26.35

24.90

23.94

23.56

23.83

24.38

24.56

27.54

33.18

tude

75.78

74.63

74.64

73.85

74.31

73.71

73.74

74.00

75.76

75.23

tude

Lati- Longi-

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

153

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

4. Future Perspective Southeast Asia is a centre of diversity of a number of tropical fruits, Indian subcontinent comprising vast semi-arid and arid areas have enormous diversity of underutilized fruit species. A number of multipurpose tree species commonly grow as populations unattended in these inhospitable and stressed environments and also in the agricultural fields as isolated trees or in small groups. In most of the species no organized orcharding, nutritional management and plant protection practices are followed. These species have outstanding adaptation capabilities to drought tolerance, salt tolerance and are also resistant to major pest and diseases. Continued overexploitation of these species from natural habitats, increasing demand for land for agriculture and industry and least attention for this natural wealth has resulted in extensive degradation of their habitats. Protection, maintenance and extension of tree cover is also essential to support agricultural production besides meeting the requirements of local population for fodder, feed, fuelwood and timber (Hockings, 1993). It is, therefore, urgent to take up the work on genetic resource management and improvement of underutilized fruits to ensure the food and nutritional security of tribal and rural population and to enhance the income of farmers cultivating these fruits. Following thrust and priority areas have been identified and suggested for the efficient management of genetic resources and for giving desired impetus to their promotion: 1. Specific survey and exploration are to be carried out on the basis of thorough gap analysis to collect specific genetic resources of these species from natural wild or semi-domesticated locations. 2. Several of these underutilized fruit species are propagated through seeds and posses vast genetic variability and heterogeneity for important traits. There is an urgent need to characterize and evaluate the available germplasm for the identification of area/state specific quality genotypes for commercial horticulture. 3. Vegetative propagation techniques are to be developed for maintaining the genotype purity and early bearing of these underutilized fruits. 4. To promote traditional underutilized fruits and to enhance the farmers income especially of small and marginal farmers selection of suitable cultivars and 154

Genetic Resources of Tropical Underutilized Fruits in India

availability of planting material is desirable. Cultivars with following traits would be important: a) Cultivars with high and stable production potential b) Cultivars with ability to resist/tolerate stresses c) Cultivars with diverse quality traits d) Specific genetic resources e.g i) Cultivars for given niches ii) Cultivars specific for agro-processing iii) Cultivars specific with export potential 5. Facilities for fruit marketing, processing and value addition of products should be developed at panchayat and block levels for ensuring desirable economic returns to farmers and also help in crop diversification. This would help in enhancing socio-economic conditions of farmers and safe guard the invaluable diversity of these indigenous fruits and associated traditional knowledge. 6. In situ conservation priorities for these species are to be developed immediately to ensure their dynamic conservation by identifying protected areas and on farm conservation sites. 7. Several ex-situ conservation approaches have been suggested depending on propagation method and storage behavior of these fruit species for long-term conservation. Successful protocols are to be developed for true-to-type conservation of species where promising cultivars have been identified. 8. Molecular characterization studies are to be intensified in these underutilized fruit species to support the morphological characterization and assess the exact level of genetic diversity and its utilization. 9. Besides horticultural importance some of these species are excellent source for genes of heat, water stress and salt tolerance. Expressed Sequence Tag’s (ESTs) identified from these species would provide an insight into the molecular basis of stress tolerance.

155

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References Abraham Z, Malik SK, Latha M, Chaudhury R, Mangayarkarassi N and Sharma SK (2010) Genetic resources management of Garcinia species in India. In: National Symposium on Garcinia Genetic Resources: Linking Diversity, Livelihood and Management, 8-9 May 2010, College of Forestry, Sirsi campus, India, pp. 8-18. Agroforestry Database (World Agroforestry www.worldagrofprestrycentre.org/sites/treeDBS/AFT.

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Ahmad VU, Ismail N and Amber A (1989) Isocodonocarpine from Capparis decidua. Phytochemistry 28:2493-2495. Anonymous (1981) The Wealth of India: Raw Materials, Vol. II, Capparis: 67-68. Publications and Information Directorate (now NISCOM), C.S.I.R., New Delhi. Anonymous (1992) The Wealth of India: Raw Materials (Revised series). Capparis: 36-37; Carissa: 294-299; Tamarindus: 114-122; Madhuca: 207-216; Grewia: 260-266; Manilkara: 298-301; Buchanania: 308-310. Publications and Information Directorate (now NISCOM), C.S.I.R., New Delhi. Anonymous (2010) Package of practices of the important horticultural crops of Andhra Pradesh. Andhra Pradesh Horticultural University, Venkataramannagudem, West Godavari District – 534 101 (A.P.). Arora RK (1995) Promoting conservation and use of tropical fruit species in Asia. In: Proc. Expert Consultation on Tropical Fruit Species of Asia, MARDI, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 17-19 May 1994 (eds. R.K. Arora and V. Ramanatha Rao ) IPGRI Office for South Asia, New Delhi, India, pp.19-30. Arora RK (1998) Genetic resources of native tropical fruits in Asia: diversity, distribution and IPGRI’s emphasis on their conservation and use. In: Tropical Fruits in Asia: Diversity, Maintenance, Conservation and Use (eds. R.K.Arora and V. Ramanatha Rao). Proceedings of the IPGRI-ICAR-UTFANET Regional Training Course on the Conservation and Use of Germplasm of Tropical Fruits in Asia held at Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, 18-31 May 1997, Bangalore, India, pp. 42-53. 156

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Arora RK and Ramanatha Rao V (eds.) (1995) Proceedings of Expert Consultation on Tropical Fruit Species of Asia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 17-19 May, 1994, pp. 116. Awasthi OP and More TA (2008) Genetic diversity and status of Ziziphus in India. International Society for Horticultural Science, Acta Horticulturae 840: I International Jujube Symposium. Awasthi OP and Sharma S (1998) Variability in tamarind. Kisan World 25:60. Bajpai PN and Shukla HS (1985) Aonla. Fruits of India-Tropical and Subtropical, (T.K.Bose ed.) Naya Prakash, Calcutta, India, pp. 591-600. Batra A, Mathur S and Shekhawat GS (2001) Clonal propagation of Salvadora persica L: an important medicinal plant of arid zone. Journal of Plant Biology 28: 277-281. Bhandari MM (1990) Flora of the Indian Desert. MPS Repros, Jodhpur, India, p. 193. Burkill IH (1951-52) Habits of man and the origins of the cultivated plants of the old World. Proceeding Linnean Society of London, 164: 12-42 Challapalli AP, Chimmad VP and Hulamini NC (1995) Studies on correlation of some fruit characters in tamarind fruits. Karnataka J. Agri Sci. 8: 114-115. Chandra A, Chandra A and Gupta IC (1994) Arid Fruit Research, Scientific Publishers 5A, New Pali Road, Jodhpur, pp. 302. Chatterjee A and Pakrashi SC (1995) The treatise on Indian medicinal plants, Publication and Information Directorate, New Delhi, 1: 95-101. CISH Annual Report (2008) http://www.cishlko.org Deora NS and Shekhawat NS (1995) Micropropagation of Capparis decidua (Forsk.) Edgew- a tree of arid horticulture. Plant Cell Reports 15: 278-281. Devi SP, Thangam M, Desai AR and Adsule PG (2002) Studies on variability in physico-chemical characters of different jamun (Syzygium cuminii Skeels) accessions from Goa. Indian Journal of Horticulture 59: 153-156. Duthie JF (1960) Flora of the Upper Gangetic Plain, Vol-I Botanical Survey of India, Calcutta, pp. 568.

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Ellis RH, Hong TD and Roberts EH (1990) An intermediate category of seed storage behaviour?: I. Coffee. Journal of Experimental Botany 41:1167-1174. Firminger TA (1947) Firminger’s Manual of Gardening for India (8th ed.), Thacker Spink Co. Ltd., Calcutta. Gamo LG and Cruz AO (1957) Composition of the pulp and seed oil of Kamachile (Pithecellobium dulce). Philip. J. Sci. 86:131-134. George ST, Latha AKB, Mathew K and Geetha CK (1992) Pattern of flowering and flower development in Kodampuli (Garcinia cambogia Desr.). Indian Cocoa, Arecanut and Spices Journal 16:68-70. Ghate VS, Kulkarni DK and Upadhye AS (1997) Karvanda (Carissa L.): an underutilized minor fruit of India. Plant Genetic Resources Newsletter 109: 2021. Ghate VS, Kulkarni DK and Upadhye AS (1999) Screening of natural diversity in Karvanda (Carissa L.) commercially potential wild fruit in Maharashtra. Indian Journal of Plant Genetic Resources 12:10-15. Goh HK, Rao AN and Loh CS (1990) Direct shoot bud formation from leaf explant of seedlings and mature mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana L.) trees. Plant Sci. 68: 113-121. Gupta RK and Saxena SK (1968) Resource survey of Salvadora oleoides Decne. and S. persica Linn. for non-edible oil in western Rajasthan. Tropical Ecology. 9:140-152. Heymsfield SB, Allison DB, Vasselli JR, Pietrobelli A, Greemfield D and Nunez C (1998). Garcinia cambogia (hydroxycitric acid) as a potential antiobesity agent: a randomized controlled trail. Journal of American Medical Association 280:1596-1600. Hocking D (1993) Trees for Drylands, Oxford & IBH Publishing Co. Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, pp. 370. Hong TD and Ellis RH (1996) A Protocol to Determine Seed Storage Behaviour. IPGRI Technical Bulletin No. 1. (eds. J.M.M. Engels and J. Toll) International Plant Genetic Resources Institute, Rome, Italy. Hong TD, Linington S and Ellis RH (1996) Seed Storage Behaviour. A Compendium. Hand-book for Genebank No. 4, IPGRI, Rome. 158

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http://www.ciah.ernet.in http://www.icar.org. Huang LC, Huang B L, Wang CH, Kuo CI and Murashige T (2000) Developing an improved in vitro propagation system for slow-growing species using Garcinia mangostana L (mangosteen). In Vitro Cellular and Developmental Biology 36: 501-504. Index Kewensis (1895-1990). Index Kewensis: Plantarum Phanerogamarum I: 441; suppls. I: 83; II: 44; III: 36; IV: 39; VII: 40; VIII: 41; IX: 53; XII: 29; XIII: 24; XV: 26; XVI: 57. KOELTZ SCIENTIFIC BOOKS, D-6240, Keinigstein West Germany. Jalikop SH and Kumar R (2010) Differentiation of seedlings of sweet and sour Karonda (Carissa congesta) in nursery and possibility of seed propagation. In: Abst. National Conference on Production of Quality Seeds and Planting Material – Health Management in Horticultural Crops. 11-14 March, 2010, New Delhi, p. 151. Karale AR, Keskar BG, Shete MB, Dhawale BC, Kale PN and Chaudhury R (1989) Seedling selection in Karonda (Carissa carandus L.). Maharashtra J. Hort. 4:125-129. Kaushik RA and Dwivedi NK (2004) Genetic diversity in Lasora. Indian Journal of Horticulture 49. Keskar BG, Karale AR, Dhawale BC and Choudhari KG (1989) Improvement in tamarind (Tamarindus indica L.) by selection. Maharashtra J. Hort. 4:121124. Kumar A and Rao SR (2002) Cytological investigations in some important tree species of Rajasthan. III. Karyomorphological studies in the Genus Salvadora L. Indian Journal of forestry 25:326-330. Kumar D, Pandey V and Nath V (2007) Karonda (Carissa congesta) – An underutilized fruit crop. In: Underutilized and Underexploited Horticulture crops, Vol.I (ed. K.V.Peter), pp. 313-325. Kundu S, Ghosh DK and Maiti SC (2001) Evaluation of some local types of jamun (Syzygium cuminii Skeels) of West Bengal. Environment and ecology 19:872874. 159

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Kundu SR (2006) A synopsis of Clusiaceae in Indian Sub-continent: Its distribution and endemism. Acta Botanica Hungarica 48: 332-344. Mahajan RK, Gangopadhyay KK, Kumar G, Dobhal VK, Srivastav, Gupta PN and Pareek SK (2002) Minimal Descriptors of Agri-horticultural crops, part III: Fruit Crops. National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, Pusa Campus, New Delhi. Maheshwari JK (1963) The Flora of Delhi, CSIR, New Delhi. Maheshwari JK (1964) Taxonomic studies on Indian Guttiferae. III. The genus Garcinia L.l. Bulletin of the Botanical Survey of India. 6:107-135. Maiti CS, Nath A and Sen SK (1999b) Studies on the propagation of bael (Aegle marmelos Correa) by different grafting methods in West Bengal. Journal of Applied Horticulture, Lucknow 1(2):131-132. Majeed M (1994) Citrin-A Revolutionary Herbal Approach to Weight Management, New Editions Publishing Company, Burlingame, pp 8-14. Malik SK, Chaudhury R and Kalia RK (2005a) Rapid in vitro multiplication and conservation of Garcinia indica: A tropical medicinal tree species. Scientia Horticulture 106:539-553. Malik SK, Chaudhury R and Abraham Z (2005b) Seed morphology and germination characteristics in three Garcinia species. Seed Science and Technology 33: 595-604. Malik SK, Chaudhury R and Abraham Z (2005c) Desiccation - Freezing Sensitivity and Longevity in Seeds of Garcinia indica, G. cambogia and G. xanthochymus. Seed Science and Technology 33: 723-732. Malik SK, Chaudhury R and Kalia RK (2004) Cryopreservation of Genetic Resources of Tropical Minor Fruits. In: Abst. Improving Productivity Quality, Post-harvest Management and Trade in Horticultural Crops. 6-9 November, 2004, New Delhi, pp. 8-9. Malik SK, Chaudhury R and Kalia RK (2005) Seed storage behavior and cryopreservation of tropical fruit species. In: In Vitro Conservation and Cryopreservation of Tropical Fruit Species. IPGRI Office for South Asia, New Delhi, India/ NBPGR, New Delhi, India, pp.175-190.

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Annexure I

Acronyms ANDUAT BAP- 6 CARI

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CAZRI CCSHAU CFTRI CHES CHES CIAH CISH CMC GAU GBPUAT

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HGR IARI ICRAF IFGTB IIHR IISR MPKV MPUAT NAA NOVOD Board

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Acharya Narendra Dev University of Agriculture and Technology Benzylaminopurine Central Agricultural Research Institute, Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar Central Arid Zone Research Institute, Jodhpur Chaudhury Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University, Hisar Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore Central Horticultural Experimental Station, Godhra Central Horticultural Experimental Station, Chettalli Central Institute of Arid Horticulture, Bikaner, Central Institute of Sub-Tropical Horticulture, Lucknow Critical Moisture Content Gujarat Agricultural University, Sardarkrushinagar Govind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar Horticultural Genetic Resources Indian Agricultural ResearchInstitute, New Delhi International Center for Research in Agroforestry, Nairobi, Kenya Institute of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding, Coimbatore Indian Institute of Horticultural Research, Bangalore Indian Institute of Spices Research, Calicut Mahatma Phule Krishi Vidaypeeth, Rahuri Maharana Pratap University of Agriculture and Technology Napthaleneacetic acid National Oilseeds and Vegetable Oils Development Board, Gurgaon 167

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PAU, RS PAU RAU SAU TSS TTC TNAU UAS

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Punjab Agriculture University, Regional Station, Bahadurgarh Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana Rajasthan Agricultural University, Bikaner State Agriculture University Total Soluble Solids 2,3,5 Triphenyl Tetrazolium Chloride Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Research Station, Arrupukotti University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad

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