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Friday, August 2, 2013

Saffron cultivation in India now

Anand Agricultural University (AAU) has successfully grown saffron under controlled conditions and claims that the most expensive herb in the world could be grown in the fields of the north Gujarat region having favourable climatic conditions for its farming. - See more at: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/aau-breaks-new-ground-grows-saffron-at-varsity-farms/1091788/#sthash.cNQdR6uI.dpuf
Anand Agricultural University (AAU) has successfully grown saffron under controlled conditions and claims that the most expensive herb in the world could be grown in the fields of the north Gujarat region having favourable climatic conditions for its farming. - See more at: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/aau-breaks-new-ground-grows-saffron-at-varsity-farms/1091788/#sthash.cNQdR6uI.dpuf
Anand Agricultural University (AAU) has successfully grown saffron under controlled conditions and claims that the most expensive herb in the world could be grown in the fields of the north Gujarat region having favourable climatic conditions for its farming. - See more at: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/aau-breaks-new-ground-grows-saffron-at-varsity-farms/1091788/#sthash.cNQdR6uI.dpuf

Gujarat are now challenging nature. Despite water shortage in the state, many farmers have been successful in growing     crops which need a lot of water and for which Gujarat’s climate is not at all favourable. 


For instance, apples, saffron and cashew are difficult to grow in water-deficient states like Gujarat. 
Yet some enterprising farmers have experimented and succeeded in growing these crops despite the unfavourable climatic conditions. 

Cashew is being grown in Saurashtra and South Gujarat while Anand Agricultural University has been successful in growing saffron, albeit in greenhouses on its farm. Incidentally, saffron has long been associated with Kashmir and its climate. 

Businessman Rustom Cama has recently joined farmers in experimenting with different crops. 
Apples generally grow in places like Himachal Pradesh where the climate is damp and cold. But he has been successful in growing around 100 apple trees on his arid farmland near Mount Abu.
Cama said that he started growing apple trees four years ago and that the trees had yielded good quality fruit for the last two years. 

“When I first asked a university for apple plants so that I could grow them on my farm near Mount Abu, the university refused. The university evidently thought that it was not possible to grow apples in Mount Abu,” said Cama.  

He further said that as there is shortage of water in the region, it is not possible to grow apple trees in large numbers. He, however, added that he had not found the climate to be much of a problem and the apples grown on his farm were of good quality. 

As for saffron, AAU has grown this spice in greenhouses on its farm in Anand. University officials involved in its farming say that it can be grown in North Gujarat areas – in Patan, Mehsana, Banaskantha, Sabarkantha and Gandhinagar. Saplings for this purpose can be had from Badgam district in Kashmir valley. The officials say that the quality of saffron grown in Gujarat is as good as that of saffron grown in Kashmir. The period of August to November is most favorable for its cultivation. 
In Saursahtra and South Gujarat, farmers have been successful in growing cashew nut. According to an estimate, 7826 hectares of land in Gujarat is used for cashew farming. The harvest is around 22,860 metric tonnes. Bharat Patel, one of the farmers cultivating cashew in Halvad, said he had grown around 150 cashew trees on his farm. 

“One has to be careful when cultivating cashew as watering of the plants has to be done systematically. I have been growing cashew for the last three years. Though the volume of the yield is not very high, the quality of cashew is good,” Patel said.


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Anand Agricultural University (AAU) has successfully grown saffron under controlled conditions and claims that the most expensive herb in the world could be grown in the fields of the north Gujarat region having favourable climatic conditions for its farming. - See more at: http://www.indianexpress.com/news/aau-breaks-new-ground-grows-saffron-at-varsity-farms/1091788/#sthash.cNQdR6uI.dpuf