Two high yielding cashew varieties

The growers of Kerala Agricultural University (KAU) have recently released two high – yielding and early flowering cashew varieties for commercial cultivation. The two varieties, named "Priyanka" and "Amrutha" have become popular among growers.

"Priyanka" is a hybrid derivative of a cross between BLA-139-1 and K-30-1. This variety is of spreading type, and it flowers in December-January. It produces yellowish red apples, which are astringent. The jumbo nuts, weighting on an average 10.8g each, are of export quality (grade W.180). It has a high yield potential of 29kg nuts per tree per year, and its average yield is 17.03kg per tree in a year. A plant density of 178 trees is variety responds well to nutrient management. A nutrient dose of 750g of nitrogen, 325g phosphorus and 750g of potash per tree per year should be applied to get good results. The flowering duration is two months. The hybrid is propagated through soft wood grafts.

The variety, "Amrutha" is a hybrid derivative of a cross between spreading type and it also flowers in December-January. It produces yellow apples, which are astringent. It yields bold nuts, which weight on an average 7.18g each, which fall under export grade W.210. The nuts have a high shelling percentage. It has a high yield potential of 30.1kg per tree per year, and its average yield is 18.35kg per tree in a year. "Amrutha" is relatively free from major diseases, and the insect pests can be managed by using appropriate botanical pesticides. This mid-season variety produces attractive yellow apple weighing an average 40.5g each, and the juicy apples are astringent. This hybrid is also propagated vegetatively through soft wood grafting.