High yielding hybrid Castor The scientists at the Oilseeds Research Station of the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) Tindivanam have developed a high yielding hybrid castor with high oil content. It has been released for commercial cultivation for the farmers in Tamil Nadu. The castor hybrid known as ‘TNVCH-1’ is the first hybrid castor to be developed in the state. It is a resultant of a cross between the stable pistilate line LRES17 and the high yielding pollinator TMV 5. It reaches harvesting stage in 160-170 days. TMVCH-1 plants have red stem and have other traits such as triple bloom, non-dehiscent spiny capsule with medium bold seeds. The seeds contain 51.7% oil. Growing to a height of 135-150 cm, the hybrid castor is moderately susceptible to semilooper pest and moderately resistant to wilt and grey mould. It has been found to have good resistant to drought. The seedrate for a pure crop is a 5 kg per hectare and for intercrop a seed rate of 2.5 kg per hectare is recommended. It can be grown on a wide range of soil types. |
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