Patna, Jan 10
The delectably sweet and juicy litchi, hitherto a summer fruit, is now being cultivated in winter, thanks to a successful experiment in two southern states by the Bihar-based National Research Centre for Litchi (NRCL), an official said.
"It may sound unexcepted but it is true that bumper production of litchis was recorded in different orchards in Karnatka and Kerala this winter. It is the result of a five-year-long experiment by NRCL scientists," its director, Vishal Nath, told IANS.
This is not the first time litchis have been harvested in the two states but what stands out this time is the quantum and the quality.
"We have no record of the actual yield but it is certainly a bumper crop going by the reports from the ground," the director of the Muzaffarpur-based NRCL said. Muzaffarpur accounts for more than 62 percent of the country's litchi production, down from a high of 70 percent.
Nearly 700 acres of land are currently under litchi cultivation in two southern states. There are some 40 litchi trees in each acre of land, with each tree yielding 1.5 to 2 quintals of the fruit.
By:IANS