New rootstocks promise faster, higher apple yields for Kashmir farms Premium

Discover how new rootstocks enhance apple yields and efficiency in Kashmir’s orchards, addressing climate challenges and boosting farmer income.

Kashmir grows apples across a wide range of altitudes, each shaping how the crop flowers, sets fruit, and yields. Yet, even with one of the largest apple-growing areas in the country, productivity in the valley remains modest. As traditional orchards face rising costs, delayed returns, and increasing climate stress, researchers and growers are turning to new rootstock technologies and high-density systems to make apple cultivation more efficient and resilient.

Apple is a major fruit crop in Kashmir cultivated on 1.08 lakh ha with a production of 11 lakh tonnes, providing livelihoods to around 27 lakh people. The performance of apples is determined by the valley’s diverse altitudes. They range from 1,500 m to more than 2,600 m above sea level, creating distinct microclimates. The trees need a certain amount of winter cold (chilling hours), they are sensitive to frost, and need enough warmth in summer (heat accumulation). So, the altitude influences how much cold or heat the trees get, which directly affects how well apples grow, flower, and produce fruit.

However, despite having one of the largest areas under apple cultivation in India, productivity in the Kashmir Valley remains far below that of developed apple-growing regions.

“One major reason is that for decades, orchards have been dominated by seedling-based trees that produce tall, vigorous, low-density, and extremely slow to bear fruit. These trees take 6-8 years to produce a commercial crop and yield just 10-12 tonnes per hectare, making them unviable for small landholdings,” Dr. Wasim Hassan Raja says.

Dr. Raja is a scientist at Fruit science division, ICAR-Central Institute of Temperate Horticulture (CITH), Srinagar, who has developed two novel technologies for apple rootstock multiplication and feathering, both now licensed to 25 nursery growers and adopted by over 100 orchardists across India.

He adds that the modern rootstock techniques on the other hand offer a solution. Rootstock refers to the roots and lower stem of a specially selected apple plant onto which the desired variety is grafted. It forms the entire root system and the lower trunk of the tree, essentially acting as its foundation.