For wedding planners, fish tail palm is very common as the palm tree family offers an exotic look. Seeing the tremendous demand, nurseries are raising the seedlings of the ornamental tree in large numbers throughout Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
'However this does not show its real potential,' argues PC Vengaiah, a scientist at Andhra Pradesh's Dr YSR Horticultural University.
The juice gathered from flower stalks, Neera, is rich in nutrients. Jaggery, sweeteners and sugar syrup are among the by-products.
'The yields are better than those of the date palm and toddy palm. But for this palm variety, there is not much study. An application for research grants to the Dept of Science & Technology regarding the same,' Vengaiah said.
Vengaiah, who is working on the Toddy Palm All India Organized Research Project (AICRP), chanced on the fish tail palm which is abundantly grown in the Eastern Ghats' hilly regions.
'We found a few high-yielding varieties with the help of the locals that offer up to 40-50 liters a day compared to five liters produced from Toddy Palm,' he said.
‘Among farmers, interest in the palm variety is rising. Kadiyam nurseries sent about 5 lakh saplings to Telangana for the flagship,' Harita Haaram program of the State, Vengaiah said.
A 72-year-old radical farmer, M Appi Reddy, approached a biotech firm to harvest the tissue from these high-yielding varieties and grow nursery materials. At the same time, wild genetic material from the Eastern Ghats is collected and seedlings are grown.
'We are establishing a nursery at Bikanelli near Bodhan on three acre's,' Appi Reddy, who represents the All-India Kisan Coordination Committee in Telangana, is helped by millet guru Khadar Vali to produce better seed content.
