One of the best ways to increase crop productivity and double farmers' income is through Grafting. Inter-specific grafting is emerging as a promising tool for increasing the tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses, along with boosting the productivity of vegetables.
The dual or multiple grafting is a new technology, in which, two or more than 2 scions of the same family are grafted together to produce more than one vegetable from a single plant.
At the ICAR-Indian Institute of Vegetable Research (IIVR) in Varanasi (UP) after a successful field demonstration of Grafted Pomato i.e. Potato and Tomato - the Dual Grafting of Brimato i.e. Brinjal and Tomato was demonstrated in 2020-21. The Brinjal Hybrid - Kashi Sandesh and enhanced cultivar of Tomato - Kashi Aman were grafted into the brinjal rootstock - IC 111056.
It is important to mention that farmers can increase their profit by cultivating various grafted vegetables.
The Process of Grafting
Grafting was done when the Brinjal seedlings were 25 - 30 days old while Tomato was 22 - 25 days old. The Brinjal Rootstock - IC 111056 has a tendency to develop 2 branches in around 5 percent of seedlings. The grafting was done through side or splice method, in which, 5 to 7 MM slanting cuts were made in the Rootstock & Scion.
Immediately after grafting, the seedlings were placed under a controlled atmospheric condition, where the temperature, humidity & light were kept at optimal for preliminary 5 - 7 days. Later in partial shade for another 5 - 7 days.
After that the Grafted plants were transferred in the field (around 15 - 18 days) after grafting. During the initial growth stage, safety measure was taken to maintain a balanced growth in Brinjal & Tomato Scions. In addition shoots, if any arises below the grafting union, were immediately removed.
Use of Fertilizers
The fertilizers were applied at 150:60:100 Kg NPK/ha, besides 25 Tonnes of FYM. Both the Tomato and Brinjal started fruiting in 60 - 70 days after planting.
The Findings
The experimental findings showed that about 36.0 fruits with 2.383 Kg yields were harvested in Tomato / plant and in Brinjal, 2.684 Kg yields were received from 9.2 Fruits / plant.
The ‘Dual Grafted Brimato’ is useful for the urban as well as suburban areas, where there is limited space for accommodating vegetables in vertical garden or terrace garden.
(Reference - ICAR-IIVR, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh)
