Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) has introduced an innovative jackfruit variety named BARI-6. This does not require glue for grafting. The National Seed Board of the Ministry of Agriculture released BARI-6 in June, marking a significant advancement in commercial jackfruit farming in Bangladesh.
BARI scientists have observed that other fruits like mango, litchi, guava, Burmese grape and malta flourish with the grafting method, producing fruit in 1-2 years while maintaining their taste and aroma. But while these fruits have traditionally dominated the market due to their ease of cultivation, jackfruit faced challenges. Despite being the national fruit, traditional jackfruit seedlings had a slow growth problem, taking 7-8 years to produce, discouraging commercial cultivation by farmers.
To address this issue, researchers began developing faster-yielding, more flavorful jackfruit varieties. Dr Zillur Rahman, chief scientific officer of BARI's Fruit Division,: "We began successfully producing grafted saplings in 2009 by collecting special jackfruit varieties from across the country. There was hope. In 2018, we embarked on extensive research funded by the Agricultural Research Foundation to create high-yield, early-bearing jackfruit grafted seedlings."
Source: dhakatribune.com