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Abstract.
The
province of Sindh lies between 23° 40’ to 28° 30’ N and 66° 40’ to
71°, 30’E. The region has subtropical climate, receiving 100-550
chill unit and 3700-4500 heat units. Soil is Silts-loam having pH 7.8.
The climate of Sindh is very suitable for papaya growing, but up-till
now we have only local varieties, which are tall, needing spacing of
3m x 2m or 2m x 2m with density of 1667 and 2500 plants/hectare. In
Sindh papaya tree is grown as an inter crop with mango and citrus. Its
harvest season is January to April, and August to November, i.e. cool
period. The fruit is mostly attacked by virus. Since the fruit is
highly perishable its post-harvest life is very short. Papain industry
is not developed in Pakistan.
Future work is going on
genetically engineered papaya having plant of medium size, precocious
cropping, uniform fruit size, moderate to long fruit stalk, multiple
fruit stalks, tree and fruit resistance to mildew, fruit rot, other
fungal and viral diseases, free from blemishes appearance, small
cavity, thick flesh, sweet, good flavour and better post-harvest
life. Hawaiian Solo cultivar, UH Sunup, and UH Rainbow Blue stem,
Granam, Fairchid Betty, Kissimme, Co-1, Co-2, Ranchi, Barmani,
Halflong have great future in Pakistan. These varieties also can help
in boosting the papain industry in Pakistan. |
