The Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU)-Coimbatore has developed a new cotton culture – TCH 1819, which is now being tested for performance through Adaptive Research Trial (ART).
It is a high-yielding, shorter-duration variety, suited for mechanised harvesting of cotton bolls.
This culture (it is referred to as a culture as it is still at the experimental stage) was laid out for performance at Kumaraguru Institute of Agriculture (KIA), Sakthinagar on 3.5 acres. The crop is about to be harvested.
Highlighting the features of TCH 1819, K Ganesamurthy, Director, Centre for Plant Breeding and Genetics, TNAU, told BusinessLine that the pre-release culture is suitable for high density planting with duration of 125 to 130 days.
The plant is compact and erect (90-100 cm) with zero monopodial and short sympodial branches, with about 15-20 large-sized bolls (weighing more than 5 gm) per plant. The culture has been developed by crossing Khandwa 2 with LH 2220.
“It has given an average seed cotton yield of 2,140 kg/ha.
The highest recorded was 2,587 kg/ha. Results from 52 locations out of the 200 ART conducted over the last two years are available,” he said.
To create awareness about this culture amongst farmers in Erode district, KIA — in association with TNAU and State Department of Agriculture — organised a Field Day.
Over 300 farmers from the neighbouring taluks attended the event. Seed mini kits of TCH 1819 were distributed to the farmers during the programme.
TNAU sources explained that a certain number of adaptive research trials will be conducted to understand the farmers’ acceptance and multi-location trials by researchers, before it is screened and approved by the government for release as a variety.

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