Summary:
Sixty days after the turkey berry is planted, both plants produce stems of approximately same thickness. “We are researching on grafting chillies using the machine and are also looking to replicate the mechanism locally,” added Pugalendhi.So far, the department has produced about 50,000 grafted plants using the machine. The brinjal plant’s scion (stem) and the turkey berry’s rootstock are then grafted together with clips /grafting machine, horticulture dean L Pugalendhi explained.The state government plans to popularize the technology developed by TNAU and supply it to farmers. The technique includes planting seeds of the turkey berry in protrays and planting seeds of brinjal in a separate protray 30 days later. After about 20 days, they become fit to be sold to farmers.The automated vegetable grafting machine, which the department has been using for about six months now, has ensured efficiency and productivity..