PERFORMANCE OF TURMERIC (CURCUMA-LONGA) UNDER MIDHILL CONDITIONS OF HIMACHAL-PRADESH

An experiment was conducted during 1987-89 at Solan to study the performance of 11 cultivars of turmeric (Curcuma longa L.). The cultivars showed significant differences in plant height, leaves/plant, leaf length and breadth, rhizome length and breadth, yield/plant and yield/ha. The curcumin content (rhizome and fingers), essential oil and oleoresin also showed considerable variation. Local cultivar ('ST 323'), though good for horticultural traits, proved poor in quality attributes. The cultivars introduced from turmeric-growing areas did not give stable performance both for morphological and quality characters, indicating less feasibility of their introduction in the state. The plant height, leaf breadth and rhizome length had significant and positive association with yield/plant.