Custodians of plant diversity

As many as 100 varieties of mango on one tree; each branch of a citrus plant bearing a different citrus variety; five fruits of Rosaceae family such as plum, peach, pear and apricot on a green apple tree; six colours of oleander blooming on a single plant; gumless Madagascar jackfruit that became a promising commercial variety in Karnataka in the name of Santhrupti jackfruit... each plant on this 120x90 site has a story tell.

The unique collection, with over 200 fruit, flower and medicinal plant varieties, is the culmination of decades of earnest efforts by Dr C N Mruthyunjayappa and Sudha Mruthyunjayappa, a couple based in Mysuru.

In the early seventies, the newly wedded couple decided to start their journey from Saraguru in H D Kote taluk. “I wanted to practice medicine in the most remote and underdeveloped region in the State and found that Saraguru is one such place,” says Mrunthyunjayappa. Along with serving the needy through his profession, Mruthyunjayappa along with Sudha developed a one of a kind garden with over 600 rare and exotic plant species. The grafting techniques Mruthyunjayappa had learnt in a horticulture school near Saraguru came to be useful in the process. Both of them studied Botany in college and they attribute their deep passion for plants to this.

In the late 1990s when they decided to shift to Mysuru, the first thing they planned was to develop a repository of rare, exotic and endangered species. Soon after the construction of the house, they created a blueprint of the garden allocating the right space for each plant. Like seasoned gardeners, the couple gave priority to soil treatment by digging the soil to a depth of five feet to clear it of all the materials that might be harmful to the plants. Then loads of dry leaves, red soil and sand were added to the soil in layers. While the house and garden came to shape in 2003, they shifted to Mysuru in 2008.

It takes more than one and a half hours to walk through this rich collection as Mruthyunjayappa introduces each plant to the visitors with anecdotes, unique features of the plant, and details as to how it entered the garden. With over 100 fruit varieties (some of them have subvarieties — 34 varieties of citrus, 12 types of guava, seven types of custard apple, etc.) and 40 flowering and medicinal plants, the garden has many firsts and onlys in its possession.

“We have travelled widely across the country and to several countries abroad, and every time we return from a trip, we will have a new plant and loads of information about the plant diversity of the region,” says Sudha. If they come across an interesting species or idea, the couple don’t rest until they try it. They have rich memories associated with each plant, be it travelling to the Northeast to fetch six rare plants or an unscheduled tour to get a plant that attracted their attention in the airport. The cost of the plants has not deterred them from buying them. “Though some plants are expensive, we could afford them and there are no regrets,” says Mruthyunjayappa. The beauty of their work is that they discuss elaborately before executing any plan. “We proceed only after both of us are convinced about a plan,” he says. Due to careful study, detailed planning and meticulous implementation, the plant survival rate here is 80%. For Sudha, life is a triangle with herself, Mruthyunjayappa and plants as its three sides. The couple spend at least six hours everyday, observing and nurturing the plants. While Sudha is actively engaged in various social activities, Mruthyunjayappa was serving as a doctor until last year.

For a cause

It would have remained as another impressive collection, but for its owners’ efforts to use it for conservation and propagation purposes. The couple have brought many fruit species unheard of in this region and grown them successfully. “This repository of rare species serves the academic purpose too. We often take our students there for field trips. They get to see plants from different corners of the world under one roof. The couple have provided four to five rare varieties to our scion bank,” says Harish B S, assistant professor, college of horticulture, Mysuru.

Iconic varieties that are now on the verge of extinction such as Iaranagere brinjal, Mysore veelyadele (betel leaves), Nanjangud rasabale (banana) have been conserved and propagated by Sudha and Mruthyunjayappa. Acknowledging the contribution of the couple for the conservation of rare plant varieties and sharing the germplasm for research purpose, The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority has conferred the plant genome saviour farmer award on Mruthyunjayappa this year.

The couple have never nurtured the ambition to be the ‘sole’ owners of a variety, no matter how rare and unique the plant is. “Another person need not go through the elaborate process we have undergone,” they say. Over 1,000 people have taken grafted plants of different species from this farm, which is rightly named ‘Santhrupti’ (translating to satisfaction in Kannada). While Mruthyunjayappa conducts grafting classes regularly, Sudha shares information with the like-minded through various social media platforms.

Though Mruthyunjayappa started grafting multiple varieties to a single plant out of curiosity decades ago, now he feels it will be appropriate for urban areas. “Imagine the luxury of eating a new variety of fruit each month from a single tree,” he posits as he points to the fruit-bearing apple tree in their garden.

You can contact Dr C N Mruthyunjayappa on 9448958809. Like anyone else in the Sirsi-Shivamogga region, Subba Rao Hegde, Beluru, was captivated by the flavour and taste of appemidi, the popular tender mango variety used for pickling, since his childhood. “Appemidi is an integral part of our gourmet memories,” says Subbanna. The fame of appemidi, endemic to this region, proved to be fatal for the trees as people opted easy and unsustainable ways of harvesting to tap its popularity and earn good profits, resulting in the destruction of trees.

Every appemidi tree is unique and the death of one tree meant the extinction of a variety. “The thought of losing our favourite appemidi varieties made us act immediately,” say Subba Rao and his wife, Bhageerathi. They started documenting appemidi varieties of the region with focus on the characteristics (shape, flavour, taste), yield, keeping quality etc in 2005.

While they collected the mangoes that are preferred by the local communities, Bhageerathi pickled each variety to record the characteristics. From 2005 to 2010, they tested and identified 150 appemidi varieties that are best suited for pickling and other preparations such as appehuli, mosaru gojju, kochugai, mandana gojju etc. Subba Rao utilised his grafting expertise to conserve and propagate selected varieties.

Various tender mango fairs organised in this region by like-minded people in 2006 and 2007 triggered the interest of people. With more awareness, people were able to conserve many good varieties, including some iconic ones.

Bilekallu Channabasappa Gowda, Deevaragadde Subbanna and Dantkal Ganesh Hegde are some others who contributed to the conservation of these unique varieties.

From 2006 to 2013, Subba Rao and Bhageerathi organised over 100 grafting training sessions in Sagara, Soraba and Hosanagara areas. So far, he and those who are trained under him have together grafted over 1,000 appemidi plants for propagation.

As a result of such efforts, people have now started cultivating these wild varieties in their farms. Subba Rao himself has cultivated appemidi in 1.5 acres land. Apart from appemidi, Subba Rao has a good collection of other mango varieties. He has also grafted multiple varieties to a single mango plant successfully.

Saving 'appemidi' mango varieties

Like anyone else in the Sirsi-Shivamogga region, Subba Rao Hegde, Beluru, was captivated by the flavour and taste of appemidi, the popular tender mango variety used for pickling, since his childhood. “Appemidi is an integral part of our gourmet memories,” says Subbanna. The fame of appemidi, endemic to this region, proved to be fatal for the trees as people opted easy and unsustainable ways of harvesting to tap its popularity and earn good profits, resulting in the destruction of trees.

Every appemidi tree is unique and the death of one tree meant the extinction of a variety. “The thought of losing our favourite appemidi varieties made us act immediately,” say Subba Rao and his wife, Bhageerathi. They started documenting appemidi varieties of the region with focus on the characteristics (shape, flavour, taste), yield, keeping quality etc in 2005.

While they collected the mangoes that are preferred by the local communities, Bhageerathi pickled each variety to record the characteristics. From 2005 to 2010, they tested and identified 150 appemidi varieties that are best suited for pickling and other preparations such as appehuli, mosaru gojju, kochugai, mandana gojju etc. Subba Rao utilised his grafting expertise to conserve and propagate selected varieties.

Various tender mango fairs organised in this region by like-minded people in 2006 and 2007 triggered the interest of people. With more awareness, people were able to conserve many good varieties, including some iconic ones.

Bilekallu Channabasappa Gowda, Deevaragadde Subbanna and Dantkal Ganesh Hegde are some others who contributed to the conservation of these unique varieties.
From 2006 to 2013, Subba Rao and Bhageerathi organised over 100 grafting training sessions in Sagara, Soraba and Hosanagara areas. So far, he and those who are trained under him have together grafted over 1,000 appemidi plants for propagation.

As a result of such efforts, people have now started cultivating these wild varieties in their farms. Subba Rao himself has cultivated appemidi in 1.5 acres land. Apart from appemidi, Subba Rao has a good collection of other mango varieties. He has also grafted multiple varieties to a single mango plant successfully.