Genetic Diversity of Pear (Pyrus spp.) in Uttarakhand Himalayas

Survey of two pear growing districts of Uttarakhand (Champawat and Pithoragarh) was conducted during the fruiting season (July-August) of two consecutive years (2010 – 2011). A total of 38 accessions with distinct traits of horticultural importance were identified. Scion wood of the identified accessions was collected during following winter dormant period (January-February) and grafted on suitable rootstock for conservation in the field genebank. Prior to collection of scion wood of a plant, passport data and data pertaining to flowering and fruiting characters were recorded. Fruit length ranged from 3.6 – 8.2 cm, fruit width 2.6 – 6.7 cm, fruit weight 65 – 290 g, TSS 8.5 – 14.5 ⁰Brix, vitamin ‘C’ 2.3 – 6.3 mg.100 ml⁻¹, organoleptic value 4 – 9 on 10 point scale and post harvest life of fruits ranged from 5 – 13 days. The accessions collected from different sites were found to have fairly rich diversity in parameters under study.