“Tikdi” – A Fruit Fly Resistant Land Race of Ber (Ziziphus mauritiana Lamarck)

“Tikdi”– a land race of ber collected from Rajasthan has shown strong resistance to fruit fly infestation, high tolerance to drought and resistance to frost and owing to these traits it is used as a root stock for other commercial varieties of ber. Its fruits are preferred by affluent people and sold at higher prices as fruits are free from larva of fruit fly and their excreta and dehydrated fruits can be stored for more than six months. The upright growth habit of tree of tikdi enables it suitable for agro-forestry. Full grown up tree of tikdi produce higher leaf fodder to feed livestock.