Banarasi Karaka
An eastern-belt variety associated with the Banaras region of Uttar Pradesh, performing well as part of the small group of ber cultivars that consistently do well under hot arid conditions.
Quick facts
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Kharif
- Maturity period
- Bears from year 2–3 (grafted/top-worked)
- Expected yield
- Good, reliable commercial performance
- Suitable soil
- Sandy / light soil
About this variety
Banarasi Karaka is a named ber variety associated with the Banaras (Varanasi) region of eastern Uttar Pradesh, one of the small handful of established cultivars — alongside Gola, Seb, Umran and Kaithli — that horticultural literature cites as performing consistently well under India's hot, arid ber-growing conditions. It gives growers in Uttar Pradesh's eastern belt a regionally rooted variety choice, complementing the more centrally-Rajasthan-associated Gola and Kaithli lines with an option specifically named for and grown in the eastern part of the crop's range.
Key characteristics
Yield & maturity
Maturity period
Bears from year 2–3 (grafted/top-worked)
Expected yield
Good, reliable commercial performance
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
Pest & disease considerations
Major diseases
- Not separately documented
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- A regionally established choice for Uttar Pradesh's eastern ber belt, complementing the more Rajasthan-centred core varieties.
- Part of the small, consistently well-performing group of named ber cultivars, rather than an unproven local selection.
Things to consider
- Detailed comparative yield and fruit-quality figures less widely published than for Umran or the CAZRI Thar-series releases.
- Best documented and adapted for eastern Uttar Pradesh conditions specifically.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Uttar Pradesh