Goma Prateek
ICAR-CIAH Bikaner's 2009 release: an early, spreading, semi-dwarf, regular-bearing tamarind. It flowers from the 4th year and is quoted at 58.50 kg of fruit a plant.
Quick facts
- Crop
- Imli (Tamarind)
- Type
- Grafted improved variety
- Season
- All seasons
- Starts bearing
- Flowers from year 4 (Indian Horticulture); CIAH quotes 58.50 kg of fruit a plant
- Expected yield
- 58.50 kg of fruit a plant (one source says in year 4, CIAH ties it to year 9)
- Suitable soil
- All soils
- Disease resistance
- Not published
- Release
- Released 2009 · ICAR-Central Institute for Arid Horticulture (CIAH), Bikaner
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
Goma Prateek is a tamarind released in 2009 by the ICAR-Central Institute for Arid Horticulture (CIAH), Bikaner. An Indian Horticulture note (2019) describes a tree 4.7 m high with a girth of 63.66 cm, early, spreading, semi-dwarf and a regular bearer, that starts flowering in its 4th year and yielded 58.50 kg of fruit a plant. CIAH's variety page gives a long pod of 16.70 cm by 1.25 cm, a pod weight of 26.70 g and acidity of 14.06%, and ties the 58.50 kg to the 9th year. A Gujarat cultivar comparison (2020 to 2024) listed Goma Prateek, Ajanta and Pratisthan as promising, and gave Goma Prateek the longest pods (15.0 cm) and a pulp weight of 9.21 g.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose Goma Prateek if you farm dry land in Rajasthan or Gujarat and want a regular-bearing tamarind from the arid-zone institute. CIAH reports a semi-dwarf tree of 4.7 m that flowers in its 4th year and is quoted at 58.50 kg of fruit a plant, with a 16.70 cm pod. A Gujarat comparison (2020 to 2024) named it among the promising cultivars, with the longest pods (15.0 cm) and a higher pulp weight. Choose PKM-1 for the Tamil Nadu pockets where TNAU names it.
Sowing & cultivation
- Spacing8 to 10 m x 8 to 10 m for tamarind in general (TNAU). CIAH has not published a closer spacing for this semi-dwarf tree.
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- Regular bearer, semi-dwarf at 4.7 m, from the arid-zone institute.
- Flowers from the 4th year, in step with TNAU's "bearing from the 4th year" for tamarind.
- Long pods: 16.70 cm on the CIAH page and 15.0 cm in the Gujarat comparison.
Things to consider
- The 58.50 kg a plant is given for the 4th year in one source and the 9th in another. Ask CIAH for the table.
- Bred for arid land; we found no data from the humid south.
- No disease score was found.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Rajasthan
- Gujarat
Reading the 58.50 kg figure: which year is it?
Two sources quote the same 58.50 kg of fruit a plant but tie it to different ages. The Indian Horticulture note says the tree starts flowering in its 4th year and yielded 58.50 kg. CIAH's variety page gives 58.50 kg in the 9th year. A 4th-year tree and a 9th-year tree are very different, so the number cannot be used until CIAH confirms which.
If it is the 9th-year figure, work out a hectare. At 10 x 10 m that is 100 trees, so 5.85 t of fruit. At 8 x 8 m it is 156 trees, so about 9.1 t. TNAU's general figure for a full tamarind tree in the wetter south is 150 to 200 kg, which is two to three times higher, so an arid-zone tree may simply yield less. Do not compare the two directly.
Whatever the year, the shape of the tree helps in the dry west. At 4.7 m high, a semi-dwarf tree is easier to pick and spray than a large spreading seedling tree. Ask CIAH Bikaner for its yield table by year, and plan your first picking after the 4th-year flowering, not before it.
Where the planting material comes from
Tamarind is highly cross-pollinated and has long been grown from seed, so seedlings vary widely (ICAR-IIHR). Trees raised from the seed of a named variety will not come true. TNAU propagates tamarind by softwood grafting in March and April, or by air layering with IBA at 4000 ppm. Buy Goma Prateek as a graft, and ask CIAH Bikaner or a nursery it supplies for the source.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Imli (Tamarind) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Starts bearing | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DTS-1 | Sweet red pulp (Karnataka) | Bears from year 4 (TNAU, tamarind in general) | No variety figure published; TNAU gives 150 to 200 kg of pods a tree for tamarind in general | Karnataka |
| Goma Prateekthis page | Dry west, semi-dwarf, regular | Flowers from year 4 (Indian Horticulture); CIAH quotes 58.50 kg of fruit a plant | 58.50 kg of fruit a plant (one source says in year 4, CIAH ties it to year 9) | Rajasthan, Gujarat |
| PKM-1 | Tamil Nadu tamarind belt | Bears from year 4; economic crop from year 9 (TNAU, tamarind in general) | TNAU: 150 to 200 kg of pods a tree a year for tamarind; a lecture note gives 270 to 300 kg for PKM-1 | Tamil Nadu |
| PKM-2 | Little data published | Not published for PKM-2; TNAU gives bearing from year 4 for tamarind in general | No variety figure published; TNAU gives 150 to 200 kg of pods a tree for tamarind in general | Tamil Nadu |
| Pratishthan | High pulp share, Maharashtra | Bears from year 4 (TNAU, tamarind in general) | Pulp share 61% in the release description, 49.8% measured in a 2026 comparison; no tree yield found | Maharashtra |
| Urigam | Long pods, sweet pulp | Bears from year 4 (TNAU, tamarind in general) | No variety figure published; TNAU gives 150 to 200 kg of pods a tree for tamarind in general | Tamil Nadu |
| Yogeshwari | Red pulp, high yield | Bears from year 4 (TNAU, tamarind in general) | Described as a high-yielding type; no figure found | Maharashtra, Karnataka |
Tools for this crop
The numbers you need next: how much seed to buy, whether the lot germinates, what the fertilizer bill looks like and what Imli (Tamarind) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Imli (Tamarind) plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Imli (Tamarind) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Imli (Tamarind) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Imli (Tamarind) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Imli (Tamarind) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Is Goma Prateek dwarf or semi-dwarf?
Semi-dwarf. The Indian Horticulture note gives a tree height of 4.7 m and a girth of 63.66 cm, and describes it as early, spreading and a regular bearer. 4.7 m is above head height, so you will still need a pole or ladder for the upper branches.
When will Goma Prateek flower and when do I get a real crop?
The Indian Horticulture note says flowering starts in the 4th year. TNAU says tamarind in general bears from the 4th year and gives its economic yield from the 9th. CIAH ties the 58.50 kg figure to the 9th year, so plan the real crop around then.
How big is the Goma Prateek pod?
CIAH gives a pod of 16.70 cm by 1.25 cm weighing 26.70 g, with acidity of 14.06%. The Gujarat comparison measured pods of 15.0 cm and a pulp weight of 9.21 g, the longest and among the highest in the trial. Pods differ by site and year, so measure your own.
Is Goma Prateek suited to the south?
It was bred at the arid-zone institute at Bikaner, and the only comparison we found was in Gujarat. We found no trial in Tamil Nadu or Karnataka. TNAU's preferred varieties for its tamarind belt are PKM 1 and Urigam, so use those unless a local trial says otherwise.
Goma Prateek or PKM-1: which should I plant?
In Rajasthan or Gujarat dry land, Goma Prateek, because it comes from the institute that works on arid fruit. In the Tamil Nadu tamarind belt, PKM-1, which TNAU names a preferred variety. A lecture note gives PKM-1 40% pulp and 270 to 300 kg of pods a tree. Goma Prateek has the quoted 58.50 kg of fruit a plant.
Sourced from: Goma Prateek enriching tamarind wealth — Indian Horticulture 58(5), 2019, Fruit varieties — ICAR-Central Institute for Arid Horticulture, Bikaner, Biochemical, mineral and morphological properties of Indian tamarind cultivars — Food Science & Nutrition, 2026, Tamarind — TNAU Agritech Portal (horticulture, spice crops). editorial policy.