CISH J-42 (seedless type)
The seedless jamun type from ICAR-CISH Lucknow. At Godhra it had the highest pulp share (over 92%) but the lowest yield of four cultivars. In the Karnal sodic-soil trial it scored lowest (0.36).
Quick facts
- Type
- Open-pollinated
- Season
- Kharif
- Starts bearing
- Grafted plant: first fruit in about 4–7 years (guides differ; TNAU says 6–7)
- Expected yield
- No kg-per-tree figure published; lowest yield of four cultivars at Godhra
- Suitable soil
- Loam
- Disease resistance
- Moderately tolerant of sodic soil, with the lowest score of four (0.36) in a Karnal trial
- Release
- ICAR-Central Institute for Subtropical Horticulture (CISH), Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh
Actual yield depends on sowing time, soil, irrigation, weather, seed quality and crop management.
About this variety
CISH J-42 is the seedless jamun type from ICAR-CISH, Lucknow. At CHES Godhra it had the highest pulp share of four cultivars, over 92% of the fruit, against over 85% for Goma Priyanka and 80% for Konkan Bahadoli. That is its selling point. The same trial gave it the lowest yield per tree. In the sodic-soil trial at ICAR-CSSRI Karnal, J-42 lost 31% of its trunk area and 26% of its canopy volume and scored 0.36, the lowest of the four. So it is a poor pick for sodic land.
Should you pick this variety?
Choose CISH J-42 if your buyer pays for pulp and you want the smallest stone. At Godhra, more than 92% of its fruit was pulp. Accept a lower yield per tree: it was the lowest of four there. Do not plant it on sodic land, because it scored lowest at Karnal. Pick Goma Priyanka (over 85% pulp, highest yield) for a better balance on ordinary land. Pick CISH J-37 for sodic land.
Sowing & cultivation
- Sowing timeSpring (February–March) or monsoon (July–August). The monsoon is better (TNAU).
- Spacing10 × 10 m (TNAU). The Godhra trial planted these cultivars at 5 × 5 m.
- Sowing methodPlant a budded or grafted plant, not seedling jamun, in a 1 × 1 × 1 m pit filled with 75% top soil and 25% well-rotted farmyard manure or compost (TNAU).
- IrrigationYoung trees need 8 to 10 irrigations a year. A mature tree needs about half that, given in May and June while the fruit ripens. In autumn and winter irrigate only when the soil is dry (TNAU).
- HarvestingHarvest in June–July by hand. Ripe fruit cannot stay on the tree, so pick as it ripens (TNAU).
Soil & climate
Soil
- Suitable soil
- Deep, well-drained loam gives the best yield. The tree tolerates salinity and waterlogging. Very heavy or very light sandy soils are uneconomical (TNAU).
Climate
- Climate
- Tropical and subtropical, up to 1,300 m in the lower Himalayas. Dry weather is needed at flowering and fruit set, and early rain helps ripening (TNAU).
Advantages & considerations
Why farmers may choose it
- A seedless type, with over 92% of the fruit as pulp at Godhra
- The highest pulp share of the four cultivars compared
Things to consider
- It gave the lowest yield per tree of the four at Godhra.
- It scored lowest (0.36) for sodic-soil tolerance at Karnal, so it is not for sodic land.
- The two papers give no fruit-weight or kg-per-tree figure for J-42.
Suitable regions
States this variety is recommended for — check locally, since a state can have more than one recommended zone.
- Uttar Pradesh
Pulp per kg is not pulp per tree
J-42's advantage is the share of pulp. The cost is yield, since it gave the lowest yield per tree at Godhra. A processor or pulp buyer pays for pulp, so the real number is pulp per tree: kg of fruit a tree gives, times its pulp share.
For the same 100 kg of fruit, J-42 gives about 92 kg of pulp, Goma Priyanka about 85–90 kg and Konkan Bahadoli about 80 kg. If J-42 gives less fruit per tree than Goma Priyanka, part or all of that gain is lost.
The papers give no kg-per-tree figures for these cultivars, so work it out from your own trees. Weigh a full tree's fruit for two seasons, then multiply by the pulp share. Do the same for a second cultivar planted beside it, before you plant a block.
Where the planting material comes from
This variety is a grafted plant: the variety on top, joined onto a rootstock below. Seed out of its fruit will not come up as this variety, so it cannot be kept as seed. Buy grafted plants from a registered nursery or a government farm, so the plant is true to the variety and free of disease.
How it compares with other varieties
Every Jamun (Indian Blackberry) variety with a page on this site, side by side. The row for this page is highlighted.
| Variety | Best for | Starts bearing | Yield | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CISH J-37 | Jamun on sodic or alkaline land, where the other cultivars lose more growth | Grafted plant: first fruit in about 4–7 years (guides differ; TNAU says 6–7) | No kg-per-tree figure published; second-highest yield of four cultivars at Godhra | Uttar Pradesh |
| CISH J-42 (seedless type)this page | A seedless jamun for fresh sale or pulp, on ordinary non-sodic land | Grafted plant: first fruit in about 4–7 years (guides differ; TNAU says 6–7) | No kg-per-tree figure published; lowest yield of four cultivars at Godhra | Uttar Pradesh |
| Goma Priyanka | A productive, smaller jamun tree for closer planting on ordinary soil | Grafted plant: first fruit in about 4–7 years; ICAR's 50–70 kg a tree is from the 10th year | 50–70 kg/tree from the 10th year (ICAR) | Gujarat, Maharashtra |
| Konkan Bahadoli | A jamun that grafts with fewer losses, for nurseries and first-time farmers | Grafted plant: first fruit in about 4–7 years (guides differ; TNAU says 6–7) | No kg-per-tree figure published; below Goma Priyanka and CISH J-37 on yield at Godhra | Maharashtra, Karnataka |
| Narendra Jamun-6 | An eastern Uttar Pradesh jamun to plant only after you have seen it fruiting | Grafted plant: first fruit in about 4–7 years (guides differ; TNAU says 6–7) | No separate figure published | Uttar Pradesh |
| Rajendra Jamun-1 | A Bihar jamun to plant only after a fruit and pulp test on a tree you can see | Grafted plant: first fruit in about 4–7 years (guides differ; TNAU says 6–7) | No separate figure published | Bihar |
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 Jamun (Indian Blackberry) is selling for.
- Seed Rate CalculatorHow much seed your Jamun (Indian Blackberry) plot needs, corrected for the germination of the lot you bought.
- Germination CalculatorTest 100 seeds from the bag before sowing and see whether the lot is fit to sow.
- Seed Variety FinderFilter every Jamun (Indian Blackberry) variety on this site by state, season, duration and soil.
- Fertilizer CalculatorTurn the NPK recommendation for Jamun (Indian Blackberry) into bags of urea, DAP and MOP for your field size.
- Crop CalendarMonth-by-month sowing, weeding, irrigation and harvest dates for Jamun (Indian Blackberry) in your state.
- Crop Profit CalculatorPut your seed, labour and input costs against the yield you expect from this variety.
- Mandi Price CheckerToday's Jamun (Indian Blackberry) rate in your nearest mandi, before you fix a price with a trader.
Subsidy and government support
Schemes that help with the cost of Jamun (Indian Blackberry) seed or planting material. Rules and the application route are on each scheme page.
Frequently asked questions
Is CISH J-42 really seedless?
A horticultural paper from ICAR-IIHR calls it the seedless variety. Even so, the Godhra trial found over 92% pulp, which means some of the fruit is still skin and stone, up to about 8 in every 100 kg. Cut open fruit from your own trees before you promise 'seedless' to a buyer.
Which jamun has the biggest share of pulp?
At Godhra, CISH J-42 had over 92% pulp, Goma Priyanka over 85% (ICAR gives 85–90%), and Konkan Bahadoli 80%. So 100 kg of J-42 fruit gives roughly 7 kg more pulp than Goma Priyanka and 12 kg more than Konkan Bahadoli. That is per kg of fruit, not per tree.
Why does J-42 yield less than the others?
The paper reports the result but gives no reason. It ran on rain alone at Godhra, with nine-year-old trees. Yield can differ in other soils and climates. Plant a few trees beside a second cultivar and weigh the fruit yourself for a few seasons.
Can I grow CISH J-42 on sodic or alkaline soil?
It is a weak choice there. At Karnal its trunk area fell 31%, its canopy volume 26%, and its tolerance score was 0.36, the lowest of four. CISH J-37 scored 0.76. If your soil is sodic and you still want J-42, test a few plants first.
How do I make sure the plant I buy is really CISH J-42?
Buy grafted plants only. TNAU advises against seedling jamun because it bears late, and a seedling would not be seedless anyway. Ask for the mother tree and the source, ICAR-CISH Lucknow or a nursery that names it, and have the variety written on the bill.
Sourced from: Jamun — TNAU Agritech Portal, Horticulture: Fruits, Impact of systematic improvement in jamun cultivars on yield and quality of fruits — Indian Journal of Arid Horticulture (ICAR e-Pubs), Physiological traits underlying sodicity tolerance in jamun cultivars — PeerJ / PMC, Effect of grafting on success and survivability of jamun varieties — Journal of Horticultural Sciences (ICAR-IIHR). editorial policy.