Genetic Resource Management of Ramie (Boehmeria sp.): A Bast Fibre Crop of North Eastern India

Genetic Resource Management of Ramie (Boehmeria sp.): A Bast Fibre Crop of North Eastern India

Ramie (Boehmeria nivea L. Gaud) is one of the oldest valuable textile fibre crop of the world and it is well known as one of the strongest and longest natural fibre in the world. In India ramie is a semi-perennial bast quality fibre crop of various uses traditionally grown the North East. Commercially ramie is an asexually propagated crop but flowering in the cultivated types occurs twice in a year and produced large number of tiny viable seed which a best material for maintenance and genetic improvement of this crop. Apart from quality fibre ramie has a great potential for its diversified uses in green nutritive fodder, paper pulp, bio-composites, biomedicine, etc. A total 181 germplasm accessions have been collected and maintained at Ramie Research Station, Sorbhog (Assam). Total ramie gene pool including exotic and wild uncultivated species, have been broadly classified into three major groups (i) Tall (cultivated) (ii) Creeping (wild) and (iii) bushy types (wild). Majority of the accessions belong to tall cultivated types followed by creeping un-cultivated types and busy types. Germplasm evaluation screening for fibre quality, winter and herbicide tolerance have a great role in economic maximization, farm mechanization and yield optimization of ramie.