The research team from the UGM Faculty of Agriculture has conducted research on tea plant breeding to produce new clones in the Pagilaran garden, Batang Regency. Breeding activities have been carried out since the 1990s and have been used for student research for final projects from undergraduate to doctoral degrees.
This breeding research activity resulted in a series of PGL clones (Pagilaran) totalling to 15 clones. Nine promising clones in terms of production, quality, and main pest resistance were released as superior varieties. The application for the release of this variety was made by Dr. Jamhari, SP., MP., As Dean of the UGM Faculty of Agriculture.
The release of this variety goes through the stages of substance inspection, field visits by members of the assessment team and trial release of varieties. Seven of the nine clones submitted were approved to be released into high yielding varieties. The release of the seven tea varieties is stipulated in the Decree of the Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Indonesia No. 26, 27, 28, 49, 50, 51 and 52 /Kpts/KB.010/3/2020.
One of the members of the PGL series tea variety release team, Dr. Rudi Hari Murti, SP., MP., said the seven clones had the potential for dry tea yield> 3.5 tons / ha / year, higher than TRI 2025 and PS I varieties. These varieties has a high polyphenol content, very strong antioxidant activity, and caffeine content from 3.07 to 4.02 percent.
“In addition, there are two tea clones that have the superiority of very fragrant aroma. These two very fragrant clones can be developed into special teas, “said the Vice Dean for Academic and Student Affairs, Faculty of Agriculture UGM, Sunday (7/6).
Based on field observations at the peak of empoasca and helopeltis pests, Rudi said that several varieties showed resistance compared to comparison varieties and Gambung 7. However, this advantage still needs to be tested with artificial pest infestations to ensure the level of resistance to the two main pests at this time.
“The seven released varieties can be reproduced and commercialized by PT Pagilaran as planting material to produce black tea, green tea or white tea in accordance with the tea market demand,” he concluded.
Source: https://ugm.ac.id/id/berita/19522-faperta-ugm-lepas-tujuh-klon-unggul-teh-di-pagilaran
