THE UNAVAILABILITY of green fodder in hill areas in the dry season is a major problem for residents. But botanists A B Bhatt and Neelam Rawat of the H N Bahuguna Garhwal University have conducted a study on the fodder quality of some shrubs and developed a model to ensure year-round supply of green fodder (Journal of Tree Science, Vol 11, No 1).

Bhatt and Rawat studied six multi-purpose shrub species, chosen because they are a rich source of fodder, they bind the topsoil and they provide firewood. Their research shows the shrubs, including kapni, dawi and pol, in combination can provide green fodder throughout the year, because at least one of the species would be sprouting green leaves in any given month.