MYAGDI: Commercial apple farming has been initiated for the first time in Gajne, Beni Municipality–5 of Myagdi district.
Apple cultivation has been started on a 30-ropani farm along with a poultry farm operated by Prabin Agriculture and Livestock Farm. Farm operator Yadav Poudel said the venture was launched after a successful trial of apple cultivation in the area.
Poudel, who previously worked in government service and later spent seven years working in Iraq, said he has now returned home and invested around Rs 20 million to develop the commercial orchard.
“Apple farming has just started. In the coming years, I plan to expand it to 50 ropanis and develop a homestay under an agro-tourism concept,” he said.
Gajne lies at an altitude of around 2,200 meters above sea level. According to Poudel, grafted saplings of varieties were brought from the Himalayas of India and planted last November. As grafted varieties, some plants have already started bearing fruit within the first year.
Although apple cultivation for household use exists in nearby Gurja and other parts of Dhaulagiri Rural Municipality, this is the first commercial-scale apple farming initiative in the area.
Plastic sheets have been laid in the orchard to control weeds. Previously, crops such as rice, wheat, maize, and millet were cultivated on the land, while part of the area had remained barren.
Poudel, 51, also has a diverse employment background, including work in postal services, accounting in Rukum, and various private ventures such as a meat shop, educational consultancy, and livestock farming.
He said he also previously invested in Boer goats and sheep farming, but shifted to apple cultivation following limited success in those ventures, with plans influenced by his son, who runs a restaurant in Pokhara.
Alongside apple farming, the farm currently supports 25 sheep, two buffaloes, and one cow, and provides employment to one worker.
The initiative also envisions agri-tourism development. Poudel said there are plans to operate a homestay targeting visitors to the nearby Jagannath Temple and tourists visiting the cave hill viewpoint.
From the site, views of Dhaulagiri, Annapurna, Nilgiri, Manapathi, and surrounding districts such as Myagdi, Parbat, and Baglung are visible. The historic Dholthan area, once associated with the Baise–Chaubise era Parbat kingdom, is also located nearby.
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