ABSTRACT
Mesta (Hibiscus cannabinus [kenaf] and H. sabdariffa [roselle]) belongs to the family Malvaceae. Mesta is a third most important bast fiber producing commercial crops grown in India. Mostly two species of Hibiscus namely sabdariffa (Roselle) and cannabinus (Kenaf) are cultivated for fiber yield. Mesta is cultivated in many countries and geographically distributed in Africa, Australia, Brazil, Caribbean Islands, Egypt, Hawaii, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Gambia, India, Indonesia, Latin America, Malaysia, Mali, Myanmar, Namibia, Nigeria, Panama, Philippines, Senegal, Congo, France, Thailand, and United States of America. In India, it is cultivated mainly in the states of Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal (Mahadevan et al., 2009). In India its cultivation occupies 1.5 lakh hectares acreage and production 8.5 lakh bales (1bale = 180 kg) with productivity of 11q/ha. The highest productivity of mesta was recorded in West
Bengal 17 q/ha. Acreage, productivity and production of Mesta started declining over the years due to high incidence of pests and disease and non-availability of effective integrated disease management strategies.
