A “Michurin Garden” has been opened on the grounds of the Talgar regional branch of the Kazakh Research Institute of Fruit and Vegetable Growing in the village of Almalik. This is the first major initiative of the Kazakhstan–Russia Center for Advanced Technologies in the agro-industrial complex.
The project is implemented by the National Academy of Sciences of Kazakhstan and the Russian Academy of Sciences. Its goal is to strengthen the scientific and educational capacity of the agricultural sector, advance domestic horticultural breeding, and enhance food security. The new garden will serve as a multifunctional platform combining scientific research, innovative agrotechnologies, and practical training.
Key areas of the project include expanding the bioresource collection and gene pool of fruit and berry crops, studying and adapting promising varieties, creating a foundation for new breeding programs, and introducing high-intensity technologies that ensure high yields, plant resilience, and efficient use of water, energy, and soil resources.
On an area of 3 hectares, traditional and new industrial apple varieties have been planted, along with a wide range of fruit and berry crops. In cooperation with Russian partners — the Sirius Science and Technology Center, the AgroFood Industry Research Center, and the Federal Research Center named after I.V. Michurin — experimental plots are being set up to test high-yielding, commercially demanded varieties adapted to Kazakhstan’s conditions. These include the apple variety “Pamiyati Nesterova,” the pear “Nika,” the plum “Zarechnaya Rannyaya,” and others.
Additional unique breeding varieties of pears, cherries, sweet cherries, plums, honeysuckle, currants, gooseberries, chokeberries, sea buckthorn, serviceberries, viburnum, and rose hips will also be planted.
The “Michurin Garden” will function as an open-air laboratory, testing advanced scientific solutions ranging from planting material selection and orchard layout to storage, processing, and delivery of high-quality fruit to consumers.