TEHRN- As announced by the chairman of Iran’s Horticultural Sciences Research Institute (HSRI), over 20 million tons of garden products are produced in the country every year.

Mehdi Taheri said, "In the country, we have 2.8 million hectares of gardens and more than 20 million tons of products are produced in these areas."

He said until the last 20 years, Iran’s climate showed that it is a garden country and all kinds of fruits were available in the country, and because of this, the development of gardens happened, adding, "We are one of the leading producers in the production of some products such as apples, citrus fruits, dates, grapes, etc. and we have surplus production."

According to Taheri, most of the required fruits are produced in the country and a large amount is exported, and of course, bananas and some tropical fruits are imported into the country.

He pointed out that the severe water shortage and depletion of underground and surface water sources have put the country in a severe water crisis, and one million hectares of the country's gardens that have been developed in the past 20 years are at risk of becoming 3rd and 4th grade gardens, and stressed, We must have a plan to prevent it.

MA