Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Agronomy – Kharif Crops

CASTOR

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

CASTOR Botanical name: Ricinus communis L.

Family: Euphorbiaceae Chromosome number: 2n=20

Castor is one of the ancient and important industrial and non-edible oil crops of the world. It has the ability to grow under low rainfall and fertility conditions, and is most suitable for dryland farming. The oil content of the seeds varies from 50-55% in different varieties. The importance of oil arises from it richness (85-95%) of ricinolic acid. Castor oil is being used widely as a lubricant in high speed engines and aeroplanes, in manufacture of soaps, printing inks, varnishes, transparent paper, linoleum and plasticizers. It is also used for medicinal and lighting purposes. The oil cake is used as organic manures and plant stalks as fuel or as thatching material or for preparing paper pulp. Castor oil is also used as a purgative. In dyeing industries, it is used for preparation of ‘Turkey red’.

Castor oil is used in many veterinary medicines. It is used externally as an emollient. It is also used as a soothing medium when dropped into the eyes of animals after removal of foreign bodies. In eri silk-producing areas, leaves are fed to eri worms. After extraction of oil, castor cake is valued as manure. It contains 6.4% N, 2.5% phosphoric acid and 1% K and some micronutrients. Castor is also valued for its anti-termite properties. The presence of ricin, and an allergen restrict its use as livestock feed.

Origin Castor is believed to have most probably originated in Ethiopian-East African region. There are four centres of diversity for castor, viz. (1) Ethiopian-Eastern African, (2) North-West and South-West Asia and Arabian peninsular (3) Sub-continent of India and (4) China. In India castor is known from very early days and is referred in Susruta Sambita written over 2,000 years ago.

Botany Castor is a tall branching perennial shrub growing to over 6 metre height. The cultivated types reach up to 1.0-1.5 m height. Leaves are large (10-60 cm across) and each leaf is divided into 7-9 triangular segments with toothed edges and conspicuous veins. The flowers are arranged on spikes in the forks of the upper branches with female flowers arranged at the top and male at the base. After pollination, female flowers develop into spiny fruits of 2.5 cm size across. Fruits have 3 segments, and each segment has a seed.

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Castor Seed

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Castor_bean Geographical Distribution A native of Africa and Asia, and is now naturalized in Australia. It is abundantly seen along with courses and flood plains, disturbed or wasteland, and road sides. Castor cultivation confines to 40o latitude from equator on either side (N&S). India is the principal global

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producer of castor followed by China and Brazil. The major castor producing countries of world are given in Table 1.

Table 1. Area, production and productivity of castor in producing countries of world (2004)

Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004

In the country during 2005-06, it is grown on 0.95 m ha with a production of 0.91 m tones. Of the total production, a 0.57, 0.16 and 0.15 m tonne is produced by Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan respectively. Of the total castor oil production in the country (0.38 m tonnes) the domestic utilization is less than one third (0.12 m tonnes in 2005-06). The state-wise distribution for 2003-04 is given in Table 2

Table 2. Area, production and Productivity of castor in different states of India (2003-04)

State Area (000, ha) Production (000 t) Productivity (kg/ha)

Andhra Prdaesh 291.0 132.0 454

Assam 1.5 0.6 400

Bihar 4.0 3.0 750

Gujarat 290.3 541.1 1864

Karnataka 17.0 14.0 824

Madhya Pradesh 1.1 0.4 364

Maharashtra 26.0 5.0 192

Orissa 17.7 8.6 486

Rajasthan 63.6 89.8 1412

Tamil Nadu 19.9 6.5 327

India 732.2 801 1094

Country Area (m ha) Production (lakh tonnes) Productivity (t/ha)

India 8.00 8.53 1.07

China 2.60 2.50 0.96

Brazil 1.65 1.28 0.78

World 13.48 13.09 0.97

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Source: Damodaram and Hegde, 2005

Castor Zones in India Castor growing areas fall into the following 5 zones in India.

1. Zone 1: Irrigated castor

Mehsana, Sabarkanta, Banaskantha and Kutch districts of north Gujarat and non-traditional areas of Sirohi and Pali districts of Rajasthan.

2. Zone 2: Rainfed castor Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh comprising Nalgonda, Mahboobnagar, Ranga Reddy and Warangal districts; in non-traditional areas of Prakasam and Guntur coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh. Raichur, Chitradurga, Mandya, Mysore and Tumkur districts of Karnataka, Salem, Dharampuri, South and North Arcot districts of Tamilnadu; Korapur, Kalahandi, Dhenkanal and Ganjam districts of Orissa.

3. Zone 3: River banks of Bhagalpur, Purnea and Munger districts of Bihar.

4. Zone 4: Leafy and long duration perennial grown in backyards, wastelands and marginal lands for raising eri silkworm feeding in eastern India.

5. Zone 5: On field bunds in coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra, primarily as wind break.

Classification Castor has a large number of cultivars or types. Papova (1930) divided the Ricinus communis into 6 sub-species on eco-geographical growing groups i.e. sub-species africanus; chinensis; mexicianus; pericus; sanguineus and zanzibarinus.

Climate Castor is a hardy crop, and can be grown in wide range of climates of warm tropical regions with a rainfall of 250-750 mm. It performs best with moderate temperature (20-26oC) with low relative humidity and clear sunny days throughout the crop season. Areas with temperature > 40oC and <15oC are not conducive for castor cultivation. A frost free climate is a must for the crop. It can withstand drought also owing to deep root system and also due to light reflecting characteristics of stem and leaves that reduce heat load and improve survival under moisture stress. High rainfall at flowering and capsule formation stage is not conducive, as it promotes botrytis disease. Though the crop can not stand frost, but some annual cultivars can grow even at altitudes of 1200-2100 m, e.g., the Nilgiris, if sown in March-April. Perennial varieties are grown at still higher altitudes for shade in coffee estates.

Soil Castor can be grown successfully on most of the soils except heavy clay and poorly drained soils. The soils with low water holding capacity (sandy soils) are also not suitable for castor cultivation. The soils with pH > 9.0 and < 4.0; EC > 4.0 dS/m and ESP > 20% are not suitable. Moderately fertile soils are preferred as high fertility induces excess vegetative growth, prolonged flowering and delayed to maturity, leading finally to poor yields.

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In India, the soils where castor is grown with higher productivity include chalka (shallow) soils of Andhra Pradesh to deep sandy loams of Gujarat. In Orissa, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, the soils are relatively deep. In the Malabar region of Kerala and South Kanara of Karnataka, it is cultivated in clayey rice fallows, while in Uttar Pradesh; it is raised in heavy loam soils. Castor is highly sensitive to soil salinity but genotypic variations are noticed in terms of salt tolerance and performance under salinity.

Land preparation The slow initial growth coupled with its cultivation at wider row spacings calls for not only deep ploughing, but also a land preparation to arrest weed menace during cropping season. Hence, a deep summer ploughing is necessary for weed control and conserving moisture. This should be followed by 2-3 harrowings to break the clods and finally levelling of the field.

Seeds and Sowing Seed rate and Spacing The seed rate used for sowing behind the plough is 12 kg/ha. For hand dibbling, 8-10 kg/ha of seed will be sufficient. For intercropping, seed rate depends on sowing proportion of component crops.

The spacing varies with growth habit, duration of variety and time of sowing. Under rainfed conditions, early and medium duration cultivars are sown at a closer spacing of 90 cm x 45 cm as against wider spacing (90 cm x 60 cm) for long duration cultivars. However, narrow spacing (60 cm x 60 cm) is necessary for realizing higher yields under late sown situation. Under irrigated conditions also, 90 cm x 60 cm spacings are suitable. In Gujarat, long duration (10 months) crop with profuse branching and lateral spread are used and 180 cm x 180 cm is followed for higher yields (up to 6 t/ha). This wider spacing is also known to prevent botrytis grey rot incidence.

Before sowing, castor seed should be treated with thiram or agrosan GN @ 3 g/kg seed to prevent the incidence of root-rot and Alternaria blight. Seed treatment with carbendazim + Tricoderma at 10 g/kg seed + soil application of Tricoderma has been found most effective in preventing castor wilt. FYM and neem cake applications and seed treatment with Tricoderma viridi have also proved effective in reducing the incidence of Alternaria blight.

Time of Sowing Time of sowing depends on the onset of monsoon. Generally the crop is sown during June-July. In Andhra Pradesh, optimum time of sowing is from second half of June to mid July. Owing to red hairy caterpillar menace in early sown crop, farmers usually sow the crop in July in this region. However, with the development of effective management technology for this pest, June sowings are increasingly adopted. In Karnataka, kharif castor is sown in April. In Gujarat, first fortnight of July is optimum for kharif, while for rabi crop, it varies from September-October. Rabi crop should be done sown when the soil temperatures are greater than 12oC.

Method of sowing Castor is sown by dropping the seeds behind the plough under rainfed conditions. The method is followed in Andhra Pradesh and requires higher seed rate (12-15 kg/ha). However, under irrigated conditions, seeds are dibbled at required spacings. This is adopted in Gujarat. Owing to its epigeal mode of germination, seedling emergence is not a problem. In light soils, under rainfed conditions, deep sowing (8-10 cm depth) is preferred, while under irrigated situation and heavy soils, shallow sowings (6-8 cm) are ideal.

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Varieties The varieties of castor recommended for different states of India are given below.

Varieties and hybrids of castor recommended for different states

State Variety Hybrid

Andhra Pradesh Aruna, Bhagya, Sowbhagya, Kranti (PCS-4), Jwala, DCS-9 (Jyothi), Kiran (PCS-136), Haritha (PCS-124)

Uttar Pradesh Kalpi-6, T-3, T-4

Gujarat GAUC-1, VI-9, S-20, J-1 CH-1, GCH-2, GCH-3, GCH-6, SHB-145, GCH-7

Tamil Nadu TMV-1, TMV-2, TMV-3, TMV-5, SA-1, SA-2, TMV-4, Jyothi, CO-1

TNAUCH-1

Karnataka Jwala (48-1), RC-8, Jyothi

Maharashtra AKC-1, Girija GCH-6

Rajasthan GCH-6, RHC-1

Haryana CH-1

Punjab Pb. No.1

For all States Gujarat castor-2 DCH-32 (Deepti)

DCH-177 (Deepak)

GCH-4, GCH-5, DCH 519

Recently released varieties / hybrids

DCH 519: A hybrid (M 574 x DCS 78) released for both irrigated and rainfed conditions for entire country in 2006 with a yield of 1.5 and 2.0 t/ha respectively. This variety is spiny with triple bloom and is resistant to Fusarium wilt.

GCH 7: A hybrid (SKP 84 x SKI 215) released for Gujarat for irrigated conditions with 2.45 t/ha yield and is resistant to nematode and wilt complex

Manures and Fertilizers

Hybrids and irrigated crop require more fertilizers than a variety and rainfed crop. Among organic manures, 15-20 t/ha of FYM application is desirable both under rainfed and irrigated conditions for moisture conservation besides supply of nutrients. The recommended dose of fertilizers under rainfed conditions is 40:40 kg/ha of N:P2O5. All the P along with 50% N is applied at the time of sowing at the last harrowing. The remaining N is top-dressed after first weeding 30 DAS. Under irrigated conditions, 40 kg/ha each of P2O5 and K2O and a higher dose of N (150 kg/ha) may be required. The N is applied in 3 equal splits at sowing, first

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hoeing and pre-flowering stages. Among sources of P, single superphosphate is preferred as it supplies Ca and S also.

Water management Castor though can tolerate moisture stress, but responds well to irrigation. The crop performance is poor, when the crop experiences moisture stress from seedling to flowering stages. Hence, under irrigated conditions, 2-3 irrigations are given during this critical period. If only one irrigation is available, it should be given at flowering stage. Irrigations should not given during maturity stage, as it results not only in delayed maturity, but also new vegetative growth. In periods of high rainfall, provision of drainage is highly essential.

Weed management The initial 50-60 days after sowing (DAS) is critical period of crop-weed competition. After a thorough and deep land preparation, the crop requires 2 hoeings either manual or mechanical 25 and 50 days after sowing. Pre-plant incorporation of fluchloralin or pre-emergence application of pendimethalin @ 1 kg/ha is effective in controlling grasses as well as broad-leaved weeds. The above herbicides integrated with one hoeing 50 DAS may provide most satisfactory weed control in castor.

Cropping Systems Castor being a tall statured crop, finds place as shade crop for turmeric and also in coffee estates. It is also grown as trap crop for pests. Castor is grown as a sole crop in rotation with wheat and linseed, and also grown mixed with cotton, groundnut, pigeonpea, greengram, sorghum, pearl millet and cowpea.

Intercropping of castor with pigeonpea reducing the incidence of Spodoptra litura. Intercropping with groundnut in 1:2 row proportion gives higher net returns under Kerala conditions.

Harvesting and Threshing It takes about 145-280 days to mature. Harvesting is done when capsules turn yellowish. However, all the spikes do not mature at the same time. The central spike on the main rachies mature first, and thereafter the spikes on the side branches start maturing. Therefore, 2-3 pickings may be needed for harvesting the crop. The spikes should be dried in the sun for 4-5 days and then threshed.

Yield Depending upon the agro-climatic conditions and crop management practices adopted, the improved hybrids/varieties may yield 2.0-2.5 tonnes of seed/ha. The oil to seeds crushed is 37% and cake to seeds crushed is 63%.

The yield attributes (range) of castor is as below.

Attribute Value

Capsules/plant 80-120

Seeds/capsule 3

1,000 seed weight (g) 100-150

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Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Cotton

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

COTTON Botanical name: Gossypium spp.

Family: Malvaceae

Chromosome number: 2n=13 (Deshi)0

2n=26 (American)

Cotton (Gossypium spp.) is one of the most important commercial fibre crops of the world contributing 40% of raw material to textile industry, besides serving as raw material to over 25 industries. Hence it is called ‘white gold’.

Cotton is chiefly grown for its seed fibre, which is used in the manufacture of cloth for the mankind. It is also used for several other purposes like making threads, for mixing in other fibres and extracting of oil from the cotton seed. The oil and protein content in the cotton seed is about 17% and 24% respectively. American varieties contain more percentage of oil. Deoiled cotton seed and cake are good organic manure with 6-3-2% of N-P2O5-K2O. Cotton seed, and cotton meal forms concentrated feed for cattle.

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Origin and Taxonomy The genus Gossypium comprises 49 species, of which 4 are commercially grown for lint and seed purposes. Among them, two each are diploids and allo tetraploids species. The 2 diploid species (2n = 26) are known as old world or Asiatic cottons (in India, they are called deshi cottons). Gossypium arboreum L. also called tree cotton is cultivated in India and G. herbaceum L. called Arabian/Syrian cotton is cultivated in central Asia. The other 2 species called new world cottons are G. hirsutum L. (American or upland cottons) and G. barbadense L. (Egyptian or sea island cottons)

G. arboreum has originated in the Indo-Gangetic alluvium of north India. The cultivated G. herbaceum derived from G. herbaceum var. africanum (distributed in South Africa). G. hirsutum is native to Mexico and Central America, while G. barbadense has originated from South America (probably Peru).

Cotton has been used as a fabric in India since time immemorial. It has been cultivated in the Indus valley more than 5000 years. The excavation of Mohenjodaro indicates high degree of art in spinning and weaving with cotton at that time. India is considered as a center of an important cotton industry as early as 1500 BC. The cultivation of cotton spread from India to Egypt and then to Spain and Italy.

Geographic Distribution Cotton is the most important fibre crop of the world cultivated over an area of 35.2 million ha with a total production of 69.9 million tonnes of seed cotton. The important cotton growing countries are India, China, USA, Pakistan, and Brazil (Table 1).

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Table 1. Area, production and productivity of cotton in different countries (2004)

Seed cotton Lint (2003-04) Country Area (m ha)

Production ( m tonnes)

Productivity (t/ha)

Production

( 000 bales)*

USA 5.285 7.437 1.41 18,255

China 5.690 12.640 2.22 22,300

Uzbekistan 1.456 1.968 1.35 4,200

India 8.988 5.130 0.57 13,100

Pakistan 3.192 4.852 1.52 7,750

Argenteina 0.253 0.190 0.75 -

Turkey 0.637 1.390 2.18 4,100

Brazil 1.149 2.466 2.15 5,650

Turkmenistan 0.525 0.445 0.85 -

Greece 0.377 0.590 1.56 -

Australia 0.321 0.912 2.84 -

Egypt 0.301 0.449 1.48 -

World 35.234 69.936 1.98 93,465

* Bale= 480 lb (240 kg)

Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004

India ranks first in the world in respect of acreage and third in seed cooton production. Of the total acreage, 3.5 m ha are under Bt cottons during 2006. In India, cotton is grown on a large scale in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. Gujarat is the largest producer of cotton in India followed by Maharashtra and Punjab (Table 2).

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Table 2. Area, production and productivity of cotton lint in important states of India (2004-05)

State Area (000 ha)

Production(′000 bales) *

Productivity (kg/ha)

Andhra Pradesh

1178.0 2190.0 316

Assam 1.0 1.0 170

Chattisgarh 0.5 0.8 272

Gujarat 1906.3 4724.8 421

Haryana 621.0 2075.0 568

Karnataka 521.0 688.0 224

Kerala 2.7 4.4 277

Madhya Pradesh

576.1 626.1 185

Maharashtra 2840.0 2939.0 176

Orissa 45.9 111.2 412

Punjab 509.0 2087.0 697

Rajasthan 437.8 764.6 297

Tamil Nadu 129.4 194.8 256

Uttar Pradesh

4.9 5.1 177

West Bengal

2.0 3.0 255

India 8786.6 16428.6 318

*Bale : 170 kg

Source: Fertilizer association of India, 2006

Classification Genus Gossypium includes 49 species of cotton including wild as well as cultivated species. The cultivated species have spinable lint, while wild species have only short seed fuzz or

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smooth seeds. Out of the total species, only 4 are cultivated, of which 2 are diploids (deshi) and two tetraploids (American cottons).

Gossypium arboreum (n = 13) – Deshi/ Asiatic cottons: It is most widely grown deis cotton. The lint is short (staple length <25 mm) and coarse with micronaire value >60.

Gossypium herbaceum (n = 13) - Deshi / Asiatic cottons: It is less widely grown.

These two species accounts for ~2% of world cotton production. In India, they account for 28% of the cotton acreage.

Gossypium herbaceum

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Gossypium hirsutum (n = 26) – American or African upland cotton: These are medium staple (staple lenth 25-30 mm) cottons with micronaire value ranging from 3.8-5.0. it accounts for over 90% of global cotton production.

:Gossypium hirsutum

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Gossypium barbadense (n = 26) – Egyptian cottons: The fibre length is long ( staple length .32 mm) and fine with micronaire value of < 4.0. it accounts for about 8% of global cotton production.

Gossypium barbadense

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Gossypium barbadense

India is divided into 3 cotton zones based on species grown as below.

1. Northern hirsutum, arboreum and hybrid zone: In this zone short ( <20 mm) and medium staple ( >20.5 -25.5 mm) cotton is cultivated under irrigation.

2. Central hirsutum, herbaceum, arboreum and hybrid zone: In this zone medium (26.0-27.5 mm) and long staple (28.0-33.5 mm) cotton is cultivated under rain fed situation.

3. Southern arboreum, hirsutum, herbaceum, barbadense and hybrid zone: In this zone long (28-33.5 mm) and extra long staple (>35 mm) cotton is cultivated under irrigated or rain fed situations.

Botanical Description In the wild state, cotton is a perennial plant, attaining height of 5-6 m. However, most of the cultivated cottons are annuals. Cultivated cotton is a herbaceous plant, which attains a height of 75-200 cm.

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Root system: Cotton plant has a tap root with secondary roots that branch laterally from primary root.

Stem: The main stem is erect and profusely branched. The branches develop from buds located at the nodes of the main stem. There are 2 buds at the base of each leaf petiole. The true axillary buds develop into a vegetative branch, which only bear leaves and no flowers. The accessory bud generally develops into sympodial or fruiting branch. Vegetative branch may arise either from axillary or an accessory bud. There is tendency for the lower branches to be vegetative, while the upper ones as fruiting branches.

Leaves: The leaves are spirally arranged on the main stem and vegetative branches, except on fruiting branches, where they form 2 alternate rows. The leaves are petiolate. The outline of leaf is more or less cordate with 3-9 lobes depending on variety. The leaves are green, but in some species such as arboreum¸ leaves contain some purplish colour.

Flowers: The flowers develop at the node of opposite to a leaf in fruiting branches only. The flowers are typical of the mMalvaceae family. The flower buds appearing as small, and pyramidal shaped green structure are called ‘square’. The flowers open about 18-24 days after the squares are formed. Flowers consist of pistil, the stamens arranged in a tube-like staminal column the revolves the style of the pistil, 5 petals and 5 green sepals, joined together to form a cup like calyx.

Fruit: The fruit is the enlarged ovary that develops into 3-5 loculed capsule or boll. The bolls vary in size and shape, but are usually more or less egg shaped. When the boll is ripe, the capsule cracks or splits along the lines or sutures where carpels meet, and the cotton within expands greatly in a white fluffy mass. The number of seed in the boll varies from 24 to 50. The cotton fibre is simply an elongation or outgrowth of an epidermal cell of the seed coat. The long outgrowth forms the ‘staple’ or ‘lint’, while shorter outgrowth forms ‘fuzz’.

Climatic Requirements Cotton, a warm season (semi-xerophyte) woody indeterminate shrub, is grown under a wide range of climate. The minimum temperature for germination is 15.5oC, while the optimum being 18-38oC. For vegetative growth, 21-27oC is suitable. For reproductive growth, a night and day temperature of 20 and 30oC respectively is the optimum. It has the ability to withstand the various degrees of drought. The mean relative humidity in the growing season should be >50%. However, it can tolerate temperatures as high as 43oC. During fruiting phase, cool nights are required. Abundant sunshine during the period of boll maturity and harvesting is essential to obtain a good quality produce.

A frostless season of 180-240 days is required in north India for successful cotton growing. High temperature of about 45oC during sowing and seedling stage and extremely low temperature with frequent frost during winter coinciding with picking, and moderate rainfall of 30-70 cm usually occur in the northern zone. In central and southern zones, the climate is more uniform. The maximum temperature during the season varies from 32 to 40oC, while minimum temperature ranges between 10 and 20oC. In Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, a part of the rainfall is received during September to December through the north-east monsoon.

Varieties Since first five year plan, several promising cotton varieties have been released and recommended for different regions of the country. Regionwise recommended Bt cooton hybrids, hybrids and varieties are given below.

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Bt. Cotton hybrids suitable for cultivation in different agro-climatic zones of India

Agro-climatic zone BG-I (BollGaurd I) BG-II

(Boll Guard II)

Northern Zone

(Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan)

MRC 6304, MRC 6301,MRC 6025, MRC 6029, Ankur-651, Ankur 2534, RCH 134, RCH 317, RCH 308, RCH 314, NCS 913, NCS 138

Central Zone

(Gujarat, Maharshtra, Madhya Pradesh)

Mech 12, Mech 162, Mech 184, MRC 6301, RCH 2, RCH 118, RCH 138, RCH 144, RCH 377, Ankur 09, Ankur 651, NCS 145 Bunny Bt., NCS 207 Mallika Bt, GK 205, Tulasi 4,Brahma Bt, VCH-111, ACH 33-1, ACH 155-1, VICH 5, VICH 9, PRCH 02

ACH-11-2

KDCHH-444,

MRC 7301

MRC 7326

MRC 7347

South Zone

(Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh)

Mech 162, Mech 184, MRC 6322, MRC 6918,RCH 2, RCH 20, RCH 368, RCH 111, RCH 371, RCHB 708, NCS 145-Bunny Bt, NCS 207, Mallika Bt, GK 209, Brahma Bt, NCS 913, PRCH-02, PRCH-02, PRCH-103, GK 207, ACH 33-1, PCH 2270, KDCHH-9632, VICH 5

MRC 7351

MRC 7201

Cotton hybrids recommended for different zones

Zone Desi hybrids herbaceum x arboreum (diploid hybrids)

Intra-hirsutum hybrids hirsutum x barabadense hybrids

North Zone LDH-11* Fateh, LHH 144, Dhanalaxmi, Maruvikas, Omshankar

Central Zone GDH 7, GDH 9, Pha 46

CICRHH-1, Hybrid 4, Hybrid 6, Hybrid 8, Hybrid 10, PKV Hy2, PKVHy3**, PKV Hy 4**, NHH 144, JKHY-1,JKHY-2, Godavari, NHH-302

NHB-12, NHB 302, JKHy-11

South DDH-2 DHH-11, Suguna**, Surya, Savita

Varalaxmi, DCH 32, DHB 105, CBS 156,TCHB 213, HB 224, Sruthi, KCH-1, Savitri

*Intra arboretum hybrid; ** Male sterility based hybrids

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Cotton varieties recommended for different zones

Zone arboreum herbaceum hirsutum barbadense

North

Zone

G 27, Lohit, Shyamali, RG 1, LD 133, LD 230, LD 327, DS 1, HD 11, RG 8

Digvijay Ganganagar Ageti, SH 131, Vikas, F 414, H 777, Pramukh, H 14, LH 900, F 505, F 848, H 794, PST 9, F 1054, HS 45, Pusa 31, Pusa 8-3, F 286, LH 372, BC 761, F 1861, RS 310, H 1117, RS 20113

Central

Zone

Sanjay, Maljari, AK 235, G 22, AKH 4, AKA 1, AKA 5, Sujay, Eknath

F 46, V 797, Digvijay, G.Cot. 11, G.Cot. 13, G.Cot. 18, G.Cot. 19, G.Cot. 23, CNH 36

Laxmi, Khandwa 1, Khandwa 2, Khandwa 3,Vikram, LRA 5166, PKV 081, L 174, Devitej, Gujarat 67, DHy 286, Purnima (NH 239), Badnawar 1, Nimbakar 1, Buri 1007, Narbada, AKA 8401, Deviraj, Arogya, Rajat

Suvin

South

Zone

Nardium, Srisailam, Mahanandi, Pandaripur, Coconada red, K 7, K 9, K 10, Gorani 6

Jayadhar, Westerns 1, Raichur 51, Ajanta (DB 3-12)

Laxmi, Hy 14, Bhagya, Sharada, MCU 6, MCU 7, MCU 8, MCU 9, MCU 10, MCU 12, LRA 5166, Kanchana, LK 861, L 389, L 603, L 604, Mysore Vijay, Hampi, Krishna, Mahalaxmi, Suman, Sowbhagya, Sumangala, Supriya, Pratima

Suvin, Sujata,

TNB 1

Recently released varieties and Hybrids:

RHy 253, LAHH 4, LAHH 5, Lam Hybrid 1, Vagad Kalyan ( RB 423), HHH 223, Arvinda ( NDL 2708), ICMF 20, Shana, RAMPBS 155, Parbhani 316, GBhv 179, GSGDH 2, ADCH 1, HD 123, CDHB 1, NFHB 109, WHH 9, AAH 1 Jawahar Kapas 4 (Madhya Pradesh); RHH 492, RHB 388 (Maharashtra); Narasimha, Veena (Andhra Pradesh)

Soils Cotton is grown on extremely diverse soil types. However, a deep (>60 cm), friable, well drained and fertile soil is most suitable. Silty clay to clay soils are the best. Soils with a pH >9.0 and <6.5 and CaCO3 content > 10% in root zone are not suitable for cotton cultivation. It is raised mainly as a rainfed crop in the black cotton and medium soils and as an irrigated crop in the alluvial soils.

The predominant types of soil on which the crop is raised are:

Alluvial soils (preponderant in the northern states of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh), Red sandy loams to loams (preponderant in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya

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Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu) and Laterite soils (found in parts of Assam, Tamil Nadu and Kerala).

Land Preparation Cotton requires thorough land preparation for germination and growth of the crop. In cotton-wheat cropping system of north, cotton is sown immediately after harvest of wheat leaving little scope for proper land preparation. The field is irrigated immediately after rabi crop followed by ploughing with MB plough and planking.

Under rainfed conditions, land preparation starts with the onset of monsoon. However, a deep summer ploughing is desirable once in 3 years to ward off perennial weeds and also to kill pests and disease propagules hibernating in the soil. After the start of monsoon, the field is harrowed 3-4 times followed by planking in vertisols of central and southern India. However, in red soils of southern India, 2-3 light ploughings are given before planking. Land preparation costs can be minimized by adopting minimum or zero tillage coupled with use of suitable herbicides.

Cropping systems Cotton is grown mixed with maize, sorghum, sesame, pulses or vegetables in many parts of central India. Intercropping with ragi or other millets or groundnut is also quite common in parts of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Intercropping and mixed cropping under rainfed conditions serve both as an insurance against crop failures and as a preventive measure against soil erosion.

The most important cotton based rotation in irrigated areas of Punjab, Haryana, northern Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh is cotton-wheat.The growing of berseem and clusterbean (guar) has been found to have beneficial effect on the succeeding cotton crop. In central and western India, cotton-sorghum, cotton-pearl millet, cotton-wheat, cotton-gram and cotton-sesame are the useful rotations followed.

Seed and Sowing

Seed rate and spacing The seed rate varies with species, growing zone and availability of irrigation. A highly branching monopodial variety/hybrid requires more spacing than non-branching sympodial types. With the evolution of compact varieties, the concept of wider row planting has been changed to closer planting systems which can accommodate more plant population.

Species Growing condition

Cotton zone Seed rate (kg/ha)

Spacing (cm)

Irrigated North 20-25 75 x 15

Irrigated South 10-15 75 x 30/45

Rainfed North/Central/Southern 18-20 60 x 30

G.hirsutum

Rainfed Southern 10-12 90 x 30

G.arboreum/

herbaceum

Irrigated/Rainfed North 10-12 60 x 30

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Species Growing condition

Cotton zone Seed rate (kg/ha)

Spacing (cm)

Rainfed Central/Southern 12-15 45 x 25/

60 x 30

G.barbadence Irrigated Southern 8-10/12-15 90 x 30/

75 x 30

Irrigated Southern 2-3 90 x 30/

45/60

Rainfed Central 3-4 150 x 60

Hybrids

Rainfed Southern 2-3 120 x 60

Method of sowing In case of desi cottons, line sowing behind the seed drill is common. However, in case of hybrids and Bt cottons dibling the seeds is preferred owing to higher seed costs. Square planting are beneficial than rectangular planting methods. The optimum depth of sowing is 4-5 cm.

Gap filling and thinning As the crop is grown at wider spacing, the gaps arising due to failure of seed germination or seedling mortality or incidence of pests / disease must be filled by sowing water soaked seeds. To ensure full stand, 2-3 seeds/hill are dibbled. After germination, the weak/diseased/damaged seedlings are removed by keeping a healthy seedling/hill.

Seed treatment The seed is covered by short fibre called ‘fuzz’ in most of the American cottons that makes sowing difficult owing to cliinging of seeds. Its separation is essential for ease of sowing and is achieved by the following ways.

Non-chemical method: The seeds are soaked in water overnight, and then rubbed with cowdung and wood ash or saw dust to separate fuzz from seeds. The seeds are dried in shade before sowing. The rubbing also helps in crushing the pink boll worm affected seeds.

Chemical method: Seeds placed in an earthen pot are soaked for 2-3 minutes in concentrated sulphuric acid. The seeds are immediately washed in water 3-4 times to remove acid residues left on the seed and dried in shade before sowing.

For chemical seed treatment, wood or metal container should not be used. The operator should wear the plastic gloves.The water containing acid and alkali residue should be properly disposed off in the waste land. Inadequate washing or delayed washing of the seed after seed treatment and residual acid on the seed if not neutralized may impair the germination of seed.

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Add 10 g of ceresan wet and 0.5 g of streptomycin or 15 g of agrimycin 100 in 10 litres of water and soak the seed in it for 6-8 hours to prevent primary infection of seed-borne pathogens. In case of acid delinted seeds, soaking for 2-4 hours is sufficient. If ceresan wet is not available, use of 10 g agallol or 5 g of tafasan / aretan may serve the purpose. One g of succinic acid in 10 litres of water may also help to promote good establishment of plant stand, and better early growth.

Time of sowing The optimum time of sowing is 1st week of May in north. However, this may be extended up to 3rd week of May to the first week of June with selection of new compact varieties. Under rainfed conditions of central and south zone, the sowing starts with onset of monsoon in June and may be extended up to first week of July. Under irrigated conditions, the optimum time of sowing varies from first fortnight of March (western Maharashtra) to 2nd to 3rd week of May (Vidarbha region of Maharashtra and Khandesh tracts of Madhya Pradesh). In Tamil Nadu cotton is planted during September-October under both irrigated and rainfed conditions. The time of sowing in rice fallows depends on the harvest of rice crop from October-November. For spring cotton, February is the optimum time of sowing.

Nutrient management Cotton is a heavy feeder of nutrients. it requires adequate supply of nutrients through manures or fertilizers. Cotton soils are universally deficient in N, but are moderate to adequate in respect to phosphorus and potassium. This shows the importance of N nutrition.

For moisture conservation and better response to applied nutrients, FYM application @ 5-10 and 10-20 t/ha under rainfed and irrigated conditions is recommended. It is applied at the last ploughing for proper incorporation into the soil.

The N dose varies from 40-60 kg/ha (rainfed) to 100-150 kg/ha (irrigated conditions). Similarly desi cotton requires less N than hybrids. The N demand of crop is spread over from sowing to boll development. Therefore, split application is desirable.The number of splits may vary from 2-3. In case of 3 splits, 50%, 25% and 25% of total N is applied at sowing, square formation and flowering. In hybrids, spot application of top-dressed N is more efficient than broadcast. Inoculation of cotton seed with Azotobacter and Azospirillum has been found effective in meeting N requirement of cotton to the extent of 30 kg/ha.

Application of phosphatic and potash fertilizers should be based on soil test values. The P2O5 dose varies from 30-40 and 40-60 kg/ha under rainfed and irrigated conditions respectively. It should be applied as basal at sowing and placed at 7-10 cm below soil for efficient utilization. The response to K fertilization is rare in India. However, hybrids under irrigated conditions with high N and P fertilization usually respond to K fertilizer. It is applied similar to P fertilization.

Use of phosphate solubilizing microbes (Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Aspergillus) along with rock phosphates are more effective than rock phosphates alone. Responses to S and Zn fertilizers have also been reported. Zn deficiency is accentuated with alkalinity of soils.

Water Management Cotton, a predominantly rainfed crop, has only 34.3% of the total area under irrigation (2003-04). Hence, both moisture conservation and water management are equally important.

Rainfed crops have low yields owing to erratic and uneven rainfall. Moisture stress during reproductive phase is most harmful to the crop performance. Tied ridging at 6 m interval, broad-bed and furrows and ridge planting are effective in rain water conservation. Use of farm yard manure and effective weed management are conducive for moisture conservation.

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In cotton, four critical stages of irrigation have been identified viz. commencement of sympodial branching (60-70 DAS), flowering (90-100 DAS), boll formation (125 DAS) and boll bursting (140 DAS). Depending on rainfall and soil types, the number of irrigations (each of 7.5 cm) may vary from 2 (sandy loam of Delhi and clay soils of Akola) to 13 in red sandy loam of Bhavanisagar. Thus, the quantity of irrigation water varies from 140-840 mm. The mean consumptive use is about 700 mm in the country. In heavy soils, cotton withstands up to 75% depletion of available soil moisture (DASM), while in sandy loams, it is 50% DASM only. For timely sowing of succeeding crops, irrigation should be withheld from 50% boll bursting stage onwards. Under limited water resources, irrigation in alternate furrows is recommended.

The drip irrigation is being increasingly adopted, and irrigation at 0.6 irrigation water (IW) / cumulative pan evaporation (CPE) ratio has been found promising. This ratio also holds good for flood irrigation.

Weed control In wide spaced crops like cotton, weeds pose serious threat to realizing the optimum yields. A weed free period of 50-60 days from sowing is required. The profuse vegetative growth beyond this period may suppress the weed growth. Uncontrolled weeds may cause 60-80% reduction in yields.

In the northern cotton-wheat region, the major weeds are Trianthema sp.; Echinochloa sp.; Digera arvensis, and Cyperus sp. In the central region, Celosia argentea, Cyanotis, axillaris, Digitaria sanguinalis, Dinebra retroflexa, Euphorbia sp., Echinochloa sp.; Ipomea and Cyperus sp. are commonly found. In the southern zone, the predominant weeds are Trianthema portulacastrum and Cynodon dactylon. Water loving weeds like Portulaca oleraceae, T. portulacastrum and E. crusgalli are major weeds in the rice fallows.

Manual, mechanical and chemical methods of weed control either alone or in combination are followed for effective weed management. The first manual hoeing 5-6 weeks after sowing or before first irrigation is essential for removal of weeds at an early stage. Later hoeings either by hand or bullock drawn implements should be done after each irrigation or rain. The interculture operations not only aid in weed control, but also help in creation of mulch, aeration of soil and better intake of water.

Among the herbicides, pendimethalin (pre-emergence) or fluchloralin (pre-plant incorporation) @ 1 kg/ha are found effective in controlling grassy weeds for the initial 2 months. For broad leaved weeds, post-emergence herbicides like diuron + paraquat (0.5 + 0.3 kg/ha) for directed spray against weeds was recommended. In developed countries, bromoxynil and glyphosate resistance has been introduced into cotton for spray for effective post-emergence weed control. Of the total cotton acreage of the world in 2002, 4.4 m ha (2.2 m ha is excusively herbicide resistant cotton and 2.2 m ha is herbicide + Bt resistant cottons) is under herbicide resistant cottons.

Use of Plant Hormones It has been observed that the cotton plant sheds the greater proportion of the buds at any stage between bud formation and boll maturity under normal growth conditions. Application of plant hormones such as planofix (α-NAA) and cycocel (CCC) at 10 ppm 80-90 days after sowing coinciding with square formation helps in more bud-retention besides helping in more sympodial branching in plants, and also inducing drought resistance.

Topping

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It is also an important aspect to remove the terminal growing point (topping) once from each plant at a height of 1 to 1.2 m or between 80-90 days of crop growth. This practice arrests further terminal growth and encourages sympodial branching and boll development. It also facilitates spraying operations and picking of cotton.

Harvesting Cotton is harvested in 3 or 4 pickings by hand as the bolls mature. The number of picking may vary with the maturity habit of the variety. The season of harvesting also varies with time of sowing and the duration of variety. Generally, crop sown in April-June is harvested in October-December, while those sown in June-September and September-October are harvested from November to March and March to June respectively. Generally, the crop in northern and central parts of India is harvested from October to December, whereas in Gujarat, from January to March/April. In the states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, the harvesting season is November to June.

Yield By adopting improved package of practices, it is possible to harvest about 1.5-2.0 tonnes of seed cotton (kapas)/ha. However, much higher yields may be obtained from hybrid cottons.

Cooton lint production is 1/3 of kapas production, while cotton to seed production is 2/3 of kapas production. Oil to seeds crushed is 14-18% and cake to seeds crushed is 82-86%.

Ginning %: Ginnin is the process of separating the fibres from seed cotton. Ginning % is the ratio of the weight of fibres to seed cotton ( kapas) expressed as %.

Weight of fibres

Ginning %: ---------------------- x 100

Weight of seed cotton

It varies from 28-30% in G.arboreum, 34-38% in G.hirsutum, and 36-42% in G.herbaceum and G.barbadense.

Fibre (staple) length: It is the most important quality parameter of fibres deciding their value. It is taken as arthimatic mean of the length of all fibres present in the sample. Cottons are calssified based on staple lenth into the following classes.

Class Staple length (mm) Cotoon zone

Short and

medium staple

< 20

and 20.5 to 25.5

Notrhen zone

Medium long staple 26-27.5

Long staple 28-33.5

Central and

southern zone

Extra long >35 Southern zone

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Spinning potential: It is measured as number of counts [i.e. number of hanks (1 hnk= 840 yards) that weigh to a pound (lb). it varies from as low as 6 S (G.arboreum) to the highest of 120 S (G. barbadense).

Micronaire value: Micronaire value is used for judging the fibre strength. It is a measure of the air permeability of a unit mass of cotton under specified conditions, expressed in terms of an arbitary scale (micronaire scale). In immature and dead fibres it is ≤ 2. The metric equivalent of it is Tex. The units of tex are micrograms/ mm of fibre length.

Additional Reading:

http://www.malvaceae.info/Genera/Gossypium/gallery.html

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Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Crops for Fodder Fodder Sorghum (Jowar) Maize (Fodder) Pearl Millet (Bajra) (Fodder) Cowpea Clusterbean (Guar) Guinea Grass Napier X Bajra Hybrid (Nbh)

Dr. B. Gangaiah

Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy

Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

FODDER SORGHUM (JOWAR) Botanical name: Sorghum bicolor

Family: Poaceae (Gramineae)

Sorghum besides an important food crop of world is also valued for its fodder and stover. Sorghum fodder is suitable silage and hay making and thus can supplement the fodder supply during lean season.The dry stover forms important feeding stock for animals especially in dry areas. It is suitable for cultivation in areas that are too dry for maize.

Geographic Distribution It is cultivated for fodder purpose in the country oin over 2.6 m ha mainly in the states of western Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Delhi. It meets over 2/3 of the total forage demand of kharif season.

Soil and its Preparation Sorghum is grown on all types of soils, except sandy soils. Heavy soils should be well drained. It can tolerate moderate levels of salinity, and suitable pH ranges from 5.0-8.5.It does not require fine seedbed. Two-three harrowings are sufficient for seed-bed preparation.

Varieties A large number of single and multicut sorghum varieties have been evolved with 50-70 t/ha/year (season) green fodder yield. The varieties with less menace of leaf diseases and stem borers are ideal for fodder purpose. In north India, grain types are grown during kharif for fodder production. The important improved varieties of sorghum recommended for fodder production in various states are given in Table 1.

Table 1. Fodder varieties of sorghum for different areas

Variety Region

Single cut

PC-6, PC-9, PC-23, HC-171, HC 260, HC 308, Pro-Agro-chari, Jawahar Chari 6

For whole country (early medium duration)

HC-136, Raj chari-1, Raj chari-2, Haryana Chari, HJ-523, MFSH-3

Whole country (late varieties)

Sl-44, MP Chari, UP chari-2 North India

Pant chari-3, UP chari-1, Haryana chari-6, JS-3

Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra

Double cut

Co-27 Tamil Nadu

AS-16, GFS-1 Gujarat

Multicut

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PCH-106, Punjab Sudex*, Pusa chari-23, Jawahar chari-69, Hara sona*, Pioneer-988, SSG-59-3 (Meethi Sudan), MFSH-3, SPV-932

Whole country

Dual purpose ( grain & fodder)

CSV 15

CSH 13

As single cut variety for north-west India

Single cut hybrid superior to HC 6

* Hybrid

The characteristics of important varieties are given below.

Single cut varieties Haryana chari (JS 73/53): A selection from germplasm collected from Uttar Pradesh

and released in 1975. It is susceptible to red leaf spot and stem borer. Green fodder yield is 30 t/ha.

HC-136: A derivative of cross between 3214 x PJ 7R, released in 1981 for irrigated conditions. Low in HCN and tannin contents with green fodder yield of 58 t/ha. Tolerant to major diseases and insect pests.

HC-171: A derivative of cross between SPV-8X x IS-4776, released in 1984 for irrigated conditions. Suitable for kharif and summer seasons. Highly resistant to foliar diseases and tolerant to major pests. Green fodder yield is 60 t/ha.

Raj chari-1: Developed from the cross between CSV6 x NCL3 and released in 1981. Resistant to stem borer and is non-lodging. Green fodder yield is 45 t/ha.

Raj chari-2: A selection from local type of Udaipur region. Resistant to stem borer with high digestibility. Green fodder yield is 33 t/ha.

UP chari-1: A single plant selection from Durra caudatum (Maje Vari-Junagarh) IS-4776, released in 1983. It is not suitable for high rainfall areas. Very low in HCN and can be fed to animals at any growth stage.

UP chari-2: Developed from the cross between Vidisha-60-1 x IS 6953 by pedigree selection, released in 1984. It is not suitable for high rainfall areas. Suitable for late sown conditions too. Green fodder yield is 38 t/ha.

Pusa chari-1: Selection form sample collected from Uttar Pradesh released in 1974. It is resistant to lodging, drought and pests. Highly responsive to fertilizers. Green fodder yield is 33 t/ha.

Multicut varieties/ hybrids: PCH 106: It has profuse tillering and quick regeneration capacity and provides 3-4

cuts. Yields up to 65 t/ha of green fodder

Meethi Sudan: It provides 55-60 t/ha of fodder in 4 cuts. It is tolerant to drought and waterlogging. The stems are sweet and thin with profuse tillering.

Dual purpose varieties/ hybrids: CSV 15: It is a single cut variety with 45 t/ha of green fodder yield. Its stems are tall,

sweet and juicy. It is resistant to leaf diseases and drought.

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CSH 13: A hybrid suitable for taking single cut of fodder. It is resistant to leaf diseases and yields about 45-50 t/ha of green fodder.

Land preparation: Theland is prepared by 2-3 harrowings.

Seeds and Sowing The seed rate varies from 25 (small seeded) to 40 kg/ha (bold seeded varieties) in single cut varieties. For multicut varieties the seed rate of 10 kg/ha is optimum.The crop is sown in in rows of 30 cm (single cut) to 45 cm (multicut) apart with a plant to plant spacing of 15 cm. the seed is sown at a depth of 2-5 cm. Mid to end of June is the optimum time of sowing for single cut varieties and April – mid May for multicut varieties under assured irrigation. In tarai region of Uttar Pradesh, last week of May to first week of June is the best, as it helps in avoiding pests. In rainfed areas, it should be sown immediately after onset of monsoon.

Manures and Fertilizers FYM application @ 10 (rainfed) to 25 t/ha (irrigated) before sowing is needed for higher fodder production. All single cut varieties respond up to 120 kg N/ha. However, crop is fertilized with 80-40-0 (single cut), 120-60-0 (double cut) and 210-60-60 (multicut) kg/ha of N-P2O5-K2O, respectively.

50% of total N (single cut, 40 kg; double cut, 60 kg; and multicut, 60 kg/ha) N along with entire P2O5 and K2O are applied as basal. The remaining 50% N is top dressed 35-40 days after sowing (single cut) and 30 days after first cut (double cut varieties). In multicut varieties, 50 kg N is top dressed after each cut. At top dressing, adequate moisture should be ensured either through irrigation or it should be applied after rainfall.

Irrigation Sorghum as a rainfed kharif crop needs no irrigation. However, at times of drought irrigation 35 days after sowing is advantageous. In summer, the crop requires 5-6 irrigations at 10-15 days interval depending on soil and climate.

Weeding Weeds at early stages of crop growth compete for water and nutrients, and finally leading to heavy yield losses. Summer ploughing followed by 1-2 hand-weedings or intercultivations between 15-35 days after sowing may considerably reduce weeds and associated losses. However, interculturing becomes difficult during rainy season. Therefore, use of herbicides is recommended. Atrazine @ 1 kg/ha (pre-emergence) and 2,4-D @ 0.75-1.0 kg/ha (post-emergence 25-35 days after sowing) can effectively control weeds in fodder sorghum. For control of witch weed [Striga gesnerioides (willd.) Vatke], use of dicamba (foliar spray) or metolachlor (pre-emergence) herbicides along with trap cropping have been advocated.

Cropping Systems: For higher and quality fodder production, intercropping of sorghum with legumes is advised. Its intercropping with cowpea (normal rainfall areas) and guar( low rainfall areas) in 2:1 ratio is promising. For intercropping, erect genotypes of legume are ideal.

Plant protection measures Diseases Sorghum crop suffers from a number of diseases. The important diseases and their control measures are described below.

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Downy mildew (Sclerospora sorghi):

Infested seedings have pale yellow narrow leaves that are covered on both sides by soft white downy growth of fungus. The affected plants remain stunted and dry up permanently. It is severe in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

The control measures include treatment of seed with agrosan GN or ceresan @ 4 g/kg seed and spray of dithane Z 78 (0.2%) to reduce secondary infection. The diseased palnts should be removed and buried into the soil.

Anthracnose (Cercospora sorghi): The disease appears as small spots on leaves and lower parts of the plant, which spread upwards later on. The leaf spots are light brown at center and dark at the margins.

Seed treatment with agrosan GN @ 3 g/kg seed followed by spray of zineb (0.2%) at 10 days interval starting from 35 days after sowing can control the disease.

Insect Pests Sorghum shoot fly (Atherigonis varies soccata)

The maggots bore into the stem and feed on main shoot, and finally destroy the growing point. This result in tillering, and in severe infestation the tillers are also attacked them also. The seedling stage is more prone to attack though the attack continues up to early boot stage.

Application of carbaryl 10 G or phorate 10 G or endosulfan 3 G @ 5 kg/ha and foliar spray of endosulfan @ 0.07% is effective in borer management. Early sowing (1st week of June) may avoid shoot fly attack.

Stem borer (Chilo partellus)

The caterpillars bore into the stem, and also the leaf prior to entering the stem. The young larvae feed on the leaves before boring downwards through the central whorl and reach the growing point. The characteristic symptoms are production of “Dead Hearts”.

Foliar spray of endosulfan (0.07%) or carbaryl (0.05%) 2-3 times at 10-15 days interval is effective in borer management. Release of Trichogramme egg parasites may also reduce the stem borer incidence.

Cyst nematode (Heterodora sorghi) This is most commonly observed in Delhi and Haryana regions.

A deep summer ploughing reduces nematode population. Carbofuran seed treatment @ 2-3% and soil treatment with sebuphos @ 2 kg/ha and tobacco dust application @ 2.5 q/ha are effective in nematode management.

Harvesting Single cut varieties are harvested at 50-100% flowering stage. In multicut varieties, the first cut is taken 55 days after sowing and the subsequent at 40 days interval. In multicut varieties, first cut should be taken 8-10 cm above ground level so as to facilitate profuse tillering.

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The crop at early stages contains hydrocyanic acid (HCN) or Dhurrin. HCN in excess of 200 ppm concentration is toxic to animals. Hence harvesting should not be done prior to 45 days from sowing. Heavy nitrogen fertilization and water stress (drought) increases HCN content. Silage or hay making removes the toxin. In summer, an irrigation before harvest may be effective in reducing HCN.

For hay making, pre-flowering is ideal stage for harvest. At this stage, the biomass is soft and rich in nutrients.

Yield The green fodder production varies from 30-45, 45-65 and 65-105 t/ha in single, double and multicut varieties, respectively. The protein content of single/ dual purpose cultivars is ~7% and has an invitro dry matter digestibility (IVDMD) of ~50%.

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MAIZE (FODDER) Botanical name: Zea mays L. Family: Poaceae (Gramineae)

Maize is most important fodder crop for milch animals. It is grown on over 9 lakh ha in different parts of the country throughout the year. It is a C4 plant having high fodder production capacity in shorter durations.

Climate Maize is grown in areas with a rainfall of 50 cm, but the best yields are achieved in 120-150 cm rainfall areas. It is more oftenly grown under assured irrigation. It is drought tolerant at early stages (up to 35 days) and is susceptible to waterlogging.

Soil and Land preparation Deep, fertile, rich in organic matter and well-drained soils are most preferred for the crop. The soil should be medium textured with good water-holding capacity. Maize will not thrive on heavy clay especially lowlands. It can be grown successfully in soils, having pH 5.5 to 7.5. The alluvial soils of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Punjab are suitable for raising maize crop.

The land should be thoroughly prepared. Four to five ploughings and three to four plankings should be done to get a seed bed free from clods and weeds.

Varieties Maize varieties recommended for fodder production in different states are given below.

Varieties/Composites Recommended for Yield (t/ha)

South African tall, Vijay composite Entire country 50-80

Jawahar, Moti composite, Manjari composite Entire country 50-80

Ade Cuba North east 25-45

J-1006 Punjab 45-55

Other varieties: Kisan composite, BL-7, Ganga-5, Ganga Safed-2

South African Tall

A composite of seven varieties released in 1983 for year round cultivation. Plant height is 260 cm and yields 40 t/ha of green fodder. Resistant to foliar diseases and stem borer.

J-1006 This variety was developed by crossing ‘Makki safed 1-DR’ x ‘Turpeno PBL’ and released in 1993 for Punjab. It is resistant to maydis blight, brown striped downy mildew and stem borer.

Seed and Sowing

Maize requires 50-60 kg seed/ha. Generally maize is sown in lines at a distance of 25-30 cm. Maize can be sown for fodder production from March to mid-April for getting fodder continuously from May to October. Generally, it is sown in mid-July

Manures and Fertilizers

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The crop needs heavy fertilization. FYM application @ 10 t/ha before sowing is necessary. Besides organic manures, fertilizers @ 90-30-30 kg/ha of N-P2O5-K2O are necessary for higher yields. A dose of 60-30-30 kg/ha of N-P2O5-K2O is applied at the time of sowing. The remaining 30 kg N is top dressed 30 days after sowing.

Crop rotation Crops like wheat, potato, toria, sugarcane, gram, berseem, lucerne, barley, oat can be grown after harvest of maize. In hills, potato is grown after maize.

Water management A rainfed crop needs no irrigation. However, at time of drought, irrigation 35 days after sowing is advantageous. However, during non-rainy and summer seasons, the crop requires 7-8 irrigations at 10-12 days interval depending on soil and climate.

Weed management During kharif season, there is severe weed problem at early stage of crop growth. Atrazine/simazine @ 1 kg/ha (pre-emergence) effectively controls the weeds in maize. In intercropping systems, weed menace is relatively less.

Plant Protection Measures Diseases Maize crop suffers from the attack of number of bacterial and fungal diseases. Rust (Puccinia sorghi), stalk rot (Phythium cephanidermatum) and leaf blight are important diseases of the crop.

Leaf blight:

In maydis leaf blight (Helminthosporium maidis), individual spots are greyish, and up to 3.75 cm in length, oval shaped with strategic zonations. Turticum leaf blight (Helminthosporium turcica) spots are greyish green or straw coloured and boat shaped. They are comparatively fewer in number and large in size than those of maydis.

These disease can be controlled by 2-4 sprayings of maneb or zineb (1.5 kg in 600 litres of water/ha).

Insect pests Some of the major insects are:

Shoot fly (Athrigona sp.) It is very serious pest of maize in south India. In north India, however, maize crop is not affected much except in spring season in tarai area. The attack is more at the seedling stage. The tiny maggots creep down under the leaf shoots till they reach the base of seedling. After this they cut the growing point, which results in the formation of characteristic ‘dead hearts’.

Application of thimet 10 G @ 15 kg/ha at the time of sowing in furrows pest or spraying of 0.02% of metasystox will control the pest.

Maize jassids and thrips (Anaphothrips flavi cinctus) These pests cause serious losses of Sathi crop (60 days crop) in Punajb during March-May. They are also becoming important on the normal kharif crop.

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Spray metasystox 25 EC or Rogor 30 EC @ 500 ml/ha in 100 litres of water with a low-volume sprayer.

Cutworm (Agrostisipsilon) The larvae of this pest cut the seedlings at the ground level. Caterpillars are grey in colour. They live in soil during day and feed at night. The adults of cutworm may be trapped on light source and may be killed later.

Dusting of 2% folidol or 3% heptachlor dust at the base of the plant @ 20-25 kg/ha will control the pest.

Cyst nematode (Heterodora sorghi) The yield losses range from 10-25%. They are most commonly observed in Delhi and Haryana regions.

A deep summer ploughing reduces nematode population. Carbofuran seed treatment @ 2-3, and soil treatment with sebuphos @ 2 kg/ha and tobacco dust application @ 2.5 q/ha are effective in nematode management.

Harvesting The crop is ready for harvest in 60-75 days. The ideal stage for harvest is tasseling stage for green fodder and medium dough stage for silage purposes.

Yield The green fodder yield under proper management varies from 35-55 t/ha. The crude protein and fibre content of fodder is 7-10% and 25-35%, respectively.

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PEARL MILLET (BAJRA) (fodder) Botanical name: Pennisetum glaucum L. R. Br. emend. L. Stuntz

Family: Poaceae (Gramineae)

Pearl millet is an important forage crop of arid and semi-arid regions of the country besides its utility as food crop. The green or dry fodder (karvi) is fed to the cattle.

Origin and History The exact place of its origin is yet to be known. However, looking to its cultivation pattern, it is believed that the pearl millet originated either in India or Africa. Pearl millet hybridizes spontaneously with elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum Schum.), which is of African origin, and the 2 species had a common ancestor.

Climatic Requirements It is highly drought tolerant and rapidly growing warm-weather crop in areas of 25-75 cm of rainfall. During the vegetative growth of the crop, moist weather is congenial. The crop performs best under conditions of light showers followed by bright sunshine. Pearl millet is grown as a kharif crop in northern India, but with assured irrigation it can be grown as a summer crop in Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Punjab. The optimum temperature for the growth of pearl millet is between 20 and 28oC. It can not tolerate frost.

Varieties Pearl millet varieties recommended for fodder production in different states are given in Table 1.

Table 1. Pearl millet varieties recommended for fodder production

State Varieties/Hybrids

Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan

Pusa Moti, UPFB 1, T 55, S 530, A 1/30, Rajko, AVKB-19

Hybrids: NB 3, NB 17, NB 18, NB 21, NB 25, PHB 12, MH 30, BJ 105, Composite 6, K 674, K 677, L 72, L 74, Anand S 11, Raj Bajra Chari 2, Haryana, Composite 10, Nandi 32, MH-564, Nandi-8, PB 106, RHB 90, DRSB-2, proagro-1, Pusa 605, Pusa 415, MLHB-44, HAB-9, Pusa Composite 334.

Maharashtra and Gujarat Malbandro, G 2, G 5 (Drought resistant)

Tamil Nadu Co 1, Co 2, Nad Kumbu, TN SC1 (Chumbu)

Karnataka B 247

For saline soils DL 454, DL 532, DL 36

Rainfed: Entire bajra tract, Rajasthan and Gujarat

Rajko

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FBC16: Multicut, resistant to major diseases, high voluntary dry matter intake and low concentration of oxalates. Its yield potential is 70-80 tonnes green forage/ha. It is recommended for growing in plains of Punjab.

Giant Bajra: Evolved through a cross between Australian and local bajra. Released in 1984 in Maharashtra. Plants leafy, palatable, profuse tillering with 9-10% protein at boot stage. Fodder is good for heylage and silage making too. Moderately resistant to downy mildew and ergot, and yields 50-75 t/ha green fodder.

Raj bajra chari 2: Released in 1990 for all bajra growing tracts with 30-45 t/ha yield. Resistant to downy mildew and insect pests.

Fodder numbu-8 (TNSC-1): Released in 1993 for all bajra growing tracts with 27-40 t/ha yield. Resistant to foliar diseases and insect pests.

Field preparation The crop does not require fine seed bed. The seed bed is prepared by one ploughing.

Seed rate A seed rate of 8-10 kg/ha is sufficient for fodder production of pearl millet sown by drilling in 30 cm rows. The crop is sown by broadcast with 10-15 kg seed/ha.

Time of sowing Pearl millet is generally sown in June-July. In recent times, pearl millet is increasingly grown in summer season in intensive cropping systems of Indo-Gangetic plains especially north-west India. it is sown from March-end of April.

Method of sowing Pearl millet is generally sown behind the plough or by broadcast method. These methods are, however quite unsatisfactory and generally lead to poor germination and consequently poor yield. Sowing bajra with seed drill is the best method. It not only ensures best germination but uniform plant population as well. Seed should be sown in rows at 30-40 cm apart.

Manures and Fertilizers The fertilizer requirement of local varieties of pearl millet can easily be met by application of 10-15 tonnes/ha of compost of FYM. The nutrient supply for the high-yielding varieties and hybrids should be supplemented with inorganic fertilizers. To get good fodder crop 40-60 kg N/ha and 20-30 kg P2O5/ha may also be applied at the time of sowing. In soils deficient in K, 30-40 kg K2O/ha should be applied.

Water management As a rainfed kharif crop, it requires no irrigation. However, at times of drought, irrigation at 35 days after sowing is advantageous. During summer season, the crop requires 4-6 irrigations at 7-10 days interval depending on the soil and climate.

Hoeing and weeding The crop has rapid early growth habit and competes with late emerging weeds. The weeds emerging with the crop at early stages (2-4 weeks after sowing) pose threat to higher production. Therefore, timely control of weeds is quite essential to get higher yields. An interculture 3-5 weeks after sowing may take care of the weeds. A wheel hoe, triphali or hand-hoe can be used for interculture. Spray of atrazine @ 0.5 kg/ha in 800 litres of water on the same day of crop sowing controls most of the weeds.

Plant protection measures

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Diseases Downy mildew (Sclerospora graminicola)

Infected seedlings turn pale yellow that are narrow covered on both sides by soft white downy fungus growth. The affected plants remain stunted and dry pre-maturely.

The preventive measures include growing of resistant hybrids (NBH 5, PGB 10 PHB 14) and seed treatment with fungicide like agrosan GN, thiram (2.5 g fungicide/kg of seed), while prophylactic measures involves rouging of disease-infected plants at the seedlings stage (40 days after sowing) The uprooted plants should be destroyed and buried into soil. Foliar spray of dithane Z 78 @ 0.2% or copper oxychloride @ 0.35% at boot-leaf stasge is effective in its control.

Ergot (Claviceps microcephala) The disease first appears on the ears in the form of honey like pinkish liquid which is full of fungus spores, causing spread of the disease. The liquid turns brown and sticky. In the later stages, fungus sclerotia (ergots) appear as brown to black and elongate structures. They possess toxic alkaloids harmful to human and cattle health. These sclerotia fall down in the field and remain in soil, causing infection in subsequent crops. It is important in fodder bajra seed production.

The preventive measures include a ploughing during summer, avoiding late planting, use certified seeds and their treatment with 20% common salt solution followed by washing with fresh water and then treating with agrosan GN, thiram or ceresan @ 3 g/kg of seed. Spraying the crop with 0.15% thiram at boot-leaf stage is effective in its management.

Smut (Tolyposporium pesiscillaria) It is common under humid conditions in all the states where pearl millet is grown. The diseased kernels are green in the beginning and generally larger in size than the healthy ones. These are full of fungal spores.

The preventive measures include a deep ploughing during summer and following a three-year crop rotation.Use certified seeds, and treat thenm with fungicides like agrosan GN or thiram or cerasen @ 3 g/kg of seed. Spraying the crop with 0.15% vitavex (1.5 kg vitavex mixed in 1,000 litres of water/ha) at boot-leaf stage followed by 1-2 sprays at 15 days intervals is recommended.

Leaf blast (Pyricularia setariae)

2 or 3 sprays of 0.2% zineb can control this disease effectively.

Rust (Puccinia penniseti)

The symptoms of this disease can be seen on both surfaces of leaves. The rust postules are small, orange and full of spores. In later stages, black postules can be seen. In case of severe infection, leaves are completely dried.

Insects

Shoot fly (Atherigona approximata)

The maggots bore into the stem and feed on main shoot and destroy the growing point. This result in tillering and in case of severe infestation, the tillers are also attacked. The seedling stage is more prone to the attack, but the attack continues up to early boot stage.

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Application of carbaryl 10 G / phorate 10G or endosulfan 3G @ 5 kg/ha and foliar spray of 0.07% endosulfan is effective in borer management. Early sowing with the onset of monsoon is also effective in controlling shoot fly.

Harvesting The crop is ready for harvest in 60-70 days after sowing. Harvesting at 50% flowering stage is ideal. In multicut varieties, first cut is taken 50-55 days after sowing (a little earlier to 50% flowering) and subsequent cuts at 35-40 days interval.

Yield The green fodder yield varies from 35-40 t/ha. The fodder contains 7-11% crude protein and 25-35% crude fibre. It is rich in P (0.5-0.7%) and calcium (0.2-0.4%). The high oxalic acid content at early stages needs to be taken care by avoiding early cuts. It yields 6-7 t/ha of dry fodder, which is least preferred by animals due to low amount of nutrients.

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COWPEA Botanical Name: Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.

It is also known as black eye pea, kaffir pea, marble pea, China pea and southern pea. In north India, it is grown during kharif and summer seasons, while in south it is grown all the year round. The area under fodder cowpea in the country is around 0.3 m ha.

Climate Cowpea is best suited for moderately humid tropic and sub-tropics up to an elevation of 1500 m. Frost, excessive heat and prolonged waterlogging are, however, not conducive for its growth. The optimum temperature for its growth is 27oC, and the minimum is 15oC. It requires average soil temperature >19oC for 3 days from sowing to emergence, that limits its cultivation in north during winter.

Cowpea is adapted to wider types of soils ranging from sandy to clays, but deep, well-drained, fertile and neutral soils are ideal. Cowpea is moderately susceptible to soil salinity, resistant to drought, acidity and moderate levels of shade. It is a short day plant requiring a day length >12.5 hours for flowering.

Varieties Varieties recommended for different regions and states of the country are given below.

Region/States Varieties

Whole country GFC-1, GFC-2, GFC-3 (kharif), GFC-4 (summer) with 25-35 t/ha of fodder yield; Bundel lobia-1 (32-35 t/ha), UPC-287, UPC-5286 (30-45 t/ha)

Haryana, Punjab and Delhi

FOS-1, FOS-10, K-395, K-585, IGFRI-S-450 (Kohinoor), C-88 (25-35 t/ha for Punjab). HFC-42-1 (Hara lobia) HFC-128

North India UPC-5287 (30-45 t/ha), Russian Giant (30-35 t/ha), Pusa Rituraj, Pusa Sampada

Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka

Russian Giant, IGFRI-S-978;IGFRI-S-985, DFC-1, C-152

North, West and Central India

EC-4216 (35-40 t/ha), Bundel lobia-2 (30-50 t/ha for north-west) and UPC-4200 (34-45 t/ha for north east India), UPC-607, UPC-610, UPC-612, UPC-616, Pusa Barsati, UPC 9202, UPC 618

Gujarat Chharodi 14-20, Chharodi 26-28, GC-3, GC-4

Southern states and West Bengal

Co-1, Russian Giant, EC-4216, TNFC-9901

Himachal Pradesh

PC-1, 3, 12, 14, 16 with resistant to collar rot

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The characteristics of important varieties are given below:

GFC-1: A selection from the local collection from Chharodi area of Gujarat, released in 1980 for kharif season throughout the country. Plant height is 125 cm, trailing growth habit, less prone to lodging, 70 days to 50% flowering. Pods are dark green in colour. Grains 5-7 mm long having light brown to buff colour; protein content varies from 16-20%. Leafyness 42% with dark green and smooth leaves. Fairly resistant to diseases. Green (dry) fodder yield is 25-30 (3-5 t/ha).

GFC-2: Released in 1980 for summer season throughout the country. Plant height is 140 cm with trailing growth habit. Leafyness 42% with dark green and smooth leaves. Days to 50% flowing – 65 days. Pods are dark green in colour. Grains 5-7 mm long with brown colour. Protein content varies from 14-19%. The variety is capable of giving more than one cut. Green fodder yield is 27-35 t/ha.

GFC-3: Released in 1980 for kharif season throughout the country. Plant height is 196 cm with trailing growth habit. Leafyness 53% with dark green and smooth leaves. Days to 50% flowering – 70 days. Pods are dark green. Grains are 5-7 mm long having light brown colour. Protein content varies from 17.5-19.5%. Green fodder yield is 27-33 t/ha.

GFC-4: Released in 1980 for summer season throughout the country. Plant height is 197 cm with trailing growth habit. It has 56% leafyness with dark green and smooth leaves. Days to 50% flowering – 70 days. Pods are dark green. Grains are 6-8 mm long having buff colour. It is capable of giving more than one cut. Protein content varies from 17.5-19.5%. Resistant to diseases. Green fodder yield is 29-35 t/ha.

Hara lobia (HFC-42-1): Suitable for Haryana with a green fodder yield of 25-30 t/ha.

Russian giant: Adapted to Haryana state and yields 25-30 t/ha fodder.

S-450 (Kohinoor): A selection from the material obtained from Iran. Released in 1973. Adapted for parts of Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh. Plant height 55-70 cm, decumbent growth habit, stem and foliage green. Pods are green. Grains are bold and red in colour. Days to 50% flowering are 70. Tolerant to semi-looper, flee beetle and leaf hopper. Susceptible to grain pests during storage. Green (dry) fodder yield is 45(6) t/ha.

UPC-287: A single cut plant selection from germplasm line 28. Adapted to Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Kerala. Plant height 200-235 cm, erect when young (40-45 days old), stem and foliage green, flowers pink, length of peduncle 23-32 cm. Pod length is 13-17 cm. Days to 50% floweringis 75-80. Resistant to yellow mosaic virus, Anthracnose, wilt, stem and root rot under field conditions. Resistant to hairy caterpillar and pod borer, lodging, drought and shattering. Fertilizer responsive. Green (dry) fodder yield is 16.5 (3.5) t/ha.

UPC-5286: A single plant selection from germplasm line 5286. Reelased in 1981 for the plains of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Haryana, Punjab, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Assam states. Plant height 195-225 cm. Stems are light green; leaves are dark green, with pink flowers. Days to 50% flowering are 80-85. Resistant to yellow mosaic virus, wilt, stem, root rot and Anthracnose under field conditions. Moderately resistant to hairy caterpillar, pod borer and seed borer. Resistant to drought, frost and shattering. Fertilizer responsive. Green (dry) fodder yield is 30-35(5) t/ha.

UPC-5287: Developed by single plant selection from the line CK-74-5287 followed by further selection on single pod basis and further bulking on plant basis. Identified in 1985 for cultivation in all cowpea growing areas in the country. Plant height 175-200 cm at 50% flowering stage. Days to 50% flowering – 85-90 days. Leaves large, dark green, with violet

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flowers and straw coloured pods when ripe. Resistant to cowpea yellow mosaic virus, Pythium, Rhizoctonia – Fusarium complex and pod rot. Also resistant to hairy caterpillar, pod and seed borers and pod sucking bug. Suitable for intercropping with maize, sorghum and sugarcane. Seed rate 45 kg/ha. Recommended spacing is 25 cm between rows. Green (dry) fodder yieldis 26 (4) t/ha.

Land preparation The crop performs well even with moderate seedbed preparation that can be achieved by one ploughing. In intercropping situations, the seedbed preparation of main cereal crop is sufficient for cowpea. With well-prepared land, crop encounters fewer weeds.

Seeds and Sowing During kharif, the crop is sown after receipt of monsoon rains in June-July, while in rabi from September-January and in summer from February-April. Cowpea needs a seed rate of 40 kg/ha (line-sown), 50 kg/ha (broadcast sown) and 25-30 kg/ha (seed production purpose). For fodder production, a spacing of 30 cm x 10 cm with a 3.33 lakh plants/ha is optimum. Seed rate for intercropping with cereal forages depends on row proportion and varies from 15-20 kg/ha. A sowing depth of 3-5 cm is the optimum for seedling emergence.

Manures and Fertilizers Cowpea needs less N fertilization as crop nodulates freely with native Rhizobia, and seed inoculation with efficient cowpea strains of Rhizobium enables crop to meet most of its N requirement. However, a starter N dose of 15-20 kg/ha is given to meet the crop requirement till N fixation starts. A nitrogen economy of 35 and 50 kg/ha in mixed cropping of Pennisetum pedicellatum and maize/jowar/bajra with cowpea with an additional 15 and 5 kg P2O5 /ha fertilization has been observed. Lime and molybdenum applications enhance the nodulation. Phosphorus fertilization promotes root growth and nodulation in cowpea. In most of the areas, application of 40 kg P2O5/ha has been found as the optimum dose. Further treatment of seeds with phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSB) and vesicular arbuscular mycorrhiza (VAM) has been found useful in P nutrition of the crop. Potassium fertilization is not recommended, however, in soils deficient in K and where the crop is raised for seed purpose, response to K fertilization is usually observed. In general, application of FYM @ 10 t/ha at last ploughing along with 20-40 kg/ha of N-P2O5 is sufficient for raising successful crop.

Water management

Cowpea is a deep-rooted crop, and therefore can extract moisture from deeper layers of soil. It usually does not require irrigation in kharif. However, at times of monsoon failure, a life saving irrigation is advantageous. During summer, 3-4 light irrigations of 3-4 cm depth at 15 days interval are essential. Irrigation at 50% depletion of available soil moisture (DASM) is sufficient.

Weed management Cowpea, due to its quick growing nature, possesses weed-suppressing ability. However, many weeds emerge at initial stages and compete for resources consequently reducing crop yields by 50-70% in both fodder and seed crop. The critical period of weed competition lies between 10-40 days after emergence of crop. Cultural practices of proper land preparation, use of weed free seeds and maintenance of optimum plant population may minimize weed problem to a great extent. One hand weeding 20-30 days after sowing almost nullifies the weeds impact on crop yield. Use of trifluralin @ 0.5 kg/ha (pre-plant incorporation) in sole cowpea and alachlor @ 1 kg/ha in maize + cowpea mixed cropping has been found to provide

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satisfactory weed control. Intercropping of cowpea with annual cereal forages is also effective in reducing weed menace over sole cereals.

Witch weed (Striga gesnerioides (Willd. Vatke), a parasite, on cowpea is prevalent in Indian Sub-continent and reduces crop yields. Use of dicamba (foliar spray), metalachlor (pre-emergence.) were effective against witch weed.

Cropping systems Cowpea is rarely grown as sole crop and more often intercropped with arable annual and perennial cereal forages for enhanced fodder production and improved nutritive value of fodder. The cowpea intercropping with jowar/bajra/maize is most prominent in different parts of the country. In tarai region, maize+cowpea-oat fodder cropping system is extensively followed. The most important sequential food cropping system involving cowpea in maize-potato-wheat-cowpea (fodder) of North India and rice-rice-cowpea in Kerala.

In coconut gardens of Kerala, cowpea besides guinea grass and Stylosanthes guianensis are grown. Further in foothill region of West Bengal and Assam, Dinanath grass (Pennisetum pedicellantum) + cowpea/ricebean/Stylosanthes intercropping is popular. Cowpea is also intercropped with guinea grass and napier bajra hybrids in western and south India, respectively. The performance of component crops in intercropping varies with cultivars and cowpea UPC-612 has been found best for intercropping with maize (African tall),.

Important cropping systems involving cowpea include jowar+cowpea-berseem-maize+cowpea, maize-oat-maize+cowpea, maize-berseem-maize+cowpea etc.

Plant protection

Diseases Root rot (Macrophomina phaseolina) Collar rot (Rhizoctina, Pythium, Phytopthora spp.)

The root rot appears as watersoaked lesions on rootlets that finally enlarge to kill the root system. It is found in all cowpea groing tracts of the country. The pathogen survives with seed and in soil with plant debris that serves as primary source of infection. The collr rot is caused by the Rhizoctina complex attacks the collar region leading to death of the plant.

Seed treatment with Agrosan / Ceresan / Thiram @ 3g/ kg seed, cultivation of resistant varieties coupled with crop rotation are useful in its management to certain extent. UPC-616 variety is resistant to root rot.

Mosaic virus disease

It is a serious disease of cowpea and is seed borne in nature. The symptoms appear as chlorotic patches on cotyledons, that later cover entire foliage. The secondary infection spreads through aphids.

Selection resistant varieties, use of healthy seeds, control of aphids and rouging of infected plants are useful in its management.

The other diseases that attack cowpea grown for seed include seedling blight (Phytopthora vignae) wilt (Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. trchephlim (E.F. Smith) Synd. & Hans); Rust (Uromyces phaseoli var. vignae) and powdery mildew (Erysiphae polygoni).

PESTS Jassids (Empoasca kerri)

Both nymphs and adults suck sap from leaves. Affected leaves turn yellow and fall off. Spray 0.03% monocrotofos or phosphamidon or endosulfan or dimecron 0.07% is effective.

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Flea/Galerucid beetle (Madurasia obscurella):

The beetle feeds on leaves, buds and flowers. Severe attack can cause defoliation. Apply phorate 10G or disulfoton 5G @ 1.5 kg/ha at sowing along with early sowing to avoid pest attack.

Hairy caterpillar (Amsacta moorei):

The young larvae feed on lower surface of leaves and skeletonize them leading to severe yield losses. Collection and destroying eggs and larvae in early stages. Dusting 10% BHC or 0.05% dichlorovos spray is recommended.

Cowpea stem fly (Melangromyza phaseoli):

The maggots bore into younger stems and tunnels towards the base causing damage to stem. The affected plants wither and die. Clean culture, use of resistant varieties and 0.05% monocrotophos spray control stem fly.

Nematodes (Meloidogyne incognita, root knot nematode; Heplolaimis cogini, spiral nematode):

They attack roots and form lesions and galls resulting in stunted plant growth. Summer ploughing, crop rotation, chemical fumigation with 1, 3 dichlopropene (DD), ethylene dibromide (EDB) and dibromo chloropropane (DBCP) are effective in nematode control. Application of neem cake is effective in nematode management. Bundel lobia-1, Bundel lobia-2, UPC-5286 is resistant to nematodes.

Harvesting and yield Cowpea is a single cut fodder crop usually harvested at the age of 70-90 days. However, summer crop can give 2 cuts. The crop is harvested along with the intercropped cereal, irrespective of age. A green fodder yield of 30-45 t/ha of superior quality is obtained and is free from anti-nutritional factors. It makes good silage with addition of molasses (30-40 kg/t), usually ensiled with jowar and maize in 1:2 ratio. Cowpea makes good hay and its seed is used as concentrate in animal feeds.

The crude protein content in cowpea fodder ranges between 16-21%. The nutritive value of fresh biomass of cowpea (dry matter basis) is 12.5% digestible crude protein (DCP), 62.0% total digestible nutrients (TDN), 2.7 M cal/kg of digestible energy (DE) and 2.2 M cal/kg Metabolizable Energy (ME).

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CLUSTERBEAN (Guar) Botanical name: Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (L.) Taub

Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoseae)

Clusterbean is a multi purpose legume valued for its gum, seed, fodder production besides for green manuring. It is the most drought tolerant crop. The fodder of clusterbean as well as its grain is quite nutritive, rich in protein, fat and minerals.

Origin Clusterbean is a native of tropical Africa and India.

Botanical Description Clusterbean plant is erect, robust and annual which usually growing to a height of 90-180 cm. Its plant has well-developed tap-root system. The leaves are trifoliate and toothed. The flowers are borne in short axillary recemes and generally purplish in colour. The pods are borne in cluster, hence the plant is also known as clusterbean. Pods are somewhat flattened fleshy beaked, 2.5 to 13 cm long containing 5-12 seeds inside. Tender pods are used as vegetable. The seeds are square in shape and compressed.

Climate Requirements Clusterbean can be raised successfully in areas where average rainfall is 30-40 cm. It is cultivated mostly as rainfed crop in semi-arid zones of northern India. It is a photosensitive crop. It comes into flowering and fruiting when grown in kharif season only. It can not withstand waterlogging conditions.

Varieties Important fodder varieties and their characteristics are given below.

Guara-80: Developed from a cross between FS 277 x No. 119, and released in 1982 for Punjab and Haryana. It is resistant to bacterial blight, alternaria leaf spot and stem breakage. Green fodder yield 20-30 t/ha.

FS-277: It is adapted to Punjab and Haryana. It is an unbranched variety with dark green and broad leaves. It is non-shattering variety susceptible to bacterial blight. It is tolerant to drought and Alternaria leaf spot. It yields 21 t/ha green fodder.

HFG-119: Released in 1982 for fodder purpose for entire country, except Punjab. A drought tolerant, non-shattering and Alternaria blight resistant variety with green fodder yield of 22.3 t/ha.

Ageta Guara-111 Released in 1980 for Punjab developed by crossing G326 x F277

Ageta Guara-112 Released in 1980 for Punjab developed by crossing G325 x FS277

Durgajay A selection from Nagpur local, released in 1978 for Rajasthan

Durgapur safed A selection from Rajasthan

HG-75 A selection from local stock released in 1981 for entire guar growing areas

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HG-182L A single plant selection from genetic stock. ACC. No. HFG-182 released in 1981 for Haryana

Maru Guar (2470/12) A selection from NBPGR germplasm suitable for western Rajasthan

Type 1 A selection from a sample from Nandagaon (Mathura) in 1966 adopted for Uttar Pradesh

Type 2 A selection from a sample from Meerut in 1966 adapted to Uttar Pradesh

Other varieties: Bundel Guar-3, Bundel Guar-2, IGFRI-2395-2, IGFRI-212, Sirsa-1, Sirsa-2, Usa, Sadabahar, HFS-156, RGC-986, RGC-1002, RGC-1003.

Geographical Distribution Fodder clusterbean is grown on about 2 lakh ha in India mainly in the states of Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.

Soil and its Preparation For clusterbean, sandy loams and alluvial soils are suitable. It can not tolerate waterlogging. Soils with pH 7.0-8.5 are ideal. Increasing salt concentration (ECe) decreases germination drastically.

Two or three ploughings with country plough or 2 cross harrowings and planking is sufficient. There should be enough moisture in the field at the time of sowing.

Seed and Sowing It is predominantly a rainfed crop sown after receipt of first monsoon in June-July. It is also raised under irrigated conditions of north by sowing in summer (March-April). Early sowing results in luxuriant growth under irrigated conditions.

A seed rate of 35-40 kg/ha is sufficient. The seeds are sown in 30 cm rows at a depth of 4-6 cm.

Manures and Fertilizers Being a leguminous crop, clusterbean meets most of its N requirement from biological N fixation. However, a starter dose of 15-20 kg N/ha should be applied at the time of sowing. Seed inoculation with Rhizobium is promising for better performance of fodder crop. It is desirable to apply about 10 tonnes of FYM or compost at the time of sowing. The crop should be fertilized with 50 kg P2O5/ha. All the fertilizers should be applied at the time of sowing in furrows 4-5 cm below the seed.

Water management Clusterbean is predominantly a rainfed kharif crop and does not require any irrigation. However, if the rains are not normal and timely, one or two irrigations may be required. For a summer crop, 4-5 irrigations are required at 12-15 days interval. During kharif season, drainage is more important than irrigation.

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Weed management During kharif season, one or two weedings are essential to control weeds in initial stage of plant growth.

Cropping System Guar is grown for fodder as sole crop. It is also grown in association with Cenchrus and Lasiurus grasses for higher yield and better quality (protein). For year round fodder production, it is also intercropped with napier bajra hybrid. Its intercropping with bajra is most common in Rajasthan. It can also be grown in Albizia lebbek plantations. Following rotations could be adopted for fodder purpose in northern India.

Clusterbean-berseem-maize+cowpea Pearlmilelt-clusterbean-berseem

Sorghum-clusterbean-berseem-maize+cowpea

Plant protection measures Bacterial blight (Xanthomonas cyamopsidis Pv. Cyamopsidis).

The disease appears as small water soaked lesions, which later become necrotic on leaves, and may also appear on flower and pods. It is a seed borne disease.

Seed treatment with hot water at 50oC for 10 minutes controls the disease. Use resistant varieties like Guara 80, IGFRI-212-1, IGFRI-2395-2 is also suggessted

Alternaria leaf spot (Alternaria cyamopsidis)

Dark brown round to irregular spots varying from 2 to 10 mm in diameter, appear mainly on leaf blades. In severe infection, several spots merge together and the leaflets become chlorotic and usually drop off. If the plants are infected in early stages of growth, there may not be any flowering.

Spray dithane Z 78 (0.2%) at an interval of 15 days is effective in its control.

Anthracnose (Collectotrichum capsici f. cyamopsicola)

The disease appears as black spots on leaves petiole, and stem are seen during rainy season.Spray dithane Z 78 (0.2%) at an interval of 15 days is effective in its control.

Root knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) and reniform nematode (Rotylenchus reniformis)

Nematodes also causes damage to this crop.

Harvesting The crop is harvested 65-75 days after sowing coinciding with flowering stage.

Yield

The average yield of green fodder varies from 25-30 t/ha. A well managed crop yields up to 1.0 tonne/ha of seed. The crude protein and crude fibre content varies from 15-18% and 25-30%, respectively.

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GUINEA GRASS Botanical name: Panicum maximum Jacq.

Family: Poaceae (Gramineae) Chromosome number: 2n=18, 36, 48

Guinea grass produces quality fodder all the year round. Both annual and perennial types are found. It has high leaf portion and its feeding results in high milk yield, and therefore it is known for its lactogenic effect in milch animals. The guinea fodder is suitable for silage and hay making too.

Origin and History Guinea grass belongs to genus Panicum. More than 500 species are found in temperate and tropical regions of the world. It is believed that guinea grass is native of tropical Africa and later spread to countries like Australia, Philippines and USA. It was brought to India on Army Farms in 1793, and was grown along with old grasses. It is now grown on large scale in some of the states.

Geographical distribution In India, it is cultivated on about 1 lakh hectares in Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. Under rainfed conditions, it is grown for 5-6 months during rainy season. During severe cold, this grass remains dormant and starts growing during summer with irrigation. It also comes up well under shade and therefore suitable for intercropping in orchards and plantations especially in coconut as in Kerala. The crop performs best in warm and moist climates of tropics.

Climate It can be grown up to an elevation of 1,800 m. It is frost sensitive. It is suitable for areas with an annual rainfall of 85-100 cm.

Soil Guinea grass can be raised on all types of soil, except waterlogged soils. Well drained medium fertile loams are the best. It does not tolerate saline conditions.

For sowing the crop by seed, it requires a fine seedbed that is attained by 1-2 ploughings followed by harrowing once or twice.

Varieties The important varieties and their characteristics are given below:

JHGG 95-5: This is an improved strain of guinea grass. This has been identified for rainfed areas of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Central U.P. and Tamil Nadu. The variety possesses good forage yield potential and is of a low seed-shattering type.

Punjab guinea grass-1 (PGG-1): An introduction from Australia under the name CPI-59985, released in 1981 in Punjab. It has about 40 tillers/plant and yield 107 t/ha green fodder and 0.3 tonne/ha seed.

PGG 19: Released in 1985 with 75-130 tonnes/ha fodder yield for Punjab.

PGG 101: Released in 1995 with 80-145 tonnes/ha fodder yield for Punjab.

PGG 518: Released in 1997 with 120-130 tonnes/ha fodder yield. It is an apomiction perennial cultivar.

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PGG 616: Released in 2000 with 100-120 tonnes/ha fodder yield. It is an apomiction perennial cultivar.

Variety Suitable for Green fodder yield (t/ha)

Macueni Kerala for rainfed conditions 60-80

Hamil South, north east, east and central India 90-130

PGG-4, PGG-9 Hills, North-west and central India 85-130

PGG-13, PGG-14 Central India and Hills 95-140

PGG-19, PGG-518, PGG-1

Punjab 90-130

Other varieties: Riversdale, Haritha, Marathakom, F 600, JHGG-2001-02; JHGG-2001-3, Haritha, Co-2, JHGG 96-5 (Bundel Guinea-1)

Seed and Sowing It is propagated by seeds as well as stem cuttings/root slips. A seed rate of 3-5 kg/ha is recommended. Seeds are drilled in 45 cm rows at 1-2 cm depth. Stem cuttings or root slips are planted at 50 cm x 30 cm spacing on an irrigated soil after rains.

Time of planting The time of sowing under rainfed situations depend on arrival of monsoon and vary from June-August. Under irrigated conditions, it can be planted throughout the year provided the temperatures are not fall below 15oC. In northern India, it is generally planted from February to August. After planting, the field should be irrigated so that the root slips may be established properly.

Manures and Fertilizers Manures and fertilizers both play an important role in guinea grass cultivation. About 20 tonnes of FYM or compost/ha should be applied about a month before planting. Besides, 50-50-50 kg/ha N-P2O5-K2O should be applied at the time of planting. After each harvest, 50 kg N/ha is top-dressed coinciding with irrigation.

Weed management

Weed competition at the time of establishment poses threat to crop stand establishment. Hence weed management up to 45 days after sowing in crucial. Two inter cultural operations during this period are sufficient for satisfactory weed control. Pre-emergence application of atrazine @ 1 kg/ha followed by 2,4-D @ 1 kg/ha 30-35 days after sowing effectively control all kinds of weeds.

Cropping System Guinea grass can be grown mixed with cowpea, stylo and Girabo.

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Water management Guinea grass needs frequent irrigations. During winter (rabi), irrigations are given at 15-20 days interval, while in summer, the crop is irrigated at 7-10 days interval. The crop also grows well with sewage irrigation.

Harvesting and Grazing First cut is taken 75 days after planting and subsequent cuts at 45 days interval. The crop should be harvested at 1-15 cm above ground level for better regeneration. It can also be grazed by animals. In perennial types, cuttings can be taken up to 4-5 years and thereafter it needs replanting.

Yield The annual green fodder yield ranges from 50-60 tonnes in 4-6 cuts (rainfed) to 80-120 tonnes/ha in 7-9 cuts (irrigated). Under sewage irrigation up to 200 tonnes/ha yields can be realized in 10-12 cuts. The fodder contains 9-13% crude protein and 30-35% fibre with an in vitro dry matter digestibility is about 50%.

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NAPIER x BAJRA HYBRID (NBH) Botanical name: Pennisetum purpureum Schum x Pennisetum glaucum

Family: Poaceae (Gramineae) Napier x bajra hybrid (NBH) is an interspecific cross between bajra x napier grass. It is a triploid grass and thus does not produce seeds. It provides nutritional and palatable green fodder all the year round, which contains 8.2% protein, 34% crude fibre, 10.5% ash with calcium and phosphorus in proper balance. A combination of napier grass with berseem, lucerne or cowpea provides good quality palatable fodder for cattle. For hay making this grass is coarse, but can be used for silage making. It is considered as a soil-restoring crop, as grass leaves the soil richer in organic matter. Napier grass is more nutritious and productive than the hybrid grass.

Origin and History Napier grass is native of Rhodesia in South Africa, where it is found growing extensively. It is presumed that this plant has been used as a fodder for the first time in Rhodesia. The name napier grass is given in the honour of Col. Napier, who first drew the attention of the Rhodesian Department of Agriculture in 1909 to the fodder value of this grass. It was introduced in India in 1912 from South Africa. It was introduced in the USA in 1913.

The perennial and heavy tillering characteristics of napier grass have been combined with leafyness of bajra, and the Napier x bajra hybrid was evolved.

Geographic Distribution It is widely distributed in tropical and sub-tropical regions of Asia, Africa, southern Europe and America. In India, it is cultivated on about 1 lakh ha mainly in the states of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Gujarat, West Bengal, Assam, and Andhra Pradesh. This grass does not survive in heavy rainfall and frost prone areas.

Climatic Requirements Napier bajra hybrid performs well in areas having temperatures above 15oC. It is a tropical grass, which can with stand drought for a short spell, and regenerate with rains. It is susceptible to frost.

Varieties Characteristics of some of the important varieties of napier bajra hybrid are given below:

Pusa Giant Napier: It was developed at IARI, New Delhi. It possesses 45-50 tillers/plant and produces 100-160 t/ha green fodder. Suitable for entire country.

NB 21: This variety is quick growing, tall, with high tillering habit, and possesses thin and non hairy stem. The leaves are thin, long and smooth. Its yield potential is about 100-160 t/ha green fodder.

Co.1: A derivative of the cross “PT 2787” bajra of ICRISAT and “Merkeri” Napier grass, released in 1982 for Tamil Nadu. It is tall, non lodging, profuse tillering (29 tillers/clump), and more leafy (354 leaves/clump). The leaves are broad and long with high leaf: stem ratio (0.94). The green fodder yield potential is 300 t/ha/year.

BH 18: Released in 1988 by Univeristu of Agricultural Sciences, Banglore. It is resistant to Helminthosporium blight disease. Green fodder yield in 7-8 cuts is 150 t/ha /year.

Hybrid Napier-3 (Swetika): Developed from the cross between Napier x bajra hybrid PSB-2, released in 1983 for cultivation in Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and

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Assam under irrigated conditions. It is profusely tillering type with erect growth and quick regeneration capacity. It is tolerant to low temperature and frost. Suitable for low pH soils and mixed cropping. Resistant to Helminthsporium blight. Green fodder yield is 68-80 t/ha/year.

Variety Characteristics

IGFRI-3 ,

IGFRI-6

Suitable for central India, north-east and northern hills. It yields 90-160 t/ha of green fodder

IGFRI-7 It is suitable, hilly, sub-humid and sub-temperate areas of India. It yields 140-170 t/ha of green fodder.

IGFRI-10 It is suitable for whole country with a green fodder yield of 150-180 t/ha. Suitable for acidic and saline soils

PBN-83 Suitable for Punjab with a green fodder yield of 125-170 t/ha. Released in 1989.

RBN-9 Suitable for Maharashtra

PBN-16 Suitable for Punjab, Maharashtra, Karnataka

APBN-1 Suitable for Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu with yield of 200-250 t/ha

Co-3 Released in 1997 for central and south India with a yield of 130-200 t/ha

Co-2 Released in 1995 for south India with 120-180 t/ha green fodder yield.

Other varieties:

NB 37 (Suitable for range lands of northern hiils) and KKM-1 (ACK 2).

Soil and its Preparation NBH flourishes well on variety of soils especially on those with high ure-retention capacity. It can withstand saline conditions, but it can not survive in waterlogged and flood prone areas. With good drainage, fertile loam is best suited for its optimum growth.

The land should be prepared well and should be free from weeds. A good seed-bed should be firm and well leveled. First ploughing should be done with a mould board plough, and subsequent 2 cross ploughings with cultivator or harrow. Planking should follow every ploughing.

Manures and Fertilizers The crop needs heavy fertilization. FYM application @ 30 t/ha at the time of land preparation is recommended. In areas where sewage or cattle shed washings can be used as irrigation water, FYM application may not be required. A fertilizer dose of 50-60-50 kg/ha of N-P2O5-K2O is applied as basal. After each harvest, 50 kg N/ha is applied with irrigation.

Seed and Sowing

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NBH is propagated vegetatively as the crop can not produce seeds. Root slips and stem cuttings are used as propagating material. However, the former is most common means of propagation. The root slips/stem cuttings are planted at 50 cm x 50 cm (sole cropping) to 100 cm x 50 cm (in intercropping) spacing. Thus 40,000 and 20,000 root slips/stem cuttings/ha are required for sole and intercropping stands. It is planted through out the year in the country, when the temperatures are above 15oC. Once planted, cuttings can be taken for 4-5 years.

Water management The crop needs frequent irrigations for realizing the yield potential of the crop. The crop requires irrigation during non-rainy season (October-March) at 15-20 days interval. During summer (April-May/June) irrigations are given at 7-10 days interval. The crop can also grow well under sewage irrigation. The water requirement of this crop varies from 80-100 cm.

Weed management Weeding at early stages is crucial for establishment. Two or three weedings are required to control the weeds. When broad leaf weeds pose a serious problem, application of 2,4-D @ 1 kg/ha is recommended.

Cropping Systems With the start of winter, the growth of hybrid napier is checked due to low temperature, particularly in the northern parts of India, and hence intercropping is necessary to get forage during that period. Important fodder based cropping systems for all the year round fodder production are given below.

Location Cropping system

Palampur (Himachal Pradesh) NBH + velvetbean-berseem-sarson

Pantnagar (Uttarakhand) NBH + subabul

Hisar (Haryana) NBH + berseem / lucerne

Jhansi (Uttar Pradesh) NHB + cowpea-cowpea-berseem

Anand (Gujarat) NBH + guar-lucerne

Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) NBH + hedge lucerne

Pests and Diseases There are no major pests and diseases, except leaf blight damage caused by Helminthosporium sacqhri in some varieties.

Harvesting In napier-bajra hybrid, the first cut is taken 65 days after sowing and subsequent cuttings at 45 days interval. In a year, 8-10 cuts are possible. While cutting the grass, it is desirable to leave a height of at least 10-15 cm from the ground level so as to avoid damage to the young growing roots near the base of the plant.

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Yield A good crop yields about 150-300 t green fodder/ha/year. The crude protein and fibre content of NBH fodder is 10 and 30% respectively. The fodder is rich in Ca (0.5%) and P (0.4%)

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Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Jatropha

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

JATROPHA

Botanical name: Jatropha curcas Family: Euphorbiaceae

Chromosome number: 2n=2x=22

Jatropha is also called as purging nut (English), Ratanjyot (Hindi) and kampma ramda (Sanskrit). It is a perennial deciduous shrub growing up to 3-5 metres height, shedding leaves during the dry season.

Jatropha is grown for its seeds that are rich in non-edible oil (27-30%). The oil can be combusted as fuel without refining. The oil can be blended up to 20% with diesel to run diesel engines. The deoiled cake serves as organic manure. Besides oil, other plant parts have immense medicinal and insecticidal roles. The leaves are used for cure of cough, dyspepsia, leprosy and gynaec diseases. The seed paste is used for diseases like snake bite, paralysis, piles, joint pains etc. The flowers are effective against diabetics. The tender twigs provide relief to rheumatism. The root and bark have insecticidal properties. The green leaf manuring provides not only nutrients to crops but also provide effective control of Meloidogyne javonica nematode. In Philippines, thread ropes are preferred from the bark. The deep root system enables it to serve as a soil binder, and thus helps in stabilization of sand dunes in deserts. The dried leaves can be used in storing food grains, as they deter various storage pests similar to neem leaves. It also grown as live fence/hedge for protection of farmer’s field against damage by stray animals and blue bulls.

Origin Jatropha is native to Mexico and central America, but is widely distributed in wild and semi-cultivated forms in Latin America, Africa, India, South-east Asia. In India, it was introduced in the 16th century by Portuguese naviagators.

Botany The plant is monoecious and flowers area unisexual. Fruit is known as capsule. Seeds resemble to castor seeds.

(Jatropha integerrima) Jatropha multifida Climate Jatropha is grown under wide range of climates from tropics to sub-tropics and temperate regions. It can tolerate extreme temperatures from 0 to 5oC. It grows well from sea level to an altitude of 1200 m in areas receiving 300-2500 mm of rainfall. However, it grows well in

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areas with higher rainfall. It is tolerant to drought and moderate frost. Its flowering is not sensitive to day length. At present, it is widely distributed in Australia, Florida, Hawaii, India, Malaysia, Oceana, Philippines, and Schychellus.

Soil It can grow in all types of soil, but performs best in well drained soils. It can thrive well on degraded, gravelly rocky, sandy, calcareous and saline soils with low nutrient content.

Seeds and sowing Jatropha is propagated both vegetatively (root and stem cuttings) as well as from seeds. Use of fresh seeds is desirable for planting as old seeds loose their viability. Further, freshly harvested seeds show dormancy.

The seeds can be planted directly in main field, however, management becomes costly. Hence seeds are planted in nursery, and plants are transplanted into 0.3 m3 pits after 9-12 months. Under favourable moisture, seed take 10 days to germinate. For establishment of Jatropha as hedge or for erosion control, cuttings are best. For commercial oil extraction purposes, establishment by seeds is better. The spacing varies from 25 cm x 25 cm for hedge rows and soil conservation purposes. For commercial plantations the spacings vary from 2 m x 2 m to 3 m x 3 m accommodating 2500 to 1111 plants/ha.

Irrigation It is a drought tolerant crop and survives with the available rainfall. However, for commercial cultivation, irrigations during post-monsoon and summer seasons would help in realizing higher yields throughout the year.

After planting the seedlings, if rains are not received, then irrigation is must. In general, Jatropha requires less water, but during the first year of plantaion, irrigation is required depending up on the soil type and agro-climatic conditions of the site.

Weeding The removal of weeds in tree basins, 3-4 times a year is required for higher yields. Manual weeding would be costly. In well grown trees, various general weed killers like glyphosate and paraquat would effectively take care of weeds. In initial years of plantation, intercropping and ploughing is feasible and would provide satisfactory weed control.

Manures and Fertilizers In pits, addition of FYM @ 1 kg along with 0.1 kg neem waste for every seeding is recommended. Annual fertilization of 20-120-16 g/plant of urea-single superphosphate-muriate of potash annually is recommended. The recycling of leaf fall from jatropha plantation and deoiled cake needs consideration. Besides chemical fertilizers, the biofertilizers like Azotobacter and vesicular arbuscular mycorrhiza should be applied at the time of planting.

Pruning For ease of harvesting, the tree height should be maintained at lower than 2 meters. For this purpose the plant should detopped to produce 8-12 branches.

Yield The per plant yield varies from 5-10 kg, and seed yield/ha ranges from 1-10 t/ha.

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Jatropha podagrica

Source: Nic_kanpurdchat_jatropha.jpg

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Jatropha podagrica

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Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Jute

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

JUTE Botanical name: Corchorus sp.

Family: Tiliaceae Chromosome number: 2n=14

Jute is cultivated for its bast (stem) fibre obtained from 2 cultivated species of Corchorus

capsularis and C. olitorius. The fibre has great utility in both domestic and industrial uses. It is used for making various types of ropes, rugs, carpets, mats, coarse woolen fabric (druggets), cloth (hessians) and sacks to store foodgrains. It is also used in making coarse canvas for wrappings, wall covers; its blend gives good blanket and clothing. Of the various trade goods, sacking constitutes the major utility followed by hessians. C. olitorius and C. capsularis contribute to 78 and 10% of the total fibre sources of the country.

The sticks are used as fuel and lighting material, and for making gun powder and charcoal. In paper industry, these are used as raw material for coarse paper and resin cloth. Resin bonded and pressed jute sticks make durable hard boards.

Origin The genus Corchorus has 2 cultivated species. C. olitorius L. is widely cultivated, and has originated from Africa (primary center of origin) with India or Indo-Myanmar region as its secondary center of origin. This species has been reported from Africa, Asia and Northern Australia. The other cultivated species C. capsularis is found in Indo-Myanmar and South China region, but not in Africa and Australia. It has originated from Indo-Myanmar region including South China. In India, nine species of Corchorus (7 wild and 2 cultivated) have been reported so far. C. capsularis is commonly distributed in north-eastern parts of India, and gradually becomes scarce towards west, whereas C. olitorius is more common in western and north-western India.

Geographic distribution Jute is mainly cultivated in India and Bangladesh, Besides, these two countries it is also grown to some extent in China, Myanmar, and Nepal ( Table 1)

Table 1. Area, production and productivity of Jute in major producing countries (2004)

Country Area (m ha) Production (m t) Productivity (t/ha)

Bangladesh 0.437 0.800 1.831 China 0.036 0.068 1.889 India 0.820 1.900 2.317 Myanmar 0.030 0.026 0.867 Nepal 0.011 0.016 1.433

Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004

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In India, the most important jute producing state is West Bengal, contributing more than 75% of India’s total production of 1.69 million tonnes (Table 2). Other states are Assam, Andhra Pradesh and Bihar

Table 2. Area, production and productivity of jute in important states of India (2004-05)

Area (000 ha) Production (000 bales)* Productivity (kg/ha)

Andhra Pradesh 58.0 410.4 1274

Assam 134.5 1056.2 1414

Jharkhand 0.1 1.1 1980

Orissa 5.0 41.0 1476

West Bengal 569.0 7853.0 2484

India 773.9 9399.3

(1.69 mt)

2186

*Bale: 180 kg

Source: Fertilizer association of India, 2006 Classification Genus Corchorus has 2 species viz. olitorius (It is raised on well drained high lands only), and capsularis (It is more popular and widely grown). The plant has tap root system with numerous lateral branches. It is hardy in nature and can grow well both on high and low lands and is able to tolerate waterlogging conditions to some extent).Jute growing areas in India may be divided into the following 8 agro-climatic zones.

1. Lower Bengal (The Ganga Riverine Tract): This is primarily C.olitorius raising tract with JRO 632 as a standard variety. This tract includes 24 Pargana, Hoogly, Nadia and Murshidabad districts.

2. Malda, Dinajpur: Both species of jute (C. olitorius and C. capsularis) are raised in this tract comprising Malda and West Dinajpur districts.

3. North Bengal and Brahamputra Valley New Alluvium: This tract is spread into Cooch-Behar and Jalpaiguri districts of West Bengal, and Golpara, Kamrup, Nowgoan districts of Assam. This is mainly C. capsularis raising tract with JRC 321 in low lying areas, and JRC 212 in rest of the areas. On uplands, C. olitorius variety JRO 632 is also raised.

4. Tripura, Cachora Area of Old Alluvium: This tract is very small, but productivity is very high. C. capsularis is mainly grown in this tract.

5. Kosi area – Purnea and Saharsa: Purnea and Saharsa are important jute raising districts of Bihar. This is a C. capsularis raising tract but C. olitorius is also raised on a very small area.

6. Muzaffarpur, Darbhanga area: This is a C. capsularis growing tract. 7. West Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh: This tract includes Champaran district of

Bihar, and Bahraich, Sitapur and Lakhimpur Kheri districts of Uttar Pradesh. This is C. capsularis raising tract.

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8. Cuttack-Balasore area: This tract includes Cuttack, Balasore, Sambalpur and Puri districts of Orissa. This is mainly C. capsularis raising tract, but C. olitorius is also cultivated under upland conditions.

Corchorus olitorius(Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Corchorus_olitorius.jpg )

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Corchorus Capsularis. .(Source: http://art-handbook.com/surfaces.html)

Botanical Description Jute is a herbaceous annual plant. Although both the species of jute (C. capsularis and olitorius) are alike in general appearance, there are considerable differences between them as given hereunder.

Character C. capsularis C. olitorius

Stem Conical, base diameter tapering sharply towards apex. Pigmentation varies from green to dark red with various intermediate shades. Periderm develops prominently at base. Technical height is more. Stem is branched or unbranched.

Cylindrical, base diameter tapering gradually towards apex. Pigmentation is green or light red or deep red. Shades of colour are fewer. Periderm is abscent. Technical height is less than capsularis. Stem is branched usually.

Leaves Leaves are dull. Tastes bitter owing to presence of glucoside corchorin, hence called tita pat. Leaves are lanceolate, oblong with coarsely toothed margin. Lower most pair of serrations enlarged and end in filiform appendanges.

Leaves with shining upper surface and rough under surface. Taste less or slightly sweet, hence called mitha pat. Leaves are elliptic to ovate with smoothly serrated margin. Lower most pair of serrations enlarged and end in filiform appendages that are long and prominent.

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Flowers Small with 5 yellow-pale yellow sepals. Ovary is round, anthers have 20-30 stamens.

Larger (2-5 times that of capsularis) with 5-6 coloured or green sepals, ovary is elongated; anthers have 30-60 stamens.

Pods Rounded, 1-5 cm diameter with flat tops, wrinkled with green, yellowish to copper coloured and 5 locular. The fruits are internally divided by 5 septa and dehisce into 5 segments

Cylindrical-long (6-10 cm long 0.3-0.8 cm diameter) green capsule with 5-6 locules.

Seeds Copper coloured, 2-3 mm long with 7-10 seeds in 2 rows in each locule with transverse partition between seeds.Contains 35-50 seeds/pod with a test weight of about 2 g.

Bluish green to steel grey coloured with 25-40 small seeds/row with transverse partition between each seed. It contains 125-200 seeds/pod with a test weight of about 3.33 g.

Fibre Ordinarily whitish, hence called white jute for trade purposes. The fibre layers are more (10-24) with more fibre bundle/cross section (2573)

Frequently finer, stronger and more lustrous than capsularis with yellowish or greyish fibre (tossa jute). The fibre layers are less (8-19) with less fibre bundles/cross section (2181).

Roots Less deeper, having more lateral roots and is tolerant to water logging. Root:shoot ratio is less (1:7)

Deeper with less number of lateral roots and less tolerant to water logging. Root:shoot ratio is more (1:12).

Climate Jute is a crop of humid tropical climates. It thrives well in areas with well distributed rainfall of 2,500 mm spread over vegetative growth period of the crop with no cloudiness. Locations with a mean rainfall of <1,000 mm, incessant rainfall and waterlogging are not suitable for its cultivation. For better growth, a mean maximum and minimum temperature of 34oC and 15oC and a mean relative humidity of 65% is required. Temperatures below 15oC and above 43oC during growth are not suitable for jute crop. C. olitorius can not withstand waterlogging, however, C. capsularis can withstand water logging, but its fibre quality is impaired with prolonged water stagnation. At a temperature below 10oC no germination occurs in both the species. C. capsularis can withstand higher temperature at germination (up to 32oC), while C. olitorius is sensitive to such high temperatures.

Soil and its preparation Jute can be raised on all kinds of soils from clay to sandy loam, but loamy alluvial are best suited. Laterite and gravel soils are not suitable for this crop. The new grey alluvial soils of good depth, receiving silt from the annual floods are the best for jute cultivation. A soil pH of 5.0-7.4 is within the tolerable limit of soil reaction. Soils with acidic pH (<4.5), effective soil depth <50 cm, electrical conductivity >2 dS/m and exchangeable sodium percentage >15 are not suitable for the crop. The crop is raised successfully on old alluvial soils of Bihar, mild acidic soils of Assam, Orissa, and light alkaline soils of tarai districts of Uttarakhand. It has

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been observed that clay loam for C. capsularis and sandy loam for C. olitorius are most suitable soil types.

Jute seeds being small require very fine tilth. The land can be prepared by ploughing and cross-harrowing 3-5 times followed by planking. In acidic soils (pH <6.0), incorporation of 1-1.5 t/ha of lime, 30-40 days before sowing is necessary for better crop performance. Soil moisture between 21-45% is considered ideal for proper germination.

Sowing Time of sowing C. capsularis sowing starts from late February, whereas that of C. olitorius in early April and continues up to mid June. In Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, sowing is done up to mid July as per the onset of monsoon. In lowlands, February sowing is ideal, as it helps in avoiding waterlogging in early crop growth phases. In mid-lands and uplands, March-April sowing is preferred. For capsularis, March-April and for olitorius April-May is the optimum sowing time.

Method of sowing Broadcast sowing is the most common method. Owing to the small size of seeds, small quantity of seed is required. To ensure even distribution of seed, they are mixed with 3-4 times well powdered soil and broadcast cross-wise. Immediately after sowing, the soil is harrowed and planked for covering the seeds. In broadcast crop, weeding is difficult and cumbersome owing to uneven distribution of plants. Hence line sowing behind a plough or using seed drill are preferred for ease of interculture.

Seed rate and spacing Seed rate varies with method of sowing and species to be grown. For broadcast sowing, 6 and 10 kg seed/ha of olitorius and capsularis are required. Line sowing needs 4 and 6 kg seed/ha only.

The seeds are sown in row 20 cm (olitorius) and 30 cm (capsularis) apart. The plants within the row should be thinned manually at 2 stages. First thinning is done 20 days after sowing (DAS), when the plants are of 5-10 cm. At this stage, plants are thinned to a distance of 5 cm. In second and final thinning 35 DAS, when plants are 12-15 cm height, and are thinned to a distance of 10 cm. Thus the optimum population varies from 3.33 (capsularis) to 5.0 lakh/ha (olitorius).

Varieties The important varieties of jute for different states are given below.

Important varieties of jute recommended for different states for cultivationr

State Recommended varieties

Corchorus olitorius Corchorus capsularis

Assam JRO 524 (Navin), JRO 632 (Baisakhi tossa), JRO 7835 (Vasudev), JRO 66, JRO 8432, JRO 128 (Surya), JRO 878, JRO 36E, S 19, Subala

JRC 212 (Sabuj sona), JRC 321 (Sonali), JRC 7447 (Shyamali), UPC 94 (Reshma), Hybrid C (Padma), JRC 1108, Bidhan Pat 3 (D-110), Bidhan Pat 1, Bidhan Pat 2, Fanduk, D-154, UPC 7716, C-80, CIN 178, CO 234

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State Recommended varieties

Bihar JRO 524, JRO 7835, JRO 66, JRO 8432, JRO 128 (Surya), JRO 632, JRO 878, JRO 36E, S 19, Subala

JRC 212, JRC 321, JRC 7447, KTC 1 (Rajendra Sada Pat), UPC 94, JRC 698, Bidhan Pat 3 (D-110), Bidhan Pat 1, Bidhan Pat 2, Fanduk, D-154, C 80, CIN 178, CO 234

Orissa JRO 524, JRO 632, JRO 878 (Chaitali tossa), JRO 7835, TJ 40 (Mahadev), KOM 62 (Rebati), JRO 878, KOM 9

JRC 212, JRC 7447, UPC 94, JRC 4444 (Baldev), KC 1 (Jaydev), JRC 1108, Bidhan Pat 1, Fanduk, JRC 321

Uttar Pradesh

JRO 524, JRO 3690 (Sabitri), JRO 66, JRO 8432, JRO 128 (Surya), JRO 632, JRO 878, JRO 7835, JRO 36E, S 19, Subala, Co 234

JRC 212, JRC 321, JRC 7447, UPC 94, JRC 1108, Bidhan Pat 3 (D-110), Bidhan Pat 1, Bidhan Pat 2, Fanduk, D-154, C 80, CIN 178, Co 234

West Bengal

JRO 632, JRO 3690, JRO 524, JRO 7835, JRO 878, JRO 66, JRO 8432, JRO 128 (Surya), S 19, Subala

JRC 212, JRC 321, JRC 7447, UPC 94, JRC 1108, Padma (Hybrid C), JRC 698, Bidhan Pat 3 (D-110), Bidhan Pat 1, Bidhan Pat 2, Fanduk, D-154, C-80, CIN 178, Co 234

Manures and Fertilizers In general, the nutrient requirement of capsularis is more than that of olitorius. In soils with low organic carbon content, FYM application @ 5-10 t/ha, a month prior to crop sowing is recommended. The leaf fall from the standing crop and also root stubbles left in the soil after harvest results in recycling of handsome amount of nutrients besides organic matter in intensive cropping systems. The recommended doses of fertilizers are 20 to 60 – 20 to 30 – 20 to 50 (olitorius) and 40 to 80 – 40 to 50 – 60 to 80 (capsularis) kg/ha of N-P2O5-K2O respectively.

In heavy soils with low to moderate rainfall, all nutrients are applied as basal. In light soils and high rainfall situations, N is applied in 2 equal splits, ½ basal and ½ top dressing, i.e. preferably after weeding and thinning operations. Seed inoculation with Azotobacter chroococum and Azospirillum brasilense has been found promising to supplement part of N fertilizer. Foliar application of 20 kg N through urea solution with teepol as sticker at pre-flowering stage is promising. In acidic soils, P gets fixed; hence, their placement is better. K is usually applied as basal, but in leaching prone soils, split application is ideal.

In acid soils and regions with high rainfall, calcium and magnesium deficiency is common. Liming of soil @ 2-5 t/ha, once in 4 years or Dolomite application (40 kg MgO) is found promising as it supplies both calcium and magnesium.

Water management Jute is sensitive to both drought and waterlogging. The crop sown during the months of February-April requires irrigation till the onset of monsoon. At germination and knee-high stages, adequate soil moisture must be ensured by irrigation. In general, after pre-sowing irrigation, monthly irrigation till onset of monsoon may be necessary. During rainy season,

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the crop experiences waterlogging that adversely affect fibre quality. Provision of quick drainage in uplands will be beneficial to the crop. However, in lowlands, it may not be feasible.

Weed management The crop suffers from heavy weed infestation in the initial 6-8 weeks after sowing. Two-three hand weedings or mechanical hoeings are required to arrest weed menace. The first 2 manual weedings are combined with thinning operations at 20 and 35 DAS. The third weeding should be done 55-60 DAS. Due to continuous rains, sometimes manual weeding may not be possible. In such a situation, herbicide integrated with manual weeding is promising. Fluchloralin (pre-plant incorporation, 3-7 days before sowing) or pendimethalin (pre-emergence, 1-2 days after sowing) @ 0.75-1.0 kg/ha combined with one hand weeding at 35DAS may effectively control the weeds. Recommended post-emergence herbicides for weed control include MSMA (mono sodium methane arsenate) @ 4-5 kg/ha and dalapon @ 6 kg/ha. They should be applied 20 days after sowing.

Cropping Systems Jute can be intercropped with greengram and groundnut. Greengram is sown in lines 40 cm apart. After 1 month 2 rows jute variety JRO 878 or JRO 7835 are sown in between greengram rows. Groundnut is sown in 60 cm rows in mid January (in eastern India only) and 2 rows of jute ‘JRO 878’ or ‘JRO 7835’ are sown in between groundnut rows in the end of March. In seed crop of jute , intercropping of urdbean is promising.

The following crop rotations are adopted in jute-growing areas.

Irrigated areas

Jute + greengram-paddy-potato Jute-paddy-potato Jute-paddy-gram Jute-paddy-wheat Jute-paddy-mustard Jute-paddy-barley Cowpea-jute-potato Jute-paddy-berseem Rainfed areas Jute-paddy-pulses Jute-gram Jute-paddy-mustard Jute-mustard Jute-paddy Jute-wheat Harvesting Harvesting of the crop at pre-bud or bud stage gives best quality fibre; however, the yields are low. Hence, as a compromise between quality and quantity, early pod formation stage has been found best for harvesting. Harvesting is done by cutting the plants at or close to the ground level with sharp sickles. In flooded lands, the plants are uprooted. The harvested plants are left in the field for 2-3 days for the leaves to shed. Next, the plants are tied into bundles 20-25 cm of diameter and the branching tops are lipped off to rot in the field.

Retting of jute Retting is an aerobic and anaerobic microbiological process by which the fibres in the bark get loosened and separated from the woody stalk. There are 2 processes of retting of jute. The bundles are kept in 30 cm deep water, and later placed side by side in retting water, usually in 2-3 layers and tied together. They are covered with water-hyacinth or any other weed that does not release tannin and iron. The float is then weighed down with seasoned logs or with concrete blocks or are kept emerged (at least 10 cm below the surface of water)

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with bamboo-crating. Clods of earth used as a covering material or as weighing agent produce dark (Shyamla) fibre of low value. Retting is best done in shallow canal with slow running clean water. The optimum temperature is around 34oC. If fibre comes out easily from the wood on pressure from the thumb and fingers, retting is considered complete

f

Extraction of fibre The fibre, extracted separately from each reed (stem) with fingers is sleek, clean and free from entanglement. By the beat-break-jerk method, 10-12 reeds are taken at a time, their stiffer root-ends are beaten with a mallet to loosen the fibre. The bundle is then broken in the middle and the fibre is loosened. By gripping this loosened fibre in the middle, the broken bundle is jerked in water so that the sticks slip off. The fibre is then washed in clean water, rung and eventually spread to dry, preferably in shade or mild sun. The second method often leaves the broken sticks and make fibre somewhat entangled resulting in sticky fibre. The extraction of fibre from the green stem with a machine followed by a short period retting has also proved to be successful.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jute

Yield The national average is 1.3 tonnes of fibre/ha. However, with improved package of practices, it is possible to get 2.0-2.5 tonnes of fibre yield/ha from improved varieties. If the seed is produced, it may yield about 0.4-0.5 tonnes in case of white jute and 0.25-0.30 tonnes/ha in case of tossa jute.

100 yards of hessian = 54 lbs of raw jute 4148 yards of hessian = 1 tonne raw jute (5.55 bales raw jute) 1 tonne of sacking = 1.11 tonne of raw jute (6.17 bales of raw jute) 1 tonne of hessian, sacking etc.=1.05 tonnes raw jute (5.85 bales of raw jute)

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Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Maize

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

MAIZE Botanical name: Zea mays L.

Chromosome number: 2n = 20

Maize or corn is one of the most important cereal crops in the world agricultural economy both as food for man and feed for animals including poultry. It is also known as “queen of cereals”. because of very high yield potential. Over 85% of maize produced in the country is consumed as human food. Green cobs are roasted and consumed by people with great interest. The grains of special variety called the ‘pop corn’, are characterized by a hard corneous interior structure are converted into the ‘popped’ form, which is the favourite food for children in urban areas. Several food dishes including chapaties are prepared out of maize flours and grains. It is also a good food for poultry, piggery and other animals.

Origin and History The place of origin of maize is still uncertain. Of the 3 believed ancestors (popcorn, wild maize and teosinte), teosinte is accepted as ancestor of maize now based on cytogenetical and molecular evidences. Maize is believed to have originated in Mexico (Wilkes, 1989), Andean highlands of Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador (Mangelsdorf and Reeves, 1939) and Himalayan region (Anderson, 1945).

The maize plant was unknown in the old world before 5 November, 1492, by the time Columbus arrived in America. The maize was introduced into Spain after the return of Columbus from America, and from Spain it reached to France, Italy and Turkey. The plant was grown in Europe as a garden curiosity. It was introduced into north-west Himalayas of India, probably in early 17th century through silk route.

Geographic Distribution Maize is the world’s leading cereal crop. It is cultivated globally over an area of about 147.26 million ha with a production of 724.6 million tonnes of grain. The major maize producing countries are given in Table 1.

Table 1. Major countries of world producing maize

Country Area (m ha) Production (m. tonnes) Productivity (q/ha)

USA 29.79 299.92 100.65

China 25.47 130.43 51.22

Brazil 12.41 41.81 33.68

Mexico 7.69 21.67 28.19

Argentina 2.33 15.00 64.35

India 7.50 14.10 18.80

Canada 1.07 8.84 82.40

Indonesia 3.36 11.23 33.44

World 147.26 724.59 49.20

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Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004

In India, the crop is cultivated on 7.4 m ha. Among the states, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar are leading producers of maize (Table 2).

Table 2. Area, production and productivity of maize in important states of India in 2004-05

State Area (000 ha) Production (000 t) Productivity (q/ha)

Andhra Pradesh 657.0 2064.0 31.42

Assam 19.2 13.9 7.24

Bihar 614.4 1465.7 14.86

Chattisgarh 96.5 131.7 13.65

Gujarat 459.5 412.5 8.98

Haryana 16.0 40.0 25.00

Himachal Pradesh 324.0 736.0 22.72

Jammu & Kashmir 322.7 492.3 15.26

Jharkhand 191.0 286.0 14.97

Karnataka 850.0 2512.0 29.55

Madhya Pradesh 896.2 1252.6 13.98

Maharashtra 428.0 753.0 17.59

Orissa 65.0 106.0 16.31

Punjab 154.0 422.0 27.40

Rajasthan 1042.4 1262.0 12.11

Tamil Nadu 189.9 294.7 15.52

Uttarakhand 30.0 44.0 14.67

Uttar Pradesh 876.0 1494.0 17.05

West Bengal 46.9 139.6 29.77

India 7430.4 14172.0 19.07

Source: Fertilizer Association of India, 2006

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Classification Maize is an annual C4 plant classified into 7 groups by Sturtevant (1899) based on the endosperm of kernels.

1. Dent corn (Zea mays indentata Sturt): It is popularly known as dent corn because of dent formation on the top of the kernel having yellow or white colour. The depression or dent in the crown of the seed is the result of rapid drying and shrinkage of the soft starch. This is the most common type of maize grown in the USA.

2. Flint corn (Zea mays indurata Sturt): The endosperm in this type of maize kernel is soft and starchy in the center and completely enclosed by a very hard outer layer. The kernels are round on the top. The colour may be white or yellow. It was discovered by Europeans with early maturity and can germinate in cold and wet soil. It is grown in Europe, Asia, Central America and South America as well as it is principal type of grain corn grown in India.

3. Pop corn (Zea mays averta Sturt): The size of kernel is small and the endosperm is hard. When they are heated (at 170oC), the pressure built up within the kernel suddenly results in an explosion and the grain is turned inside out. The grain is used for human consumption and is the basis of pop-corn confections. Its cultivation is mainly confined to the New World.

4. Flour or Soft corn (Zea mays amylacea Sturt): It possesses a soft endosperm. Kernels are soft and of various colours, but white and blue are most common. They are like fruit kernels in shape. It is widely grown in the USA and South Africa.

5. Sweet corn (Zea mays saccharata Sturt): The sugar (20% on dry basis at green ear stage) and starch make the major component of the endosperm, which results in sweetish taste of the kernels before they attain the maturity. After maturity, the kernels become wrinkled. The cobs are picked up green (with 70% moisture) for canning and table purposes. The crop is mainly grown in Northern half of the USA and Canada. Yellow is predominant grain colour and are rich in Vitamin A and C.

6. Pod corn (Zea mays tunicata Sturt): Each kernel is enclosed in pod or husk in an ear which is enclosed in husks like other types of corn. It is a primitive type of corn not grown commercially.

7. Waxy corn (Zea mays ceretina Kulesh): Kernels have waxy appearance. Starch is entirely composed of amylopectin in contrast to common dent corn starch with 78% amylopectin and 22% amylose. Waxy corns are of Chinese origin. The mutations of dent corn have resulted in evolution of waxy corn in USA. The waxy corn hybrids developed in USA with starch similar to tapioca are grown for supplying raw materials for speciality products of the wet milling starch industry for textile and paper sizing and corn oil.

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Climate Requirements Maize is a warm weather crop and grows right from sea level to over 3000 m altitudes. It requires adequate moisture and warmth from sowing to end of flowering. The optimum temperature for germination is 21oC, while for growth it is 32oC. Extremely high temperatures coupled with low humidity are not conducive for pollination. It can not withstand frost at any stage of its life cycle.

The crop prefers the areas receiving an annual rainfall of 50-100 cm. The crop also grows well in areas with annual rainfall of 250 to 400 cm (Assam and West Bengal hills), provided the fields are not flooded.The crop needs more than 50% of its total water requirement in

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about 30-35 days after tasseling. Inadequate soil-moisture at the grain filling stage results in poor yield of shrivelled grains.

Soils The crop is grown on a wide range of soils. However, it prefers well drained fertile soils. The soil should be medium textured with good water-holding capacity. It does not thrive well on heavy clays, especially low lands. It can be grown successfully in soils with pH ranging from 5.5 to 7.5. The alluvial soils of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Punjab are suitable for raising good maize crop. The soils with sandy loam to silty loam texture are best for the crop.

Land Preparation A deep summer ploughing after rabi crop followed by light ploughing by country plough and planking is required. For heavy soils, 2-3 ploughing are needed.

In areas of high rainfall during kharif, ridge and furrows are made to use furrows for provision of drainage. In rabi, spring and summer seasons planting in furrows is preferred over ridge planting. This is done for achieving higher water use efficiency.

Sowing of Seeds

Time of sowing With the availability of thermo and photo-insensitive varieties, it is now possible to grow this crop throughout the year. Usually 3 crops of maize, viz. kharif, rabi and spring are grown in the country.

As a rainfed kharif crop, maize sowings are spread over the months of June and July corresponding with the onset of monsoons. In northern hilly regions, the crop is sown in May. As a irrigated kharif crop, it is sown a fortnight or a month before onset of monsoon to avoid water logging damage to seedlings due to heavy rainfall. In north India, this practice helps in taking an early rabi crop of toria or potato before wheat.

Rabi and spring maize has become popular owing to higher yields. Besides, their sowing periods are flexible and thus can be fitted in any cropping system. Rabi maize in Bihar and surrounding states of Indo-Gangetic plains is sown from September to November. In north-western plains zone, sowing should be delayed beyond first fortnight of November, as it leads to poor crop performance due to cold climatic conditions (Table 3).

Table 3. Rabi sowing times in different states

State Suitable time of sowing

Bihar 10 October – 30 October

Andhra Pradesh 1 November – 15 November

Gujarat 15 October – 1 November

Tamil Nadu 1 October – 15 November

Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka 15 October – 15 November

Eastern Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Orissa, Maharashtra

15 October – 10 November

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The spring crop is sown during late January to end of February. Baby corn can be planted all the year round, except December and January. Second week of September to first fortnight of February is the best for baby corn cultivation. For sweet corn, June-July (kharif) and September-October (rabi) are the optimum times of sowing.

Seed Rate and Spacing In maize, each plant is important for realization of potential yields. During kharif, a plant population of 65,000-70,000/ha is recommended for grain production. The seed should be sown at a spacing of 75 cm x 18 cm or 60 cm x 22 cm. A seed rate of 20 kg/ha is required.

In rabi season, plants put up moderate growth owing to low temperature. Hence, it requires 30-40% higher population than that of kharif season. A plant density of 85,000-1, 00,000 plants is maintained. The plant spacing vary from 50 cm x 20 cm to 60 cm x 18 cm, A seed rate of 25-30 kg/ha is required.

For baby corn, the optimum plant density varies from 1, 25,000 to 1, 43,000/ha with spacing pattern of 40 cm x 40 cm to 40 cm x 35 cm (with 2 plants/hill). In short statured hybrids (as in case of “VL42” with 160 cm height), still higher plant density (1, 75,000/ha) is maintained. Thus, baby corn would require 38-50 kg/ha of seed.

The optimum population for sweet corn varies from 45,000-66,000/ha with spacing of 70 cm x 30 cm or 100 cm x 15 cm. This would require a seed rate of 10-11 kg/ha.

Method of Sowing Commercially the crop is sown by drilling with seed drill. Under wet soil conditions, the tynes may get choked with soil resulting in blank rows. This method is quick and is suitable for light soils at all moisture levels and in other soils at optimum soil moisture.

For maintaining optimum population and to avoid thinning, seeds are dibbled manually at required spacing. This method requires less seed rate, and is best for costly varieties/hybrids. Dropping the seeds in the furrows opened by plough followed by planking is also one of the common methods of sowing. After germination, the seedlings are thinned out to maintain optimum plant stand.

Hill sowing is the other method adopted for sowing. In this method, the seeds are dropped with the help of corn planter placed at appropriate place and pressed for dropping 3-4 seeds at a place (hill). It also needs relatively less seed.

The optimum depth of sowing is 7-8 cm in kharif and 4-5 cm in rabi. The optimum planting depth for sweet corns is 3-4 cm, while for super sweet corns it is 2.5 cm. A seedling/hill is optimum for all maize types. However, 2 seedlings/hill are optimum for baby corn.

Varieties The maize improvement programme got a boost with the establishment of All India Coordinated Maize Improvement programme in 1957. A large number of double cross hybrids and composites were developed and released from then onwards. However, since 1980’s, single cross hybrids development is given more emphasis. Trishulata (three way hybrid) and Paras (first single cross hybrid) were thus released in 1991 and 1995, respectively. With increasing emphasis on rabi maize cultivation, cold tolerant cultivars (Pratap and Pratap-1) were evolved in Punjab in 1983 and the same were adopted in Haryana too. The state wise recommended composites/ hybrids are given in Table 4.

Speciality corn (pop corn, sweet corn, baby corn), high oil, waxy and amylo maize and quality protein maize [QPM (with 02 gene and hard endosperm)] development has been emphasized since 1970’s. These efforts have results in release of Shaktiman 1 (2001) and

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Shaktiman 2 (2002) QPM hybrids; Amber popcorn (1981), VL Amber popcorn (1981) and Pearl popcorn (1995). The sweet corn composites developed include Madhuri (1990) and Priya (2002). Though no exclusive baby corn types were evolved, early maturing hybrids developed (Prakash, Vivek 4, Vivek 5, Pusa 1 and Pusa 2) have been found suitable for this purpose.

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Table 4. Recommended hybrids and composites of maize for different states

State Hybrids Composites

Uttar Pradesh Hi-starch, Ganga-4, Ganga 7, Ganga 9, DHM 103*, Him-129, JH 3459, Vivek Hybrid 5, Shaktiman 1*, Buland, Pusas early Hybrid-5, DHM 15

Tarun, Type 41, Navin, Sonari (Shweta), Kanchan, Dhawal*, Parbhat, Pusa composite 1, Pusa Composite 2, Azad Uttam, Mahi Kanchan, Megha, Gaurav, Composite Azad, Sharadmani, Narmada Moti, Pragati

Uttarakhand VL 54, Him-128 Proteina, Shakti, VL Makka 16, VL Amber pop corn, VL 41, Vivek Sankul Makka 11, VL Makka 88

Jammu & Kashmir

C1, C2, C3, C6, C15. Mansar, Nishant, Trikuta, C8, C14

Himachal Pradesh

Him-123, Him-128

Early Composite, Parvati, Girija

Punjab Sangam, Paras, Sheetal*, JH 3459, Buland, Pusa early hybrid-5

Rattan, Makki Safed 1, Ageti 76, Narmada Moti, Partap*, Partap 1*, Arun, Dhawal*, Parbat, Pusa Composite 1, Pusa Composite 2, Mahi Kanchan, Kesri, Megha, Punjab Sathi 1, Pearl popcorn, Gaurav, Taruna

Haryana HHM-1, HHM-2, JH 3459, Buland, Pusa Early Hybrid 5

Arun, Parbhat, Pusa Composite 1, Mahi Kanchan, Megha, Gaurav, Narmada Moti, Tarun

Bihar Hi-starch, Ganga 4, Ganga 9, DHM 103*, Rajendra Makka 1*, Rajendra Makka 2, Shaktiman-1*, Shaktiman 2*, DHM15

Lakshmi*, Suwan, Hemant, Tarun, Dhawal*, Pusa Composite 1, Pusa Composite 2, Megha, Devki, Pragati

Jharkhand Birsa Makai, Pragati

Karnataka DMH-1, Pusa Early Hybrid 1, Pusa Early Hybrid 3, DMH 2, DHM 15

Protina, Renuka, Dhawal*, Prabhat, Pusa Composite 1, Pusa Composite 2, Prabha, Amar, NAC 6004, NAC 6002, Narmada Moti

Assam DHM 103*, DHM 109, DHM 15

Pragati

Maharashtra Pusa Early Hybrid 3, DHM 15 Hunius, Manjari, Dhawal, Pusa Composite 1, Pusa Composite 2, Mahi Kanchan, Panchganga, Amar, Narmada Moti

Andhra Pradesh

DHM 109, Pusa Early Hybrid 3, DHM 15

Amber popcorn, Dhawal*, Prabhat, Pusa Composite 1, Pusa Composite 2, Madhuri (sweet corn), Mahi Kanchan, Amar, Narmada Moti

Tamil Nadu DHM 109, Pusa Early Hybrid Dhawal*, Parbhat, Pusa Composite 1, Pusa

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State Hybrids Composites

3, DHM 15 Composite 2, Mahi Kanchan, Narmada Moti

Rajasthan Ranjit, DHM-109, Him-129, Pusa Early Hybrid 1, Pusa Early Hybrid 2, Vivek Hybrid 4, Pratap Hybrid 1

Bassi selection, Rattan, Shakti, Moti, Arun, Dhawal*, Parbhat, Pusa Composite 1, Pusa Composite 2, Mahi Kanchan, Megha, Mahi Dhawal, Amar, Aravali Makka 1*, Narmada Moti

Gujarat DHM 109, Him-129, Pusa Early Hybrid 1, Pusa Early Hybrid-2, Vivek Hybrid 4

Farm Sameri, Gujarat Makai 1, Pusa Composite 2, Mahi Kanchan, Megha, Gujarat Makai 2, Amar, Gujarat Makai 4, Gujarat Makai 3*, Narmada Moti, Gujarat Makai 6

Madhya Pradesh

Ganga 1, Ganga 4, Deccan 101, DHM-103*, DHM 109, Him-129, Pusa Early Hybrid 1, Pusa Early Hybrid 2, Vivek Hybrid 4, DHM 15

Narmada Moti, Jawahar Makka 216*, Chandan Makka 2, Shakti, Chandan Makka 1, Chandan Makka 3, Chand Safed Makka-2, Pusa Composite 1, Mahi Kanchan, Amar, Megha, Jawahar Makka 8, Jawahar Makka 12, Jawahar Makka 216

West Bengal DHM 103*, Rajendra Makka 22, DHM 15

Megha, Pragati

Orissa Rajendra Makka 2, DHM 15 Dhawal*, Megha, Pragati

Sikkin NLD white

All India Ganga safed 2, Ganga 5, DHM-103, DHM-1*, Ganga-11, DHM 105*, Trishulata*, Parkash, Deccan 107

Vijay, Ageti 76, Navjot, D 765, Diara 3, MCU 508, Kiran, Surya, Shakti 1*, Madhuri (sweet corn)

Peninsular Deccan, Deccan 101, DHM-103*, VL 42, Pusa Early Hybrid 2, Vivek Hybrid 9, Rangit

Amber, Jawahar, Sona, Harsha, Varun, Priya (sweet corn)*

Himalayan region

Ganga 9, VL 42, DHM 109, Him-129, Vivek Hybrid 9

Amber, Kisan, Mansar, VL 88, Pratap Makka 4

Northern plains

Ganga 1, Ganga 101, Ganga 3 Jawahar, Kisan, Sona, Vikram

* Rabi

Maize composites/hybrids released by private companies for cultivation between 1997-2003 are:

3058 (Y1402K), JKMH 2492, PRO 303, MMH 69, KH 951, SSF 9374, PRO 311, MMH 113, PAC 701, PAC 705, Bioseed 9681, 32A09, PRO 312, PRO 316, PAC 738, PAC 776, JH 3189, Bio 9637*, JM-12*, Co BC1, JH 3459, Makka 3, JKMH 175, Kohinoor hybrid, HKH 1082*, HKH 1071*, Seedtec 740, DK 701, PRO 339

*State release

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Manures and Fertilizers Manure and fertilizers both play an important role in maize cultivation. The maize is an exhaustive crop and prefers light soil types for its cultivation, which may further aggravates the nutrient deficiency. Nutrient requirement and its mode of application is, however, governed by a number of factors viz., soil type, variety, planting season, preceding crop, method and time of fertilizer application. For example, maize grown after potato needs relatively less fertilizers and so is the case of crop grown after any legumes. Irrigated crop needs higher doses of nutrients than rainfed ones.

The crop should be supplied with organic manure (FYM or compost) @ 10-15 tonnes/ha before sowing to ensures good tilth and improve the water-holding capacity.

The recommended dose of N varies with duration of the variety and its season of cultivation. For full season hybrids, 100-200 kg N/ha; for medium maturity, 80-100 kg N/ha; for early maturity, 60-80 kg N/ha; and for extra early maturity, 40-60 kg N/ha is required. Rabi maize and baby corn require higher dose of N (180 kg/ha) than kharif crop and grain crop respectively owing to their higher population.

Besides N, 40-60 kg P2O5/ha is necessary for realization of higher yields. The response to K fertilization is rare in India. However, in intensive cropping systems and low temperature regions of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir, K fertilization @ 30-40 kg K2O/ha is necessary. In sandy soils and freshly levelled field the crop exhibits Zn deficiency. It is also noticed in the soils of north Indian states. Deficient plants show a broad band of bleached tissues on each side of the midrib, beginning from the base of the leaves. In severe cases, the apical leaves become white, a symptom called ‘white bud of maize’. Therefore, it is advisable to apply 15-20 kg/ha zinc sulphate along with basal application of fertilizers. The deficiency of zinc in plants at later stages of growth, however, may be corrected by foliar application of zinc sulphate (ZnSO4) dissolved in water with half the quantity of lime (0.5% ZnSO4 + 0.25% hydrated lime).

One fourth of the total quantity of nitrogen and entire quantity of phosphorus, potash and zinc (wherever required) should be applied at the time of sowing. The rest of N should be applied by side dressing 10-12 cm away from the base of the plant to avoid plant injury. Half of the total N should be applied at knee high stage (20-30 days after germination) and rest one fourth of the nitrogen should be applied after the emergence of flag-leaf, but before the emergence of tassels. Soon after side dressing, the fertilizer on the soil surface should be covered to minimize losses.

Water Management

Maize as rabi and zaid season crop is grown under irrigated conditions only. However, protective irrigations are necessary under periods of moisture stress, when grown during kharif under rainfed conditions. In kharif, 2-3 irrigations are required after sowing, whereas, spring crop requires 8-10 irrigations. A good crop of maize requires about 480-600 mm of water during its life cycle. A vigorously growing maize plant needs about 2-3 litres of water/day during peak growing period or on an average its consumptive use of water varies from 2.5 to 4.3 mm/day. The growth stages of the crop affect the water requirement to a greater extent. It is observed that a good crop of maize needs a rainfall or irrigation of about 1.0-1.2 m/ha during the growth period.

The 5 critical growth phases for irrigation are seedling stage (6-leaf stage), knee high stage, tasseling, 50% silking and dough stages. Moisture stress at early growth stages results in delayed tasseling and silking. Stress at later stage of growth causes drastic reduction in yield.

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Kharif maize sown before monsoon should be given a pre-sowing irrigation besides irrigation at 6-leaf stage. The other irrigations may be adjusted as per rainfall distribution. It must be ensured that the crop should not suffer from moisture stress at flowering and grain filling stages.

Irrigated crop of maize besides pre-sowing irrigation should be irrigated at all 5 critical stages. However, if only 3-4 irrigations are available, then irrigation at tasseling and 6-leaf stages may be avoided. At times of cold or frost, irrigation is provided to minimize the damage to crop.

In baby corn, 15-20 days after sowing, knee high stage and pre-flowering are the critical stages of irrigation. Stress at any of these stages may result in barrenness and reduced size of baby corn.

In sweet corn, tasseling and silking stages are critical for irrigation. The moisture stress at tasseling stage reduces seed set, and in extreme cases barren ears are also formed.

Excess water or water logging is equally or even more harmful. The crop is highly sensitive to excess water (waterlogging) and hence efficient drainage is equally important as irrigation. It is observed that water logging for more than 3-4 days may result in a yield reduction to the extent of 50% or even complete crop failure, depending upon severity of water logging. To avoid water logging, sowing on ridges is desirable especially in kharif.

Weed Control Weeds emerge with the germination of maize seeds and grow along with plants till the early growth period. This causes a severe crop weed competition to maize plants. The losses caused by weeds are more at seedling stage (3-6 weeks after sowing) than later stages.

The crop is found to be infested with both grassy and broad-leaved weeds. The important weeds are Elusine indica (thingri), Cyperus spefies (motha), Cynodon dactylon (doob), Dactyloctenum aegyptium (makra), Echinochloa colonum (sawan), Pharagmites (safed murge ka phool), Cleome viscose (hulhul), Phyllanthus niruri (hazardana), Solanum nigrum (makoi), Portulaca oleracea (naunia), Commelina bengalensis (kankoa).

Two hoeings 15 and 30 days after sowing are necessary to control weeds. Mechanical hoeings should not be done after knee-high stage, as it may lead to leaf damage. In Kandi area of sub-montane Himalayan regions, ploughing between the rows of crop of 1m height is practiced. It not only helps in uprooting weeds, but also serves the earthing up purpose besides conserving rain water.

The herbicide usage is common for weed control in maize. Pre-emergence application (within 2 days after sowing) of atrazine or simazine @ 1 kg/ha or alachlor @ 2 kg/ha has been found effective in weed control.

Cropping Systems Crops like soybean, blackgram, greengram, cowpea are raised mixed with maize. These legume crops are grown in space between 2 rows of maize. In Bihar mixed cropping of groundnut with maize is quite profitable. In certain areas maize is intercropped with pigeonpea. In rabi maize, intercropping of pea, rajmash, lentil, potato, onion, methi etc. is done in different parts of the country. In irrigated areas of north India, barley, wheat, toria, potato, blackgram, berseem, sugarcane, lucerne, oats are raised after maize.

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Some of the most important crop rotations are given below.

Maize-wheat or gram or pea Maize-wheat-cowpea

Maize-potato-onion/ wheat/ tobaco Maize-berseem or oat

Maize-lucerne-maize-potato-sugarcane Maize-toria-wheat

Maize-wheat-muingbean or blackgram Maize-potato-maize

Maize-wheat-cotton-berseem, Maize-oat-napier grass

Maize-senji-sugarcane-cotton Maize-wheat-sorghum-sugarcane

Maize-wheat-sugarcane

Harvesting and Threshing Maize is harvested when husk is turned yellow and grains are hard enough with about 30% moisture. There is no need to wait for stalks and leaves to dry, because they remain green in most of the hybrids and composites.

The husk is removed from the cobs, and cobs are dried in sun for 7-8 days. Thereafter grains are removed either by beating the cobs by stick or with the help of maize sheller.

Yield Well managed crop gives 5-6 tonnes grain/ha in case of hybrids and 4.5-5 tonnes in case of composites under irrigated conditions. In case of rainfed crop, yield levels are about 2.0-2.5 tonnes/ha for hybrids and 1.5-2.0 tonnes/ha for composites.

The yield attributes (range) and mean quality characteristics of grain are as below.

Attribute Value

Cobs/plant 1-1.5

1,000 grain weight (g) 200-250

Protein (%) 11.1

Fat (%) 3.6

Fibre (%) 2.7

Carbohydrate (%) 66.2

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Corn plants showing ears: Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maize

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Corn male flower, a.k.a. corn tassel

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maize

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Corn female flower, a.k.a. corn silk

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maize

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Cultivars of maize: Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maize

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Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Millets

Sorghum (Jowar) Pearl Millet (Bajra)

Finger Millet

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Sorghum (Jowar)

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

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SORGHUM (Jowar)

Botanical name: Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench

Chromosome number: 2n=20

Sorghum ranks third in the major foodgrain crops in India, whereas it is the fourth foodgrains of the world. Millions of people in Africa and Asia depend on sorghum as the staple food. In addition, the fodder and stover is fed to millions of animals providing milk and meat for man. It is also used as industrial raw material in various industries in the USA and other developed countries. It has potential to compete effectively with crops like maize under good environmental and management conditions. Sorghum grain contains about 10-12% proteins, 3% fat and 70% carbohydrates. Therefore, it can satisfactorily replace other grains in feeding programme for dairy cattle, poultry and swine. Over 55% of grain produced globally is used for human consumption in the form of flat breads and porridges (thick or thin) and about 33% of grain used in feeding livestock, especially in the Americas.

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Origin Sorghum is considered to be originated in Northern Africa or at the Egyptian-Sudanese border 5,000-8,000 years ago. Indian sub-contigent is its secondary center of origin, where it is cultivated since 4,500 years. After evolution from wild races of Africa, self seeding ability was lost. The crop has also acquired compact panicles and larger seed size. The date of arrival of cultivated sorghum in India is uncertain, but probably it was brought to India from Africa by visitors and merchants.

Geographic Distribution Globally sorghum is cultivated over an area of about 42.7 million ha with a production of about 58.7 million tonnes. Among the 99 sorghum growing countries of world, India ranks first in terms of acreage and 3rd in terms of production. USA is the largest producer of sorghum (Table 1).

Table 1. The major countries producing sorghum

Country Area (m ha)

Production (m tonnes)

Productivity (t/ha)

USA 2.64 11.56 4.381

India 9.10 7.70 0.846

Mexico 1.83 7.00 3.822

Nigeria 7.07 8.03 1.135

Sudan 6.00 2.60 4.330

Argentina 0.48 2.16 4.547

China 0.57 2.34 4.102

Australia 0.73 2.01 2.737

Ethiopia 1.34 1.78 1.336

Burkina Faso 1.44 1.40 0.973

World 42.69 58.71 1.375

Source: FAO ProductionYear Book, 2004

In India, it is grown over 9 million ha with total production of about 7.5 million tonnes. During 2002-03, rainy season crop occupied for 4.7 mha (4.5 m tonnes), while post-rainy season crop had 5.0 m ha (2.9 m tonnes). Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh are the important sorghum growing states. Since independence, the area (18.73 mha), production (12.90 m tonnes) and productivity (982 kg/ha) was the highest in 1968-69, 1989-90 and 1992-93, respectively.

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Table 2. Area, production and productivity of jowar in important states of India in 2004-05

State Area (000 ha) Production (000 t) Productivity (q/ha)

Andhra Pradesh 500.0 516.0 10.32

Bihar 3.8 3.8 10.00

Chattisgarh 6.6 4.4 6.67

Gujarat 179.8 207.5 11.54

Haryana 96.0 26.0 2.71

Jammu & Kashmir 6.0 3.6 6.00

Jharkhand 2.2 1.7 7.73

Karnataka 1662.0 1435.0 8.63

Kerala 0.7 0.3 4.29

Madhya Pradesh 659.0 630.6 9.57

Maharashtra 4756.0 3624.0 7.62

Orissa 10.1 5.5 5.45

Rajasthan 573.0 265.9 4.64

Tamil Nadu 376.7 252.1 6.69

Uttar Pradesh 247.3 252.3 10.20

West Bengal 1.5 0.6 4.00

India 9092.3 7244.0 7.97

Source: Fertilizer Association of India, 2006.

Classification Three species of sorghum have been recognized Sorghum halkepense (L.) Pers.; S. propinquum (Kunth.) Hitche; and S. bicolor. The first two species are wild. S. bicolor is further divided into 3 sub species viz. ssp. bicolor, ssp. drummondii and verticilliflorum. The former one is cultivated and the later two are annual weedy types. Harlen and de Wet (1972) classified genus sorghum based on spikelet types into 5 basic races (bicolor, guinea, caudatum, kafir and durra) and ten hybrid races [guinea-bicolor, caudatum-bicolor, kafir-bicolor, durra-bicolor, guinea-caudatum, guinea-kafir, guinea-durra, kafir caudatum, durra-caudatum and kafir durra]. ssp bicolor is the most primitive and low yielding one. ssp guinea is cultivated in West Africa in areas with >1,000 mm rainfall and is low yielding. ssp. caudatum is dominant in Sudan, Chad, Nigeria and Uganda. ssp. kafir is cultivated in Northern Nigeria and Ghana. It is high yielding one and originated recently. ssp. durra is

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widely cultivated in Arabia, Asia Minor, India, Myanmar, along the Nile valley and in Ethiopia. The Ethiopian durra is excellent source of stay green trait.

www.hear.org/.../html/sorghum_bicolor.htm www.fao.org/docrep/008/y5831e/y5831e06.htm

Courtesy : "Forest & Kim Starr" Climatic Requirements Sorghum requires warm climate but can be grown under a wide range of climatic conditions. The plant can tolerate high temperatures throughout their life-cycle better than any other cereal crop. The minimum temperature for germination of sorghum seed is 7-10oC. It needs 26-30oC temperature for its optimum growth. Though it can withstand temperatures up to 45oC, but the lower temperatures (<8oC) limit its cultivation owing to impaired flowering and pollination. Hence, its rabi cultivation is not possible in north India. Temperatures below 13oC at blooming stage are detrimental to seed setting in rabi. It is a short day C4 plant. The time of heading in sorghum is influenced by temperature as well as photo-period. It can also tolerate drought conditions very well, because it remains dormant during moisture stress conditions and resumes growth when favourable conditions reappear. It is grown from sea level to as high as 3,000 m elevation. It can also tolerate waterlogging conditions better than any other cereal except rice. Therefore, it can be grown successfully in areas having average annual rainfall between 40 and 100 cm.

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Sorghum cultivation during kharif is declining in the country as prolonged rains at flowering stage aggravates grain mould incidence and the infected grains are unfit for human consumption.

Soil Sorghum is grown on a variety of soil types. In India, it is mainly grown in alfisols (red) and vertisols (black). The red soils are derived from coarse crystalline acidic granite and are light-textured and shallow. These soils have high infiltration rate of 5-15 cm/hr, with pH ranging from 6.5 to 7.5 coupled with low N and P and rich in non-exchangeable potash. Surface crust is serious problem in these soils. These soils are mostly found in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

Black soils are clayey in nature with varying depths. These are erodable due to presence of montmorillonite. These have low infiltration rate (about 0.1 cm/hr) leading to salt accumulation, and are generally deficient in N and P.

During kharif season, water logging is a problem vertisols with high clay content. In general, vertisols with 90-120 mm of stored moisture can support reasonably good rainfed rabi crop. However, in soil with low water storage capacity, winter showers or irrigation is necessary.

Land Preparation The field is prepared by deep off-season ploughing every year in shallow to medium deep soils, and once in 3 years in deep to very deep soils. This should be done soon after harvest of rabi crop in double cropped regions, immediately after cessation of west monsoon. This leaves the field cloddy, exposing weed and other pests propagules to high temperatures. The cloddy field also aids in moisture conservation by increased opportunity time for runoff.

With the onset of monsoon, the field is ploughed or harrowed 2-3 times to break the clods followed by planking. In heavy soils prone to water logging, levelling is also done for easy drainage.

Seed rate and Spacing In kharif and irrigated rabi seasons, the optimum population varies from 1, 50,000 to 2, 00,000 plants/ha. In rainfed rabi crop, the optimum population is little lower i.e. 1, 35,000/ha. These plant populations are achieved by planting at 45 cm x 15 cm or 60 cm x 10 cm. A seed rate of 8-10 kg/ha is required to achieve these plant populations. After germination, plants in the rows are thinned at the desired spacing.

Time of Sowing It is mainly a kharif season crop in north India. In south India, it can be grown in kharif, rabi as well as summer seasons. In kharif under rainfed situations, the onset of monsoons is the single most factors deciding sowing time. Last week of June to first week of July is the optimum time of sowing. However, under irrigated conditions, the crop establishment before onset of monsoon is ideal. Thus 1-2 weeks advance sowings before monsoon are adopted. Too early or delayed sowings are not good as the flowering time may coincide with rains leading to grain mold incidence in the former case and moisture stress in the later.

Rabi sorghum is cultivated in the states of Maharashtra and Karnataka. In Andhra Pradesh, it is called Maghi season. The optimum time of sowing of rabi sorghum under rainfed conditions is second fortnight of September to mid October. Under irrigated conditions, as in Dharwad (Karnataka), sowings can be delayed and second week of October is the optimum time. For Maghi season of Andhra Pradesh, last week of September to first week of October is ideal.

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For summer cultivation in the states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, January-February is the optimum sowing time.

Method of Sowing In north India, sorghum is sown either by broadcast or in rows behind the plough. The seeds of hybrids and improved varieties should always be sown in rows for obtaining higher yields. Sowing in rows is common in black cotton soils. Sorghum is a tall growing crop, and to avoid mutual shading, sowing in sun rise and sun set direction is ideal.

Under moisture limiting environments, paired row planting pattern has been found promising. The paired row planting systems include 30/60 cm and 45/90 cm.

Thinning In rows, plants should be thinned out to maintain 15-20 cm plant spacing at 2 stages. First thinning should be done 10-15 days after emergence and the second at 20-25 days after sowing. All diseased and insect infested plants should be removed in thinning.

Varieties A number of varieties (since 1930) and hybrids (since 1964) have been developed in sorghum both for kharif and rabi seasons. Kharif cultivars are essential to be of short duration, short stature and photo-insensitive to ward off grain mould menace. The rabi (post-rainy) cultivars, on the other hand, should be tall, temperature insensitive with high degree of terminal drought tolerance, photo-insensitive besides having resistance to charcol rot and lodging. The varieties for ethanol production have also been evolved in recent times. The sorghum varieties and hybrids suitable for kharif, rabi and ethanol production for different states of India are given below.

Recommended sorghum varieties and hybrids for kharif in different states

State Varieties Hybrids Remarks

CSV 15 CSH 6, CSH 4 Low rainfall areas

CSV 10, CSV 11, SPV 62, CSV 13, CSV 15

CSH 5, CSH 9, CSH 10, CSH 16, CSH 18

Normal rainfall areas

Andhra Pradesh

CSV 10, CSV 11, Moti CSH 5, CSH 9, CSH 13 Late kharif

Gujarat CSV 10, CSV 13, CSV 15, GJ 35, GJ 36, GJ 37, GJ 38, GJ 39, GJ 40, GJ 41

CSH 1, CSH 5, CSH 4. CSH 6, CSH 9. CSH 11, CSH 13, CSH 15, CSH 16, CSH 17, CSH 18

CSB 1066, DSV 1, DSV 2

CSH 1, CSH 6, CSH 14, CSH 17

Low rainfall areas

Karnataka

CSV 10, CSV 11, CSV 13, CSV 15, SPV 462,

DSV 3 (midge resistant)

CSH 10, CSH 13, CSH 16, CSH 18

Normal rainfall areas

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State Varieties Hybrids Remarks

Madhya Pradesh

CSV 10, CSV 11, CSV 13, CSV 15, SPV 235, JS 741, JJ 938, JJ 1041

CSH 1, CSH 9, CSH 10. CSH 11, CSH 13, CSH 16, CSH 17, CSH 18

Maharashtra CSV 10, CSV 11, CSV 13, CSV 15, PVK 400, SPV 699, CSV 17

CSH 1, CSH 6, CSH 9, CSH 10, CSH 11, CSH 13, CSH 14, CSH 16, CSH 18, SPH 388

Rajasthan SPV 245, SPV 96, SPV 346, CSV 13, CSV 15, CSV 17

CSH 1, CSH 5, CSH 6, CSH 9, CSH 10, CSH 11, CSH 13, CSH 16, CSH 18

Tamil Nadu BSr1, SPV 346, SPV 96, CSV 10, CSV 13, CSV 15

CSH 1, CSH 5, CSH 11, CSH 13, CSH 14, CSH 16, CSH 17, CSH 18

Uttar Pradesh

CSV 10, CSV 11, CSV 13, CSV 15, CSV 17

CSH 9, CSH 10, CSH 11, CSH 13, CSH 14, CSH 16, CSH 18

Recommended sorghum varieties and hybrids for rabi season in different states

State Varieties Hybrids Remarks

Andra Pradesh

SPV462, Moti, NTJ-2

CSH-5,CSH-10, CSH-12R

Early sown rabi

M-35-1 CSH-8R, Timely sown rabi

CSV8R, CSV-14R CSH-13R, CSH-15R Early and timely sown rabi (both)

Gujarat CSV 8R, CSV-14R CSH-8R, CSH-12R, CSH-13R, CSH-15R

M-35-1, DSV-5 Dry zones Karnataka

CSV-8R, CSV 14R

CSH-12R, CSH-13R, CSH-14R

Transitional and irrigated zones

CSV 8R, M-35-1, CSV 14R, Phule Yasoda, CSH 216 R

CSH 8R, CSH 12R, CSH 15R, CSH 13, CSH 19R

Dry areas Maharashtra

CSV 8R, Swati (SPV 504)

CSH 8R, CSH 13 Irrigated areas

CO 24, CO 25, CSV 14R

CSH 10, K. tall, CSH 13R

Entire rabi zone Tamil Nadu

CSV 8R, CSB 14R, CO 26, CO 24, CO 25

COH 13R, COH 3, CSH 15R, CSH 5

Summer irrigated zones

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Varieties for ethanol and jaggery production and their characteristics: SSV-84: A selection from IS 23568, released in 1991 for rainy season cultivation matures in 123 days.

NSSH 104 (CSH 22SS): It is developed by crossing SSV 84 (male) x ICSA 38 (female)

For jaggery preparation, high total soluble solids and sucrose: reducing sugar > 9 are ideal. The alcohol production from sorghum grain is about 380 litres/tonne, while the starch production is 592 kg/tonne (Gluclose production = starch production x 1.11). The earheads are harvested at physiological maturity, and within 12 hours, the canes should be harvested and crushed immediately. The yield characteristics of sweet sorghum cultivars are given below.charactes

Character Variety/hybrid

SSV-84 NSSH104 RSSV16

Green cane (t/ha) 36.0 41.0 38.0

Grain yield (t/ha) 2.3 2.3 2.0

Juice brix 18 19 20

Jaggery yield (t/ha) 3.0 3.1 3.3

Ethanol yield (l/ha) 1850 1950 2100

Manures and Fertilizer Sorghum is an exhaustive crop, but needs moderate fertilizer application owing to its moisture limiting conditions. The area under irrigated conditions has increased enormously in recent years and under such conditions, liberal fertilization is done. Fertilizer requirement of hybrid/ composite varieties of sorghum is higher than desi cultivars.

In rainfed crop, 10 t/ha of FYM with 40-60 kg N/ha and 20-30 kg P2O5/ha is applied as basal. Under irrigated conditions, the crop should receive 80-100 kg N and 30-40 kg P2O5/ha. All P along with 50% N is applied as basal at the time of sowing. Rest 50% N is top-dressed by band placement 30 days after sowing at flower primordial initiation stage. Seed inoculation with Azotobacter chrooccum or Azospirillum lipoferum or A. brasilense has been found effective in 10-20 kg/ha N economy under rainfed conditions.

The response to K fertilization in India is rare. The deficiency of zinc and iron (in calcareous soils) is increasing day by day. Soil application of 25 kg zinc sulphate once in 3 years or foliar spray (2 times) of 0.2% zinc sulphate is promising in zinc deficient soils. In case of iron deficiency, foliar spray (twice) of 0.1% ferrous sulphate is recommended.

Water Management

It is predominantly grown as rainfed crop in kharif, and on conserved moisture in rabi. The water requirement of sorghum varies from 300-500 mm (kharif and rabi) to 600-700 mm (summer). Summer jowar is grown exclusively under irrigation. Depending upon availability of water resources for irrigation, jowar is provided with protective irrigation in kharif and is grown as irrigated crop in rabi.

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There are four critical stages of growth for irrigation in sorghum i.e. flower primordial initiation (25-30 DAS), flag leaf stage (50-55 DAS), flowering (60-70 DAS) and grain filling (80-90 DAS). Under adequate water supply conditions of rabi and summer, irrigation should be given at all these critical stages. If water is available for 2 irrigations only, these should be applied at flower primordial initiation and flowering stages. In kharif rainfed crop, with prolonged dry spells, irrigation should be given at these critical stages.

The irrigation water requirement of summer sorghum is the highest (500-700 mm) followed by rabi (240-350 mm) and the least in kharif (120-250 mm). Similarly deep soils (vertisols) require less water than light soils (sandy, red soils).

Irrigation scheduling at 75% depletion of available soil moisture (DASM) in plough depths during kharif and at 50% DASM in rabi and summer is optimum for jowar. For scheduling irrigation based on irrigation water/cumulative pan evaporation (IW/CPE) ratio, 0.4 in kharif, and 0.8-1.0 in rabi and summer is ideal.

In rainfed kharif and rabi jowar, moisture conservation is extremely important. The crop sown in ridge and furrow or flat sowing followed by ridging 30-35 DAS has been found effective in moisture conservation during kharif. Organic mulching with crop residues or removed weeds and vertical mulching by digging trenches of 30-40 cm of 15-20 cm width are other effective methods of in situ moisture conservation practices recommended for successful jowar cropping.

Weed Control Weeds simultaneously germinate in the crop sown under kharif rainfed conditions. The initial 30-45 days after sowing is the critical period of crop-weed competition. The crop should be kept weed free during this period. This is achieved by manual weeding and hoeing in rabi and zaid seasons. During kharif season, intermittent rains may not permit weeding and hoeing. Weeds may cause 20-60% reduction in yield, if not controlled at right time. During kharif season both grassy and broad-leaved weeds grow with sorghum crop. These are: Echinochloa colonum, E. crusgalli (sawan), Dactyloctenium aegypticum (makra), E. leusine indica (kodo), Setaria glauca (bandar-bandri), Cyperus rotundus (motha), Sorghum halepanse (banchari), Cynodon dactylon (doob), and Phragnutes kakta (narkul).

Weeds should be removed with the help of khurpi or hand hoe in 3-week old crop. Atrazine @ 1.0 kg/ha in 800-1000 litres of water as pre-emergence just after sowing could successfully control the weeds. There should be enough moisture in the soil at the time of spraying. Intercropping with cowpea has also been found effective in weed management. Another pre-emergence herbicide recommended for jowar is prometryne @ 1 kg/ha. The integration of above herbicides with one hand weeding or hoeing 35-40 DAS may effectively control most of the weeds. Striga (root parasitic weed) menace is observed in Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. If striga menace is severe, 2,4-D should be applied as post-emergence @ 1 kg/ha between 20-60 DAS, in addition to above herbicides

Cropping Systems Mixed cropping of soybean, pigeonpea, blackgram, greengram and cowpea with sorghum has been found profitable in north India. Sorghum hybrid CSH 6 is more suitable for mixed cropping. Most of the high yielding varieties and hybrids mature in about 90-120 days, and fit well in multiple crop rotations. Some of the sorghum based crop rotations with sorghum are given below.

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North India South India

Sorghum-potato/ rape-wheat/ tobacco Sorghum-cotton-groundnut

Sorghum-wheat-cowpea/ pearlmillet Sorghum-ragi-groundnut

Sorghum-wheat-greengram Sorghum-cotton

Sorghum-pea / oat / berseem Groundnut- sorghum(rabi)

Sorghum-gram or barley Sorghum-tobacco

Sorghum-lentil Sorghum- sorghum(rabi)

Harvesting and Threshing The crop should be harvested immediately after maturity. There is no need to wait for stalks and leaves to dry as the plants of hybrid sorghum appear green even after the crop maturity. The right time for harvest is when grains become hard and contain less than 25% moisture. Generally 2 methods of harvesting i.e. stalk cut and cutting of earheads by sickles are adopted. However, in foreign countries, sorghum harvesters are used. In case of stalk cut method, the plants are cut from near the ground level. The stalks are tied into bundles of convenient sizes and stacked on the threshing floor. After 2-3 days, the earheads are removed from the plants. In other method, earheads only are removed from the standing crop and collected at the threshing floor for threshing after 3-4 days of sun-drying.

Threshing of earheads is done either by beating them with sticks or by trampling under bullock feet. The later method is quicker and adopted by majority of farmers. Threshing is also done with the help of threshers. The threshed grain should be cleaned and dried in sun for 6-7 days to reduce the moisture content down to 13-15% for safe storage.

Yield The grain yield of improved varieties under assured water supply ranges between 2.5-3.5 tonnes/ha, and that of hay or karvi between 15.0-17.0 tonnes/ha. With improved cultural practices, it is possible to harvest nearly 5.0 tonnes of grain and about 10.0-12.5 tonnes of dry stover from 1 ha under irrigated conditions.

The yield attributes (range) of sorghum are as below.

Attribute Value

Panicle length 20-30 cm

Grain weight/panicle (g) 30-50

1,000 grain weight (g) 25-30

Additional reading Material:

http://www.plantzafrica.com/copyright.htm

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Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Pearl Millet (Bajra)

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

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PEARL MILLET (Bajra) Botanical name: (Pennisetum glaucum L.) R. Emend stuntz

Chromosome number: 2n=14

Pearl millet, a C4 plant, is the major coarse grain crop of world. It is mostly grown in Africa and Asia since the pre-historic times. In Asia, it is an important cereal crop of India, Pakistan, China and South-eastern Asia. It is highly drought-tolerant crop among cereals and millets. It provides staple food for the poor in a short period in the relatively dry tracts of the country. It is also used as feed for poultry and green fodder or dry karvi for cattle. Pearl millet grains are eaten cooked like rice or ‘chapaties’ are prepared out of flour like sorghum or maize.

Origin Pearl millet is originated from its wild progenitor of Pennisetum ssp. violaceum in western Africa and was domesticated 4,000 years ago. India is considered as the secondary center of diversity of pearl millet after its introduction over 3,000 years ago.

Geographic Distribution Pearl millet is grown globally in 29 million ha in more than 40 countries. Its cultivation is mainly confined to semi-arid and arid climates of tropical and sub-tropical regions of South Asia (primarily India), Africa and Latin America. In Africa, it is cultivated in Nigeria, Niger, Mali, Chad, Tanzania, Sudan, Senegal and Burkina Faso. The west and central Africa accounts for about 16 mha. It is also grown in Oceania and the Americas on a small scale.

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In the country it is grown on 9.23 mha with Rajasthan alone accounting for 50% acreage and 38% of production. The area (13.93 mha), production (12.11 mt) and productivity (11.41 kg/ha) was the highest in the country during 1973-74, 2003-04 and 2003-04, respectively. The distribution of pearl millet in the country is given in Table 1.

Table 1.Area, production and productivity of bajra in important states of India (2004-05)

State Area (000 ha) Production (000 t) Productivity (q/ha)

Andhra Pradesh 94.0 81.0 8.62

Gujarat 925.2 1084.7 11.72

Haryana 569.0 749.0 13.16

Karnataka 494.0 267.0 6.01

Madhya Pradesh 176.5 241.5 13.68

Maharashtra 1529.0 1126.0 7.39

Rajasthan 4564.6 3002.2 6.58

Tamil Nadu 97.6 124.3 12.74

Uttar Pradesh 797.6 1223.9 15.34

India 9232.9 7931.3 8.59

Source: Fertilizer Association of India, 2006

Climatic Requirements Pearl millet grows well under warm climatic conditions with 500-600 mm of rainfall during the growth period. However, it is also grown in areas with rainfall ranging from 400 – 750 mm. For proper vegetative growth, moist weather is needed. It can not tolerate waterlogging. High rainfall at reproductive phase is not conducive, as it aids in spread of fungal diseases especially ergot. It is susceptible to frost damage and is predominantly grown as a rainfed kharif crop. However, its summer cultivation is also popular in the states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

The optimum temperature for growth is 25-30oC. High temperatures at early stages induce flowering, while low temperatures promote ergot incidence. India has been divided into the following 4 ecological zones of pearl millet.

Ecological Zone I: Adequate to abundant rainfall and fertile zone (Punjab, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and adjacent Madhya Pradesh).

Ecological Zone II: Limited rains, but heavy to light loamy soils (Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh).

Ecological Zone III: Low rainfall and light soils (Karnataka, north-central Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan).

Ecological Zone IV: Limited but well-distributed rainfall (Tamil Nadu, coastal Andhra Pradesh).

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Soils and land preparation Pearl millet can be raised on a variety of soils, but prefers light textured soils of low inherent fertility and mild salinity. The soil should be deep and free from stones and concretes. Crop does not tolerate soil acidity. It is grown successfully on black cotton soils, alluvial soils and red soils of India.

The crop needs fine tilth as the seeds are too small. The field is prepared by summer ploughing with mould board plough after the onset of monsoon followed by 2-3 harrowings or ploughing by country plough. Clods must be broken by planking the field after every ploughing so that fine tilth may be obtained to facilitate the sowing and proper distribution of seed at an appropriate depth. Adequate moisture in the seed bed at the time of sowing is conducive to good and quick germination.

Varieties Initially, improved cultivars of bajra were evolved by selection (mass/pure line) from land races such as RSK, RSJ and Jakrana (Rajasthan), N-28-15-1 and Avsari (Maharashtra) and Mainpuri (Uttar Pradesh). Some of the introductions from Africa also served as varieties (Jamnagar Giant, Improved Ghana and Pusa Moti). Hybridization was also explored in evolving varieties in the country. HB 1 was the first cytoplasmic male sterile (CMS) hybrid evolved in 1965 at Ludhiana, Punjab. Since then many varieties and hybrids have been evolved.

The pearl millet regions in India are regrouped into two major zones in recent years.

Zone A: North west zone comprising the states of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Haryana, Plains of Uttar Pradesh, New Delhi, Madhya Pradesh (Bhind, Morena, Gwalior and adjoining areas)

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and Punjab. Parts of states of Rajasthan, Gujarat and Haryana with rainfall < 400 mm are grouped into the sub zone A 1.

Zone B: South central zone consisting of state of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

The varieties and hybrids recommended for different zones and states are given below.

Varieties of pearl millet recommended for different zones

Zone Hybrids Varieties

Zone A MH 518, MH 497, RHB-127, HHB-146, GHB-577, HB-4

MP 258, MP 266, JBV-3, JBV-2, Pusa bajri, Pusa Composite 383, Pusa safed PCB-15. CZP 9802*

Zone B MH 515, MH 552, SAMH-166

ICMV 155, AP Composite (MT), Composite 3, BD-163, BD-111, CJ-104

Both Zones HC-4, GHB-558, BK 560-230

ICTP 8203, WCC 75, ICMS 7703, Raj bajra chari-2, ICMV-221, Raj-171, Pusa-334

* For Zone A1

State-wise recommended varieties of pearl millet

State Hybrids Varieties

Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand

HB 5, PHB 10, PHB 14, PHB 47, MBH 110, MH 36, BJ 104, BK 560, BD 111, BD 163, CM 46, ICMH 356

PSB 8

Bihar & Jharkhand PHB 10, MH 143, MH 169, BJ 104. BK 560, BD 111, BD 163, ICMH 356

Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh

BJ 104, BK 560, BD 111, BD 163, CM 46, CM 5, ICMH 356

RCB 2, Vijay Composite

Rajasthan BK 104, BK 560, BD 111, BD 163, CM 46, ICMH 356, GHB 526*, PB 180*

Haryana and Punjab HB 5, PHB 10, PHB 14, PBH 47, MH 67, MH 169, MH 190, MH 208, HHB 67, BJ 104, BK 560, BD 111, CM 46, BD 183, HHB 68, HC 10, HHB 117

HS-1**. PCB-164

Andhra Pradesh & Tamil Nadu

HB 4, HB 5, PHB 10, PHB 14

Gujarat & Maharashtra

PHB 10, PHB 14, BJ 104, MBH 110, GHB 526*, PB 180*

PPC 6

Karnataka BJ 104, MBH 110 RCB 2 * Summer; ** Synthetic

Sowing The time of sowing in kharif under rainfed conditions depends on the onset of monsoon. First fortnight of June to mid July is the optimum time of sowing. In Tamil Nadu, pearl millet is grown as rabi rainfed crop in regions with north-eastern monsoon from September-December. Irrigated summer crop is seeded in February-March. Delayed sowing up to

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August results in high seedling mortality, quick reproductive life cycle and low yield owing to incidence of diseases like ergot. If delay in sowing is anticipated, transplanting of seedlings is advised.

Too early sowings hamper germination and emergence and also washing of pollens if late rains continue in the season. A seed rate of 4-5 kg/ha is required for line sowing behind a drill or country plough. The optimum row spacing is 50 cm and the plant to plant spacing varies from 10-12 cm. The optimum plant population varies from 1.5 to 2.0 lakh plants/ha. The seed should not be sown deeper than 4 cm for proper germination.

In case of transplanting, 2 kg seed/ha is sufficient to provide desired number of seedlings/ha. Seeds are sown on flat bed in 10 cm rows at 2 cm depth in 500 m2 nursery. 30 kg N/ha is applied at the time of sowing. The seedlings are ready in 3 weeks for transplanting in a field, which is irrigated previously. However, under rainfed conditions, transplanting is advised after the receipt of rains only. The benefits of transplanting include: i) early maturity, ii) escaping from low temperature effect on grain filling iii) ensuring optimum plant stand and iv) producing more tillers and earheads as compared to direct seeding. However, the limited moisture periods available in rainfed situation and high labour requirement often limit its wider adaptability.

Manures and Fertilizers Application of 10-15 tonnes/ha of FYM or compost can easily meet requirement of local varieties of pearl millet. This should be applied at the time of land preparation. Hybrid and composite varieties are applied 100-120:50:40 kg/ha of N:P2O5:K2O in addition to organic manures. Deshi varieties are applied 50-40-20 kg/ha of N-P2O5-K2O. Azospirillum brasilense a bacterial biofertilizer has been found promising for pearl millet. Its effectiveness is relatively more when applied along with lower dose of N (10-40 kg/ha).

Two splits (basal + 3 weeks after sowing) of N prove better than basal alone. The top dressing, however, should be done under favourable moisture conditions only i.e. coinciding with rainfall up to flag leaf stage. If moisture is not favourable, avoid N fertilization as top dressing. 30 kg/ha each of P2O5 and K2O is general recommendation for pearl millet. For low and medium rainfall areas, 40-30-30 and 60-40-40 kg/ha of N-P2O5-K2O is recommended.

Basal application through placement of full doses of P and K along with 50% N before planting is recommended. Foliar fertilization of N as urea has been found advantageous for rainfed pearl millet.

Water Management Pearl millet is predominantly a rainfed kharif crop. Water requirement of pearl millet is much lower (250-350 mm) than maize, sorghum and finger millet (500-600 mm). It requires, on an average 140-150 mm of water/ tonne of grain produced. Although it is a rainfed crop, but irrigation at anthesis or flowering stage is beneficial. As many as 3-4 irrigations may be required in the event of complete failure of rainfall. Flowering and grain filling stages are the critical stages of irrigation. As a rainfed crop under normal rainfall distribution, it hardly needs any irrigation.

Pre-sowing seed treatment with 0.2% KNO3 has been found effective for seed hardening for sustaining moisture stress conditions. Reduction in plant density is one of the important mid way correction techniques followed to save drought hit pearl millet. Removal of plants within row is advantageous than removing alternate rows. The removed plants may be used as mulch, while keeping 1.25 lakh plants/ha. Modified land configurations like bunding or ridge and furrow systems are promising than flat sowing in moisture conservation. Ridge and furrow system is promising in light soils or sloppy lands in particular. Deep summer

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ploughing coupled with application of FYM @ 10 t/ha may help in moisture storage and conservation.

Weed Control Being a rainy season crop, it suffers heavily due to weed infestation. The crop suffers most during 3-5 weeks after sowing. Competition with weeds could reduce yields by 25-50%. Therefore, timely weed control is very essential to get higher yields. The important weeds of Pearl millet are : Anjan grass (Echinochloa colonum); doob (Cynodon dactylon); motha (Cyperus rotundus); sathi (Trianthema portucalastrum); kewal (Digitaria sanguinalis), makra (Decteloctenium aegyptium).

The crop needs 2-3 intercultural operations between 3-6 weeks after sowing. At the time of first interculture, thinning or gap filling should be done along with removal of weeds. An integrated weed control measure like hand weeding, inter row cultivation and pre-emergence application of atrazine @ 0.5 kg/ha may take care of most of the weeds. Proper weed management is also needed for conserving precious moisture.

Cropping Systems In rainfed areas of north India, pearl millet is raised mixed with blackgram, greengram and sesame. Intercropping of groundnut or castor with hybrid pearl millet has also shown promise at Hisar (Haryana). Intercropping of greengram with pearl millet (2 rows of greengram in between 2 rows of pearl millet) may give an additional 2-3 q/ha of greengram grain. Two rows of cowpea in place of mungbean may produce about 90 q/ha of green fodder within 45 days.

Some of the most important crop rotations are:

Pearl millet-wheat-greengram Pearl millet-wheat- pearl millet

Pearl millet-barley/ gram/ pea/ wheat / berseem

Pearl millet-potato-mungbean or blackgram Pearl millet-potato-wheat Pearl millet-mungbean or blackgram Pearl millet-rape-wheat Pearl millet-berseem Pearl millet-toria-wheat

Harvesting and Threshing The grain crop should be harvested when the grains become hard enough and contain about 20% moisture. Generally 2 methods for harvesting the crop are adopted, viz. (i) cutting of earhead first from the standing crop followed by cutting the remaining plants later, and (ii) cutting the entire plant by sickles and staking the harvested plants for 5-6 days in sun for drying.

The grains are separated either by beating the earheads by sticks or trampling by bullocks. The threshed grain should be cleaned and dried in sun to bring about 12-14% moisture for safe storage.

Yield A well managed irrigated crop gives about 3.0-3.5 tonnes (hybrids) and 2.0-2.5 tonnes (composites) of grain and 10.0 tonnes stover/ha, while unirrigated crop yields about 1.2-1.5 tonnes grain and 7.0-7.5 tonnes of dry stover/ha.

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The yield attributes (range) of pearlmillet are:

Attribute Value

Earhead length (cm) 20-35 cm

Grain weight/earhead (g) 8-18

1,000-grain weight 5-13

Protein (%) 11.6

Fat (%) 5.0

Fibre (%) 1.2

Carbohydrates (%) 67.5

Additional Reading :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl_millet

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Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Finger Millet

Dr. B. Gangaiah

Senior Scientist Division of Agronomy

Indian Agricultural Research Institute New Delhi – 110 012

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FINGER MILLET Botanical name: Eleusine coracana L. Gaertn

Chromosome number: 2n =4x=40

Finger millet, also known as ragi, is valued as staple food in south India (Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh) and hilly regions of the country. The straw has immense utility as fodder. Silage is also made from ragi forages at flowering stage. It is a rich source of calcium (0.344%) for growing children and aged people. It is usually converted into flour, which is used for preparation of cake/puddings/porridge. Straw makes valuable fodder for both draught and milch animals. It is wholesome food for diabetics.

Origin and History The cytomorphological studies indicate that finger millet (E. coracana) might have originated from E. africana through selection in Ethiopia and highlands of Africa. It was introduced into India about 3,000 years ago, and became the secondary center of finger millets diversity.

Geographic Distribution Finger millet is grown in more than 25 countries in Africa and Asia. Uganda, India, Nepal, and China are the major ragi producers of world. In India, it is extensively grown in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar, Gujarat and Maharashtra and the hilly regions of Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh. The area under finger millet has declined from 2.6 million ha in early sixties to around 1.66 million ha in 2003-04. However, the annual production is maintained around 2.6 million tonnes with a productivity of around 1400 kg/ha (Table 1).

Table 1. Area, production and productivity of ragi in important states of India in 2004-05

State Area (000 ha) Production (000 t) Productivity (kg/ha)

Andhra Pradesh 69.0 87.0 1261

Bihar 15.6 10.5 673

Chattisgarh 10.3 2.7 262

Gujarat 24.3 25.8 1062

Himachal Pradesh 3.0 3.0 1000

Jharkhand 18.0 11.0 811

Karnataka 893.0 1733.0 1941

Kerala 0.5 0.6 1200

Madhya Pradesh 0.5 0.1 200

Maharashtra 145.0 147.0 1014

Orissa 78.0 44.9 576

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State Area (000 ha) Production (000 t) Productivity (kg/ha)

Tamil Nadu 108.9 154.1 1415

Uttarakhand 167.0 190.0 1138

Uttar Pradesh 0.7 0.9 1286

West Bengal 12.4 15.1 1218

India 1552.7 2432.4 1567

Source: Fertilizer association of India, 2006

Botanical description Finger millet is an erect, tufted annual growing to 60-120 cm height with profuse tillers. The tillers have earheads consisting of whorl of finger like spike (2-8 in numbers). The spikelets in spike are arranged closely on both sides of a slender rachis. The spikelet are crowded into 2 over-lapping rows on the outsides of the spike. Each spikelet has 4-5 flowers and may take 6-8 days to complete flowering. Flowering takes place simultaneously in all fingers. The spikelets possess 3-8 seeds which are tiny in size and generally reddish brown in colour. Its grain contains 9.2% protein, 1.29% fat, 76.32% of carbohydrates, 2.24% minerals, 3.99% ash and 0.33% calcium.

Source: www.payer.de/mahavamsa/chronik32.htm

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Climatic Requirement Finger millet is a crop of tropics and sub-tropics and can be raised successfully from sea level to an altitude of 2,300 m on hill slopes, as well as plains. It grows best in moist climate. It is grown in areas with rainfall up to 100 cm. In regions of higher rainfall and under irrigation, it can also be grown as a transplanted crop. It is also raised as summer crop, and as rabi crop in south India, but mainly as kharif crop in north India.

Finger millet prefers warm climate. The minimum temperature required for germination is 8-10oC. A mean temperature of 26-29oC is optimum for growth. Crop yields are reduced at temperatures below 20oC. The crop possesses good drought tolerance but is highly sensitive to frost.

Soils It is grown on wide range of soils with varying fertility. It prefers porous and well drained soils. It has the best ability to tolerate salinity among cereals. Alluvial and loamy soils are suitable for this crop. Deep vertisols and rocky soils are not suitable for this crop owing to poor drainage and low fertility. It can be grown in soils with pH of 4.5-7.5.

Land preparation Varieties A number of varieties have been evolved utilizing native and exotic germplasm under the aegis of All India Coordinated Millets Improvement Project (AICMIP) since 1969. The improvement has got further impetus with establishment of separate Small Millets Improvement Project (AICSMIP) in 1986. Development of high yielding, drought and blast resistant varieties/hybrids is the focus of the improvement in finger millet. The important varieties recommended for cultivation in different states are given below.

Recommended varieties of ragi for different states

State Variety

Andhra Pradesh Godavari, AKP 2, AKP 7, IE 28, EC 4840*, Padmavati (PPR 2230), BM 9-1, Gautami*

Bihar & Jharkhand

RAU 1, RAU 2, RAU 5, RAU 8, BR 2, GPU 45, Birsa Munda-2 (EC-50-90), RM 2, A 404, Indaf-1

Madhya Pradesh & Chattisgarh

BR 407, PR 202, JNR 852, JNR 1008, BM 9-1*, KM 13

Maharashtra PES 176, HR 376, BR 407, GPU 45, BM 9-1, B1, E3, QA 16 Orissa PES 176, HR 407, BM 9-1, KM 13 Uttar Pradesh & Uttarakhand

VL 101, VL 102, VL 124, VL 204, VL 146*, Pant Mandua-3 (Vikram), PES-176*, PES 400, KM-13, Nirmal, KM-65

Karnataka Indaf 1, Indaf 5, Indaf 8, GRU 28, Fingermillet LS, GPU-45*, BM 9-1, GPU-28*, GPU-26, Cauveri, Hamsas, Annapurna, Hagari 1, Hagari 2, MR-1, Shakti Hullubele

Tamil Nadu GPU 28, Indaf 5, CO 1, CO 2, CO 8, CO 9, CO 7, CO 13, K 1, K 2, TRY 1

Gujarat GPU 45, GN 3, GPU 28 All States VR 708**, Akshya [MR2 (as alternative to Indaf 8)], PES-110, PR 202,

VL 149*, JNR 852, MR 374 * Blast resistant; ** drought tolerant

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Other varieties:

Bharabi, Maruthi, PES-8, Sharda (IE 109)

Seed and Sowing

Source: www.fao.orgSeed Rate The quantity of seed required for line sowing is 8-10 kg/ha. The crop raised by transplanting need 4 kg seed for raising nursery for 1 ha. Seed should be treated with thiram and agrosan GN @ 2.5 g/kg seed.

Time of Sowing Kharif crop is sown during May or June. If the rains are not received in time, the sowing time is postponed up to the end of August. However, sowing should be done early in rainfed areas to avoid moisture stress at critical stage of flowering. In areas, where irrigation facilities are inadequate, the sowing should be done soon after onset of monsoon. In higher hills of northern India, the optimum time of sowing for finger millet is the first fortnight of June.

The irrigated crop of finger millet is sown in more than one season in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. The rainfed early crop is sown in April or early May. The irrigated rabi crop in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh is sown in September and October.

Method of Sowing

It is always better to sow finger millet in lines instead of broadcast. Line-to-line distance of 20-25 cm and plant to plant distance of 8-10 cm is maintained. The seed should not be sown less than 3-4 cm deep. Line sowing ensures better germination, reduces seed requirement and facilitates intercultural operation as compared to broadcast method of sowing.

Transplanting In areas with adequate moisture, finger millet can be grown by transplanting. Higher yields are obtained in case of transplanted crop as compared to direct-seeded crop. Seeds should be sown in well pulverized nursery beds during May-June. About 4 kg seed is required for 1 ha

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land. Three to four weeks old seedlings should be transplanted in the field. Field should be well prepared before transplanting. Transplant 2 seedlings/hill at a distance of 25 cm x 8 cm or 20 cm x 10 cm. Seedlings should be transplanted 2-3 cm deep. The beds should be irrigated on the third day after transplanting. Transplanted crop does not lodge during rains.

Manures and Fertilizers The crop responds well to fertilizer application. However, the dose of fertilizers may vary for rainfed and irrigated crop. In addition to 5 tonnes of FYM, 30-30-30 kg/ha of N-P2O5-K2O are applied as basal for rainfed crop. Under favourable rainfall, 30 kg N/ha is top dressed 6 weeks after sowing. Irrigated crop may respond up to 150 kg N/ha. The entire quantity of fertilizers should be applied 8-20 cm deep in soil at the time of sowing. In acidic soils, crop also needs calcium and magnesium fertilization.

Application of 50 kg Mg/ha and 16.8 kg Ca/ha benefits the crop. Application of 75% recommended level of N + 5 tonnes FYM/ha + Azospirillum results in higher yield as compared to 100% inorganic N fertilizer. Treating seeds with Azospirillum brasillence and Aspergillus awamori @ 25 g/kg seed is beneficial.

Water management As a predominantly rainfed kharif crop, finger millet does not require irrigation. However, irrigation at tillering and flowering is conducive for realizing higher yields, wherever long dry spells in the season are experienced. During rabi season, the crop requires 2-3 irrigations coinciding with tillering, flowering and grain filling stages. Transplanted crop requires irrigation at 3 days after planting. Drainage is more important in kharif season at times of heavy rainfall.

Weed control Weeds are serious threat to finger millet productivity especially during initial 2-3 weeks from sowing. Two weedings or hoeings at 15 days interval starting from 25 days after sowing are necessary.

In areas of assured rainfall and irrigated areas, spraying of 2,4-D Na salt @ 0.75 kg/ha as post-emergence around 20-25 days after sowing effectively control weeds. Isoproturon @ 0.5 kg/ha or metoxuron @ 0.75 kg/ha as pre-emergence spray is also effective in control of weeds. Striga parasitises ragi and poses a serious problem in India and Africa.

Cropping Systems Finger millet is grown under rainfed conditions mixed or intercropped with sorghum, pearl millet and various oilseeds and pulses. In hills, it is also grown mixed with soybean. Under irrigated conditions, it is grown in rotation with crops like chillies, vegetables, turmeric, tobacco, gram, mustard, barley, linseed etc. Some of the common crop rotations adopted in north and south India are given below.

North India South India

Finger millet-mustard Finger millet-tobacco

Finger millet-gram Finger millet-groundnut

Finger millet-barley Finger millet-potato-maize

Finger millet-linseed Finger millet-potato- finger millet

Finger millet-tobacco Finger millet-sugarcane

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Harvesting The crop flowers in 60-80 days, and matures in about 120-130 days depending on the tract and the variety. Harvesting is generally done in 2 stages. The earheads are harvested with ordinary sickles and straw is cut to the ground. Earheads are heaped for 3-4 days to cure and then threshed with hand or bullocks. At some palces under rainfed condition, the whole plant with earhead is cut, heaped and then threshed.

Yield The average yield of rainfed crop ranges from 1.0 to 1.5 tonnes grain/ha, whereas irrigated crop yields up to 5.0 tonnes/ha. The fodder yield ranges from 3.0 to 9.0 tonnes/ha in case early group and 9.5-10.0 tonnes/ha in late group. The straw of finger millet is a nutritious fodder. It can be conserved by putting up in well-built stakes.

The yield attributes (range) of finger millet are as below.

Attribute Value

Productive tillers (No.) 2-4.5

Finger number (No.) 5.12

Finger length (cm) 3-14 cm

Grains/finger 22-81

1,000 grain weight (g) 1.0-4.5

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Agronomy – Kharif Crops

PIGEONPEA (ARHAR)

GREEN GRAM (MUNG BEAN)BLACK GRAM (URD BEAN)

COW PEA (LOBIA)MOTH BEAN (DEW BEAN)

SOY BEANGROUND NUT

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

PIGEONPEA (ARHAR)

Source: http://toptropicals.com/pics/garden/05/23/3696.jpg

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PIGEONPEA (ARHAR) Botanical name; Cajanus cajan L. Milsp.

Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoceae) Chromosome number: 2n=22, 44, 66, 2n=14

Pigeonpea is commonly known as redgram or arhar. Pigeonpea seeds used as dal are rich in protein (21%), iron and iodine. They are also rich in essential amino acids like lycine, tyrocene, cystine and arginine. The green pods are used as vegetable. The pod husk and leaves after threshing serve as a valuable fodder for cattle. Woody plant stems are used as fuel. Pigeonpea being a legume possesses valuable property as restorer of nitrogen in soil. Pigeonpea plants are also used to culture the lac producing insect in China. It is grown on mountain slopes to arrest soil erosion. The perennial pigeonpea is also useful in agroforestry systems.

Origin India is believed to be center of origin and diversity of pigeonpea. The theory of its African origin has not been accepted owing to lack of diversity in the region. The true wild relatives of pigeonpea are not seen. The closest wild relative of pigeonpea Atylosia canifolia Hairs was found in India and Australia.

Geographic Distribution Pigeonpea is grown in over 50 tropical countries of the world especially in more arid regions of Africa, Asia and the Americas. In India, it is cultivated as an annual crop, but in other countries, it is grown as perennial crop, where pods are harvested at regular intervals. In some countries, it is mostly grown as a kitchen garden crop for vegetable purpose The major pigeonpea producing countries of world are given in Table 1.

Table 1. The major pigeonpea producing countries of world (2004)

Country Area (mha) Production (m tonnes)

Productivity (kg/ha)

India 3.530 2.430 688

Myanmar 0.540 0.500 926

Kenya 0.195 0.106 541

Malawi 0.123 0.079 642

Uganda 0.084 0.084 1000

Tanzania 0.068 0.049 721

World 4.611 3.306 717

Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004

Pigeonpea is the second most important pulse crop in the country. India accounts for over ¾ of acreage and production of the globe. The crop is extensively grown in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat. Maharashtra has unique distinction of contributing about 30% of total pigeonpea production in the country (Table 2).

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Table 2. Area, production and productivity of pigeonpea important states of India (2004-05) State Area (000 ha) Production (000 t)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Andhra Pradesh 480.0 219.0 456

Assam 6.7 4.8 716

Bihar 35.8 44.2 1235

Chattisgarh 60.3 30.8 511

Gujarat 254.4 236.0 928

Haryana 31.0 32.0 1032

Himachal Pradesh 0.3 0.1 333

Jharkhand 90.0 49.0 544

Karnataka 562.0 290.0 516

Madhya Pradesh 327.5 257.0 785

Maharashtra 1074.0 658.0 613

Orissa 130.1 88.9 683

Punjab 8.9 7.7 865

Rajasthan 16.9 12.6 746

Tamil Nadu 40.0 25.0 625

Uttarakhand 1.0 1.0 1000

Uttar Pradesh 387.1 380.2 982

West Bengal 1.5 1.1 733

India 3518.5 2346.9 667

Source: Fertilizer Association of India, 2006

Classification All the cultivated Cajanus are classified into 2 groups based on maturity, floral and seed characteristics as below.

Cajanus indicus var. bicolor: Also known as arhar comprises most of the perennial types that are late-maturing, tall and bushy. Pods are dark coloured and each pod has 4 to 5 seeds. The standard petal, which is the largest of the 5 petals in the flower, possesses red veins on the dorsal side. Pods are synchronous in maturity.

Cajanus indicus var. flavus: Also known as tur comprises the commonly cultivated varieties, which are relatively short statured, early maturing and bear yellow flowers and plain pods with 2-3 seeds. Pods do not mature at a time and picking is done at an interval of 15-16 days.

Climate Pigeonpea is a crop of arid and semi-arid climates grown between 30oN and 35oS latitudes and thrives well in areas with 500-1000 mm of rainfall. Its drought hardy nature makes it a crop of low rainfall situations; however, it can not withstand waterlogging and frost. Moist and humid conditions during vegetative phase and dry conditions during reproductive phase

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are suitable for successful raising of pigeonpea. Low temperature at pod filling stage results in delayed maturity. Pigeonpea is quantitatively a short day plant with critical photoperiod of 13 hours. Low light intensity at pod formation is harmful. For flowering and pod setting 24oC is the optimum.

Soil Pigeonpea can be grown on a wide range of soils, however, sandy loam to clay loams are ideal. The soil should be deep, well drained and free from soluble salts. The electrical conductivity of 1.4 dS/m is critical for pigeonpea. It can be grown on soils with a pH range of 5.5-8.0 successfully. It can not tolerate soil acidity owing to aluminium toxicity.

Land Preparation Pigeonpea requires a clod free seedbed for proper germination and establishment of seedlings. The seedbed is prepared by a deep ploughing or disking, followed by 2-3 cross harrowings and levelling. In drylands, a deep summer ploughing is necessary for moisture conservation. In case of hard pan in the soil, sub-soiling is done. Pigeonpea with its deep root system (>150 cm) can break hard pans in plough layer, and hence called “biological plough”. Thorough levelling is essential for quick drainage and also to avoid waterlogging. Contour broad-bed and furrows (2.7 m width) or a ridge and furrow planting is preferred to overcome waterlogging. The former land configuration is promising for vertisols.

Seeds and Sowing Seed rate and spacing The row spacing in kharif varies from 40-60 cm in short and medium duration varieties to 60-90 cm in long duration varieties. In rabi season, the crop is grown in 30 cm rows. After germination, the seedlings are thinned to maintain an intra-row spacing of 15-20 cm. The optimum population thus varies from 60,000-1, 00,000 in kharif and 1.5-3.0 lakh/ha in rabi. To achieve this, a seed rate of 8-10 and 10-12 kg/ha is required for long duration and short and medium duration varieties. During rabi season, 15-18 kg/ha of seed is needed.

Seed treatment Before sowing, seed should be treated with agrosan GN or thiram @ 2.5 g/kg seed. Seed should also be treated with Rhizobium culture, especially when pigeonpea is being taken for the first time in the field or after a long duration. In pigeonpea, seed inoculation with Trichoderma harzianum alone or serial inoculation of T. harzianum, followed by Rhizobium may significantly reduce wilt incidence, enhance nodulation and root/shoot growth, but simultaneous inoculation of T. harzianum + Rhizobium was ineffective.

Time of sowing Pigeonpea sowing in kharif under rainfed condition varies from June-July, depending on onset of monsoon. For sequential cropping of pigeonpea and wheat under irrigated condition, early sowings are preferred. In this cropping system, the crop is sown after a pre-sowing irrigation from late May to 1st week of June. For summer pigeonpea, early May sowing is followed in north India. Time of sowing should be adjusted in such a way to avoid rains and frost at flowering and reproductive stages. For early rabi planting in Bihar, eastern Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, September sowing is ideal. The rabi cultivation of pigeonpea in rice fallows is increasingly popular, and is sown immediately after rice harvest in southern India.

Method of sowing Seed should be sown behind the plough or with the help of seed drill in rows. In north-eastern plains zone and in vertisols, where excess moisture/water stagnation often causes mortality of plants during early stages, ridge planting of pigeonpea has proved superior over

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flat planting. This method also minimizes incidence of Phytopthora stem-blight and wilt. In vertisols, broad-bed and furrow system of planting is preferred.

Varieties The pigeonpea improvement through selection started as early as 1917 at Hebbal in Karnataka. Till date over 80 varieties have been developed, of which about 50% are selections from land races. Some of them include RG 72, SA-1, Type 66K, Hy 5, AL 15, Amar, Narendra Arhar 1, Bahar, LRG 36, etc. Through mutation breeding, 8 varieties have been developed since Co 3 released in 1977. Visakha 1, TT 5, TT 6, TAT 10, Co 5, Pusa 885, Co 6 are other varieties developed through mutation. ICRISAT has been successful in evolving first GMS (Genotypic Male Sterility) based hybrid ICPH 8. Later on, 5 more such hybrids have been developed. The difficulties in seed production (rogueing of female parent) have resulted in its limited success. This has been addressed with the development of first cytoplasmic MS based hybrid GTH 1 in Gujarat.

The important varieties and hybrids suitable for different pigeonpea growing states of India are given in Table 1 and Table 2, respectively.

Pigeonpea is susceptible to wilt, sterility mosaic (NEPZ, CZ, SZ), Phytopthora blight (NPZ) and Alternaria blight (NEPZ) causing 10-15% reduction in yield. Hence selection of resistant varieties is one of the priorities.

The disease resistant varieties of pigeonpea are given in Table 3. Table 1. Pigeonpea varieties recommended for different states

State Type

Early (120-150 days) Medium (150-180 days)

Late (> 180 days)

UP (Central & Western)

PA 3, T 21, Prabhat, UPAS 120, Pusa 84, Pusa 74, Manak, Pusa 33, Pusa 993, Pusa 855, TT 5, ICPL 151

MA 6, Mukta, Paras, Sharda, Pant A 3

T 7, T 17, NP (WR) 15, Pusa 33, Pusa 55, Bahar (1258), MAL 13, KA 32-1 (Amar), Narendra Arhar-1, Pusa 9, Gwalior 3, Azad

Punjab, Haryana, Delhi

PA 1, T 21, Prabhat, UPAS 120, Pusa 84, Pusa 74, Manak, ICPH 8, Sagar (H 77-208), Pusa 33, Pusa 992, Pusa 855

Mukta, Paras, Sharda NP (WR), Pusa 55

Bihar, Jharkhand, Eastern UP

Prabhat, UPAS 120, Pusa Ageti, Pusas 74, Pusa 84

Mukta, ICPL 85063, BR 65, BR 183, MA 6, Birsa Arhar 1

T 7, T 17, NP (WR) 15, AS 71-77, MAL 13, Azad (K91-25), Pusa 9, DA 11 (Sharad), Bahar, Basant

West Bengal, Orissa & Assam

T 21, Prabhat, Pusa Ageti, Pusa 74, Pusa 84, TT 5, BS 1

BR 65, BR 183, Mukta, ICPL 85063, C 11, WB 20 (105)

Sweta (B7), Chuni (B 517), T 7, T 17, NP (WR) 15, MAL 13, Pusa 9, Bahar

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Rajasthan T 21, Prabhat, UPAS 120, Manak, Pusa Ageti, J 9-19, Pant A 1, Pant A 2, Sagar, Pusa 74, Pusa 33,

Sharda, Mukta, Paras NR (WR) 15, Gwalior 3

Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh

T 21, Prabhat, UPAS 120, Pusa Ageti, Vishakha 1, J 9-19, Pusa 33

Sharda (S 8), No. 148, Mukta, MA 3, KM 7, BDN 1, BDN 2, C 11, Paras, ICPL 87119, JA 3, JA 4

T 7, T 17, NP (WR) 15, Kanke-3

Gujarat T 21, Pusa Ageti, Prabhat, Vishakha 1, TAT 10, J 9-19, Pusa 84, Pusa 74

Sharda, Mukta, ICPL 87119, BDN 1, BDN 2, C 11, ICPL 871, GTH 1

NP (WR) 15, Gwalior 3

Maharashtra T 21, Pusa Ageti, Prabhat, Vishakha 1 (TT 6), TAT 10, J 9-19, AKT 8811

Sharda, Mukta, No. 148, BDN 1, BDN 2, C 11, ICPL 87119, BSMR 175, BSMR 736, MA 3, Malviya Vikalp, KM 7

NP (WR) 15, Gwalior 3,

Andhra Pradesh Pusa Ageti, Prabhat, CORG 9701, T 21, ICPL 87, ICPL 151, Hy 5, ICPL 84031 (Durga)

Sharda, PDM 1, GS 1, Hy 3A, Hy 3C, Hy 4, ICPL 87119, ICPL 8863, ICPL 85063 (Laxmi), LRG 30 (Palanadu), LRG 36, LRG 38, ICPL 332, C 11, PT 221

SA 1

Tamil Nadu Pusa Ageti, Prabhat, CORG 9701, ICPL 87, Co 1, Co 2, Co 4, Hy 5

Sharda, PDM 1, GS 1, Co 5, Co 6, Hy 3A, Hy 3C, Hy 4, ICPL 87119, BDN 2, PT 221

SA 1

Karnataka Pusa Ageti, Hy 5, ICPL 151 (Jagriti), CORG 9701, ICPL 87 (Pragati)

T 21, Sharda (S 8), Hy 3C, GS 1, KPL 87, ICPL 87119, C 11, TS 3, ICPL 8863 (Maruthi), PT 221

SA 1

Table 2. Hybrids released for different states of India

Hybrid Parentage Year of releast (by) Suitable for

GMS based hybrids

ICPH 8 Ms Prabhat (DT) x ICPL 161 1991 (ICRISAT) Central Zone

PPH 4 Ms Prabhat x AL 688 1994 (PAU) Punjab

CoPH 1 Ms21 x ICPL 87109 1994 (TNAU) Tamil Nadu

CoPH 2 Ms Co 5 x ICPL 83027 1997 (TNAU) Tamil Nadu

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AKPH 4101 Ms Prabhat NDT x AK 101 1997 (PKV) Central Zone

APKH 2022 AKMS 2 x AK 2 1998 (PKV) Maharashtra

GMS based hybrids

GTH 1 2003 (GAU) Gujarat

Table 3. Disease resistant varieties of pigeonpea

Disease Varieties

Wilt BDN 1, BDN 2, C 11, TT 6 Maruthi, BSM 6736, Sharda

Sterility mosaic Bahar, HY 3C, Pusa 9, Azad, ICPL 366, ICPL 87051, Amar, BSMR 175, BSMR 763

Wilt + sterility (both) Narendra Arhar 1, Asha (ICPL 87119), DA 11, BMSR 853, MA 3

Alternaria blight WB 20 (105), Pusa 9, DA 11

Phytopthora blight KM 7, DA 11, Pusa 9, Narendra Arhar 1

The gram pod borer and pod fly are problematic in all pigeonpea areas resulting in 15-20 and 25-40% yield losses, respectively. the resistant/tolerant varieties for these insects/pests are given below:

Pod borer : ICPL 332, ICPL 87089

Pod fly : AL 15, Gwalior 3

Manures and Fertilizers The crop with 8-10 t biomass (of which 6 tonnes sticks) removes substantial quantity of nutrients. Being a legume, it can meet 60-80% of its own N requirement from symbiosis. A starter dose of 25 kg N/ha is applied at the time of sowing. At times of waterlogging for quick recovery immediately after drainage, 50 kg N/ha as top-dressing is applied to alleviate adverse effects of waterlogging. Besides N, 60 kg P2O5 is also applied as basal. The response to K fertilization is rarely noticed. There has been increasing response to S fertilization in pigeonpea grown under intensive cropping systems and in light textured soils. Similarly, the crop responds zinc fertilization in alkali soils. Thus application of 20 kg/ha each of S and zinc sulphate is desirable. Zinc deficiency in the standing crop can be rectified by spraying 5 kg zinc sulphate and 2.5 kg lime dissolved in 800-1000 litres of water/ha. Use of FYM @ 5-10 t/ha is common under rainfed situation. Inoculation of seed with effective strains of Rhizobium is desirable for symbiotic N fixation. Use of phosphate solubilizing bacteria along with lower doses of phosphorus is promising to higher P doses. The roots by way of secreting organic acid (piscidic acid) improve solubility of Fe-phosphates. Thus the crop effectively utilizes soil P reserves.

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Water management Long duration pigeonpea with deep root system and flushes of flowering can withstand drought. The short duration cultivars, however, are grown with irrigation only. Post-rainy season crop responds better to irrigation. The critical stages for irrigation are branching, flowering and pod filling. The crop requires 20-25 cm water to produce a tonne of grain. The water requirement and consumptive use of pigeonpea varies from 30-50 cm and 40-50 cm, respectively. At times of prolonged drought, irrigation at flowering and pod filling stages is highly rewarding in kharif. Irrigation of after cessation of rains at 0.4-0.6 IW/CPE ratio has been found ideal in north India. Drainage is equally important in pigeonpea. To overcome ill-effects of waterlogging, ridge and furrow planting (with seeding on ridge) is followed in heavy soils.

Weed management Pigeonpea is infested by several grassy and broad-leaved weeds. Some of the common weeds associated with pigoenpea are: Cyperus rotundus L., Commelina bengalensis L., Phyllanthus niruri, Euphorbia parviflora L., Celosia argentena L., Amaranthus viridis L., Amaranthus spinosus L., Echinochloa colona (L.) Link, Digitaria sanguinalis, Dactyloctenium aegyptium (L.) Beauv, Ageratum conyzoides L., Eclipta alba L., Portulaca oleracea L., Trianthema portulacastrum L. etc. The crop plants with initial slow growth are grown in wider rows. Therefore, crop suffers from severe weed infestation leading to drastic reduction in grain yield. The initial 7-8 weeks period of crop i.e. from sowing to branching stage is critical period of crop-weed competition in medium and long duration varieties. In short duration varieties initial 4-6 weeks from sowing is critical. Thus it is important to keep the crop free from weeds during this period. Two hand-weedings or mechanical interculture at 3-4 and 6-8 weeks after sowing would take care of most of weeds. If the above operations are not possible owing to rains, use of herbicides is essential. Pre-plant incorporation of fluchloralin @ 1 kg/ha or pre-emergence application of pendimethalin or alachlor or nitrofen @ 1 kg/ha are effective in controlling weeds. The above herbicides integrated with one hand-weeding or mechanical hoeing at 6-8 weeks after sowing is more effective to either of the methods alone. The leaf leachates have been found to have allelopathetic effects on weeds. The thick canopy would further suppress weed growth at later stages. Intercropping of pigeonpea with jowar, maize and short duration legumes effectively suppresses the weed growth.

Cropping systems Pigeonpea can be intercropped or sown mixed with a number of other crops like sorghum, maize, rice, groundnut, sesame, urdbean, greengram, cowpea, ragi, sawan and soybean, and an additional yield may be obtained. These crops do not adversely affect the pigeonpea crop, because by that time pigeonpea starts growing (end of September), the intercrops are ready for harvesting. There is a possibility of raising early maturing pigeonpea as a summer crop with intercrop of greengram (mung). In this cropping system, pigeonpea may be sown in mid-April keeping a row-to-row distance of 90 cm, intercropped with 2-3 rows of greengram. Greengram becomes ready for harvest by the end of June. Immediately in the space vacated by greengram, interplanting of blackgram can be done between pigeonpea rows. While blackgram will be ready for harvest by the end of September, pigeonpea matures by mid November. The wheat crop may be sown immediately after the harvest of pigeonpea. Short-duration pigeonpea fits well in the following crop rotations:

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Pigeonpea-wheat-greengram Pigeonpea-wheat Pigeonpea-lentil Pigeonpea-late potato Pigeonpea-sugarcane

Harvesting and Threshing The best time to harvest is when two third to three-fourths of pods turn brown. The plants are usually cut with ‘gandasa’ or sickle within 7.5-25 cm above the ground. The harvested plants are left in sun for drying and thereafter threshing is done by beating the pods with sticks. Pullman thresher could also be used for this purpose. The proportion of seeds to pod is generally 50-60%. Threshed and cleaned produce should be further sun dried to reduce the moisture content to 10-11%.

Yield By adopting improved technology, pigeonpea (red gram) may yield 2.0-2.5 tonnes (kharif), 3.0-3.5 tonnes (rabi) of grain/ha, 5.0-6.0 tonnes sticks, 0.8-1.0 tonnes of dry leaves and 0.2-0.3 tonnes of pod husk/ha. The yield attributes (range) of pigeonpea are given below.

Attribute Value

Pods/plant 43-260

Seeds/pod 2.6-4.7

1, 000 seed weight (g) 45-105

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GREENGRAM (Mungbean)Botanical name: Phaseolus raduatus L.

Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoceae)

Source: (UNIP) and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mung_bean

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GREENGRAM (Mungbean)

Botanical name: Phaseolus raduatus L. Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoceae)

Chromosome number: 2n=24

Greengram is an excellent source of high (25%) quality protein. The whole or split grains are used as a dal or made into flour. The straw and husk are used as fodder for cattle. Grains are also used in many Indian dishes.

It is also used as green manuring crop. Being a legume, it has the capacity to fix the atmospheric nitrogen (30-50 kg/ha). It also helps in preventing soil erosion. Greengram can be used as a feed for cattle. After harvesting the pods, green plants are uprooted or cut from ground level and chopped into small pieces and fed to the cattle. The husks of the seed can be soaked in water and used as cattle feed.

Origin Greengram is believed to be native of India and central Asia. From India it spread to China, Japan, Iran, Africa etc. Although numerous varieties are found in different parts of the country, but wild forms are not found. Vigna radiata var. sublobata which grows wild in India and Indonesia is the closest relative of blackgram and believed to be the progenitor of greengram.

Geographic Distribution Greengram is widely cultivated in India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Pakistan, China, Fiji, Far East, Australia, America and Africa. Country-wise estimates are not available as FAO provides data under dry beans only.

In India, it is grown on 2.76 m ha (2004-05) in almost all the states. Maharashra, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh are the leading producers of greengram (Table 1).

Table 1. Area, production and productivity of green gram (mungbean) in different states of India (2004-05)

States Area (Lakh hectare)

Production (Lakh tones)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Kharif Rabi Total Kharif Rabi Total Kharif Rabi Total

Andhra Pradesh

3.040 1.500 4.540 1.105 0.490 1.595 363 327 351

Assam 0.075 0.075 0.038 0.038 - 507 507

Bihar 0.073 1.754* 1.827 0.036 0.968* 1.004 493 552* 550

Chattisgarh 0.104 0.067 0.171 0.027 0.014 0.041 260 209 240

Gujarat 1.731 1.731 0.717 0.717 414 414

Haryana 0.295 0.295 0.113 0.113 383 383

Himachal Pradesh

0.003 0.003 0.001 0.001 333 333

Jammu & 0.019 0.019 0.009 0.009 474 474

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States Area (Lakh hectare)

Production (Lakh tones)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Kharif Rabi Total Kharif Rabi Total Kharif Rabi TotalKashmir

Jharkhand 0.116 0.116 0.061 0.061 526 526

Karnataka 5.180 0.050 5.230 0.820 0.020 0.840* 158 400 161

Kerala 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 1000 1000

Madhya Pradesh

0.861 0.024 0.885 0.281 0.006 0.287 326 250 324

Maharashtra 6.560 0.076 6.636 2.280 0.019 2.299* 348 250 346

Orissa 1.162 0.791 1.953 0.223 0.213 0.436 192 269 223

Punjab 0.150 0.150 0.120 0.120 800 800

Rajasthan 7.546 7.546 2.049 2.049* 272 272

Tamil Nadu 0.339 0.886 1.225 0.164 0.369 0.533 484 416 435

Tripura 0.008 0.004 0.012 0.005 0.002 0.007 625 500 583

Uttar Pradesh

0.322 0.539* 0.861 0.089 0.289* 0.378 276 536* 439

West Bengal

0.007 0.110 0.117 0.003 0.041 0.044 429 373 376

Pondicherry 0.019 0.019 0.005 0.005 263 263

India 27.517 5.895 33.412 8.104 2.474 10.578 295 420 317

*Summer season Source: Directorate of Economics and Statistics, 2005

Classification According to Bose (1932), greengram was classified into 40 different types based on flower colour, pod colour, seed colour and seed surface. The flour colour is either light yellowish-olive or olive yellow. The ripe pod colour varies from iron grey, olive grey or snuff. The seed colour varies from green, black, brown or yellow. The seed surface is either dull or shining.

Mungbean cultivars are classified into two categories (greengram and goldengram) and differ in the following ways (Purseglove, 1991):

Character Greengram Goldengram

Seed colour Bright green Yellow, shining

Seed production Prolific Shy producer

Shattering Very low High

Use As dal As hay, silage, pasture, cover crop

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Botanical Description Greengram plant is a small herbaceous annual with a twining habit. Plant grows up to 45-60 cm depending upon the type and nature of crop raised. The stems are ridged and succulent having 6-9 branches on them. The central stem is more or less erect, while side branches are semi-erect. The leaves are trifoliate, ovate, entire and arranged in alternate and opposite position on the stem. Both the stems and leaves are covered with short hair, generally shorter than those of blackgram. The flowers appear in axillary receme in clusters of 10-20 in number. They are self-pollinated and develop into 6-10 cm long hairy pods, which are round, slender and used to bear about 7-11 seeds in them. The seeds are small and nearly globular. The colour of seed is usually green, but yellow brown or purple brown seeds also occur. The hilum is white, more or less flat. Germination of greengram is epigeal.

Climate Greengram is cultivated all the year round in peninsular India, and during kharif, spring and summer seasons in north-India. During non-kharif seasons, irrigation is necessary for its cultivation. It is grown in the areas having an annual rainfall of 50-75 cm. It can be grown from sea level to an altitude of 2,000 m. waterlogging is very harmful to greengram. The crop can tolerate mild frost and salinity. Temperature beyond 40oC is harmful to the crop, while 30-35oC is the optimum. It is a short day plant requiring 12-13 hours of photoperiod for flowering. Photoperiod above this delays reproductive phase.

Soils Greengram can be raised on a wide array of soils ranging from red laterite soils of south India to heavy black cotton soils of Madhya Pradesh, and sandy soils of Rajasthan. In general, a well drained loamy to sandy loams are ideal for mungbean cultivation. Acidic and saline soils are not suitable. The crop performs best in soils with 6.5 – 7.5 pH.

Land preparation The crop requires fine seedbed preparation. In kharif, the land preparation involves 2-3 cross ploughings or harrowings followed by planking. A thorough land levelling is must for quick drainage. For spring and summer mungbean, a pre-sowing irrigation is needed for the land preparation. Land levelling is required for uniform distribution of irrigation water. In kharif rice fallows, it is raised without tillage (utera system).

Seeds and Sowing Seed rate and spacing During kharif season, greengram makes luxuriant vegetative growth with lateral spreading of branches and hence requires wider spacing than other seasons. In kharif, mungbean is sown in rows 30-45 cm apart. The plants are thinned to a distance of 5.0-7.5 cm. Thus the optimum population varies from 3-7 lakh/ha that would require a seed rate of 15-20 kg/ha. In other seasons, the crop is sown in rows 25-30 cm apart with an intra-row spacing of 5 cm. The optimum population thus varies from 6-8 lakh/ha and would require 25-30 kg seed/ha. Broadcast sown crop in rice fallows requires still higher seed rate.

Before sowing seed should be treated with agrosan GN or thiram @ 2.5 g/kg of seed. It is also desirable to treat the seed with appropriate Rhizobium culture.

Time of sowing In kharif, greengram sowing depends on onset of monsoon and thus it is sown in the months of June-July. In any case, sowing should not be done beyond July. Rabi mungbean sowing depend on harvest of kharif crops and are spread from October-December in central, southern

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and eastern parts of the country. In the states of Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, greengram is sown in standing crop of rice, 7-10 days before harvest.

Spring mungbean is sown in the month of February after harvest of early rabi crops of potato, and toria in north India. Similarly after harvest of rabi crops of wheat, rapeseed and mustard etc. in the months of March-April, summer mungbean is sown. In any case, summer sowings should not be delayed beyond April, because reproductive phase will coincide with rains leading to prolonged vegetative growth and delayed maturity.

Method of sowing The seeds are sown in furrows opened by plough or line sown using seed drill. In utera cropping, seeds are broadcast in standing rice crop from flowering to 2-3 days before its harvest.

Varieties A large number of varieties have been developed in greengram since Independence. The earlier varieties were developed through selection. Type 1 is the first variety developed through selection from Muzaffarpur (Bihar) in 1948. Shining mung 1, Amrit, Panna, Co 1, Co 2, Khargone 1, Krishna 11 are some of the important varieties developed through this method. Since 1960’s, hybridization was used to get variability. ‘Type 44’ is the first variety of greengram developed through hybridization (Type 1 x Type 49) in Uttar Pradesh, and was released in 1962. Interspecific hybridization of greengram and blackgram was attempted in 1990’s to develop early maturing, disease resistant varieties. Three such varieties were released in India that include Pang Mung 4 (Type 44 x UPU 2), HUM 1 (PHUM 1 x Pant U 30) and IPM 99-125 (Pant mung 2 x AMP 36). Through mutation breeding, over a dozen greengram varieties have been developed. Dhauli is the first mutant variety of greengram released in 1979 from Orissa Agricultural University and Technology. The other varieties include Co 4, Pant Moong 2, TAP 7, BM 4, MUM 2, LGG 407, LGG 450, TARM 1, TARM 2 and TARM 18 etc.

The important varieties of greengram and their suitability to different agro-climatic zones and seasons are given in Table 1.

Mungbean is highly susceptible to yellow mosaic virus (YMV) in north-west and north-east plain zone, causing a yield loss of about 15-20%. The selection of YMV resistant varieties is must for economical greengram cultivation. Some of the resistant varieties include:

Pant Mung 1, Pant Mung 2, Pant Mung 3, Pang Mung 4, Narendra Mung 1, PDM 11, PDM 54, PDM 139, M 267, ML 337, ML 613, Basant, Samrat, HUM 1, HUM 2, Pusa 9531.

Powdery mildew (PM) also causes significant yield losses in greengram. TARM 1, TARM 2, TARM 18, CoG 4 are some of the PM resistant verities. Pusa 105, Kamdeva, ML 131 are resistant to both PM and YMV.

Table 1. Improved varieties of greengram recommended for various agro-climatic zones of India

Zone Varieties

North-Western Plains Zone (Punjab, Haryana, Western Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu &

Type 44 (year round), Pusa Baisakhi (Z), PS 16 (Z), PS 7 (Z), Vamban 1 (spring), K-851 (S,Z), SML 32 (Z), Pusa 9072 (Z), PS 10 (Z), SML-668 (Z) Pant Moong 2,ML 267 (K), ML 337 (K), Pant Moong-3 (K), S 8 [Mohini (K)], Ganga 8 (K), Medium & Late : Varsha, Shining moong 1, RS 4, R 288-8, ML 1,

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Kashmir ML 5, ML 9, T 51 Early: Pant Moong 1, ML 9, ML 131, Pusa 105

North-Eastern Plains Zone (Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, West Bengal, Assam)

Basant [PDM 84-143 (K,S], PDM-11 (Z), K 851 (S,Z), HUM-12 [(Z) Malviya Janchetra], Pusa 9531 (S), PDM 54 (K, Z), TARM 1 (S), PS 16 (K,Z), MG 368 (S), PDM 90239 (Z), Pusa Baisakhi (Z), Sunaina (Z), PDM 199 (Z), Panna [B105 (Z)], PS 10 (Z), PS 7 (Z), PDM 84-139 (Samrat (Z)], ML 337 (K), Pant Mung 4 [UPM 92-1(K)], S 8 (K), Sonali (E), Pant Moong 1 (E), Pant Moong 2 (E), Koperagaon, (M&L), Amrit , BR 2 (M & L), B1 (E)

Central Zone (Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra)

PDM-11 (S), Pant Mung 5 (Z), Pusa 9531 (Z), HUM-1 (S), HUM-2 (Z), Pusa Baisakhi (R), PS 16 (Z), BM4 (K), PS 16 (K), Mohini (K), Gujarat 2, Sabarmati, Gujarat 12, Khargaon 1, Jalgaon 781, Krishna 11

Peninsular Zone (AP, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala)

PDM 84-143 [Basant (K)], ML 337 (K), OUM-11-5 [Kamdeva (K)], PDM 54 (K), Jawahar 5 (K), PS 16 (K), Jawahar 45 (K), K 851 (K), Mohini (K), LGG 456 (R), Pusa 9072 (R), Pusa Baisakhi (R), TARM-1 (S), Malviya Jyoti [HUM 1(S)] Koperagaon, Kondaveedu, KM 1, KM 2, PDM 1, PDM 2, ADT 2, Co 2, Co 4, Co 65, Paiyur 1

S : Spring; Z : Zaid; R : Rabi; K : Kharif, E : Early; M & L : Medium & Late

Manures and Fertilizers Greengram is generally raised on the residual fertility of soil. In case of light soils of poor fertility, it needs addition of organic manures like FYM or compost @ 8-10 tonnes/ha. If organic manure is not available, fertilizer application is necessary. Long duration varieties and the crop grown under irrigated conditions respond to higher doses of fertilizer. Mungbean fixes atmospheric nitrogen in association with Rhizobium. The N fixation starts from 2nd week after sowing with its peak at 40-50 DAS. To meet the requirement of N before start of N fixation, 15-20 kg N/ha is applied along with 40-60 kg P2O5/ha as basal at the last ploughing. In general, 100 kg di-ammonium phosphate (DAP)/ha would meet the nutrient needs of the crop. Foliar sprays of 2% DAP at flowering and pod filling stages is promising.

The response of crop to K fertilization is rare. However, in deficient soils, soil test based K fertilization is necessary. In saline soils and intensive cropping systems, crop responds to Zn and S fertilization. Application of 20 kg each of zinc sulphate and elemental sulphur is essential for higher yields. P fertilization through single super phosphate would take care of S needs of the crop. Zinc fertilization is needed once in 3 years.

Water management Kharif crop is predominantly grown as a rainfed crop, and usually receives no irrigation. Under prolonged dry spells, the crop requires one to two irrigation at flowering and pod formation stages. In rice fallows, under utera cropping, the crop faces severe moisture stress at reproductive stage. Thus an irrigation at flowering or early podding is highly beneficial. During other seasons, the crop is grown under irrigated conditions. Besides a pre-sowing irrigation, 3-4 irrigations at 15-20 days interval are required. In summer season (grown after wheat), no irrigation should be given after 40-45 days of sowing. The water requirement varies with soil and climate from 15-30 cm.

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Weed management Initial 30-40 days after sowing is critical period of crop-weed competition. During this period, crop should be kept with minimum competition from weeds. Due to continuous rains in kharif and broadcast sowing in utera cropping, mungbean suffers from intense weed competition than other seasons.

The major weed flora of greengram includes Trianthema monogyna; Portulaca oleracea, Eargrostis riparia, Cyperus rotundus, Cynodon dactylon, Dactyloctenium aegipticum (L.) P. Beaur, Echinochloa colonum; Digitaria sanguinalis (L.) Scop. etc. The crop requires 2 hand weedings, first at 20-25 days after sowing (DAS) and the later at 40-45 DAS. In summer, one weeding is sufficient. During kharif season, use of herbicides is ideal, as utility of manual weeding is limited by continuous rains.

Pre-plant incorporation of fluchloralin or pre-emergence application of pendimethalin @ 1 kg/ha has been found effective in control of weeds. Its integration with one hand weeding gives best results. Post-emergence herbicides like fluazifop @ 0.5 kg/ha or haloxyfop-methyl @ 0.24 kg/ha 20 DAS for grasses have proved effective in weed management in utera cropping, where hand weedings are not possible.

Cropping Systems Greengram is grown mixed with sorghum, pearl millet, maize, pigeonpea and cotton during kharif season. Intercropping of greengram can also be done with spring planted sugarcane. In this way, an additional grain yield of 0.5-0.6 tonnes/ha may be obtained without any adverse effect on the performance of sugarcane. Sugarcane is planted at a distance of 90 cm from row to row. Two rows of greengram 30 cm apart in the center of sugarcane rows leaving 30 cm distance between sugarcane and greengram rows are sown with a seed rate of 7-8 kg/ha.

The important crop rotations with greengram in north India are:

Maize-wheat-greengram Greengram-wheat

Potato-wheat-greengram Greengram-potato

Rice-wheat-greengram

Harvesting and Threshing Shattering of pods is a great problem with this crop. Therefore, picking should be done as the pod mature. Harvesting should be completed in 2-3 pickings. Sometimes the whole crop may be harvested by sickle. The pods or whole crop after complete drying should be threshed manually.

Yield A good crop of greengram may yield about 1.2-1.6 tonnes of grain and nearly equal quantity of straw (bhusa)/ha. The yield attributes (range) of greengram are given below.

Attribute Value Pods/plant 6-53 Seeds/pod 10 1, 000 seed weight (g) 20-70

Additional Reading Material: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mung_bean

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BLACKGRAM (URDBEAN)Botanical name: Phaseolus mungo L.

Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoceae)

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BLACKGRAM (URDBEAN) Botanical name: Phaseolus mungo L.

Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoceae) Chromosome number: 2n=22 or 24

Blackgram or mash is one of the important kharif pulse crops of India. It is consumed in the form of dal (whole or split, husked or unhusked) or parched. In north India, it is the chief constituent of papad and also bari (spiced balls) which makes a delicious curry. In the south, the husked ‘dal’ is ground into a fine paste, allowed to ferment and is mixed with equal quantity of rice flour to make ‘dosa’ and ‘idli’. Urad dal is also used in preparation of halva and imarti. It is also fried to serve as a savoury dish.

It is also valued as a green manure crop. Its dry stalks along with pod husk forms a nutritive fodder especially for mulch cattle. Blackgram possesses deep root system, which binds soil particles and thus prevents soil erosion. Blackgram contains 60% carbohydrates, 24% of protein, 1.3% fat and is the richest among the various pulses in phosphoric acid (P2O5), being 5-10 times richer than others.

Origin and History Blackgram is a native to India and is believed to have originated from a wild progenitor of blackgram viz., Phaseolus sublobatus Roxb. or Phaseolus trinervus Heyne. There is a mention of blackgram (urdbean) in Vedic texts such as Kautilya’s “Arthashasthra’ and ‘Charak Samhita’. From India it spread to many countries of Africa, Europe, America and Asian continents.

Geographic distribution Blackgram is mainly grown in tropical and sub-tropical climate and has become very popular pulse crop in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and West Indies. The distribution of crop in different countries of the world is not available separately, as FAO provides data in a group under dry beans.

It is grown all over the country in kharif and summer seasons. In north India, it is grown in kharif and summer season, while in south India, it is raised in rabi season also. It is cultivated over an area of about 3.2 m ha with a production of 1.32 m tonnes. Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh are the major producing states of the country (Table 1).

Table 1. Area, production and productivity of black gram (urdbean) in different states of India (2004-05)

States Area (Lakh hectare)

Production (Lakh tones)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Kharif Rabi Total Kharif Rabi Total Kharif

Rabi

Total

Andhra Pradesh 0.765 3.510 4.273 0.351 2.240 2.591 459 638 606

Assam 0.373 0.373 0.201 0.201 539 539

Bihar 0.240 0.240 0.179 0.179 746 746

Chaattissgarh 1.136 0.68 1.204 0.313 0.015 0.328 276 221 272

Gujarat 0.960 0.960 0.486 0 0.486 506 506

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States Area (Lakh hectare)

Production (Lakh tones)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Haryana 0.038 0.038 0.013 0.013 342 342

Himachal Pradesh

0.101 0.101 0.032 0.032 317 317

Jammu & Kashmir

0.143 0.143 0.059 0.059 413 413

Jharkhand 0.686 0.686 0.405 0.405 590 590

Karnataka 1.220 0.100 1.320 0.140 0.040 0.180 115 400 136

Kerala 0.001 0.001 0.001 0.001 1000 1000

Madhya Pradesh 5.566 0.068 5.634 2.009 0.028 2.037 361 412 362

Maharashtra 5.300 0.076 5.376 2.160 0.029 2.189 408 382 407

Orissa 1.225 0.021 1.246 0.324 0.007 0.331 264 333 266

Punjab 0.034 0.034 0.018 0.018 529 529

Rajasthan 1.463 1.462 0.527 0.527 360 360

Tamil Nadu 0.469 1.874 2.343 0.219 0.802 1.021 467 428 436

Tripura 0.012 0.004 0.016 0.007 0.002 0.009 583 500 563

Uttar Pradesh 4.763 0.586*

5.349 1.774 0.302*

2.076 372 515 388

West Bangal 0.475 0.114 0.589 0.320 0.084 0.404 674 737 686

Pondicherry 0.017 0.017 0.005 0.005 294 294

India 24.843

6.850 31.693

9.482 3.784 13.266

382 552 419

*Summer season Source: Directorate of Economics and Statistics, 2005

Classification Blackgram (Vigna mungo) is subdivided into 2 varieties.

Vigna mungo var. niger: This species has early maturating varieties with bold seeds of black colour.

Vigna mungo var. viridis: This species includes late-maturing varieties. Seeds are of small size and green in colour.

Botanical Description

Blackgram is an annual trailing or erect plant with a height of 30-90 cm with profuse branching. The stem is slightly ridged and covered with brown hair. The leaves are large, trifoliate, hairy and generally with a purplish tinge. The colour of leaves is green to dark green. The leaflets are 5-10 cm long, broad, ovate and entire. The flowers are axillary, recemose, complete, self-pollinated and yellow in colour. The inflorescence consists of cluster of 5-6 flowers at the top of a long hairy peduncle. There are 5 sepals and 5 petals.

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There are 9 stamens and 1 hairy and spirally twisted style. The pods are 4-6 cm long. There are 8-15 seeds in a pod. The seeds are generally black or dark brown with smooth seed coat and protruding hilum.

Climate Blackgram is a tropical crop with tolerance to high temperature. It is cultivated in areas receiving rainfall of 500 to 700 mm in kharif and on residual moisture in rice fallows or under irrigated conditions during rabi. It is also cultivated in summer season. It is grown all the year round in peninsular India and during kharif and summer seasons in the north. It prefers humid conditions. The crop is susceptible to frost and waterlogging. The optimum temperature for growth ranges from 25-35oC. However, it can tolerate temperature up to 42oC. It is grown from sea level to an altitude of 1,800 m above mean sea level. It has drought resistance and can tolerate moisture stress. Heavy rains and cloudy weather during flowering stage are harmful to its successful cropping. Short days are conducive for higher productivity.

Soils Blackgram is cultivated on a variety of soils, but well drained loams are best for its cultivation. In scanty rainfall areas, heavy soils are preferred. Owing to its salt tolerance, it can be grown in moderate saline and alkali soils. The crop can be successfully grown in soils with pH 5 to 8.

Land preparation The crop does not require fine filth. The land preparation involves 1-2 deep ploughings followed by 2-3 harrowings and planking in both kharif as well as in irrigated conditions of rabi. Its utera cropping in rice involves no land preparation, as seeds are broadcast in standing crop of rice. In kharif season, levelling is important to provide quick damage of excess water accumulated from heavy rainfall.

Seed and Sowing Seed rate and spacing During kharif season, the crop attains vigorous vegetative growth than other seasons, and hence requires wider spacing. Accordingly, in kharif the crop is sown in rows 30-45 cm apart, while in other seasons, a narrow rows of 20-30 cm are recommended. The plants are thinned to a spacing of 5-10 cm after germination and establishment. Thus, a seed rate of 12-15 kg/ha in kharif is the optimum, while in other seasons, double the seed rate of kharif is required. For utera cropping, the highest seed rates are used, ranging from 30-50 kg/ha. The optimum population is 4 lakh/ha in kharif, and 10 lakh/ha in spring and summer seasons. The optimum depth of sowing is 4-6 cm.

Before sowing seed should be treated with agrosan GN or thiram @ 2.5 g/kg of seed. Seed should also be inoculated with suitable Rhizobiumm culture.

Time and method of sowing The time of sowing depends on onset of monsoon in kharif and harvest of previous crops in other seasons. In kharif, the crop is sown between mid June to mid July. Rabi crop is sown in the months of October-November. Spring and summer blackgram are sown in February and mid March – early April, respectively.

The seeds are planted in lines using seed drill. However, in utera cropping it is broadcast in standing rice crop.

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Varieties Since independence, over 60 improved varieties have been evolved in blackgram. Selection from local material has contributed over 50% of the improved varieties. T 9 is the first variety developed from Bareilly local in Uttar Pradesh (1948). Some other varieties developed through selection include T 27, T 65, T 77, Khargone 3, Mash 1-1, Mash 2, Naveen, ADT 1, D-6-7, D 75, Co 2, Co 3 etc. These varieties were later used in hybridization to develop high yielding and disease resistant varieties. KM 1 (G 31 x Khargone 3) and ADT 2 (AB 1-33 x ADT 1) are the first hybrid developed in blackgram. Mutation breeding has also been used to develop six varieties in blackgram till date. Co 4 is the first mutant blackgram developed at Coimbatore in 1978. Other blackgram varieties evolved through mutation include Manikya, TAU-1, TAU-2, TAU-4, TAU-94-2. The important and improved varieties recommended for different agro-climatic zones of India are given in Table 2.

Table 2. Improved varieties of blackgram recommended for various agro-climatic zones of India

Zone Varieties Rabi Spring

North-western Zone (Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Western Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir

T 9, T 65, PS 1, Pant U 35, Pant U 19, UG 218, Mash 48, Kulu 4, HPU-6, Pusa 1, WBU 108 (Sharda), IPU 94-1 (Uttar), Krishna

PDU-1, KU-300

North-eastern Zone (Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Orissa, Assam)

T 9, T 65, PS 1, T 27, T 77, T 22, T 127, Pant U-19, Pant U-30, BR 68, Kalindi (B76), Naveen, Azad Urad 2, Uttar, DPU-88-31(Neelam)

Azad urd 1, UG 606, PDU 1 (Basant Bahar)

Central Zone (Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra)

T 9,Pusa 1, Khargone 3, Gwalior 2, D 6-7, D 75, Mash 48, Pusa U 30, Ujjain-4, Barka (RBU 38), TPU-4, TU 94-2, VB 3

PDU 1

Peninsular Zone (Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka)

T9. WBG 26. Pusa 1, ADT 1, Khargone-3. ADT 2, PDM 2, Co 2 CO 3, Co 4, Co 5, Pant U 30, Mash 35-5, KM 2, Sharda, VB 3, Warangal 26

LBG 17 (Krishnayya), LBG 685, LBG 402, Prabhava), LBG 623, LBG 645

Yellow mosaic virus (YMV) in north east plain zone and powdery mildew (PM) and Cercospora leaf spot in southern zone cause enormous loss in productivity. Selection of resistant varieties is essential in blackgram. The important resistant varieties for these diseases are given below:

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Yellow mosaic virus Pant U 19, Pant U 30, PDU-1, KU 300, UG 218, Vamban 2, Neelam, Uttar, Narendra Urd 1, Mash 338, Gwalior 2.

Powdery mildew Krishnayya, LBG 402, CoBG 5, TAU 1, Co 4, WBU 108

Cercospora leaf spot Pant U 19, Neelam Manures and Fertilizers Being a legume, it meets most of its N requirement from biological fixation. To meet the initial N requirement before start of N fixation, 15-20 kg N/ha is applied along with 30-50 kg P2O5/ha at the time of sowing. Response to P application is the highest in red soils followed by lateritic soils. Potassic fertilizers should be applied as per soil test value. In case, soil test facilities are not available, apply 30-40 kg K2O/ha. The fertilizers should be drilled at the time of sowing in such a way that they are placed about 5-7 cm below the seed. When the crop is raised as intercrop, the fertilizer applied to main crop may also meet its requirement. Application of S @ 20 kg/ha and 0.5 kg Mo/ha is also beneficial. Gypsum was more efficient source of S, followed by single superphosphate.

Soil mulch and 2% KCl spray have been recommended for mid-season drought management in blackgram.

Water management It is grown under rainfed conditions in kharif. However, under prolonged moisture stress due to dry spells in monsoon, it requires irrigation. Blackgram grown on residual moisture in rice fallows, however, experiences moisture stress at reproductive stage. Under these situations, provision of one irrigation at pod filling stage is promising. Under irrigated conditions of rabi, spring and summer seasons, the crop requires 3-5 irrigations at 15-20 days interval. Summer crop requires irrigation at less frequent interval than rabi/spring blackgram. Depending on soil and climate, the water requirement of blackgram varies from 15-20 cm. No irrigations should be applied after pod filling, and should be stopped 2 weeks prior to maturity.

Weed management The short stature of crop in sole stands provides scope for intense weed competition. The weed menace is the highest in kharif owing to intermittent rains. Initial 30-40 DAS is critical period of crop-weed competition. In an unweeded crop, the extent of yield losses may vary from 40-60%.

The major weed flora of blackgram includes grasses: Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers, Cyperus rotundus L., Setaria glauca (L) Bear; dicot weeds: Trianthema portulocastrum L., Digeria arvensis Forsk, Commelina benghalensis L., Boerhavia diffusa L., Phyllanthus niruri Hook. F., Cuscuta sp. menace is seen in coastal areas of Andhra Pradesh.

When blackgram is grown as an intercrop with sorghum, pigeonpea, pearl millet etc., the interculture given to the main crop is adequate. When sown as a sole crop, 1 or 2 weedings are required in the initial stages to keep the crop free from weeds.

Two manual weedings or mechanical harrowings 3 and 6 weeks after sowing are sufficient to take care of weed menace. When conditions are not favourable for the above operations owing to rains in kharif and labour cost in other seasons, herbicides usage is necessary.

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Pre-plant incorporation of fluchloralin or pre-emergence application of pendimethalin or alachlor @ 1 kg/ha are recommended for weed control. Post-emergence application of sethoxydim @ 1 kg/ha 10 DAS or haloxyfop-methyl @ 0.24 kg/ha 20 DAS or fenoxoprop-ethyl @ 50 g/ha 28 DAS have been recommended. In utera cropping, the post-emergence herbicide application is the only option available.

Cropping Systems Blackgram is grown mixed with sorghum, maize, pearl millet and cotton crops during kharif season. It is intercropped with pigeonpea and spring sugarcane in 2:1 row ratio. In peninsular India, it is sometimes grown alone for manuring rice or as second crop after the cereal. In Kangra valley (Himachal Pradesh), it is often grown on bunds around terraced rice fields. The important rotations involving blackgram in north India are as given below:

Maize-wheat-blackgram Maize-toria-blackgram

Paddy-wheat-blackgram Blackgram-wheat-blackgram

Maize-potato-blackgram

Harvesting and Threshing Blackgram should be harvested when most of the pods turn black. Over maturity may result in shattering of pods. In general, the crop takes about 100-115 days in kharif and 75-80 days in summer for maturity. Harvested crop should be dried properly on threshing floor for a few days and then threshed. Threshing can be done either manually or by trampling by bullocks.

Yield A good crop of blackgram may yield 1.0-1.5 tonnes grain/ha and 2.0-2.5 tonnes/ha of straw. The yield attributes (range) of blackgram are given below.

Attribute Value

Pods/plant 25-120

Seeds/pod 4-8

1, 000 seed weight (g) 36-49

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COWPEABotanical name: Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.

Source: http://www.cowpea.org/

Source : http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/Vigna_unguiculata.htm

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Source : http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/Vigna_unguiculata.htm

Additional Reading Material: http://www.cowpea.org/http://www.tropicalforages.info/key/Forages/Media/Html/Vigna_unguiculata.htm

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COWPEA Botanical name: Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.

Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoceae) Chromosome number: 2n=22 or 24

Cowpea commonly known as lobia is valued for its protein rich grain (25%) in human consumption. It forms major staple food in many parts of Africa. The scorched seeds are also used as coffee substitute. It is also extensively grown for forage purposes and in terms of quality, it is comparable to lucerne. It is used for both human consumption and as a concentrate feed for cattle. Cowpea grains also contain 60.3% carbohydrates and 1.8% fat. Its pods are eaten as vegetable and tender leaves form important food in Africa. In Sudan and Ethiopia, the roots are roasted and eaten. The thick canopy aids in checking the soil erosion and weeds. Cowpea with drought tolerance and ability to grow in poor soils, forms an important crop in Savanna regions that are not suitable for raising any other crop.

Origin One school of thought believes that cowpea has originated in southern Sahel (north-central Africa) or in Ethiopia and later spread from these places to Asia and the Mediterranean through Egypt. Other school opines that cowpea has originated in India, and from there it was introduced into Africa in around 1500 BC. From West Africa, cowpeas entered into Carribean and then to North America through slave trade.

Geographic Distribution It is most widely raised crop of west and central African countries (Table 1). In the Indian sub-continent, it is mainly raised in central and peninsular regions. In north India, it is grown in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Delhi and Haryana. Table 1. The major cowpea producing countries of world (2004)

Country Area (m.ha)

Production (m.t)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Nigeria 5.34 2.32 434.2

Niger 3.50 0.55 157.1

Burkinafas 0.59 0.28 470.0

Myanmar 0.14 01.3 928.6

Cameroon 0.04 0.087 2175.0

Tanzania 0.15 0.052 346.7

Uganda 0.064 0.064 1000.0

Congo 0.085 0.053 623.5

World 10.73 3.84 357.6

Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004 Classification The cultivated types of cowpea have been classified into 3 groups:

Vigna sinensis (cowpea): These are erect/trailing, early maturing and annual types. Pods are 20-30 cm long containing 0.6-0.9 cm long seed. On drying, seeds are neither flabby nor inflated. Mainly grown for fodder purposes.

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Vigna sinensis sub. sp. catjang (Indian cowpea): The pods are 7.5-12.5 cm long, erect ascending when green, spreading or deflexed when dry. Seeds are 0.5-0.6 cm long and nearly as thick as broad. Mainly grown for fodder purpose.

Vigna sinensis sub. sp. sesquipedalis (Yardlong or asparagus bean): They are spreading annual types with 30-60 cm long and pendent pods. Seeds are 0.8-1.2 cm long and are mainly used as vegetable.

Botanical Description The common cowpea is a twining annual herbaceous plant. It has well developed root system. It has a tap root with a considerable number of lateral roots. Most of the roots are existed in the upper 40 cm of soil. The stem is almost glabrous and slightly ridged. The leaves are trifoliate, alternate and with scattered short hair. The flowers are white, yellow or pink in colour and are usually self-pollinated. Pods are long, cylindrical and constricted between the seeds. The seeds are bean shaped and many times spotted with various colours such as brown, green, yellow, white and mottled.

Climate Cowpea is a tropical and sub-tropical crop preferring warm and humid season. Being a warm weather crop, it can withstand drought and moderate levels of shade. However, under very dry conditions, the plants produce a poor crop. Germination of cowpea is better between 12 and 15oC temperature. The crop thrives best between 27 and 35oC temperature. It can not tolerate cold and is completely killed by frost. It is a short day plant requiring a minimum of 12.5 hour light. It is grown from sea level to an elevation of 2,000 m.

Soils Cowpea grows well on a wide range of soils including low fertile and acidic soils. Saline and alkaline soils are, however, not suitable for its cultivation. The crop performs best in well drained sandy loams with a pH of 5.5-6.5.

Land preparation Clod free seedbed that can be obtained with moderate land preparation is sufficient for cowpea cultivation. Under kharif rainfed conditions, a deep summer ploughing would be useful for conservation of moisture. The land preparation involves 2-3 ploughings followed by harrowing and levelling in kharif after onset of monsoon or early showers. As an irrigated crop of rabi, spring and summer seasons, land is prepared after an irrigation.

Seeds and Sowing Seed rate and spacing Spreading cultivars of cowpea are sown in rows 45 cm apart with a plant to plant spacing of 10-15 cm, and thus 1, 50,000 to 2, 50,000 plants/ha is the optimum plant density. Compact types are sown in 30 cm rows with a plant to plant spacing of 5-10 cm. Generally, a seed rate of 25-35 kg/ha is used to get desired plant density. In mixed and intercropping systems, the seed rate varies with row proportions.

Before sowing seed should be treated with cerasan or agrosan GN @ 2.5 g or carbendazim @ 2 g/kg seed. The later is effective for arresting root rot disease. Seed should also be treated with Rhizobium culture.

Time of method of sowing As a kharif rainfed crop, cowpea is sown immediately with the onset of monsoon. Its sowing is thus spread from mid June to end of July. With delayed sowing beyond July, rust incidence increases. In hills, the crop is sown in April-May. As a rabi crop, in the south, it is sown in

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the months of October and November. Summer crop is sown during March-April in the north. Seed should be sown behind the plough or with the help of a seed drill.

Varieties The original shy bearing, photosensitive, long duration and pest susceptible varieties have been improved to remove these bottlenecks and to fit them into various intensive cropping systems. A number of varieties have been developed through selection from local or improved germplasm (C 152, Pusa Phalguni, T 2 etc.). New varieties have also been evolved through hybridization (Pusas Dofasli, RC 19). Mutation breeding has also been adopted since early eighties, that resulted in evolving five varieties of cowpea in India, of which 4 [Amba, Shreshtha (V 37), Swarna (V3 8) (All in 1981) and V 240 (1984)] are developed through irradiation of Pusa Phalguni with Dimethyl sulphonate (DMS) at IARI, New Delhi. Cowpea 88 was developed at Ludhiana (Punjab) in 1990 by irradiation of F1 seed of cross of cowpea 74 x No. H 2.

The important varieties recommended for different agro-climatic zones and purposes are given in Table 2.

Table 2. Cowpea varieties recommended for various agro-climatic zones of India

Varieties Zone

Grain types Vegetable types

Dual types

North-western zone (Punjab, Haryana, Western Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir)

T2, JC 5, JC 10, RS 9, RC 29, V 16, Cowpea 74, Pusa 152, Pusa Sawani (TS 269), Pusa Sampada, Rambha

Pusa Rituraj, Pusa Phalguni, Pusa Dofasli, Pusa Barsati

FS 68, Swarna (V 38), Gomti, Pusa Komal, Arka Garima

North-eastern zone (Eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Orissa, Assam)

FGC 1, T2, V 16, RC 19, Pusa 152, Pusa Sawani, Cowpea 74

Central zone (Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra)

Pusa 152, V 240, V 16, Gujarat cowpea 1, Gujarat cowpea 2, K 11, K 14, GC 3

Peninsular zone (Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala)

Pusa 152*, Krishnamani (PTB 2), Kanakmani (PTB 1), Co 1, Co 2, Co 3, Co 4*, V16 (Amba), V 240, S 228, S 448, JC 5, SU 88, Km 1

*Suitable for Rabi Manures and Fertilizers Being a leguminous crop, it can fix 70-350 kg/ha of N through biological N fixation. However, it needs a small amount of N for early growth period on those soils which are poor in organic matter. Such soils should receive 15-20 kg N/ha as a starter dose. Application of phosphorus is essential for proper root development and functioning of Rhizobium. Apply 40-

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50 kg P2O5/ha at the time of sowing. Phosphatic fertilizer is placed 5 cm below and away from the seed. It is advisable to apply potassic fertilizer based on soil test recommendations.

Water management The crop is raised on rainfall in kharif. However, at time of moisture stress owing to long breaks in monsoon, irrigation is essential. In cowpea, flowering and pod filling stages are identified as critical stages for irrigation. As an irrigated crop, cowpea requires 3-4 irrigations. After a pre-sowing irrigation, irrigations are provided at seedling, flowering and pod filling stages. Cowpea requires 300-400 mm water depending on soil and climate. Summer crop may require 5-6 irrigations due to high temperature and low humidity. The number and frequency of irrigation depend upon the soil type and weather prevailing during the growth period. Generally, the summer season crop should get irrigation at an interval of 10-15 days.

Weed management Cowpea suffers from heavy weed infestation at initial growth phases. The critical period of crop weed competition is 25-30 days after sowing. Effective control of weeds during this period is essential. The crop is known to have weed suppressing ability in later stages owing to its thick canopy and fast growth. At least, 2 hoeing and weeding are needed to check the growth of weeds. Summer season crop is less infested by weed in comparison to kharif crop. Pre-plant incorporation of fluchloralin @ 1 kg/ha or pre-emergence application of pendimethalin @ 1.0 kg/ha may effectively take care of initial weed growth. Of the 30 species of Striga (witch weed) a semi root parasite, Striga asiatica and S. gesneriodes (Willd.) Vatke. are prominent in India and Africa. Pre-emergence application of dicamba or metalachlor is promising for its control. Trap cropping and use of Striga resistant varieties are other effective ways of its management.

Harvesting and Threshing Green pods can be harvested 45-90 days after sowing depending on the variety. Pods should be harvested at tender stage; otherwise pods may develop fibres due to longer retention on the plant. For grains, the crop may be harvested in about 90-125 days after sowing, when pods are fully matured. The crop should be dried properly and threshed. The grain should be dried in sun before storage.

For fodder, the cutting of the crop depends upon the need and the stage of growth of the component crop sown with it. In general, the crop should be cut with sickle when it attains the age of 40-45 days.

Yield A good crop of cowpea may yield about 1.2-1.5 tonnes grain and 5.0-6.0 tonnes straw/ha. The yield attributes (range) of cowpea are given below

Attributes Value Pods/plant 1-230 Seeds/pod 4-24 1, 000 seed weight (g) 35-197

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MOTH BEAN or DEW BEANBotanical name: Phaseolus aconitifolius (Jacq.) Marechal

Source: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/MV021

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MOTH BEAN or DEW BEAN Botanical name: Phaseolus aconitifolius (Jacq.) Marechal

Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoceae) Chromosome number: 2n=22

Mothbean is an important kharif pulse crop of the arid and semi-arid regions. Besides use of mature dry seeds as dal, popular Indian preparations like kheech, papad, dalmoth and bhujia are also prepared from its seeds. The seeds are rich in protein (23-25%). The green pods are relished as vegetable. It is also grown for fodder (green and dry) and green manuring purposes. The spreading habit makes it a soil conserving crop. It is the most drought tolerant crop among the pulses and enriches the soil by its biological N fixation.

Origin It is considered to be native of India owing to wide spread wild and cultivated forms. Mothbean grows wild in India, Pakistan and Myanmar and from the Himalayas in the north to Sri Lanka in the south.

Geographic distribution India is the major producer of mothbean in the world. It is widely grown in the Indian subcontinent and the Far East, particularly Thailand. It has also reached China, Africa and southern USA, where it is confined mainly to the drier areas. In India, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Gujarat are the major mothbean producing states (Table 1). Table 1. Area, production and productivity of mothbean in different states of India (2004-05)

State Area (lakh ha)

Production (Lakh tonnes)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Gujarat 0.410 0.147 359

Haryana 0.024 0.003 125

Himachal Pradesh 0.001 0.001 1000

Jammu & Kashmir 0.027 0.017 630

Maharashtra 0.510 0.152 298

Punjab 0.003 0.002 667

Rajasthan 14.363 1.883 131

Uttar Pradesh 0.003 0.001 333

India 15.341 2.206 144

Source: Directorate of Economics and Statistics, 2005

Climate Mothbean needs warm weather; hence the crop is grown during monsoon season. The cultivation is spread in plains between 30oN to 30oS. It is a drought tolerant crop and can be grown in areas with rainfall of 200-500 mm. High rainfall is detrimental to its cultivation.

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Soil and its preparation The crop grows well in sandy loams with neutral pH. It can thrive in sand dunes also. It is cultivated in dry areas and has the ability to grow where no other crop can be grown. Saline and alkaline soils are not suitable for mothbean production. Mothbean requires a minimum preparation of land. It is often sown in sandy soils without land preparation. In other soils, field is prepared by one or two cross harrowings followed by planking. To control the white grub, 25 kg of phorate 10 G should be applied in the furrows, and where the termite problem is serious, apply 5% aldrin dust @ 25 kg/ha at the time of soil preparation.

Seeds and Sowing Seed rate and spacings The seed rate required for sole mothbean for grain purpose varies from 10-12 kg/ha in spreading and semi-spreading varieties. In erect and short duration cultivars (RMO-40) and under delayed sowing, higher seed rate (15 kg/ha) is required. For inter and mixed cropping (depending on row proportion of component crops), 4-5 kg seed/ha is used. Fodder crop requires double the seed rate of sole grain crop. The crop is sown in rows 45 cm apart with an intra-row spacing of 10 cm. Erect types are grown in 30 cm rows. Before sowing, the seed should be treated with captan or thiram @ 2.5 g/kg of seed. Seed should also be treated with Rhizobium culture.

Time of sowing In Rajasthan, sowing is done with the onset of monsoon, and usually sown in the month of July. If rains are not sufficient, the sowing can be done in August also. The yield is reduced with delayed sowing beyond July. Under assured irrigation, spring (February-March) season cultivation can also be done. Sowing is done behind the plough or seed drill at 3-5 cm depth.

Varieties The important varieties of mothbean and their characteristics are given below

Type 1 A selection from Meerut local, released in 1967. Plants are spreading type. Maturing in 120 days has medium bold (test weight 19 g) shining brown seeds and yields 2-4 q/ha. Suitable for Haryana

Baleshwar-12 Plants are tall (40-50 cm), requiring 110-115 days to maturity and susceptible to yellow mosaic virus (YMV). The seeds are medium in size and are brown and yields 5 q/ha seed.

Jadia A local selection from Rajasthan released in 1980. It matures in 90 days with 5-8 q/ha seed yield. The seeds with 25-29 g test weight are dark brown in colour. Suitable for Rajasthan.

Jwala Identified in 1983, suitable for Rajasthan; Maturing in 90 days has resistance to yellow mosaic virus (YMV). Grains are light brown with a test weight of 30 g. Average yield is 7 q/ha.

IPCMO-0880 A selection from Jhunjhunu local, released in 1989 takes 90-100 days to maturity. It is recommended for Rajasthan and Gujarat has a yield of 5 q/ha.

IPCMO-912 A selection from Sikar local, released in 1994 for Rajasthan. Maturing in 75-80 days has tolerance to YMV and bacterial blight

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RMO 40 Developed from 40 KR r-rays irradiation of “Jwala” at ARS, Mandore in 1994. It is an erect, short duration (62-65 days) synchronous maturing vareiety with 6-9 q/ha yield, suitable for Rajasthan.

RMO 257 A spreading, short duration variety (62-65 days) developed by mutation breeding. It is resistant to YMV and drought and has medium bold (29-32 g test weight) seeds.

FMM 96 An erect, short duration (58-60 days) variety with synchronous maturity developed through mutation breeding. It is resistant to YMV, stem blight. Yields 5-7 q/ha seed.

CAZRI moth 1 Developed in 1999 by 30 KR r-rays mutation of “Jadia”

RMO 423 An early variety released in 2003. Suitable for Rajasthan. Latest varieties Prabha, Maru Varedhan and CZM-45; RMO-435 (Maru Bahar).

Irrigation It is rainfed crop of kharif and is usually not irrigated. However, drought at reproductive stage deters farmers from realizing higher yields. In mothbean grown during spring and summer seasons, irrigations are given at two weeks interval from sowing onwards. Flowering stage of the crop is the critical stage for irrigation.

Manures and Fertilizers Mothbean soils are generally poor in organic matter, fertility and water holding capacity. An addition of 10-15 t/ha FYM is recommended to improve the organic matter and water holding capacity of soil. Though, it fixes 30-60 kg N/ha, 15 kg N/ha is applied at sowing to meet initial N demands. Application of potassium is rare, but 30-50 kg P2O5/ha is needed for better root growth, nodulation and N fixation. In intensive cropping systems, 20 kg S/ha fertilization is required for better yields. Uncontrolled weeds may reduce mothbean productivity by 25-50%. The initial 4 weeks from sowing is critical period of crop-weed competition. The weed menace is less in intercropping with pearl millet. The important weeds invading mothbean are Cyperus rotundus, Cynodon dactylon, Trianthema portulacastrum, Phyllanthus niruri, Commelina and Digeria spp. One hand weeding at 3-4 weeks after sowing is sufficient to take care of weeds. Use of fluchloralin @ 1 kg/ha (pre-plant incorporation) is recommended for both sole mothbean and its intercropping with pearl millet.

Cropping systems In low rainfall areas, it is grown in sole stands. However, under higher rainfall, it is intercropped with pearl millet and clusterbean. Mothbean is also a component of several crop rotations. It is rotated with mustard, gram, linseed and barley under rainfed conditions. Under irrigated conditions, the important rotations include: Mothbean-potato-wheat mothbean-toria-potato mothbean-radish-wheat mothbean-toria-wheat-greengram.

Harvesting and Threshing The crop matures in about 3 months. The main characteristic of ripening of mothbean is that the pods become yellow black. Delayed harvesting results in shattering of pods. The crop may be harvested with sickles and then sun-dried for 3-5 days. Seeds are separated by hand

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beating or bullock/tractor trampling. Threshers are also available for threshing and winnowing simultaneously.

Yield A good crop may yields about 0.5-0.8 tonnes grain and 1.0-1.5 tonnes straw/ha. The yield attributes (range) of mothbean are given below

Attribute Value Pods/plant 24.8-128.3 Seeds/pod 2.0-10.0 1, 000 seed weight (g) 15-46

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SOYBEAN (Botanical name: Glycine max L. Merril)

Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soybean

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SOYBEAN

Botanical name: Glycine max L. Merril Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoceae)

Chromosome number: 2n=40

Soybean with 40% protein and 20% oil in its seed is one of the important and cheapest sources of vegetable proteins and oils. Owing to its multiplicity of uses as food and industrial products, it is called a ‘wonder crop’. It is the number one oilseed crop of the world. Soybean protein is rich in the valuable amino acid lysines (5%) in which most of the cereals are deficient. In addition, it contains a good amount of minerals, salts and vitamins (thiamine and riboflavin).

A large number of Indian and western dishes such as bread, kachori, pastries, high-protein food for children, food for diabetic, milk, biscuits, sweets, fermented food, chhbole, khoa, paneer rabdi, powdered food material, chocolate, ice cream, protisnacks, nutrinugget, green pods as vegetable, canned seed vegetable, salad, dry seed-roasted, boiled, cooked, soya sauce, soya soup etc. can be prepared from its seed/flour. It is widely used for manufacturing of edible oil, vanaspati ghee, salad oil, butter, glycerine, oil for light, explosive, varnish paints, linolium, soap, lubricating oil, printing ink, celluloid, plywood material, tape joint, typewriter ribbon, rice cream, vitamins, antibodies, medicine and cosmetic material etc. It is widely used in different antibodies. It can be used as forage, hay, silage etc. Its forage and cake are excellent nutritive foods for livestock and poultry. Soybean builds up the soil fertility by fixing atmospheric nitrogen through the root nodules, and also through leaf fall on the ground on maturity. Soybean is a food that is as nearly perfect as cow milk. Its fortification (5%) with wheat flour is done for alleviating protein malnutrion in the country.

Origin and History Soybean originated in China around 2800 B.C. The wild form, a slender twinning vine, Glycine soja is considered to be the predecessor of Glycine max (cultivated form) occurring in China, Manchuria and Korea. It was domesticated in eastern half of the North China around the 11th century B.C. It was introduced into Korea from North China and then into Japan sometimes between 200 BC and 3rd century A.D.

It is introduced into northern India in 1000 AD from Central China through silk route and is an important source of food in Kumaon hills and Naga hills. Black seeded soybean was also grown in Kumaon and Garhwal hills region and some places of Madhya Pradesh.

Geographic distribution Soybean is globally cultivated over an area of 91.2 million ha with a production of 206.5 million tonnes (2004). The important soybean growing counties are USA, China, Brazil, Mexico and Russia (Table 1). Table. 1. Area, production and productivity of soybean in major producing countries of world

Country Area (m ha)

Production (m tonnes)

Productivity (t/ha)

USA 29.93 85.01 2.84

Brazil 21.54 49.79 2.31

Argentina 14.32 31.50 2.20

China 9.70 17.60 1.81

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Country Area (m ha)

Production (m tonnes)

Productivity (t/ha)

India 6.90 7.50 1.09

Russian Federation

0.56 0.56 1.00

World 91.2 206.5 2.26

Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004 In India, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra states are major producers of soybean accounting for 87% of acreage and 82% of the production (Table 2). Table 2. Area, production and productivity of soybean in important states of India in 2004-05

State Area (000 ha)

Production (000 t)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Andhra Pradesh 76.9 120.5 1567

Chattisgarh 33.2 33.8 1018

Gujarat 27.0 15.0 556

Karnataka 159.0 96.0 604

Madhya Pradesh 4485.3 3747.1 835

Maharashtra 2102.0 1892.0 900

Rajasthan 621.9 886.5 1425

Uttarakhand 18.0 23.0 1278

India 7571.2 6876.3 908 Source: Fertilizer Association of India, 2006.

Classification Genus Glycine consists of two subgenera Glycine Willd. and Soja (Moench) F.J. Herm. The sub-genus Soja comprises of the cultivated soybean Glycine max. and its wild annual progenitor, Glycine soja Sieb and Zucc. The subgenus Glycine consists of 16 wild perennial species [of which 2 species G. tabicina (2n = 40, 80) and G. tornentosa (2n = 38, 40, 78, 80) have polyploid forms] and the rest are diploids (2n=40). Soybean is classified on the basis of various criteria used as below:

Manchurian classification As per this classification based on colour of seed, soybean has been classified into 3 groups: Yellow group: They fetch higher price. The minimum support price in India is Rs 1020/q (2006-07)

Yellow seeds with light hilum Yellow seeds with golden hilum Yellow seeds with brown hilum

Black group: They fetch higher price. The minimum support price in India is Rs 900/q (2006-07)

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Large black seed Flat black seed Small black seed

Green group Epidermis of seed green but embryo yellow Epidermis as well as embryo green

Martin’s classification This classification is based on shape and size of soybean seed

Soja elliptica : Egg shaped seed Soja spherical : Round seed Soja compressa : Pressed seed

Hertz Classification This classification is based on the shape of pods

Soja platycarpa : Flat seed Soja tumida : Thick seed

American classification This classification is based on maturity duration. The varieties available in USA have been divided into 10 groups.

Group Maturity (in days) Varieties (Hilum colour)

(00) 117 Flambeau (b), Portage (y)

(0) 126 Traverse (y), Merit (bf), Grant (b)

(i) 126 Chippewa (b), Hark (y)

(ii) 130 Amsoy (y), Harosoy 63 (y)

(iii) 131 Ford, Kim, Sheby, Adams, Wayne (b), Adelphia (bf)

(iv) 136 Delmar (y), Scott, Kent (b), Clark 63 (b)

(v) 139 Dare Hill (br), Dorman, York (bf)

(vi) 148 Hood (bf), Pickett (b), Lee (b), Davis (bf)

(vii) 156 Bragg (b), Jackson, Semmes (b)

(viii) 158 Hardee (bf), Bienville, Improved Pelican

b = black; y = yellow; br = brown; bf = buff colour hilum Climate Soybean grows well in warm and moist climates from sea level to an elevation of 3,000 m. Temperature of 15-32oC is optimum for germination. For growth and development, the optimum temperature is 30oC. Lower temperatures tend to delay the flowering. It has been observed that low temperatures reduce the oil content, whereas higher temperatures during seed formation increase the oil content in seed. At temperatures >42oC, nodulation is hampered severely. A relative humidity of 70-75% is optimum for pod formation. The crop

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can not tolerate frost and waterlogging. It is grown in areas of 40-75 cm annual rainfall. Drought at flowering or just before flowering results in flower and pod drop. Rains during maturity impair the quality of grain. It is a short day plant and requires a photoperiod of less the 14 hours provided that temperatures are also favourable.

Soils The crop performs best in well drained medium textured soils with moderate to deep soils. Sandy loam to clay loams is preferred for its cultivation. Soils with neutral pH are ideal. The soils with an electrical conductivity >4dS/m and exchangeable sodium percentage >15% are not suitable for soybean.

Land preparation Soybean requires well pulverized seed bed with no clods for proper germination and crop establishment. The required seed bed can be prepared by a deep ploughing followed by cross harrowing twice and planking.

Seeds and Sowing Seed rate Soybean crop needs about 70-80 kg/ha seed during kharif season and 100-120 kg/ha seed during spring and summer seasons. A spacing of 45 cm x 5 cm in kharif crop and 30 cm x 3 cm in spring and summer crops is optimum. Intercropping with other crops either in alternate rows or 2 rows of soybean between two rows of main crop would require 60% of the seed rate.

Time of sowing Time of sowing of kharif crop is dependent on onset of monsoon or availability of irrigation water. The sowing starts from last week of June and continue up to first fortnight of July. In northern and central India, last week of June is the optimum time of sowing under irrigated conditions. However, it not only takes long duration to maturity but is also highly susceptible to yellow mosaic virus disease. The optimum time of sowing is, however, earliest in northern hills zone i.e. last week of May to mid June. Under irrigated conditions, it is sown in spring season between mid February to mid March.

Method of Sowing It is conventionally sown by broadcast. However, it involves several problems; viz. plants are not properly spaced, resulting in inconvenience in hoeing, weeding etc. Broadcast method is still ideal for fodder and green manure crop. For seed purposes, the crop is sown in rows with the help of seed drill or behind the plough. The depth of sowing should not be more than 2-3 cm in heavy soils to 3-4 cm in light to medium-textured soils under optimum conditions. Rains immediately after sowing results in crust formation inhibiting seedling emergence. Crust breaking by light racking is desirable under these situations.

Varieties The important varieties of soybean released/ introduced in India and their areas of recommended are given below in Table 2.

Table 2. Soybean varieties recommended for different zones of India

Region Varieties Northern Hills Zone (Himachal Pradesh and Hills of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand)

PK-416, Bragg, PK-262, VL2, PSS-64, PK 327, VLS-47, VLS-1, Alankar (PK-74-21), Shilajeet (UPSM-19), Hara Soya, Pusa-16

North Plains Zone (Punjab, Haryana, North

PK 262, PK 327, PK 416, PK 308, PS 564, PS 1024, Pusa 16, Bragg, Ankur (UPSM-38), Alankar, Shilajeet, DS-73-16, DS-

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eastern plains of Uttar Pradesh and western Bihar)

7522-4, PK-472, VL Soya-21, SL-95, SL-295, PK-1042, PK 564-Y, PK-1024

Central Zone (Madhya Pradesh, Bundelkhand regions of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, western Maharashtra and Orissa)

JS-2, JS-335, Ankur, Gaurav (JS-72-74), Durga, MACS-13, PK-472, MACS 58, JS-80-21, MACS-57, JS-80-21, MAUS-81, PK-472, Prasad (MAUS-32), Ahilya-4 (NRC-37), Parbhani sona (MAUS-47), NRC-2 (Ahilya-1), NRC-7 (Ahilya-3), NRC-12 (Ahilya-2), JS-90-41, Indira Soya-9, JS-71-05, JS-9041

Southern Zone (Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Southern Maharashtra)

KHsb-2, Co-1, Monetta, Hardee, Pratiksha (MAUS-61-2), MAUS-32, MACS-450, PK-1029, KP-79 (Sneha), JS-93-05, LSb-1, Co Soya-2, MAUS-2 (Puja), MACS-124, Partikar (MAUS-61)

North-East Zone (Assam, West Bengal, Eastern Bihar, Meghalaya etc.)

JS-80-21, RAUS-5, Samrudhi (MAUS-71)

Manuring and Fertilization Soybean removes substantial amount of nutrients from the soil. The nutrient requirement in India with low to moderate yield levels (~ 1.1 t/ha) are entirely different from countries with 4-8 tonnes/ha productivity. In these countries, removal of P and K far exceeds their application. Soybean has rapid uptake of nutrients at pod filling period. For raising a good crop, application of 15-20 t/ha of FYM is recommended. Being a legume, it fixes atmospheric nitrogen in association with Bradyrhizobium japonicum to meet most of its requirement. To meet the N requirement of crop before fixation starts, 40 kg N/ha is applied at the time of sowing. At flowering stage, the nitrogen supply from soil and symbiotic N fixation often lags behind the requirement. Hence top dressing of 20 kg N/ha would be required. Soybean requires liberal P fertilization for proper nodulation. In acidic soils, P gets fixed owing to predominance of aluminium and iron oxides. Hence, liming of such soils is desirable for raising a good crop. In general, 60-80 kg P2O5/ha is recommended as basal application. Potassium need of soybean is the highest amongst 3 primary nutrients, For proper nodulation, 600-800 mg K/kg biomass is required. Indian soils are rich in potassium, and therefore the response is rare. In K deficient soils, basal application of 40 kg K2O/ha is recommended. To correct K deficiency in a standing crop, 0.5% foliar spray of KCl is recommended. Soybean requires S for oil synthesis. In areas with low S availability, 20 kg S/ha is necessary. In sodic soils and high rainfall zones, soybean usually encounters Zn deficiency. Further, liberal P fertilization also aggravates Zn deficiency due to their antagonism. Hence, application of 5 kg Zn /ha recommendation is made for all soybean growing zones.

Weed control Uncontrolled weeds in the field can cause reduction in yield up to 65%. The initial 40 days have been found as critical period of crop weed competion. Cyperus rotundus, Echinochloa colonum, Sorghum halepense, Setaria glauca, Cynodon dactylon, Celossia argentia and Trianthema monogyna etc. are the most common weeds of soybean. Two manual weedings or hoeings at 20 and 40 days after sowing may effectively control the weeds in soybean. However, continuous rains may limit the utility of manual weeding/hoeing. Under such cases, use of herbicides is inevitable. Pre-plant incorporation of fluchloralin @ 0.75-1.00 kg/ha or pre-emergence application of alachlor @ 1.5-2.0 kg/ha or

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metolochlor or chlomazone or pendimethalin or linuron @ 1 kg/ha or metribuzin @ 0.75 kg/ha have been found effective to control annual grasses and broad leaved weeds. In recent times, some post-emergence herbicides are also used for control of grasses. They include quizalofop-ethyl @ 50 g/ha 25 days after sowing (DAS) or imazethapyr @ 75 g/ha 15-20 DAS.

Water management In kharif soybean, drainage is more important than irrigation. In soybean, sprouting, flowering, pod initiation and grain filling are critical stages of irrigation. Moisture stress at flowering and pod initiation results in flower and pod abortion, while stress at grain filling reduces seed size. Waterlogging is detrimental to nodulation, hence ridge and furrow planting is recommended, where irrigation is provided in furrows. Spring and summer season soybean is grown with assured irrigation facilities, and requires 3 and 5 irrigations, respectively. Under prolonged dry spells, kharif crop also requires protective irrigation at the end of flowering to pod initiation stages.

Cropping Systems Mixed cropping of soybean with maize, sesame and mandua has been found feasible and remunerative. In mixed stand of maize and soybean, the yield of maize is not affected, and an additional 1.0-1.2 t/ha of soybean grain can be obtained. In this system maize is planted at 100 cm row spacing keeping plant-to-plant distance of 10 cm, and 3 rows of soybean are planted in between maize rows. In north India, it has tremendous scope as an intercrop in pigeonpea, maize, cotton and upland rice. In southern part of the country, soybean has a good scope as intercrop in cotton, sorghum, pigeonpea, groundnut and sugarcane. In central India, it has been found very remunerative on the fallow lands in kharif. In low rainfall areas of Madhya Pradesh, soybean-rabi cropping has been found more economical than kharif fallow. Some common soybean based rotations followed in north India are given below. Soybean-gram Soybean-potato Soybean-wheat (most extensively followed in 2 m ha) Soybean-tobacco Soybean-potato-wheat Soybean-wheat-groundnut Soybean-mustard/toria Soybean-maize

Harvesting and Threshing Early varieties usually take 90-120 days to mature, whereas late varieties mature in 140-150 days. There is a thumb rule for harvesting soybean crop i.e. the crop should be harvested after it has fully matured. The matured crop is harvested manually with the help of sickles. Shattering of grains from pods is not common in most of the commercial varieties. The harvested crop is kept on threshing floor to dry for a few days. Thereafter, it is threshed by trampling with bullocks or tractor. Grains are separated by winnowing. It can also be threshed by wheat thresher after some adjustments. A moisture content of 13-14% is ideal for threshing with thresher.

Yield A well managed crop yields about 2.0-2.5 tonnes grain/ha. Oil to soybean seed crushed is 18%, meal to soybean seed crushed is 73%, hull from soybean seed crushed is 8% and wastage from soybean seed crushed is 1%.

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GROUNDNUTBotanical name: Arachis hypogaea

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peanut

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GROUNDNUT Botanical name: Arachis hypogaea Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoseae) Chromosome number: 2n =4x= 40

Groundnut is also known as earthnut, peanut, monkey nut, goober, pinda and Manilla nut. The word Arachis hypogaea has been derived from the Greek words, Arachis meaning legume, hypogaea meaning below groundnut. Groundnut is cultivated for its kernel that is rich in oil (45%) and protein (20%). It is mainly used for manufacture of vegetable oil. In some countries of Europe, USA, South-east Asia, kernel is directly consumed or consumed after roasting/frying and salting by human beings. Besides this, A. villosulicarpa Hoehne in Mato Gasso region and A. stenosperma Krapov & W.C. Gregory nov. sp. in S-Eastern region of Brazil are grown for their kernels.

A Pintoi Krapov & W.C. Gregory nov. sp. and A. grabrata Benth have been valued as forage and fodder crop in South and North America and Australia. Further in South America, A. repens Handro is grown as a cover crop.The stover and groundnut cake have immense value as feeding material for livestock.

Globally, 50% of the groundnut produced is used for oil extraction, 37% for confectionery use and 12 % for seed purpose. In India, 80% of the total produce is used for oil extraction, 11% as seed, 8% for direct food uses and 1% is exported.

Origin The Arachis genus was distributed in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay with largest number of species reported from Brazil followed by Bolivia. Arachis hypogaea is believed to have originated in North Argentina and Southern Bolivia, where the diploid wild (progenitors of groundnut) species (A. batizocoi Krapov & W.C. Gregory Morten nudum and A. duranensis Krapov & W.C. Gregory nov. sp.) that are closely related to tetraploid A. hypogaea and A. monticola Krapov & Rigoni are distributed in this region. This suggests that this region is the primary center of diversity.

The secondary center of diversity includes Guarani region of Paraguay-Parana, Goias and Mina Gerais region of Tocatins, San Fransisco, Rondonia North-West Mato Grosso of Brazil, eastern foothills of the Andes and Bolivia and Peuu’s upper Amazon and West Coast. North East Brazil is considered as tertiary center of Diversity. The Christian Missionaries are believed to have introduced groundnut in India during the early 16th century.

Geographic distribution At present groundnut is grown in over 100 countries spread in 6 continents.It is raised on over 26 m ha in the world. The most important groundnut producing countries are China, India, Nigeria, USA, Indonesia and Sudan.. India occupies the first place in regard to acreage, while China ranks first with regard to total production (Table 1). Asia and Africa together acoounts for over 90 % of area and production in the world.

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Table 1. Area, production and productivity of groundnut in major producing countries to the world

Country Area (m ha) Production (m t) Productivity (kg/ha)

India 6.70 7.00 1045

China 4.77 14.41 3020

Nigeria 2.88 2.94 1020

USA 0.56 1.95 3448

Indonesia 0.72 1.47 2031

Sudan 1.90 1.20 632

Myanmar 0.58 0.72 1244

Senegal 0.75 0.60 806

Argentina 0.17 0.42 2499

World 25.06 36.44 1454

Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004

Groundnut cultivation in India (6.64 m ha in 2004-05) is mostly confined to Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra. The other important states are Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab (Table 2). The area (8.71 m ha), production (9.66 m t) and productivity (1357 kg/ha) till date were the highest in 1989-90, 1988-89 and 2003-04, respectively.

Table 2. Area, production and productivity of groundnut in important states of India (2004-05)

State Area (000 ha) Production (000 t) Productivity (kg/ha)

Andhra Pradesh 1841.4 1639.5 890

Chattisgarh 29.1 32.3 1110

Gujarat 2000.4 1886.6 943

Karnataka 969.0 742.0 766

Madhya Pradesh 209.5 242.7 1058

Maharashtra 447.0 502.0 1123

Orissa 86.0 106.0 1233

Rajasthan 287.8 446.8 1552

Tamil Nadu 615.9 1005.3 1632

Uttar Pradesh 85.1 69.4 816

West Bengal 46.6 75.5 1620

India 6640.4 6774.4 1020

Source: Fertilizer Association of India, 2006

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Classification The genus Arachis has 69 species. The cultivated A. hopogaea is divided into 2 subspecies viz. fastigiata Waldron and hypogaea Kropov & Rigoni. The subspecies are again divided into four and two varieties, respectively (Krapovickas and Gregory, 1994) as below. 1. ssp. fastigiata Central axis with flowers and lateral branches, the reproductive and vegetative branches show no order (sequential rampification). The subspecies has been divided into 4 varieties viz. var. fastigiata (Fruits with smooth or lightly marked reticulation. Reproductive branches are short and thin); var. peruviana [Fruits with very marked reticulation, long and strong reproductive branches (5-10 cm)]; var. acquatoriana ( leaflets have a hairy (1-2 mm) dorsal surface; and var. vulgaris (Fruits are 2 seeded, branches and point to the base of the plant) 2. ssp. hypogaea Central axis without flowers and lateral branches, the vegetative and reproductive branches alternate regularly (alternate ramification). The sub-species is divided into 2 varieties viz. var. hypogaea (leaflets with a glabrous dorsal surface or with some hair along mid rid); and var. hirsute (leaflets with hairy (1-2 mm) dorsal surface, entire surface is hairy).

Classification according to growth habits The erect or bunch type: Include Arachis hypogaea sub species fastigiata Waldron –

short duration, early-maturing, high yielding, and almost free from dormancy.

The spreading or trailing type: Include Arachis hypogaea sub-species procumbens Lal.

Commercial classification of groundnut Coromandal type: It bears smaller pods, with thin husk. Oval shape smaller seeds.

Big Japan or Bombay bold type: The pods and seeds of this type are bigger than coromandal type.

Table Characteristics of main axis and laterals

Main & laterals

Types of groundnut

Erect Bunch Spreading Semi-spreading

Trailing

Main axis Short and erect

Long and erect

Very short and erect

Intermediate between bunch and spreading

Medium length and erect

Laterals Erect, slightly oblique to main axis but almost parallel

Oblique to main axis

Spread horizontally along the ground usually an inch above the ground except the tips

Prostate up to a few internodes and then begin to ascend in a bow shaped pattern

Trail along the ground, flat on the ground up to the extreme tip

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Botanical Description Groundnut is a herbaceous annual with a more or less upright central stem with numerous branches that vary from prostrate to almost erect depending upon the variety.

Root: The groundnut has a tap root with its laterals covering a depth of 35-40 cm and spread of 30-35 cm of radius.

Stem: The groundnut stem is cylindrical, hairy and becomes more or less angular with age. The central stem is usually taller and has a few laterals which form main basis for classification of different varieties and forms.

Leaves: Leaves of groundnut are pinnate with 2 pairs of leaflets borne on a cylinder and grooved petiole. There is a pair of stipules about 4 cm long with long alternate points which are fused with the petiole for about 1 half of their length. The leaves occur alternatively 1 at each node. The shape of leaflets varies from elliptic, ovate to oblong with the entire or ciliate margins, subcardate base and obtuse or shortly mucronate tip.

Flowers: Three to five yellow flowers are produced in the axils of leaves on reproductive branches. Usually flowering takes place between 24-30 days after sowing and is little earlier in bunch than in spreading types. The flowering period normally lasts for 3-8 weeks in case of bunch type and 6-10 weeks in case of spreading type.

The gynophore is commonly referred to as the peg. The peg carrying the ovary, pushes itself into the soil. It is after entering the soil that the ovary begins to develop and takes up horizontal position. At the same time, the pod begins to enlarge.

The pod formation and development of groundnut is greatly influenced by fertilizer application. Lime application causes better nodulation and pod development. Naphthalene acetic acid has a marked effect on pod formation and development, when applied at flowering stage. This reduces flowering period, increases fertility of genotype, and improves the pod size, resulting in higher pod yield. This hormone is commercially available as planofix and vardhak, which is applied at 40 ppm 40 days after sowing.

Seed: The fruit is an indehiscent pod containing 1-5 seeds. The shell of the pod which contains the seed is morphologically the pericarp, and the thin skin that covers the seed or nut is the testa. The nut is composed of 2 cotyledons which contain oil and other food materials. Climatic Requirements Groundnut is a day neutral plant, and its cultivation is spread in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world extending between 40oS and 40oN latitudes. Groundnut can be grown in areas with rainfall as low as 300 mm. However, its commercial production is spread in areas receiving 500-1,000 mm of rainfall. Well distributed rainfall throughout crop cycle is more important than total rainfall. The crop requires intermittent light showers with bright sunny days for flowering and their subsequent development. Excess rain during pod development and maturity are harmful to the crop owing to induction of vegetative growth, and germination. A temperature of 25-30oC appears to be optimum for growth, and flower production is adversely affected at temperatures above 35oC. It is susceptible to frost, however, it can withstand drought, once the crop is established.

Soil Loose and friable soils with high organic matter content (sandy and loamy soils) that facilitate in easy peg penetration and proper pod development are suitable for groundnut cultivation. Red soils that become hard on drying are not suitable for the crop. The soils with medium to high CaCO3 content in root zone and 6-8 pH are preferred by the crop. Water logging and alkalinity are deterrent to pod filling.

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Land preparation Groundnut requires a fine seed bed which can be obtained by ploughing time with M.B. plough, followed by 2 cross harrowings and planking. The field must be thoroughly levelled to avoid water logging in the season. In high rainfall areas and in regions with shallow water table, modified land configurations of ridge and furrow and broad bed and furrow system are preferable to normal flat sowing. These methods help in ease of drainage.

Varieties There are 3 types of varieties in groundnut as detailed below.

Bunch types have light green foliage, comparatively broad leaflets and mature easily. However, they are usually susceptible to tikka disease.

Spreading types usually have dark green foliage with smaller leaflets. These are usually late in maturity.

Semi-spreading types: These are intermediate between the bunch and spreading types.

Table 1. Important varieties of groundnut recommended for different states of India

State Varieties

Andhra Pradesh Tirupati-2, Tirupati-3, Tirupati-4, JCG-88, J-11, Vemana, Kadiri-71-1, Kadiri-2, Kadiri-3, Kadiri-4, Kadiri-5, Kadiri-6, TMV-2, Apoorva, Pragathi (RSHy-1), VG 9521, ICGV-86590, ICGV-86325, ICGS-76, ICGS-11, ICG 10, ICG-4, Girnar, Jagital-88

Tamil Nadu ALR-1, ALR-2, ALR-3, BSR-1, Co 1, Co 2, Co 3, Co 4, DSR-1, Vemana, POL-1, POL-2, TMV-1, TMV-2, TMV-3, TMV-4, TMV-6, TMV-7, TMV-8, TMV-9, TMV-10, TMV-11, TMV-12, VRI-1, VRI-2, VRI-3, VRI-4, VRI-5, VRI Gn-6, Apoorva, JL-24, Pragathi, ICGV-86590, KGV-86325, ICGS-76, ICG-10, ICG-4, VRI Gn 5

Gujarat TG 26, Somnath, Phule Pragati, PG-1, LNG-2 (Manjira), JL-24, GAUG-1, GAUG-10, GG-2, GG-5, GG-11, GG-12, GG-20, ICGS-44*, ICGS-37*, Girnar-1, GG-7, GG-6

Maharashtra Phule Pragati (JL-24), Phule Vyas (JL-220), Kopergaon-3, Kopergaon-1, Konkan Gaurav, Karad 4-11, J-11, B-95 (Koyana), Girnar-1, TMV-10, TKG-10-A, TG-26, TG-17*, TG-1 (Vikram), GG-3, TAG-24, TAG-19-A, SB-XT, Pragati, TG-14, ICG-10, UF-70-103, VG 9521, J-9 (E), ICGV-86590, ICGV-86325, ICGS-76, ICGS-44*, ICGS-37*, ICGS-11, AK 12-24, Prakash

Karnataka KRG-1*, DG-40, Dh 3-30, DH-8, TMV-2, S-230, S-206, R-9251, R 8808 (Apoorva), VG 9521, ICGV 86590, ICGS-76, ICGS-11, ICG-10, ICG-4, Girnar 1

Kerala ICGV-86590, ICGV-86325, ICGS-76 Punjab M-522, M-335, M-197, M-145, M-37, M-13, ICGS-1, SG-84,

PG-1, C-501, C-364, Chitra, Amber, GG-14 (JSP-28) Haryana ICGS-1, C-364, Chitra, Amber, GG-14, MH-2, MH-4, MH-1 Bihar & Jharkhand TG-22, BG-1, BG-2, BG-3, Birsa Bold, BAU-13, Chitra,

Prutha (Dj-86)* Uttar Pradesh ICGS-5, T-64, T-28, ICGS-1, BAU-13, C-364, Chandra,

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Chitra (MA-10), Prakash (CSMG-884), Amber, HNG-10, GG-14

Madhya Pradesh Jyoti, JGN-3, TG-6, J 9(E), ICGS-44*, ICGS-37*, ICGS-11, AK 12-24, HNG-10, GG-3

Rajasthan RG-141, RG-144, RS-1, RS-138, PG-1, ICGS-1, AK 12-24, BAU-13, Chitra, Prakash, Amber (CSMG 84-1), HNG-10, GG-7, GG-14

Orissa Smruti (OG-2-1), Pragati, MA-16, Kiran, Jawan, AK 12-24 West Bengal Pragathi, Prutha*

* Rabi/summer season

Seed and Sowing Seed rate and spacing Seed rate depends on type of groundnut grown, season and availability of water for irrigation. In Spanish bunch types that account for 2/3 of the total groundnut acreage, most of pods are formed within a radius of 10 cm from tap root, hence under irrigated as well as rainfed conditions, 10 cm is optimum plant to plant spacing with a row to row distance of 20-30 cm. For this, 100-150 kg/ha seed is required. Spreading valentia types need wider row spacings (50-75 cm), thus less seed will be required (60-70 kg/ha).

Method of Sowing The seeds are sown by placing them behind the furrow opened by plough or using a seed drill. In case of irrigated crop, dibbling seeds on ridges prepared by plough is preferred. In either of the cases, the depth of sowing should be 5-8 cm in light soils and 4-6 cm in other moderately heavy to heavy soils.

Time of sowing It is a predominantly rainfed kharif crop. The sowing of rainfed kharif crop depends on onset of monsoon, and generally sown from June to July. Under irrigated conditions of north, the crop is sown from April-July. For Rabi groundnut in south, raised on residual moisture, the optimum time of sowing is November. As irrigated summer crop, December-January sowing is ideal in the south, whereas for West Bengal, mid-February is optimum. In north-west plains zone, first fortnight of March is optimum for sowing.

Seed treatment: Treat the kernels with thiram or captan 5 g/kg of kernels before sowing so as to check seed and soil-borne fungal diseases. Seed treatment with Trichoderma harzianum at 4 g/kg of seed and soil application of castor-cake have given fairly good control of alfa rot, collar rot and stem rot diseases. Sometimes rodents and crows are noticed to take away the seeds from the field, therefore, use of some repellants like pinetar and kerosene for seed treatment are recommended to keep the intruders away. However care should be taken to avoid any injury to the kernels. Seed should be inoculated with proper strain of Rhizobium culture, particularly in those fields, where groundnut is to be raised for the first time.

Manures and Fertilizers Groundnut is a heavy feeder of soil nutrients. Application of FYM @ 6 (rainfed) to 12 t/ha (irrigated) has been recommended. FYM application besides supplying nutrients, reduces soil crusting/compaction and enhances water holding capacity under rainfed conditions.

In general, groundnut is fertilized with 20-60-40 (rainfed) and 40-100-40 kg/ha of N-P2O5-K2O (irrigated conditions), all applied as basal. Seed inoculation with effective Rhizobium strain is necessary besides a starter dose of N. Among P fertilizer sources, single superphosphate is ideal as it contains two other essential nutrients required by groundnut i.e. calcium (19.5%) and sulphur (12.5%). However, gypsum (containing 29.2% Ca and 18.6% S)

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application @ 250-500 kg/ha by band placement 30 days after sowing is recommended to meet Ca and S needs of crop. Among micronutrients, deficiency of zinc (in sandy and sandy loam soils), iron (in vertisols of Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra) and boron (in Tamil Nadu) are encountered by groundnut crop. In such soils, soil application of 25 kg ZnSO4/ha and 12.5 kg FeSO4/ha at sowing and foliar spray of 0.1% borax at peak vegetative-flowering stage has been recommended for better crop performance. Water Management Groundnut is predominantly a rainfed crop with only 17.6% of its total acreage under irrigation in 2000-01. This irrigated area is mainly in rabi and summer seasons mainly. The critical stages of irrigation in groundnut are flower initiation, pod initiation and pod formation. The moisture stress during these phases under rainfed conditions owing to prolonged drought spells in monsoon drastically alters the country’s production. A supplemental irrigation at pod formation stage results in successful rainfed groundnut cultivation. Under irrigated conditions, besides a pre-sowing irrigation, supplemental irrigation should be given at critical stages based on rainfall distribution. In rabi and summer seasons, 3-4 irrigations are required. The last irrigation should be given prior to harvesting so that entire pods from soil can be recovered. Though flooding is a common method of irrigation, but in light soils and water limiting regions, sprinkler irrigation is found suitable for water economy and higher productivity.

Weed Management Weeds cause enormous yield losses (30-70%) in groundnut owing to its slow initial growth and short stature. The yield losses are more in bunch than spreading types. For effective control of weeds and to keep the soil loose for pegging, 2 hoeings or weedings are essential. The crop is given first hoeing at 20-25 days after sowing (DAS) and the subsequent at 40 DAS. No weeding or hoeing should be done at pegging stage as it is detrimental to pegging and pod development. Earthing up should be done simultaneously with hoeings which facilitates penetration of pegs. The herbicides used for weed control include fluchloralin @ 1.0-1.5 kg/ha (pre-plant incorporation), pendimethalin @ 1.0 kg/ha, nitrofen @ 1.0-2.0 kg/ha and alachlor @ 1.0-2.0 kg/ha (pre-emergence). Integration of these herbicides with one hand weeding at 40 DAS is effective to herbicides alone.

Use of Hormones Groundnut usually suffers from 2 drawbacks – the first is that the crop being non-determinate keeps on flowering and production of pegs simultaneously until maturity, and the second is that the pods start germinating once after reaching physiological maturity. As a result more than 50% of plant energy is lost in producing non-effective pods and germination of effective pods, if there is a rain or irrigation. Thus both the conditions lead to very poor yield and quality of the produce. Application of MH (maleic hydrazide) near maturity results in inducing dormancy in the pods for about 20-30 days, which checks the germination of matured pods even if they get water. Application of NAA in the form of planofix or vardhak at the time of flowering has been found to reduce excess vegetative growth and flowering period, ultimately resulting in more of effective pods/plant, test weight and yield/unit area. The most ideal time for hormone application is 40 and 80 days after sowing and the best concentration is 20 ppm.

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In Punjab, sequential spray of 2 growth regulators viz. indole acetic acid (IAA) and ethrel has been found to increase the yield, particularly of variety M 13. IAA @ 1.5 g/ha should first be dissolved in small quantity of alcohol/sprit (10-12.5 ml) and then mixed in 250 litres of water and spray on the crop 40- days after sowing. This spray should be followed by another spray of ethrel (40%) @ 15 ml in 250 litres of water/ha, 7-10 days after IAA spray. These sprays may increase the yield by 15-25%.

Cropping Systems Groundnut is grown in rotation with wheat, gram, pea, barley etc. It is grown as mixed crop with maize, pearl millet, castor, sorghum and cotton. Groundnut can also be followed by safflower, where early varieties are raised and moisture remains in the soil at the time of harvest.

Mixed cropping Groundnut+sorghum (3:1) Groundnut+pigeonpea (3:1)

Groundnut+castor (3:1) Groundnut+soybean (1:1)

Intensive crop rotations of groundnut Maize (summer season)-groundnut-gram or sarson

Groundnut-onion or garlic Mungbean-groundnut-wheat

Maize-groundnut-pea Lobia-groundnut-wheat

Groundnut-wheat-mungbean/urdbean Groundnut-wheat

Harvesting and Threshing The harvesting of groundnut depends upon the type of variety grown. Usually groundnut crop takes 120-140 days to mature, and the harvesting is done in October-November. In case of bunch types, the plants are harvested by pulling, whereas in spreading types, harvesting is done by spade, country plough or groundnut lifters. The harvested crop is left in small heaps for 2-3 days for curing. After curing collect the crop at one place and detach the pods either by hand or using groundnut plucker for separating the pods form the plants.

Yield By adopting improved technology, it is possible to obtain about 1.5-2.0 tonnes of pods/ha from bunch types and 2.0-3.0 tonnes/ha from spreading type varieties. The shelling percentage is 70%, whereas oil to nuts in shell is 28%, oil to kernels crushed is 40% and cake to kernels crushed is 60%. The yield attributes (range) of groundnut is as below.

Attribute Value

Pods/plant 5-12

Seeds/pod 1.1-1.5

1,000 seed weight (g) 200-240

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Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Rice

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

RICE Botanical name: Oryza sativa L. Chromosome number: 2n = 24

Rice is primarily a high-energy food. It is staple food of about 2/3 population of world. It contains less protein than wheat and in milled rice it is usually 6-7%. The biological value of its protein is high. The fat content of rice is low (2.0-2.5%) and much of fat is lost during milling. Rice grain contains as much B group vitamins as wheat. Rice contains a low content of calcium.

The by-products of rice milling are used for various purposes. Rice bran is used as cattle and poultry feed, and oil extraction. Rice bran (pericarp, seed coat, nucellus, and aleurone layer) accounts for about 8% of paddy weight. It contains 15-20% oil (15% is recoverable). Of the total oil in grain, about 75% is present in bran itself. Global rice bran oil production varies from 1-1.4 million tonnes of which India accounts for 0.7-0.9 m tones. Rice hulls can be utilized in manufacturing insulation materials, cement, card board and as litter in poultry keeping. Rice straw can be used as cattle feed as well as litter during winter season.

Geographic distribution Rice is the second most important food crop of the world, cultivated in 118 countries on about 153.8 million ha with a production of about 618.5 million tonnes (paddy). About 90% of all rice grown in the world is produced and consumed in the Asian region. The average productivity of rice is the highest in Egypt i.e. 9.4 t/ha as against world’s average of 4.04 t/ha (Table 1).

Table 1. Rice, acreage, production and productivity in major countries

Continent/Country Area (m ha) Production (m t) Yield (t/ha)

Asia 136.56 532.98 3.90 China 29.30 185.50 6.33

India 43.00 129.00 3.00

Indonesia 11.80 54.00 4.58

Bangladesh 11.00 40.10 3.64

Thailand 10.20 27.00 2.65

Vietnam 7.34 36.30 4.95

Myanmar 6.27 24.50 3.91

Philippines 4.12 14.80 3.60

Pakistan 2.40 6.90 2.88

Brazil* 3.73 13.28 3.62

Japan* 1.70 10.91 6.42

USA* 1.35 10.47 7.78

Egypt* 0.65 6.35 9.84

Production values are for brown (unhusked) rice Source: FAO Quarterly Bulletin of Statistics, 2005, Vol. 12(3/3):18-19 and * FAO Production Year Book, 2004.

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In India, rice is the most important and extensively grown food crop, occupying about 43 million ha of land. It is grown in almost all the states, with Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Punjab leading in area, production and productivity, respectively (Table 2).

Table 2. Area, production and productivity of rice in various states of India (2004-05)

State Area (m ha)

Production

(m t)

Productivity

(kg/ha)

Andhra Pradesh 3.086 9.601 3111

Assam 2.376 3.470 1460

Bihar 3.122 2.472 792

Chattisgarh 3.746 4.383 1170

Gujarat 0.685 1.238 1806

Haryana 1.028 3.023 2941

Himachal Pradesh 0.081 0.122 1506

Jammu & Kashmir 0.250 0.492 1969

Jharkhand 1.285 1.677 1305

Karnataka 1.308 3.547 2712

Kerala 0.289 0.667 2301

Madhya Pradesh 1.622 1.169 720

Maharashtra 1.519 2.164 1425

Orissa 4.472 6.466 1446

Punjab 2.647 10.437 3943

Rajasthan 0.101 0.150 1485

Tamil Nadu 1.872 5.062 2703

Uttarakhand 0.306 0.572 1869

Uttar Pradesh 5.339 9.555 1790

West Bengal 5.783 14.883 2574

India 41.906 83.131 1984

Source: Fertilizer Assosciation of India, 2006

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Origin and History Of the 24 species of genus Oryza, only two viz. Oryza sativa and Oryza glaberrima are cultivated. Oryza sativa is raised in all rice producing areas, but Oryza glaberrima is raised in tropical West Africa only. O. sativa has wild perennial, O. rufipogen and annual O. nivoroo relatives. Similarly O. glaberrima has wild perennial, O. longistominata and annual O. barthii relatives. Rice was the first cultivated crop in Asia. This has been proved by the Sanskrit and other literatures. Carbonized paddy grains were found in the excavations at Hastinapur (Uttar Pradesh) at a site dated between 1000-750 BC .Vavilov (1926) suggested the India and Burma (now Myanmar) as the center of origin of cultivated rice. According to Chang (1985), the broad belt from the foothills of Himalayas and the Gangetic belt up to the southern China and northern Vietnam could be the homeland of O. sativa. According to Porteres (1956), the inner delta area of river Niger in Africa is the primary center of origin of O. glaberrima.

Genetic Classification Rice (Oryza sativa) varieties are commonly grouped into following 3 sub-species.

indica: Rice grown in India belongs to this sub-species. They are awnless or possess short and smooth awns. They are characterized by having leaves slightly pubescent and pale-green in colour. The caryopsis is thin, elongated, narrow and slightly flattened.

japonica: The varieties developed in Japan belong to this sub-species. They have mostly oval or round grains. They may be awned or awnless, leaves are narrow and dark green in colour.

javanica: These varieties are characterized by a stiff straw, long panicle with awned grains, sparse tillering habit, long duration and low sensitivity to differences in day light. These are found mainly in Indonesia.

The differences in these 3 sub-species are given in Table 3.

Table 3. The main characteristics of Oryza sativa ecotypes

Sub-species Characteristics

indica Japonica javanica

Tillering Profuse Moderate Low

Height Tall Short Tall

Lodging Easily Not easily Not easily

Photoperiod Sensitive Non-sensitive Non-sensitive

Low temperature Sensitive Tolerant Tolerant

Grain shattering Easily Not easily Not easily

Grain shape Long Short Large

Grain texture Non-sticky Sticky Intermediate

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Sub-species Characteristics

indica Japonica javanica

Foliage Light green Dark green Light green

Lemma and palea pubscence

Sparse, short Dense, long Long

Drought Tolerant Sensitive Variable

Grain shattering Easy Low Low

Grain amylose (%) 23-31 20-25 10-24

Source: Takahashi, 1984

Climate Requirement Rice cultivation in India extends from 8o to 35oN latitude and from sea level to as high as 3,000 m elevation. Rice accomodates itself under an annual rainfall ranging from 1,000 to 1,500 mm or even more. High temperature, high humidity and high rainfall has considerable effect on growth and development of rice plant. At higher mean temperatures (25-32oC), early flowering is induced by reducing the growth duration; whereas the mean low temperature (<15oC) forces the crop to remain dormant with no flowering. Therefore, a day temperature of 25o to 33oC and night temperature of 15o to 20oC is preferable.

Depending on the temperature requirement, rice crop is grown during kharif season in north-western plains zone, but in south and north-eastern parts of the country, it is grown in all the 3 seasons, as these areas do not have very cold weather during winter. Rice crop needs a hot and humid climate. It is best suitable to regions which have high humidity, prolonged sunshine and an assured supply of water. It is essentially a short day C3 plant. A combination of temperatures, photo-period, however, determine the growth and productivity. Heavy wind causes severe lodging or shattering depending upon the crop growth stage. Bright day associated with gentle winds are the best condition, because carbon-di-oxide (CO2) supply and utilization are regulated to the maximum.

Soil Requirement

Rice is grown on clay loam of alluvium nature, red-laterite loamy hill, submoutain and foot hill soil and black cotton soil of different parts of the country. Soils having good water holding capacity with good amount of clay and organic matter are ideal for puddled rice cultivation. Rice, being a semi-aquatic crop, grows best under submerged conditions. A major part of rice crop in India is grown under low land conditions. Rice grows well in soils having pH between 5.5 and 6.5. The soils with extreme acidity (<4.5 pH) are not suitable. It can be grown on alkali soil also after treating them with gypsum or pyrite.

Varieties The dwarf high yielding varieties have higher yield potential than the traditional tall varieties. Under low fertility too, the high yielding dwarf varieties yield comparatively more than the traditional tall varieties. Today in India, there are quite a good number of varieties suitable for different agro-climatic regions. Selection of varieties depends to a great extent on the agro-climatic conditions, the cropping system followed, grain quality and several other factors. In India, rice hybrids have been developed which gave 2-3 times more production

5

than the improved varieties. The hybrids, basmati, high yielding varieties for irrigated conditions, varieties suitable for rainfed lands, boro season and low land situations are given below.

Oryza sativa

6

Rice Hybrids recommended for different states

State Hybrid

Andhra Pradesh APHR 1, APHR 2, DRRH 1, PBH 71, HRI 120

Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh & Chattisgarh

PHB 71, DRRH 1, PA 6201

Haryana PHB 71, DRRH 1, PA 6201, Pusa RH 10, Pusa Sugandh-3

Karnataka KRH1, KRH 2, HRI 120, Mugad Sugandha

Maharashtra Sahyadri, PHB 71, PA 6201, HRI 120

Orissa KRH 2, DRRH 1, PHB 71, HRI 120

Punjab Pusa RH 10, RH 204, Pusa Sugandh-3

Tamil Nadu CORH 1, CORH 2, ADTRH 1, PHB 71, DRRH 1, DRH 2, HRI 120

Uttaranchal Pant Sankardhan 1, PHB 71, HRI 120, Pant Sugandh Dhan 15

Uttar Pradesh Pusa RH 10, Narendra Sankardhan 2 , PHB 71, PA 6201, HRI 120, UPRH 27

West Bengal CNRH 3, PA 6201, KRH 2, PHB 71

Basmati rice varieties recommended for cultivation in different statesZone/State

Selected varieties (hybrids)

For Northern India (Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh)

N 10 B, Basmati 370, Pusa Basmati 1, Hansraj T 3, T 9, N 12, Taraori Basmati (Karnal local), Pusa Sugandh 2, Pusa Sugandh 3, Pusa Sugandh 4, Pusa Sugandh 5, PRH 10, Pant Dhan 15, Kalanamak

Jammu & Kashmir Ranbir Basmati, Muskh Budgi, Basmati 370

Andhra Pradesh Sumati, Kaki Rekhalu (HR 59), Sukhdas (HR 47)

Bihar & Jharkhand Basmati 370, Badshahbhog, Mohanbhog, Ram Tulsi

Assam Prasadbhog, Malbhog, Badshahbhog

Rajasthan Mahasugandha, Kala Badal, Kamod, Nawabi Kolam

Uttarakhand Pant Dhan 15, Hansraj

Himachal Pradesh Desi Basmati 23

Gujarat Kamod 118, Pankhari 203, Zeerasal

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State Hybrid

Karnataka Jeerakasala, Gandhkasala, Sindigi local

Madhya Pradesh Gopalbhog, Kali Kamod, Chattri

Maharashtra Ambemoha 102, Ambemoha 147, Ambemoha 159, Krishnasal

West Bengal Badshah Pasand, Govindabhog, Kataribhog, Sitabhog

Tamil Nadu Jeeraga Samba

Rice varieties recommended for various states of India under irrigated conditions

State Improved varieties

Bihar &

Jharkhand

Pusa 33, Pusa 2-21, Pusa 169, Mehsuri, Saket 4, IR-8, IR-20, IR-24, BR 368, Jaya, Padma, Deepa, Sita, Bala, Kaveri, Ratna, Sabarmati, Janki, Rajendra Dhan 101, R. Dhan 202, Birsamati, Arvindha Amrit

Madhya Pradesh

& Chattisgarh

Prabhat, IR 8, IR 24, Jawahar 75, Mehsuri, Bala, Kaveri, Ratna, Jaya, Pragati, Jagrati, Kranti, Garima, Anupama, Akashi, Madhuri, Vani, Mahamaya

Rajasthan Jaya, Ratna, Pusa 33, Ajay, Sabarmati, Chambal PR 106, BK 29, BK 130, Vani

Haryana Pusa 33, Pusa 169, Ajay, Jaya, Bala, Ratna, Jhona 349, IR 8, PR 106, Kasturi

Punjab Jaya, Bala, Ajai, PR 105, PR 108, PR 109, IR 8, Palman 579, Mutant 95, Ratna, Sabarmati, Aravinda Amrit

Uttar Pradesh Early duration varieties

For plains:Saket 4, Govind, Prasad, Manhar, Pusa 169, Pusa 33, Pusa 2-21, Ratna, Narendra 2

For Bundelkhand and Jhansi :PNR 381, Saket 4, Prasad, Manhar, Pusa 169, Ratna

For Hilly areas:Ratna, VLK 35

Medium duration varieties

For plains:Pant Dhan 4, Pant Dhan 10, Pant Dhan 11, IR 24, IR 36, Sarju 52, Jaya, NDR 80, Pant Dhan 12

For Bundelkhand and Jhansi: Pant Dhan 4, Jaya

For Hilly areas: VL 8, VL Dhan 16, VLK Dhan 39, P Dhan 6

Long duration varieties

For plains: Mehsuri, Cross 116, T 100

For Hilly areas:VL Dhan 221, VL 206

Jammu & Kashmir SKAU 23, SKAU 27, Chena, Jhalum, Kohsaar

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State Hybrid

Himachal Pradesh Himalaya 2216, RP 2421

Gujarat Gau R 1, Gau R 10, Gau R 100, Dandi

Karnataka Prakash, Madhu, Vikram, Suma, Kusuma, Vani, Akash, Sharavati, Maha Maya, BR 2655-9-3-1, Pant Dhan 12, Sakuntala, Gautam

Kerala Anupurna, Aswathi, Bharti, Jyoti, Rohini, Triveni, Sabari, Kunju, Priya, Varsha, Kunju Varna, Gauri, Sweta

Maharashtra Ratnagiri 24, Karjat 184, Karjat 2, Ratnagiri 3, PKV Makarand

Orissa Rajeshwari, Hema, Sakti, Kumar, Bala, IR 20, Prakash, Vikram, Vani, Anjali

Tamil Nadu Kari Kalan, Karuna, Bhawani, Vaghair, Bharti, Caveri, Krishna, Kanchi, PMK 2 and ADT 42, ADT (R) 45.

Andhra Pradesh Hamsa, Tella-Hamsa, Vashista, Mahsuri, Kasturi, Kakatiya, Prakash, Vikrant, Bhadra Kali, Jagtiala Mahsuri, Jagitiala Sannalu, Santhi, Apurva, Mahamaya, Nandyal Sannalu, Varalu, Bapatla Sannalu

West Bengal and Assam

IR 20, Jayanthi

Pondicherry Aravinder, Ratnagiri 3

Promising rice varieties for rainfed/water scare areas in different states

State Varieties

Andhra Pradesh Tulasi*, Aditya, Prasanna, Rudramma, Krishna Hamsa, MTU 9993, Ravi, Varalu, Bapatla Sannalu, Vagad Dhan, MTU 17, Mettasanna, Tellavadlu

Assam Dumai, ARC 5929, Annada, Rasi*, Tulasi*, Anjali

Bihar & Jharkhand

Tulasi*, Aditya*, Rasi*, PNR 381*, Vandana, Birsadhan 101, BR 17, BR 16, Fine gora, Birsadhan 102, Birsadhan 103, Birsadhan 104, Birsadhan 105, Birsadhan 6, Birsadhan 7, Birsadhan 201, Birsadhan 202 Birsadhan 221, Heera*, Kanchan, Kalinga III, Vaidehi

Goa Goa 1 (Annada), Rasi*, Krishna Hamsa, Tulasi*

Gujarat GR 2, GR 3, GR 5, GR 6, Rasi*, Prasanna, Tulasi*, GR 8, Sathi 34-36, Early Kolam 161-172

Karnataka Amrut, Mukti, IET 7564, Tulasi*, Ravi, Krishna Hamsa, Avinash,

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State Varieties

Holomaldgiga, Mugad 161

Kerala Suvarna Modan, Onam, Harsha, PTB 10, PTB 28, PTB 29, PTB 30, Annapurna

Madhya Pradesh & Chattisgarh

Tulasi*, Aditya*, Heera*, Purva, JR 75, Rathe, Annada, Jawahar Rice 3-45, Safed dhan-3, Laloo 14

Maharashtra Tulasi*, Aditya*, Heera*, Annada, Tuljapur 4, Ratnagiri 73-1-41, Rasi*, Ratnagiri 73-1, Kranti, Jalgaon 5, Nagpur 22, Ambemohar 159, Karjat 3

Meghalaya Rasi*, Heera*, Ngoba, Krishna Hamsa, Tulasi*, Lam Pnah-1, Bha Lum 1, Bha Lum 2, Shah Sarang 1

Orissa Heera*, Kalinga III, Annada, Parijat, Pathara, Kalyani II, Sattari, Neela, Rudra, Vanaprabha, Khandagiri, Nilgiri, Ghanteswari, Sneha, Badami, B 76, Kalakeri, BAM 12

Tamil Nadu IR 64*, IR 50*, TKM-9, Co 41, PMK 1, ASD 18, ADT 36, ADT 37, PKU 2, Tulasi*, Krishna Hamsa, Aditya, ADT (R) 45, PMK(R)3

Tripura Tulasi*, Heera*, Rasi*, Annada

Uttar Pradesh Narendradhan 97, Narendradhan 18, Narendradhan 80, Narendradhan 118, Saket 14, Tulasi*, Aditya*, Jawahar Rice 3-45, Sudha, Bala, Kaveri, Pusa 2-21, Narmada, Saket 4, N-22, ND 2, Narendradhan 1, Govind, Jhona 349

Uttarakhand NDR 84, NDR 118, VL Dhan 263, VL Dhan 221, VL Dhan 206, Shankar Dhan-1

West Bengal Rasi*, Khitish, Kiran, Bhupen, Khanika, Dular

Himachal Pradesh Shankar Dhan 1, Lalna Kanda 41

Punjab Lalnakanda

Jammu & Kashmir Ch 988, Ch 1039

For coastal and salt affected soils of West Bengal, Orissa, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh

Sumati, CSR 23

For Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra

TRT( R )2

Panvel-3

*Central Release

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Rice varieties grown in Boro season in different states

State Traditional varieties Modern varieties

Meghalaya Risi, Pisum, CH 1039, CH 988

IR 36, Vijaya

West Bengal

CB-1, CB-2, Latisail, Patnai-23, Kalma 222, Jhingasail, Raghusail

IR 36, Khitish, IET 2233, Ratna, IET 826, IET 4786, IET 1414

Assam Boro 1, Tepi Boro, Madhab-Boro, Jagliboro, Gabriboro

Mehsuri, Krishna, Mala, Jaymati, Jaya, Vijeta, Chandrama

Bihar Pusa 2-21, Pusa 33, Saket 4, Jaya, Sita, Sujata, Mehsuri, Gautam

Eastern

Uttar Pradesh

Traditional tall cultivars

NDR 7, Barani Deep, Gautam, Prabhat, Richhariya, Suraj, Dhan luxmi, Joymati, Boro Dhan, Borochina, Chinese Boro, Boro Safeda, NDR 359, ARC 4377, Kala Boro (Malhar), Surya, Bans Bareilly, Saket-4, Sarjoo-49, Sarjoo-52

Kerala Dhanu

Tripura Swati

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Promising HYVs suitable for rainfed lowlands

DEPTH OF WATER Very deep & floating(>100cm)

State

Shallow

(0-30 cm)

Intermediate Semi-deep (30-60 cm)

Deep

(50-100 cm)

Bihar Radha,

Sugandha, Jayashree, Rajashree,

Rajendra

Mahsuri-1

Jitendra, Sudha,

Janaki

For eastern India: (Transplanted in June)

Maguribao, KDML 105, JM 50, Barjahingia, Panidhan, Tulasi, Sabita, Manoharasali, Bash-Avarodhi

(Direct seeding in August)

Kaling III, Neela, Luit

West Bengal

Neeraja, Jogen Mandira, Biraj, Suresh

Bhudeb, Matangini, Nalini, Sabita, Amulya, Dinesh

Jaladhi 1, Jaladhi 2, Purrendu

Orissa Savitri, Aditya Ramakrishna, Mahalaxmi, Moti, Padmini, Samalai,

CR 1014, Dharitri

Kalashree, Panidhan, Utkalprabha, Gayatri, Tulasi, Seema

Rambha, Purrendu

Assam Bhogali, Rongilee, Kushal, Moniram, Piolee, Ranjit

Uttar Pradesh

Mehsuri, Pankaj, T 26, T 100, Cross 116

Jalpriya, Jitendra

Purrendu, Jalmanga, Jalnidhi

Madhya Pradesh

Madhuri, Rashmi

Maharashtra

SKL 8, Dhanarasi

Andhra Pradesh

Tholakari, Godavari

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Types of Rice Cultivation In India, rice is cultivated mainly on two types of soil, uplands and lowlands

A. Upland rice cultivation (a) Drilling

(b) Broadcast

B. Lowland rice cultivation

1. Cultivation in puddled soil

(i) Transplanting method

(a) Nursery or traditional method

(b) Dapog method

(c) System of rice intensification (SRI)

(ii) Direct seeding method

(a) Sowing in line

(b) Broadcast

2. Cultivation of rice in unpuddled lands by sowing seeds in dry soils (i) By drilling

(ii) Broadcast

Upland rice cultivation The upland rice cultivation is mostly adopted in areas which receive an annual rainfall of 800-1000 mm and irrigation facilities are not available. In this system of cultivation, farmer has to depend upon rain water. Due to failure of monsoon, the farmer has to bear a heavy loss. A vast tract of paddy in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, parts of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh is under rainfed upland situation.

Field Preparation After harvesting the rabi crops in April-May, the field should be ploughed with soil turning plough. The field should be prepared and bunds should be made around the field just after the first shower of monsoon. This will check loss of rain water by run-off.

Growing Seasons It is well known fact that rice seasons vary in different parts of India depending on rainfall, temperature and other local climatic conditions. In general, there are three growing seasons of rice in India. These are aus or autumn rice, aman or winter rice or boro or spring/summer rice.

Different rice crop sesaons and their vernacular names are given below.

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Rice cropping season in different states of India

State Local name of season

Period

Andhra Pradesh Sarwa, Abi May-June to October-November

Dalwa November-December to April-May

Tabi December-January to April-May

Assam Ahu April-May to August-September

Sali June-July to November-December

Boro November-December to April

Bihar, Eastern UP Kharif June-July to November December

Rabi March-June

J&K Kharif March-April to September-December

Karnataka Haine June to November-December

Kerala Viruuppa April-September

Mundakan September-October to January-February

Poonja December-January to April

Orissa Beali May-June to September-October

Sarad June-July to November-December

Dalva December-January to April-May

Tamil Nadu Swarnavasi May-September

Kar, Kuruvai June to September

Samba July to January-February

Thaladi October to February-March

Pisharax, Karthigai

October-March

Navarai, Manavari

January-May

West Bengal Aus April-May to August-September

Assam June-May to November-December

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State Local name of season

Period

Boro December-January to April-May

Gujarat, Haryana, HP, MP, Punjab, Rajasthan and Western UP

Kharif June-July to October-Novewmber

Sowing Under upland rice cultivation, no definite recommendation for time of sowing could be made because of unavailability of irrigation water and uncertainty of monsoon. However, the crop must be sown soon after monsoon sets in and 15-20 cm deep soil layer becomes completely wet. The ideal time in north India is between end of June and first week of July. If the sowing is delayed, crop is adversely affected because of soil and atmospheric drought due to aberrant weather conditions during the grain filling stage. This results in shriveling grains of poor quality.

In some rice growing areas, dry seeding a little before onset of monsoon is practiced. The seed remains in the soil, which germinates with the onset of rains.

Table Time of sowing/transplanting

Crop Season Transplanting/ sowing time Harvesting time

Early Aus-Autumn May-June September-October

Rainy season Aman-Winter June-July November-December

Summer season Boro-Spring November-December March-April

Seed rate and Spacing Under upland conditions, drilling or line sowing is always better than broadcast because line sowing facilitates the cultural operations and enables to identify the weeds even at the early stage for weeding purpose. Usually sprouted seed should be sown in rows 30 cm apart at a depth not more than 5 cm. The moisture stress condition may result in poor germiantion, therefore, about 25% higher seed rate than the recommended rate (100-120 kg/ha) should be used.

Drill the seeds with seed drill or behind the plough with the help of funnel in rows after applying fertilizer. The row to row distance should be 20 cm. About 60 kg seed/ha is recommended.

For obtaining an uniform plant population and higher crop yields, it is advisable to thin out the excess plants or resowing in gaps in the rows after about 2-3 weeks of sowing.

B. Wet or Lowland Rice Cultivation This system of rice cultivation is practiced in areas having an assured and adequate supply of water. In this system, sprouted seeds may be directly sown in puddled field or the crop may

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be transplanted with seedlings raised in a nursery. It is also called as medium land rice for those areas, which receive an annual rainfall of 1,000-1,500 mm.

Method of Raising Seedlings There are 3 methods of raising seedlings. Detailed description is given below.

Wet nursery: Wet nurseries are preferred under irrigated condition. The soil is puddled by 2-3 runs of puddlers or 3-4 ploughings with country plough. After 2 days of puddling, divide the nursery area into narrow beds of 1.25 m width and of convenient length. Prepare the drainage channel 30 cm wide in between the beds. Apply 225 g urea and 500 g single superphosphate per 10 m2 area. Uniformly broadcast about 2-3 handfuls of desired seed on a square meter of seed bed. Keep the seed beds saturated with water up to 50 cm as the seedling grow. Adopt suitable control measures for insect-pests and diseases. Drain the excess water in periods of heavy rainfall. An application of 50 g urea/m2 may be applied as top dressing in case of N deficiency symptoms. Seedlings would be ready for transplanting within 20-25 days after sowing.

Dry nursery: This method is adopted in areas, where water is not sufficient to grow seedlings in wet nurseries. Plough the field till the soil is thoroughly pulverized. Prepare beds of the same size as in wet nurseries, but 15 cm high with channels (30 cm wide) between them. Sow the seeds in rows 10 cm apart in dry or moist condition of the soil. The seeds should be covered immediately with a layer of soil. Use the same seed rate and fertilizer as in wet nurseries. Allow the water to run in channels first and then raise the level of water slowly to saturate the soil. Keep the seed bed saturated with water, but do not flood water in beds. Follow all the operations as described for wet nurseries.

Dapod method: This method of raising nursery has been introduced in India from the Philippines. It has been adopted by some farmers in Andhra Pradesh for raising seedlings. It saves almost half of the time in raising seedling. The main advantage of this method is that less area is required to raise seedlings i.e., 25-30 m2 area is enough to grow seedlings for transplanting one ha. The seedlings grow at faster rate in this method. The method of raising seedlings is described below.

In this method, beds of about 1.5 m width are prepared on an even but slightly raised (4-5 cm) surface in an open field or on even a cement floor. About 1 m2 of seed bed is required for every 3 kg of seed. Cover the soil surface of the seed bed uniformly with banana leaves (protruding midribs removed) or plastic sheets. Carefully lay strips of banana bracts into the soil to keep bracts upright and firm. The sprouted seeds are broadcast uniformly @ 1.5 kg/m2 area or 50 times of the test weight/m2 of the variety used. The beds are kept moist constantly and pressed slightly 2-3 times a day with a smooth wooden plant for the first 3 days, so that root remain in constant touch with water. When the seedlings attain 2 cm height, a constant film of water should be maintained. In about 12 days roots are well developed and are entangled with another. The nursery can be cut into strips and rolled like a mat and then transferred to the planting site easily. Seedlings of 1 m2 area can be transplanted in 200 m2 area.

Advantages The seedlings raised by this method are established immediately. The crop comes to flower 4 days earlier than the normal transplanted crop. At the event of drought or failure of irrigation system when transplanting of over-aged seedlings can not be done, this system offers a good scope to get another lot of fresh seedling within 12 days.

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Dapod nursery method does not require seed-bed preparastion, fertilizer or other chemicals use for raising the seedlings. The labour cost in seedling uprooting is saved as the whole mat of seedlings over polythene is lifted, rooted and straight way transferred to transplanting site.

Disadvantages Seed rate is exceptionally high (2.5 times more than other methods). Seedlings being very small can not be transplanted in presence of even slight water in the field, which sometimes becomes unavoidable. Three to four seedlings are to be transplanted/hill instead of 2.

System of Rice Intensification (SRI) Fr. Henry de Laulaine developed this system in Medagascar in association with Association Tefy Saina (ATS) an NGO, and many small famrers from different countries. In SRI, young seedlings (8-10 days old) are transplanted at optimal spacing and the crop is aerobically grown during vegetative phase. The economy in water has led to its wider adoptation by farmers.

Evidences have shown that SRI gave higher yields than transplant crop in South India only. The SRI also proved better in clay loams than sandy loam, clay or silty loam soils. The increase in yield with SRI has been attributed to more panicles/m2 and greater panicle weight. It economizes up to 50% of water for rice cultivation.

Field Prepation The field should be ploughed once followed by harrowing and planking soon after first rain. Summer deep ploughing is also beneficial as it exposes the eggs of harmful insect-pests and rhizomes of weeds. All the weeds and stubbles of the previous crop should be removed from the field. The field should be flooded or saturated with water for 15 days before planting. This helps in decomposition of chaff and straw of previous crop. Before puddling, an earthen bund of about 30 cm high should be made around the field. Puddling is very important operation in transplanted rice. It helps to kill the weeds and buries them in puddled layer. It helps to create beneficial physical, biological and chemical conditions for plant growth of rice. Puddle the field by 3-4 runs of puddler in standing water. Apply uniformly ½ of N and total quantities of P, K and Zn on drained surface at the time of last puddling and incorporate in the top 10-15 cm deep soil.

Transplanting The most ideal seedling for transplanting should have 4 leaves. They may have 3 leaves, but under no circumstances, the seedling should have more than 5 leaves. Usually 2-3 healthy seedlings of 20-30 days per hill should be planted at 20 cm x 15 cm apart during kharif, and 30-35 days at 15 cm x 15 cm during rabi season. However, the general recommendation is to use 21-25 days old seedlings. It is advisable to plant seedlings in mud at shallow depth (2-3 cm). Planting in double rows in sunrise and sunset direction helps in better transmission of sunlight, better movement of carbondioxide (CO2) in the rice field. Early planting in beginning of July for kharif crop gives higher yield.

In case of older seedlings of more than 25 days age are to be planted, the number of seedling/hill should be increased (3-4/hill), besides use of higher dose of N should be used at the time of sowing and reduced spacing. This would help in maintaining required plant population, as older seedlings usually produce less tillers/plant.

Transplanting enables the cultivator to have optimum plant population at desired spacing in the field. It also provides scope for land preparation, that aids in keeping down the weeds. Since the nurseries occupy a small area of the field, the control of insect-pest and diseases and irrigation and manuring of young crop is easier and cheaper than direct sown crop.

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Broadcast Sprouted Seeds in Puddled Soils This method is adopted in areas, where there is a shortage of manpower for transplanting. In this method the field is prepared and puddle in the same way as in case of tra nsplanted rice. About 100 kg seed/ha is required. Seeds are soaked in water for germination before broadcast. Seeds with radicle length of 1-2 mm are uniformly broadcast by hand.

Manure and Fertilizers In upland rice, organic manures (FYM or compost) @ 10-15 tonnes/ha should be incorporated 4-6 weeks before sowing.

Fertilizer management in transplanted rice is different from that of direct seeded rice, because continuous submergence of the field in the former creates different conditions. Presence of excess water in rice fields modifies physical, chemical and biological reactions in the soil. The root zone is converted form aerobic to anaerobic environment due to depletion of oxygen in the profile. The flooded or waterlogged puddled soil develops 2 zones. The upper zone (1-10 mm soil profile) receives oxygen periodically from fresh supplies of irrigation water, and is called ‘oxidized zone’ and behaves like an unflooded upland soil. The remaining lower soil profile of puddled portion of puddled soil without oxygen is called ‘reduced zone’.

Ammonical N fertilizers applied in such soil system get oxidized in the soil. Use of nitrate fertilizer should, therefore, be avoided in rice. DAP is an excellent fertilizer for dressing in rice fields. Sulphur-coated urea has been found better than normal urea for rice fields, where flooding is delayed or intermittent. In acid soils, rock phosphate in finely powdered form can be used as phosphorus source with advantage.

A basal dose of 50-60 kg N, 60 kg P2O5, 60 kg K2O/ha at sowing followed by top dressing of 25 kg N/ha each at tillering stage (30 days after sowing) in between panicle-initiation and boot leaf stage (45 days after sowing) should be applied.

In rice, hardly 30-40% of applied N is used by the rice crop, and the remaining N is lost through leaching and denitrification. For minimizing the losses of N, various methods have been suggested as described below:

Use of mudball: Prepare small balls of moist soil and put urea or any other fertilizer in the center of ball. Close the opening and allow it to dry a little. Use these small balls in the rice fields where it is not possible to drain out water from the field at the time of fertilizer application in the standing crop.

Use of pre-incubated urea: Mix urea with moist soil @ 1 kg urea with about 5 kg soil. Allow this mixture to stand in shade for 36-48 hours before applying in the field.

Use of neemseed cake: Finely ground neemseed cake is mixed with urea @ 15-20%. Mahua or Karanj cakes may also be used in a similar way. These oil cakes delay nitrate formation from urea and thus the possibility of nitrate losses through denitrification or leaching is reduced.

In zinc deficient soils, 20-25 kg of zinc sulphate/ha should be applied at the time of last puddling.

Water Management Rice requires 5000 litres of water to produce a kg of grain. The high water requirement of rice is mainly due to percolation losses. Soils with percolation losses up to 5 mm/day are ideal for rice cultivation, whereas soils with percolation loss of >10 mm/day are not suitable for pudled rice culture.

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The water requirement of rice varies from 2,500 mm depending upon growing season, soil type, crop duration and management practices etc. Transplanted rice, in general, requires about 40-60, 200-300 and 800-1000 mm of water, respectively for nursery raising, puddling and crop raising in main field from transplanting to physiological maturity.

The water requirement is high during initial seedling period covering about 10 days. Tillering to flowering is the most critical stage of irrigation. Ensure enough water from panicle-initiation to flowering stage. Application of small quantities of water at short intervals to keep the soil saturated is more effective and economical than flooding at long intervals. Flooding may not be necessary if the soil is saturated with water and biofertilizer have not been used. However, flooding suppresses the weed growth. It increased the availability of many nutrients, particularly phosphorus, potassium, calcium, iron and silica.

Water should be allowed to stand in the field at a depth of 2-3 cm till the transplanted seedlings are established. Thereafter, about 5 cm of water may be maintained up to the dough stage of the crop. The water should be drained out from the field at maximum tillering stage for a week to remove toxic substances. The field is drained finally at least 1 week earlier to harveste in light soils and 2-3 weeks in heavy soils for uniform and smooth field operations for the next crop.

Cropping Systems In north India, a number of crop rotations involving paddy are feasible in irrigated areas. After the harvest of paddy, crops like berseem, toria, potato etc. can be grown in intensive crop rotation. In rainfed areas, where the soils are well drained and have good moisture retention capacity, legume crops like gram, lentil could be raised successfully after the harvest of paddy with residual fertility and moisture. Some of the important rice-based crop rotations are given below.

Irrigated areas Paddy-toria or gram Paddy-wheat or barley

Paddy-potato-blackgram Paddy-potato-greengram

Paddy-potato-cowpea or soybean Paddy-wheat-greengram

Paddy-pea (for pods)-greengram

Rainfed areas

Paddy-pea Paddy-gram Paddy-lentil

Weed Control Infestation of weeds in rice fields may reduce the grain yield by 50-90% in upland, 30-35% in drilled irrigated and 15-20% in transplanted crop. The important weed flora of transplanted rice include:

Cyperus difformis L., Fimbristylis litoralia, Typha sp., Cyperus iria L., Monocharia spp., Potamogeton sp., Celosia argentia, Setaria glauca, Panicum sp., Dactyloctaneum aegypticum (L.) Beauv. , Scirpus spp., Charazeylanica, Echinochloa colonum, Cynodon dactylon, Echinochloa crusgalli (L.) Beauv., Nymphaea stellata, Hydrilla verticillata, Eclipta alba, Salvenia sp.

The critical period of weed competition lies between 15-45 days of sowing. Two or three manual weedings may be required during this period i.e. first 3 weeks after transplanting in transplanted crop and 2 weeks after sowing in direct-seeded crop, and the second 40-45 days after transplanting/sowing.

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Generally, weeds are removed either by hand pulling or khurpi. In line sown wetland crop, the weeds can be removed by Japanese paddy weeder, but it requires well maintained line-to-line distance and some standing water in the field.

It is difficult to remove weeds in rice nurseries and direct-sown broadcast puddled rice by hand/khurpi/paddy weeder due to close spacing of seedlings. Moreover, manual weeding is a costly and labour-intensive operation. It is, therefore, necessary to find out possibilities of using herbicides for controlling weeds in rice nurseries and fields

Pendimethalin or Thiobencarb @ 1.5 kg/ha should be sprayed after 4-6 days of sprouted seedlings. Delayed application causes poor weed control and early application may cause toxicity to seedlings. Anilofos @ 0.25 kg/ha and oxadiazon @ 1.0 kg/ha should be applied 3-7 days before sowing.

Propanil: This should be used 6-8 days after transplanting when weeds are in 1-3 leaf stage. Spray @ 3 kg/ha in 400-600 litres of water. It would be advisable to remove water before spraying the herbicide. The field is flooded again within 24-48 hr and kept submerged till crop covers the land.

Butachlor: This weedicide is effective against annual and broad-leaved weeds in rice. This is a pre-emergence herbicide applied either through spray or granules immediately after planting the crop. Granules of butachlor should be applied @ 50 kg/ha in standing water (4-5 cm), and never in dry soils. It is sprayed @ 2 kg/ha in 400-600 litres of water. Drain out water before the application of herbicide.

Nitrofen: It is used as pre-emergence to control annual weeds for about four weeks. This should be applied with 2-3 days after transplanting rice. Adequate soil moisture is necessary to activate its herbicidal property. Broadcast 20-25 kg granules/ha or spray @2.0 kg/ha in 400-600 litres of water.

Fluchloralin: This herbicide should be sprayed or broadcast in standing water (3-5 cm) after the final puddling and planking or 1-3 days after transplanting rice. It is used @ 1 kg/ha in 400-600 litres of water or 50-60 kg granules/ha as broadcast.

Harvesting Rice varieties take 100-150 days to mature. The proper stage for harvesting is when about 80% spikelets in 80% panicles show ripening. Timely harvesting ensures quality and consumer acceptance. The plant should be cut close to the ground and left in the field for a few days to dry. Later on, these should be collected in bundles and stalked for threshing.

Threshing and Storage Threshing of rice on small farms is still a serious problem. The most common and popular methods of threshing are churning by bullocks with bare human feet (in hills) or lifting the bundles and striking them on the raised wooden platform. On big farms, pedal threshers or power driven stationary threshers are used. International Rice Research Institute, Philippines has developed a drum shaped power driven thresher, which is able to do threshing as well as winnowing.

The produce should be properly dried in the sun before storage. The grains should be stored in bins or kept in a heap inside the room. The optimum moisture content for storage of rice grains is 12%.

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Yield A well managed crop of mid-late duration (135-150 days) varieties like IR 8. IR 20, Jaya, etc. and hybrids yield about 6.0-7.0 tonnes grain/ha, whereas short duration cultivars yield about 4.5-5.5 tonnes grain/ha. The milling percentage is 60-65%.

Additional Reading Material http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/duke_energy/Oryza_sativa.html http://www.knowledgebank.irri.org/Rice/Ricedefault.htm

Source: oak.cats.ohiou.edu/.../Philippine_Plants.html

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Source: www.botanik.uni-karlsruhe.de/garten/fotos-knoch/

Source: www.ubcbotanicalgarden.org/

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Agronomy – Kharif Crops

Sesame

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

SESAME Botanical name: Sesamum indicum L.

Family: Pedaliaceae Chromosome number: 2n=26

Sesame, commonly known as til, is one of the important edible oilseeds cultivated in India. It is grown in the country since antiquity. Its seeds are rich in oil (50%) and protein (18-20%). Nearly 73% of the oil is used for edible purposes, where as 8.3% for hydrogenization and 4.2% for industrial purposes in the manufacture of paints, pharmaceuticals and insecticides. Sesame oil is also used in soap, cosmetic and skin care industries. The oil is very stable and does not turn rancid. It has anti-bacterial, anti-viral, anti-fungal and anti-oxidant properties. Since sesame seed oil is cholesterol free, it is also used in health food industries.

Seeds are used as fried and mixed with sugar and in several forms in sweet meats. White seeded sesame is extensively used in bakery products such as bread, bread sticks, cookies, candies, pasta, vegetables and curry dishes. Black seeded sesame has medicinal properties.

Sesame oil is an important cooking oil in south India. Lower grades of oil are used in soap making industries. The oil cake is an edible cake, rich in methionone, cysteine, arginine and tryptophan. It is used as cattle feed especially for milch animals. It is being used as a valuable ingredient upto 5% in well formulated poultry feed. It can also be used as a manure. Cake contains 6.0-6.2% N, 2.0-2.2% P2O5 and 1.0-1.2% of potash.

Origin and History Sesame is presumed to have originated in Africa and later spread to West Asia to India, China and Japan. However, it is also believed that cultivated sesame originated in India. Sesame in wild form (black) was found in India as its use in religious function is mentioned in Sanskrit, and spread to Mesopotamia and then to Babylonia, Egypt, China, Greece etc.

The genus Sesamum consists of 35 recognized species (Total is over 60). Out of these, S. indicum L. is cultivated extensively. The other 6 partially cultivated species include S. radiatum (India, Africa, Sri Lanka), S. angustifolium (Congo, Mozambique, Uganda), S. occidentale (Africa, Sri Lanka, India), S. calycinum (Angola, Mozambique), S. bauymii (Angola). All other species are wild and found in tropical African countries. Nine wild species have been found in peninsular India.

Geographic distribution Sesame is the crop of tropical and subtropical areas. It is grown on 6.5 mha, producing over 3 m tonnes of seed. India, Sudan, Myanmar, Medico and China account for 68% of world production (Table 1).

Table 1. The major sesame producing countries of world

Country Area (m ha) Production (m t) Productivity (kg/ha) India 1.85 0.68 368 Sudan 1.66 0.30 181 Myanmar 1.37 0.55 402 China 0.65 0.78 1083 Uganda 0.21 0.11 521 Nigeria 0.16 0.08 450 Tanzania 0.11 0.04 390 World 7.43 3.28 441

Source: FAO Year Book, 2004.

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India accounts for the lion’s share of 39% area, 27% production and 40 % export of sesame in the world. India exports sizeable quantity of sesame seeds (2.19 lakh tonnes in 2002) to Germany, Turkey, The Netherlands, USA, Greece, Hong Kong, Israel, China, UK, UAE, etc. to earn valuable foreign exchange. In India, its cultivation is mostly confined to Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka (Table 2). In the east (West Bengal, Orissa, Assam and Andhra Pradesh) both red and black seeded sesame are grown, while in Gujarat and other western states, only white seeded sesame is grown.

Table 2. Area, production and Productivity of Sesame in different states of India (2003-04)

State Area (000, ha) Production (000 t) Productivity (kg/ha)

Andhra Prdaesh 161.0 43.0 267

Assam 14.5 8.0 552

Bihar 3.7 2.7 730

Chattisgarh 25.5 7.2 282

Gujarat 402.4 240.8 598

Himachal Pradesh 4.0 2.0 500

Jammu & Kashmir 6.3 2.8 444

Jharkand 9.0 2.0 222

Karnataka 58.0 25.0 431

Kerala 0.8 0.2 250

Madhya Pradesh 131.2 41.9 319

Maharashtra 123.0 38.0 309

Nagaland 4.0 3.0 750

Orissa 37.7 7.8 207

Punjab 10.6 3.6 340

Rajasthan 311.8 141.2 453

Tamil Nadu 118.0 61.5 521

Uttar Pradesh 174.7 23.2 133

West Bengal 163.3 143.0 876

India 1774.0 803.0 453

Source: Damodaran and Hegde, 2005

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Classification Based on maturity period, sesame cultivars are classified as: Early (possess less number of flowers and branches) and Late (possess more number of flowers and branches) types. Based on seed coat colour, they are grouped into white and black seeded cultivars. Using the number of carpels in the capsules, sesame cultivars are classified as Bicarpellatum (two carpels) and Quadricarpellatum (four capels in the capsule).

On the basis of chromosome number, sesame species are classified into the following three groups.

Group Chromosome number

Species

I 2n=26 Sesamum indicum, S. alatum, S. malabaricum, S. mulayanum, S. schenckii

II 2n=32 S. prostratum, S. laciniatum, S. angolense, S. angustifolium

III 2n=64 S. radiatum, S. occidentale

Botanical Description It is a herbaceous annual, growing to a height of 0.5-2.0 m.

Root: The root system is poorly developed in early maturing varieties. The tap root bears only a few secondary and tertiary roots. Late-maturing varieties have a well developed deep root system that bears a large number of secondary and tertiary roots near the soil surface.

Stem: The stem is erect, normally square in section. The upper part of the stem is particularly covered with short hair. Stem colour can range from light green to almost purple, but the most common is darkish-green shade. Some varieties have profuse branching and give the plant a bushy appearance. Some of the varieties do not produce branches.

Leaves: The leaves are alternate and opposite. Generally the lower leaves tend to be broader while the upper ones are narrow. The leaf size may vary from 3.0 to 17.0 cm in length and 1.0 to 7.0 cm in width.

Inflorescence: The inflorescence is a receme and the fruit is a capsule. The flowers arise in the axils of the leaves and on the upper portion of the branches and stem. They are mostly self fertilized.

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Climatic Requirements It is a short day plant of tropics and subtropics with an annual rainfall of 400-600 mm. It grows in the plains and hilly regions up to an elevation of 1,300 m. It is sensitive to both low (<20oC) as well as high temperature (>40oC), the optimum being 27-33oC. At temperatures below 10oC, germination and seedling growth is inhibited. It is susceptible to both frost and waterlogging. Heavy rains during crop growth are conducive for fungal diseases. Sesame is susceptible to hail damage at all stages of growth. The crop can withstand drought after establishment.

In northern India, it is grown as rainfed kharif crop. In central and western regions comprising parts of Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Maharashtra, it is grown during September-January. Sesame has also gained popularity as a summer crop (January-May) after potato or late rice in West Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. However, in south India, the crop is taken in all the 3 seasons.

Varieties and hybrids Sesame is highly sensitive to seasonal variations in terms of day length and temperature. Therefore, varieties recommended for commercial cultivation are location and season-specific. The improved varieties recommended for different parts of the country (semi-rabi, rabi and summer seasons), are presented in Table 3. The characteristics of important varieties are given in Table 4.

Table 3. Sesame varieties recommended for various states of India

State Varieties

Andhra Pradesh

Gauri, Madhavi, Rajeshwasri, Swetha til, Gautam, Varaha, RT-54, RT-103, JTS-1, Chandana (JCS-94), Nirmala (0S-Sel-164), Pragati

Tamil Nadu Co-1, KRR-1, KRR-2, Paiyur-1, VRI-1, VRISV-1, TSS-6, TMV-1, TMV-2, TMV-3, TMV-4, TMV-5, TMV-6, Rama, Nirmala

Karnataka DS-1, E-8, KDSC-1, TMV-3, Rama, JTS-1, Pragati (MT-75)

Maharashtra AKT-4, MRUG-1, N-128, N-8, Phule til-1, T-85, Tapi, TC-25, RG-54, RT-103, JLT-26 (Padma), JTS-8, Pragati

Kerala Kayamkulam-1, Kayamkulam-2, Soma, Surya, Thilak, Trilthara, Tilottama, Nirmala

Orissa Kalika, Kanaka, Usha (OMT-11-6-5), Uma (OMT-11-6-3), Vinayak, TKG-55, TKG-22, TKG-21, RT-125, Prachi (ORM-17), Nirmala

West Bengal B-67, Krishna, Uma, TKG-21, TKG-55, RT-125, Rama, Punjab til-1

Assam Uma, SP-1181, ST-1683, TRS-1, TKG-21, TKG-22, TKG-55, RT-125, Rama

Bihar B-67, Krishna, Usha, Uma, TKG-21, TKG-22, TKG-55, RT-125,

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State Varieties

Kanke white

Uttar Pradesh T-12, T-13, T-4, T-78, TKG-21, TKG-22, TKG-55, Shekhar (SH-446), RT-46, RT-125, JTS-8, Pragati

Rajasthan T-13, TC-25, RT-46, RT-127, Pratap (C 50), JTS-8, Pragati

Punjab TC-289, TC-25, RT-46, Punjab til-1

Haryana RT-46, Haryana til-1, Pragati

Gujarat RT-54, RT-103, Purva-1, Purba-1, Gujarat til-1, Gujarat til-2, JTS-8, Pragati

Madhya Pradesh

TKG-55, TKG-22, TKG-21, RT-125, N-32, Kanchan til (JT-7), JTS-8

HP, J & K RT-46, TC-25, Punjab til-1

Hybrids: Sesame hybrids have been evolved in China to exploit heterosis at commercial scale for the first time, with two hand-emasculated hybrids, having a yield potential of 3 t/ha. In India, All India Coordinated Research Project (AICRP) on Sesame and Niger (ICAR) at Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Viswavidyala, Jabalpur (M.P.) has evolved some hybrids. Seven experimental hybrids AHY.Til-5, AHY.Til-12, RTH-1, AHYT-13, RHT-3, TKG-HY-5 and TKG-HY-4 exhibited superiority of 31.0 to 44.3% in seed yield and 13.0 to 48.0% in oil yield over TKG-22, the national check variety. The cost of hybrid seed (Rs 350-1000/kg) is, however, a deterrent for its wide adoptation. Evolution of CMS based hybrids will solve this problem, and efforts in this direction are underway.

Soils The crop prefers well-drained light to medium textured soils with good water holding capacity and moderate fertility. Under irrigated conditions, the crop can be grown successfully in medium-textured soils. Very sandy alkaline and acidic soils are not suitable for its cultivation. The crop can grow in soils with 5.0-8.0 pH with neutral soils being ideal.

Land preparation

Seeds of sesame are very small; hence require fine seed bed preparation for proper germination of the seeds. The fine tilth can be obtained by one deep ploughing in summer followed by 1-2 cross harrowings and planking. The land should be levelled to avoid damage associated with waterlogging. For the rabi crop, the land preparation involves 2-3 harrowings followed by planking.

Seed and Sowing

Seed rate and spacing The seed rate varies from 5-6 kg/ha in broadcast sowing 2.5-3.0 kg/ha in line sowing. Treat the seed before sowing with cerasan or agrosan GN @ 2 g/kg of seed. Seed treatment with

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carbendazim (0.01%) + thiram (0.4%) or Trichoderma viridi (0.4%) or Trichoderma (0.4%) or cowdung ash (0.4%) may reduce the incidence of Macrophomina stem/root rot disease. The most commonly adopted spacing is 30 cm x 15 cm in kharif. A wider spacing (45 cm x 10/15 cm) is adopted in Gujarat, Maharashtra and rabi season. In Tamil Nadu, square planting of 22.5 x 22.5 cm in kharif and 30 cm x 30 cm in rabi/summer has been recommended. The depth of sowing should be shallow i.e.between 2-5 cm. The seed being small must be mixed with sand, soil or manure increase quantity for even distribution.

Thinning is carried out to plant to plant spacing and also for efficient use of inputs especially fertility and water. First thinning should be done at 2 weeks after sowing and the final thinning a week later.

Manures and Fertilizers Sesame, in general, is grown on residual fertility, but also responds well to direct fertilization. The crop is given 10-20 t/ha of FYM incorporated into the soil at the time of ploughing. The crop invariably responds to N fertilizer. The response varies from 20 to 50 kg N/ha. Nitrogen is applied in 2 equal splits at sowing and flower initial stage (30-35 DAS). Hoeing of soil after top-dressing of N is essential for better response to fertilizer N. Under prolonged drought spells, 2-3% foliar spray of urea 30-35 days after sowing (DAS) gives promising results. Seed treatment with Azospirillum @ 600 g/ha along with application of 50% N is usually as effective as 100% N fertilizer. The Azospirillum inoculation is more promising under rainfed conditions.

Application of 20-40 kg P2O5/ha based on soil test value at the time of sowing has been found beneficial. Potassium fertilization is rare in this crop. In soils deficit in available K, application of moderate doses (10-30 kg/ha) of K2O is necessary. In Zn deficient soils, as in Madhya Pradesh, 25 kg ZnSO4/ha application once in 3 years is recommended. The recommended fertilizer doses for rabi and zaid sesame are given below.

Recommended dose of fertilizers for different states

State Condition NPK (kg/ha)

Andhra Pradesh Irrigated 40:40:20

Gujarat Irrigated 25:25:0

Madhya Pradesh

Rainfed 30:30:0

Maharashtra Rainfed 30:0:0

Orissa Rainfed 30:20:0

Rainfed 23:13:13 Tamil Nadu

Irrigated 25:23:23

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Water management Sesame is mainly raised as a kharif rainfed crop. The crop is rarely irrigated, inspite of the fact that it is highly susceptible to moisture stress. Hence, during prolonged dry spells, a protective irrigation especially at flowering stage is essential for realizing economical yields.

The crop is raised under irrigation during both rabi and summer seasons. The water requirement of sesame varies from 400-600 mm. The critical stages of irrigation in sesame are 4-5 leaf stage, flowering and pod formation. Besides a pre-sowing irrigation, the crop requires irrigation at 12-15 days interval. Rabi crop requires 3-4 irrigations coinciding with critical growth phases, whereas summer crop requires 5-6 irrigations. Flooding and border strip are the two common methods of irrigation. The border strip method of irrigation is more efficient.

Weed Management The slow initial growth of sesame and intermittent rains provide conducive environment for weed growth. The critical period of crop-weed competition for sesame is 20-30 days after sowing. Therefore, the crop requires effective control of weeds during this period. This is achieved by 2 hand weedings at 15 and 35 days after sowing (DAS) in broadcast and line sown crop. In line sown crop, hoeings (both manual and mechanical) are possible. At times of labour scarcity and severe weed infestation use of pre-emergence herbicides pendimethalin @ 1 kg /ha, diuron @ 0.5 kg/ha and alachlor @ 2 kg/ha for weed control during initial periods is advised. The integration of herbicides with one hand weeding at 30-35 DAS provides more efficient control of weeds.

Cropping Systems Kharif sesame is usually grown both as pure and mixed crop. In north India, it is generally grown mixed with pigeonpea, sorghum, pearl millet, groundnut, cotton and maize crops. Intercropping with groundnut (2:4) and chickpea (3:3) results in higher total productivity in Tamil Nadu. In the eastern region it is normally sown after the potato crop.

Sesame intercropping with blackgram (1:3) shows least incidence of Phytophthora blight. Similarly, its intercropping with maize minimizes incidence of Alternaria leaf spot. Sesame + pigeonpea (3:1 row proportion) may reduce the incidence of phyllody. Inter or mixed cropping with mothbean or mungbean may minimize the Macrophomina stem or root rot incidence.

Harvesting and Threshing The crop is harvested when leaves and capsules turn yellow and defoliation starts. Harvesting at proper time is very important, as the delayed harvesting may result in shattering of capsules. After harvest, bundles are staked erect on the threshing floor for several days for drying, and thereafter threshed.

Yield The yield fluctuates widely (0.2-1.0 t/ha) depending upon the variety, method of cultivation and weather conditions. However, with the improved package of practices, it should be possible to obtain 0.8-1.0 tonnes of seed/ha.Oil to seeds crushed is 40% and cake to seeds crushed is 60%.

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Table 4. Suitable varieties of Sesame for different states

Varieties Maturity period (days)

Yield (q/ha)

Oil (%)

Other

Uttar Pradesh

T4 98 7.00 52 White seed, suitable for Bundelkhand

T10 90 4.50 51 Early variety, white seeded

T12 88 8.00 52 White seeded

T13 90 8.00 46 Black seeded, suitable for whole Uttar Pradesh

RT46

RT25

80

75-80

6.00

50

White seeded. Also suitable for Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir

Bihar

B 3-2 115 1.90 48 Black seeded

B 3-3 115 1.90 47 Black seeded

Punjab and Haryana

T5 90 3.50 50 Black seeded

T22 100 3.50 46 Black seeded

Punjab Til 1 80 5.50 53 Seeds are bold and white in colour

TC289 95 5.00 53 Larger size seed

T 12-24 85 4.00 50

Madhya Pradesh

N32 95-100 7.70 53 Selection from local material of Chattarpur district of M.P., single stemmed, multicapsular, shining white seeds. Semi-rabi, Sesamum growing areas of MP, viz. Hoshangabad, Score, Raisen and Narsinghpur

JT7 85 7.00 53 Bold white seed, Erect

No.32 96 7.00 54 Erect, white shining seed

No. 41 120 5.00 54 Light brown seed, suitable for kharif

No. 128 100 6.50 50 Erect, light brown seed, suitable for Narmada valley area

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Varieties Maturity period (days)

Yield (q/ha)

Oil (%)

Other

Gwalior (G) 5 95 5.50 53 Erect, branch area less, bold white seed

Gwalior 35 95 4.75 52

No. 8 90-100 6.00 A selection from local material of Nagpur. Semi-rabi, Sesamum growing areas of MP

Rajasthan

Pratap (C50) 98 5.50 48 White seed, 6 leaves per node, 4-6 capsule

T13 90 8.00 50 White seeded, suitable for rainfed area

TC25 85 5.00 50 Bold white seed, 4-5 branch/plant

Andhra Pradesh

Gauri 95-100 8.00 37 A selection of local material of Vishakhapatnam district. It is recommended for irrigated conditions in coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh in rabi/summer season

Madhavi 70-75 8.50 44 A selection from local material of Vishakhapatnam district. It is recommended for irrigated condition in coastal districts of Andhra Pradesh in rabi/summer season

Chandana

(JCS 94)

High yielding, sandal wood coloured seed

Orissa

Vinayak - - - Toerant to leaf spot

Kanak 78 6.00 47 Developed from the cross ‘Vinayak x T4. Suitable for summer season in whole of Orissa

Kalila 82 6.00 48.7 Mutant of ‘Vinayak’. Suitable for summer season in whole of Orissa

Prachi (ORM17)

- - - Black seeded, pests and disease resistant varieties

Maharashtra

hule Til 1 95 6.50 51 Selection from local material, with light brown, bold seeds. Whole of semi-rabi of the state

Gujarat

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Varieties Maturity period (days)

Yield (q/ha)

Oil (%)

Other

Gujarat til 1 85-90 5.50 51 Selection from local material with light brown seeds

Purva 120 120 5.00 50 Multi-capsular, suitable for semi-rabi season, reddish seeds

Gujarat til 10 105 7.50 47.5 A black seeded variety suitable for kharif

Tamil Nadu

TMV 4 85 6.50 52 Pure line selection from ‘Sattur’ variety. Profusely branched with brown seeds. Ideeally suitable for summer irrigated season

TMV 2 80-85 4.00-6.00

52 Suitable for cold season

TMV3 - 5.00-10.00

50 Brownish-black seeded, resistant to wilt & shoot borer

TMV5 and TMV6

85-95 7.00 54 Tall growing, moderate branching, brownish black seeds. Drought tolerant. Suitable for Salem distrct

Co.1 7.30 - Evolved from a cross (TMV3 x SI 1878) x SI 1878

Kerala

Kayam Kulam 1

90-100 5.00 - Local selection, branches, and is suitable for Onattukara region and similar areas for rice fallows

Thilothama (Kayam Kulam 2)

- 6.00 - Evolved from cross between PT58-35 x Kayam Kulam 1. It performs well under low land rice fields and in uplands

West Bengal

B67 100 6.00 50 Local selection for West Bengal. Seeds are black. Suitable for summer

Thilarani 80 6.80 51 Dark brown seeded, high yielding rabi variety

B9, N.10, B14

Assam

RT1 95-100 8.00 50 Suitable for summer season

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15

Agronomy – Kharif Crops

SUNNHEMP

Dr. B. Gangaiah Senior Scientist

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

SUNNHEMP Botanical name: Crotolaria juncea Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoseae)

Chromosome number: 2n=16

The crop is grown for its stem (bast) fibre, green manuring and fodder. Of the 3 uses, green manuring is most important followed by fibre and fodder. The sunnhemp fibre is used in making cordage, fishing net and paper. The fibre pulp is especially used in currency note paper and cigarette paper manufacturing. Sunnhemp raised for green manuring purpose, is turned into soil when the plants are about 6-8 weeks old. It adds about 40-60 kg N/ha in the soil after decomposition.

Origin Genus Crotolaria comprises over 200 species distributed mainly in tropical and sub-tropical regions. To a lesser extent, it is also found in temperate areas. It is believed to be native to Indian sub-continent. It was introduced to other countries from India. According to some investigators, Myanmar is the place of origin of the crop, because it is found there in its wild state.

Geographic distribution The important sunnhemp raising countries of the world are: Russia, Romania, India, China, Hungary, Poland, Turkey, Brazil, Chilie and Bangladesh. The crop is grown in almost all parts of India. But the state of Uttar Pradesh has the largest area under sunnhemp cultivation followed by Madhya Pradesh.

Botanical description Sunnhemp is an erect (1.2-3.0 cm) annual with a few lateral branches. The stems are thin and straight. The stem has a very thin skin which contains the long bast fibres. The plant is deep rooted with well developed lateral roots numerous nodules. The leaves are almost sessile, small and narrow, shining and covered with short silky hair. The arrangement of leaves is alternate and rather far apart on the stem.

The inflorescence is a receme usually of 12-20 bright yellow flower typically papillanaceous in structures. Flowers are self-sterile and cross-fertilized. The pods are small and cylindrical and about 5 cm in length. The ripen seeds rattle within the pods when shaken. The seeds are kidney shaped.

Climate Sunnhemp is a crop of tropical and sub-tropical climates. The crop can not withstand low temperatures and frost. It can also be grown in rabi season, where winters are mild i.e. in southern region. It is cultivated in areas with a well distributed rainfall of 400-1000 mm throughout the crop growth, with high relative humidity (60-85%) and a temperature ranging from 20-35oC.

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Source: www.tropicalforages.info/

Soils Well drained fertile soils (sandy loam or loamy texture) with neutral pH are most suited for sunnhemp cultivation. Under acidic soils or soils with low calcium and phosphorus, biological N-fixation is hampered. Liming is essential for its successful cultivation in such soils.

Land preparation

The soil should be well pulverized and free from weeds before sowing the crop. This can be achieved by one ploughing followed by 2-3 harrowings. After harrowing, the field should be levelled so as to give a gentle slope to facilitate quick and easy drainage.

Seeds and Sowing Seed rate and spacing For green manuring, the seed is broadcast in late May to early June using a seed rate of 70-80 kg/ha. For fibre, sowing in lines is preferable. Line sowing requires a seed rate of 40 kg/ha, while broadcast crop needs 60 kg/ha of seed. The optimum spacing for fibre crop is 30

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cm x 5-10 cm. For seed production, a seed rate of 20-25 kg/ha is sufficient. The seed crop is sown in lines, maintaining a spacing of 30 cm x 15 cm. The depth of sowing should not be more than 3-4 cm.

Time of sowing The crop is generally sown with onset of monsoon or in May-June with pre-sowing irrigation in north India. The seed crop is raised in kharif season i.e., in early August in the sunnhemp-growing districts of the northern states. But it is ideal to grow a seed crop in rabi season in a zone where winter is not severe and temperature seldom falls below 10oC.

Manures and Fertilizers Being a legume, it meets most of its N requirement through biological N fixation. However, in sandy-loam soils, 15 kg N/ha should be applied at the time of sowing. The crop needs liberal P fertilization (20-50 kg P2O5/ha) depending on soil fertility for better root growth and nodulation. Besides phosphorus, calcium is also needed in some of the soils. No response to application of potash has been observed. All the fertilizers are applied at the time of sowing.

Application of Rhizobium alone or in association with phosphorus-solubilizing bacteria proves effective in substituting fertilizers in sunnhemp.

Water management It is predominantly a rainfed monsoon crop and requires no irrigation. However, the crop sown in the month of May requires 2-3 irrigations before the onset of monsoon. The fibre crop may need one irrigation during prolonged drought spells in monsoon season. Irrigation at 50% depletion of available soil moisture is sufficient for the crop.

Weed management Sunnhemp owing to its quick growth smother the weeds and requires no weeding. Crops grown for fibre and seed require some initial weeding. The weeds like Cyperus rotundus, Celosia argentia, Ludwigia parviflora, Convolvulus arvensis and Ipomea sp. pose serious threat to seed production.

Harvesting The harvesting of sunnhemp is best done at the pod formation stage for good quality fibre. Such fibres have good luster and colour. Sometimes plants are allowed to remain in the field until they are dead ripe. The fibre obtained from such plants is of very poor quality. Too early as well as too late harvesting spoils the fibre quality.

Harvesting of fibre crop is done by cutting the plants close to the ground with sickle. The leafy top portions of the plants may be chopped off and used either as fodder or may be ploughed down to add organic matter to the soil. After 2-3 days when most of the leaves get dried up, these plants are shaken to shed the leaves. The plants are then tied into bundles of convenient sizes having 50-100 plants in each bundle.

A crop of sunnhemp for the purpose of green manure becomes ready for incorporation in the soil within 2 months of sowing.

Steeping The bundles are brought to the nearest ponds, pools, ditches or streams and arranged side by side to form a platform in water for steeping. Care should also be taken to see that while weighing down the jack, the bundles do not touch the bottom of the retting tank.

Retting of Sunnhemp

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Retting in slow running water is better than retting in stagnant water. This process is complete when the fibre is loose enough for extraction and is easily separated from the sticks. The period of retting may vary from 3 to 15 days depending upon the temperature of retting water and month of harvesting. In September, retting takes place generally within 3-7 days, while in December; this period may range from 12 to 15 days. The optimum temperature for retting is 21-27oC.

Extraction of Fibre The extraction of the fibre of sunnhemp is more difficult than jute. The beat and jerk method is unsuitable in case of sunnhemp as tendency of fibre to stick to the wood is more, and the fibre gets entangled with broken twigs. Therefore, fibre is extracted single plantwise by breaking the lower ends of the plants and then stripping upwards from the bottom. After extraction, the peeled fibre should be washed thoroughly in clean water to remove dirt and other adhering materials. The fibre needs to be squeezed to remove excess water and spread on bamboo rafts to dry in mild sun for 2 to 3 days. After drying the fibre is graded and bundled into small ‘moras’ for marketing.

Yield Sunnhemp has a fibre content of 2-4% on the basis of weight of green stem to 8-12% in terms of dry weight. With improved package of practices under irrigated conditions, it is possible to get about 0.8-1.0 tonnes of fibre/ha.

Additional Reading:

http://www.hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/proceedings1996/v3-389.html

http://agroecology.ifas.ufl.edu/sunn%20hemp.htm

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Agronomy – Rabi Crops

Alfalfa

Dr. I.P.S. Ahlawat Head,

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

LUCERNE OR ALFALFA

Botanical name: Medicago sativa L. Family: Fabaceae (Leguminoseae)

Chromosome number: 2n = 4x = 32)

Lucerne, known as ‘rijka’ in northern India, is a perennial plant and may supplies green fodder continuously for 3-4 years from the same sowing. It is generally raised in areas where water supply is inadequate for berseem. Being a deep rooted crop, it extracts water from the deeper zone of the soil. It can be raised both as rainfed or irrigated crop in high water table areas. Lucerne is relished by all kinds of livestock, because it yields nutritious and palatable green fodder, which possesses about 16-25% crude protein and 20-30% fibre. Owing to its high protein and vitamin A content, it is included as a feed component in poultry and piggery. It can also be easily converted into silage and hay. Lucerne supplies green fodder for a longer period (November-June) in comparison to berseem (December-April).

Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Scythe_in_lucern_field.jpg

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Origin and History Lucerne is one of the oldest cultivated fodder crops in the world. It was known to Greeks and Romans in about 470 BC. It is generally believed that lucerne originated in South-West Asia. It was first cultivated in Persia (Iran), the name alfalfa being an Arabic word. From Iran it was taken to Greece in about 500 BC and from there it spread to Italy. The Spainards introduced it to America. Lucerne was introduced in India from north-west sometime in 1900. It has now become very popular forage crop.

Geographic Distribution Lucerne is grown world-wide on 35 m ha of which 8.8 m ha is in USA alone. Besides USA, India, Australia, New Zealand, France, Italy and Russia are other important countries producing Lucerne.

In India, lucerne is cultivated in about 1 m ha mostly in irrigated areas of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu.

Botanical Description Lucerne plant parts are described below.

Root system: Lucerne has a deep root system consisting of strong main top root and number of lateral roots that makes the plant drought tolerant.

Root nodules on roots of bur clover, Medicago spp. (From Stern, Introductory Plant Biology, 8th ed., ©

2000, McGraw-Hill Companies.) Stem: The stem is erect and the branches arise from the crown, which is a woody base on stem near ground level. The number of branches may be as high as 40.

Leaves: The leaves are trifoliate, the middle leaflet possesses a short petiole, a characteristic which distinguishes it from berseem. The long leaflets are sharply toothed on upper one third of margin.

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Flowers: The flowers are usually purple, but it may be blue, yellow or white. They are fertilized by insects, especially bees.

Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Lucerne_flowers.jpg

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Seed: The seeds are kidney shaped, very light in weight and yellowish brown with a shiny surface.

Source: www.extension.umn.edu/.../DC5963c.html

Source : http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Illustration_Medicago_sativa0.jpg

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Climatic Requirements Although a native of temperate regions of South-west Asia, but it is raised successfully even in most of the countries of the tropics. A long day plant and performs well in cooler and dry climate than cloudy, humid and wet conditions. It can also be raised in some regions below sea level, as well as at elevations of 2,500 m altitude. If the high temperatures are accompanied with high humidity, the crop suffers drastically. It can also withstand fairly low temperatures.

Soil and its preparation Lucerne can be raised on a wide range of soils. However, well drained fertile soils with neutral pH are ideal. It can not thrive on alkaline soil, but can be raised on acid soils with liberal application of lime. It does not thrive well on very heavy and waterlogged soils.

Lucerne needs a fine well levelled seed-bed with adequate moisture. Therefore, field should be prepared thoroughly and levelled properly. All the weeds and stubbles should be removed from the field before sowing. Plough the field once with mould board plough and 3-4 times with country plough, followed by planking each time to secure a firm and fine seedbed. A fine seedbed ensures better contact of seeds with soil particles and facilitates quick and better germination.

Seeds and Sowing

Seed rate and method of sowing In case of broadcast method, a seed rate of 20-25 kg/ha should be used. In this method, care should be taken to cover the seed with 1-2 cm layer of soil. After broadcast, mixing could be done either with rake or spike tooth harrow with zero cut. Seed may be broadcast after last harrowing and then covered with planking. Care should be taken that seed should not go more than one cm deep as seed size of lucerne is very small.

In Maharashtra, particularly on heavy soils, it is grown on ridges 45-60 cm apart. This method could be adopted in some areas of north India also. This method is called as Haward method.

For obtaining high yield, especially from the first cut, of the annual crop, broadcast oats seed @ 35 kg/ha and mix it in soil with a cultivator before sowing lucerne. Alternatively broadcast 1.5 kg of mustard seed/ha along with the full seed of lucerne.

Time of sowing Middle of October is the best time for sowing lucerne. However, it can be sown from the end of September to early December.

Varieties The improved varieties of lucerne along with their characteristics of some of the important commonly grown varieties are given below.

Sirsa 8: This annual variety was developed at Fodder Research Station, Sirsa (Haryana). Its yield potential is about 35-40 t/ha of green fodder and 0.2-0.3 t/ha seed. It is suitable for Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.

Anand-3: Annual type, suitable for Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat. Green fodder yield is 60-95 t/ha.

Lucerne No. 9-L: This variety has been developed at Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana. It is a quick growing variety with deep green foliage, slender stalks and purple

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flowers. It grows well for a period of 5-7 years. Its yield potential is about 75 t/ha of green fodder/year. It yields 57.7 t/ha of green fodder up to July during the first year.

LL composite 5: Synthesized selecting 125 downy mildew resistant clones from Kutch Lucerne at PAU, Ludhiana; released in 1981 for Punjab. It is tall, erect, fast growing annual variety. It gives 8 cuttings up to first week of July and it has a yield potential about 72 t/ha fodder and 0.3-0.5 t/ha seed.

Rambler: It is a recent introduction from Canada and has been found successful in hilly areas of the country. It is tolerant to very low temperatures. Its yield potential is about 60-90 t of green fodder/ha/year.

LL composite 3: Synthesized from 20 clones selected for fast growth, high yield and downy mildew resistant from germplasm collected from Gujarat. Released in 1985 for entire country. It is resistant to lodging and frost with 39 t/ha green fodder yield in rabi season and 0.32 t/ha seed yield.

Chetak (S-244): A selection from local material of Maharashtra. Suitable for Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat. It has quick regeneration capacity with resistance to aphids. It yields 142 t/ha green fodder.

RL 87-1, RL 88: Suitable for Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Green fodder yield: 80-95 t/ha.

NDRI Selection No. 1: It has thick roots which penetrate deep into soil. It is a selection from material from Saurashtra and Kutch. It has turgid stems. The leaves are smaller in size when compared to other lucerne varieties. This variety has the capacity of maintaining itself in its pure stands over 5-6 years without getting degenerated due to the infestation of weeds. The crop is ready for first cut after 60-70 days of sowing. Its green fodder yield potential is about 100 t/ha.

Sirsa Type 9: This perennial variety has also been developed at Fodder Research Station, Sirsa. It is a quick growing variety with deep green foliage. Its yield potential is about 30-40 t/ha of green fodder and 0.25 to 0.43 t/ha seed.. It is most suitable for growing in north India.

Co-1: Perennial lucerne cultivar suitable for Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Green fodder yield is 60-80 t/ha.

T 9: Perennial Lucerne cultivar, suitable for entire lucerne areas of country. Fodder yield is 80-95 t/ha.

Anand-2 (GAUL-1): A selection from perennial type lucerne grown in Bhuj area of Kutch (Gujarat). Released in 1975, suitable for Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Yield 80-100 t/ha green fodder in 10-12 cuts/year and 0.2-0.3 t/ha of seed may be obtained.

Besides the above varieties, there are also some promising varieties like Moopa, IGFRI S-54, IGFRI S-244, IFGRI 112 (Suitable for all areas), Nimach 1, Nimach 2, Composite 3, T8 and T15.

Manures and Fertilizers Being a legume crop, it fixes the atmospheric N in soil through symbiotic bacteria. Seed inoculation with Rhizobium meliloti is promising for crop performance especially in soils where lucerne is being cultivated for the first time. Besides as starter dose of 20 kg N/ha, 60-75 kg P2O5/ha and 40 kg K2O/ha are also applied at the time of sowing. Lucerne responds well to FYM on sandy loam soils. Being a perennial crop, it is beneficial to apply 20 tonnes of FYM/ha every year.

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Boron deficiency is generally noticed in leached and coarse textured soils. The leaves develop numerous pale-yellow spots leading to disorder known as Lucerne yellow. Spray of 0.2% borax can overcome this deficiency. Iron deficiency, leading to chlorosis, is fairly common in poorly drained alkaline soils. Liming the soil well in advance of sowing is helpful in areas where soil is acidic. Application of 20 kg/ha each of S and Zn along with 2 kg/ha of Mo may enhance the effectiveness of biological nitrogen fixation.

Water management To obtain good germination, pre-sowing irrigation (palewa) is essential. Since lucerne takes a long time to establish at early stage, very frequent irrigations may be required at the interval of 7-10 days. Later on, this interval may be extended to 25-30 days as its root system gets well established. During summer, interval of irrigation should be reduced to 15-20 days. The crop requires about 15-20 irrigations in a year. Water requirement is quite high, being 858 litres of water/kg of dry matter produced.

Weed Control Lucerne takes a long time to establish itself and gives ample scope for weed infestation up to the first cutting. It is very difficult to control weeds in broadcast crop. If crop is sown in lines, weeding and hoeing become easier. First weeding should be done 20-25 days after sowing. For seed production, the weeding of crop is a must. In seed crop Amer bel or dodder (Cuscuta) is most important weed. It may reduce seed yield by 60%. For certified seed production of Lucerne, its population should be <0.05% (20 Cuscuta seeds/kg lucerne seed). Pendimethalin 1-2 kg /ha (pre-emergence) or diquat @ 6-10 kg/ha 5-10 days after sowing effectively controls Cuscuta. ‘T 9’ cultivar is found highly susceptible to this weed, while ‘LLC 6’ and ‘LLC 7’ are moderately tolerant to Cuscuta infestation.

Pre-sowing application of diuron @ 2.0 kg/ha or fluchloralin @ 1 kg/ha or EPTC @ 3.0 kg/ha or MCPB @ 0.75 kg/ha after 30 DAS or pronamide @ 1.0 kg/ha just after sowing controls the weeds in lucerne crop.

Cropping Systems It is usually raised after harvest of kharif crops, such as sorghum, paddy, soybean, maize, cowpea, clusterbean etc. It can be raised in rotation with almost every grain or forage crop. The most common crop rotations adopted in north India are given below:

Maize-lucerne Paddy-lucerne Sorghum-lucerne

Greengram-lucerne Soyabean-lucerne Cowpea + maize (fodder)-lucerne

Sorghum (grain)-lucerne-maize (fodder)

It is intercropped with napier grass. Sometimes it is raised mixed with berseem to get the continuous supply of green fodder till May-June, where berseem is completely finished in hot months of April and May.

Plant protection measures Diseases Rust (Uromyces striatus)

It is most common disease of Lucerne. The disease appears on small brown spots that are toothed at the outer margins with a black/brown colour at the cenre. Rust pustules cause severe yield reduction.

Dithane M-45 (0.25%) spray is effective for rust control.

Leaf spot (Pseudopexia medicagenis).

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It is an air borne common disease of lucerne severe in north and central India. Diseased plant turns yellow and leaves drop off.

Early cut can cure the crop to some extent. Dithane M-45 or 0.1% Chlorothalonil is effective for its control.

Harvesting The first cut should be taken 50-55 days after sowing and the subsequent cuts at an interval of 25-35 days when crop attains the height of 60 cm from the surface of the soil. In a year, 7-8 cuts can be taken between October-April.

Yield The average green fodder yield of Lucerne varies from 80-120 t/ha.

Seed Production West and south-central India is ideal location for lucerne seed production. Higher seed yields are obtained from plant crop, which is not cut for fodder. In case of established crop, take the last cut of fodder in January. Stop irrigation after full blooming to arrest further vegetative growth and thus ensure good seed yield. The seed crop should be sown in rows 50 cm apart. Foliar spray of 0.5% borax at pre-floweirng stage is found promising for seed production. The harvesting of mature crop should not be delayed to avoid the shedding of pods. Harvest the crop when two-thirds of the pods become dry. The seed yields usually vary from 0.2-0.3 t/ha.

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Agronomy – Rabi Crops

Barley

Dr. I.P.S. Ahlawat Head,

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

BARLEY Botanical Name: Hordeum vulgare L.

Chromosome number: 2n=14

Barley is the fourth most important cereals of the world after wheat, rice and maize. It is a major source of food for large population of cool and semi-arid areas of the world, where wheat and other cereals are less adapted. In European countries, it is used as the only breakfast food, whereas the people of Nepal, Tibet and Bhutan use it as a staple food. The most important uses of barley in India include green feed to livestock and poultry, as malt for manufacture of beer and other liquors like brandy, whisky etc. Sometimes barley is mixed with wheat or gram and then ground to flour for preparing better quality chapaties. Grains are roasted and ground to use it as sattu. Barley is used for manufacturing of liquors in western countries.

Origin and History Barley has probably originated from Asia and Ethiopia with centres of diversity i.e. north-east Africa and Mountainous regions of Abyssinia (occidental types) and south-east Asia, China, Japan, adjoining regions of Tibet (oriental types).

Occidental types are characterized by broad empty glumes, 2 row with empty spikelets, pubescent palea and coloured stem. Oriental types are characterized by naked or hooded barley with resistance to some races of mildew and possess extreme earliness or lateness. The two rowed Hordeum spontaneum K. Koch barley is believed to be the wild progenitor of domesticated or cultivated barley.

Barley must have been introduced to India soon after the arrival of the Aryans. Its Sanskrit name ‘Yav’ is mentioned in ‘Ved’, and use of barley in religious ceremonies has been described, which shows that it was grown in India since ancient time.

Geographic Distribution Barley is one of the major cereals of the world cultivated over 57.62 million ha with a total production of 154 million tonnes in 2004. Russia, China, France, Canada, USA and Spain are the main producers of barley. The area (million ha), production (million tonnes) and productivity of barley in major countries are given in Table 1.

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Table 1. Area, production and productivity of barley in major producing countries of the world

Country Area (m ha) Production (m t) Productivity (kg/ha)

Russian Federation 9.05 17.18 1797

Canada 4.05 13.19 3256

Germany 1.98 12.99 6564

Ukraine 4.51 11.08 2455

France 1.63 11.03 6764

Spain 3.09 10.61 3434

Turkey 3.60 9.00 2500

Australia 4.61 7.71 1669

USA 1.63 6.09 3743

UK 1.01 5.82 5757

Poland 1.01 3.57 3521

China 0.79 3.22 4099

Morocco 2.32 2.76 1187

Iran 1.40 2.00 1429

India 0.75 1.37 1827

World 57.62 154.14 2675

Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004

Barley is also an important cereal in India. The chief barley-growing regions in the country are Himalayas, Central part of eastern Uttar Pradesh, eastern parts of Rajasthan and north-western part of north Bihar. In India barley is cultivated on about 0.75 million ha with a total production of 1.37 million tonnes. The area, production and productivity of barley in major states of India are given in Table 2.

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Table 2.Area, production and productivity of barley in important states of India (2004-05)

State Area (000 ha) Production (000 t) Productivity (kg/ha)

Bihar 17.3 18.3 1058

Chattisgarh 3.8 3.2 842

Haryana 25.0 67.0 2680

Himachal Pradesh 24.0 42.0 1750

Jammu & Kashmir 11.0 10.0 909

Jharkhand 12.9 11.7 907

Madhya Pradesh 83.2 104.1 1251

Maharashtra 4.3 1.7 395

Punjab 22.0 74.0 3364

Rajasthan 175.5 417.7 2380

Uttarakhand 24.0 33.0 1375

Uttar Pradesh 205.4 411.7 2004

West Bengal 2.4 4.0 1667

India 616.5 1207.1 1958

Source: Fertilizer Association of India, 2006

Classification

The genus Hordeum has about 350 species, of which 32 are wild and cultivated. These 32 species are divided into 2 groups. Hordeum sensu stricto: It has 2 species viz. H. vulgare L. and H. bulbosum L. The wild and cultivated forms of barley belong to H. vulgare ssp. spontaneum and H. vulgare ssp. vulgare respectively.

Hordeum cristesion: The remaining species of barley falls into this group.

Based on fertility status and arrangement of 3 spikelets on rachis, barley is classified into 3 types.

Two row barley (Hordeum vulgare var. distichon): In this, the central spikelets are fertile, while lateral spikelets are sterile. Thus when spike is viewed from top or bottom, the spikelet arrangement appears to be in two columns. Each spike produces 15-30 kernels.

Six row barley (Hordeum vulgare var. hexastichon): In this, all 3 spikelets are fertile and each spike produces 25-60 kernels.

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Irregular barley (Hordeum irregulare L.): In this, the central spikelets are fertile with some fertile and sterile lateral florets.

On the basis of presence or absence of seed cover, both 2 and 6-row barley have been sub-divided into 3 varieties.

Var. nudum: called naked barleys, in which caryopsis becomes hull free after threshing. Also called hull-less types. These are useful for human consumption.

Var. trifurcatum: called hooded barleys, in which the inflorescence has a modified lemma awn that resembles a hood over florets. Hoods may have both male and female organs and in rare instances produce viable seed. Also called hulled (husked) barley. They are important for livestock feeding and malting.

Var. inerme: These are called awnless barley.

Botanical Description Barley has all the vegetative characters like wheat; except that the auricles of leaf are conspicuous and very much pronounced which clasp the culm. The botanical description of main parts is given below:

Root Barley possesses of shallow and deep roots. The shallow roots emerge near the soil surface and spread out laterally apart 15-30 cm almost at the right angles for the tillers; whereas deep roots extend downwards into deep layers of soil. The depth of penetration varies from 75-150 cm.

Stem (culm)

drical stem

blade is hairy or

The cylinpossesses 5-7 hollow internodes separated by solid nodes where from the leaves arise. Internodes are short at the base of the plant, and their length increases from the base of the stem to upwards. The usual number of tiller/plant varies from 2 to 5.

Leaves The leafslightly serrated having light green colour compared to wheat. Each leaf consists of a sheath, blade, ligule and auricle. The leaves of

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barley are usually broader and of the lighter green colour than wheat. The leaf sheath is generally glabrous, but in a few cultivars it is covered with hair. They possess small ligule (0.5-3.0 mm). Auricles are very conspicuous, which partly or entirely clasp the stem and much longer than those in wheat. Two-row barleys have narrower leaves than 6 row barleys.

Inflorescence nce is also

ernel (grain) ‘caryopsis’

endosperms and embryo. Barley

The infloresceknown as spike or head. The spike at the top of the culm consists of spikelets attached at the nodes of a zig-zag rachis. Each spikelet has 2 glumes and a floret. The barley flower has 3 stamens and a pistil with a single ovule and a stigma. Barley is a normally self-pollinated crop.

KBarley grain is aconsisting of lemma, palea and a rachilla. The caryopsis is composed of the pericarp,grain is a caryopsis measuring about 8-12 mm long, 3-4 mm wide and 2-3 mm thick. The grains normally consist of hull except that of naked cultivar which becomes free after threshing. Spikelets may be awnless or hooded, awned or beared all these species of barley are under cultivation.

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Growth stages of barley Barley has six well defined growth stages as detailed below.

1. Germination and seedling stage This stage starts from seeding to 20-25 days after sowing (DAS). With germination, the coleoptile emerges out of soil producing leaves. This stage ends with the exhaustion of endosperm and crown root initiation.

2. Tillering This phase lasts up to 30-35 DAS during which, tillers emerge from the crown and grow along with the main stem. Tillering is more in 2 row than 6 row barley.

3. Jointing This is also called shooting stage and lasts up to 55-65 DAS. The stem becomes visible, nodes multiply and internodal distance becomes longer. Flag leaf (the last leaf covering ear), emerges. The lower leaves starts withering while younger leaves continue to emerge and grow.

4. Heading (earing stage) The ear emerges from flag leaf and anthesis of central floret begins. This stage lasts up to 75-85 DAS and ends with production of watery grains.

ilking, grain filling and

Cliop of cool climate, and can also be grown successfully in tropical and sub-

reqlife ions as in Ladakh

ts spring cultivation also does exist. It is grown from near sea level to an elehumdurundune A well distributed 200-250 mm rainfall can support barley crop, however, the

mm annual rainfall. Barley being a long day plant would prefer a phores

tems

Barandpea a, groundnut) and commercial crops

, sugarcane). Under adequate, irrigation, short duration pulse or fodder suc able-barley sequence is followed.

5. Ripening This stage lasts up to 90-100 DAS and involves post mdevelopment. The grains gradually become hard.

6. Maturity The grains loose moisture and plant parts get dried in the phase.

mate Barley is a crtropical regions. As in wheat, barley has also both winter and spring types. Winter types

uire vernalization (exposure for low temperatures <50oF for 2-10 weeks) for completion of cycle. In India, it is basically a winter crop. However, at higher elevat

and Lahaul, ivation up to 4500 m. Barley performs best in areas of relatively high rainfall, low relative

idity and cool temperatures at maturity. A mean daily temperature of 12-15oC and 30oC ing growth and ripening phases respectively are best for barley cultivation. It is grown er rainfed, drought prone conditions and in regions where wheat cultivation is conomical.

crop does best with 400-500 toperiod of 10-12 and 12-14 hours during vegetative and reproductive stages,

pectively.

Cropping Sys

ley, owing to its drought resistance and short duration finds place in several sequential intercropping systems. In crop rotations, it follows kharif cereals (rice, maize, rlmillet, sorghum), legumes (pigeonpea, cowpe

(cotton, potatoceeds barley. In diara lands of eastern Uttar Pradesh, veget

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Under rainfed conditions, inter or mixed cropping of barley with pea, rajmash, linseed is

should follow every ploughing or harrowing as it pulverizes soil and also n dryland areas, the rain water should be conserved by deep summer fter every rainfall and levelling and field bunding during monsoon. This

and accumulation of soluble salts from root zone. Seeding is done deep in less

ies (~95) have been developed for cultivation in different zones.

extensively followed.

Soil and its Preparation Barley thrives well on well-drained, medium fertile, deep-loam soils with neutral to mild salinity (7-8 pH). Highly fertile soils are not conducive for barley cultivation. Being salt tolerant, it is the best option in sodic soils. Its cultivation has become possible on saline coastal areas of Sunder ban in West Bengal and saline black soils of canal irrigated areas of northern Karnataka. Acidic soils are not suitable for barley cultivation, and liming is must in these soils for better yields. The soil should not be very fertile as the crop lodges very severely and drastic yield loss is observed. It is susceptible to waterlogging.

Barley being a shallow-rooted crop responds well to light-textured fine seed-bed. The desired tilth may be obtained by one ploughing with soil turning plough followed by 2-3 harrowings. The plankingconserve moisture. Iploughing, discing aconserved moisture may be fully utilized by an early sowing of barley crop. The roots and stubbles of previous crop and the weeds should be picked up and thrown out of the field as they attract termites. Before last ploughing, 10-15 kg of 5% aldrin dust should be applied and mixed well with soil to protect the crop from termites. In saline soils, the land should be prepared and left undisturbed for a week’s time before sowing. This aids in upward movementsalty zone for better germination.

Varieties A large number of varietNaked barley, though suitable for both hilly and plains are mainly grown in hills for food as well as local brewing. The important varieties and their suitability for different purposes are given in Table 3.

Barley varieties for different states State Varieties released prior to 1980 Varieties released after 1980

Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand

C251a, C841, C501, NP100 (For High Hills)*, Barley local* (For low hills), CN 292, C 294, K 121, Ballia Barley1, C-138, K141, K18, K191, K24, K70, Kailash, Amber*a, Vijaya*2 (Western U.P.), LSB21, Ratna1, Dolma, Azad (K125)*, Kedar (DL36)1, HBL 113a

K-141*, Lakhan (K226)*, Jagarati (K287), BHS46*, VLB1, Manjula (K329)1, BHS-169*, Geetanjali (K1149)*, K4091, Karan 16, , RD25081, Pragati (K508)1,c. Haritma (Eastern UP), NB1 (NDB 209)1, NB2 (NDB940)1, NB3 (NDCB 1020)1,c

Punjab and Haryana

T41*,ab, T52,ab, NP 104, C138*, C144*a,

C1552,ab, C164, Clipper2,a, Jyoti, Himani, Ranjit, BG251, BG1051, PL56*1

BH75, PL-172, Karan 16, RD 20351, Alfa 93, PL 419*,1, PL 4261, Karan 16, BH 3931

Rajasthan NP-13, NP 1032, RS-17, RDB1, RS6 (Central plains)*,ac, RD31*1, RD571 (for low fertility soils), RD1031 (for high fertility soils), Bilara-2 (Saline and alkali soils)1

RD 20521, Alfa 932,ab, RD 25921

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State Varieties released prior to 1980 Varieties released after 1980

Bihar NP-13, NP 103, BR 21, BR 22*, BR 31, BR 32, Ratna, Azad , Kedar

Haritma (K 560)1

Tamil Nadu NP 106 (For Nilgiris)

Himachal Pradesh

KB 71, Kailash, LSB 2, Himani, Dolma1

Sonu (HBL 87)*, BHS 46*, BHS-169, HBL 1132, HBL 316*1

West Bengal Kedar, Azad Ritambhara, Haritma

All zones Rekha (BCU 73)2

North West Plains Zone

RD 552, DWR28 2 2,ab,RD25031,a, RD2624*,1, NDB1173 (Saline soils),

DWR 462,ab, DL881,a+, DWRUP 52a, I, RD 2668a, 1,

Plains Zone RD 2552, DL 881, Pl 751c, 2

North East Plains Zone

K 603*1, NDB 1173 (Saline soils), KT 13 c,1, Ritambhara (K551)a

Northern Hills Zone

HBL 276, BHS 352*1

a: malting; b:brewing; :feed; * Rainfed; :6 row, hulled; 2:2 row barley

ing : Seed

75-90 kg /ha is sufficient, while in late-sown conditions the seed rate should to a. Under rainfed conditions, 80-100 kg seed/ha is required soil ailability. For saline and alkaline soils, use 100-120 kg seed/ha

desired ant population.

Before sowing, the barley seed should be treated with vitavax, thiram @3 g/kg of seed to the seed

r nigh ination.

e spa lly 22-23 cm under irrigated and 23-28 cm under ition ils, 20 cm row spacing is recommended. Depth of

der the rainfed

to crust, shallow planting is preferable.

Method of sowing is an important aspect, particularly under rainfed conditions. Seed should e dropped with the help of Nai or Pora attached to country plough, or with the help of seed

gated areas seed may into the furrows. There should be

tion.

c 1

Seed Rate, Spacing and Depth of sowSeed ratesowing,

rate varies according to agro-condi of seed

tions. In irrigated areas for normal

be increaseddepending on

90-100 kg/h moisture av

to ensure pl

protect the crop frin water ove

om fungal diseases. For sowing in saline and alkaline areas, soakt at room temperature for better and quick germ

Spacing: Thrainfed cond

cing between rows is usuas. In saline and alkali so

sowing: The bestconditions, depen

depth of sowing is 3-5 cm under irrigated and 5-8 cm unding upon the initial soil moisture. In clay soils or soils that have tendency

Method of Sowing

bdrill to ensure uniform distribution of seed at the optimum depth. In irribe sown by ‘Kera’ method, where seed is dropped by hand adequate moisture in soil for proper germina

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Sowing Time The normal sowing season extends from the middle of October to the middle of November. Under rainfed conditions, sowing should be completed during the third or fourth week of

rop with sowings

e seldom manured directly. It is the preceding crop in the rotation which

ith 20 kg P2O5/ha should be applied at the me of sowing. Irrigated barley is fertilized with 60 to 80:30 kg/ha of N:P2O5. Entire P along

plied are placed behind the seed. Remaining N is top dressed as urea in 2 r first irrigation and at flowering stages. Potassium fertilization is done based

e done, as it

tion. In 2002-03, 62.2% of the total was under irrigation. Besides a pre-sowing irrigation for crop so requires irrigation at 3 critical stages viz. active tillering (30-35

to prevent lodging. Hull-less barleys with 10-15 days

The major weeds are Anagallis arvensis (Krishna neel), Avena opodium album (bathua), Cirsium arvense (kateli), Melilotus alba and

Melilotus indica (senji). Weeds usually pose greater problem in irrigated areas.

October. Delayed sowing reduces the yield per unit area and produce grain not fit for malting. Under irrigated conditions, first to third week of November is ideal for sowing.

At higher elevation (2,300 m), barley is grown as an irrigated spring cextending from April to the end of May, depending on the time of melting of snow from the fields, suitable soil temperature to ensure good germination and the availability of irrigation water. On the Nilgiri Hills (Tamil Nadu), barley is sown in May-June or August-October depending upon the altitude and the pattern of rainfall.

Manure and Fertilizers The rainfed crops arreceives the manure. In irrigated crop, about 10-15 tonnes of FYM or compost should be applied about a month before sowing. The application of organic matter to soil besides providing essential nutrients to the crop also helps in overcoming salt problems of saline and alkali soils and moisture conservation.

Under rainfed conditions, 30-40 kg N/ha along wtiwith 1/3 N is apequal splits afteon soil fertility. Salt affected soils and hull-less varieties require more N fertilizer (80 kg/ha) than irrigated and hulled crop.

In malt barley, balanced fertilization with 40:25:25 kg/ha of N:P2O5:K2O at the time of sowing is essential to maintain protein content. No top dressing of N should benhances protein content.

Water Management Barley is a drought tolerant winter season crop and thus requires less irrigation. However, the dwarf fertilizer responsive cultivars do require irrigabarley area of country establishment, the crop alDAS), flag leaf (60-65 DAS) and milking stages (80-85 DAS). Under limited water resources, i.e. available for one irrigation only, it should be applied at active tillering stage. If water is available for two irrigations, crop should be irrigated at active tillering and flowering stages. In saline soils, frequent irrigations are given to dilute the impact of salts. Heavy irrigation in March should be avoided longer duration than hulled varieties require one additional irrigation at grain filling stage for proper grain filling and to overcome hot winds damage. This holds true for malt barley also as this crop should not suffer from moisture stress at any stage.

Fodder barley requires irrigation and top dressing of N immediately after first cut (60-65 DAS).

Weed control The crop has early vigorous growth and by active tillering stage, it completely covers the soil resulting in smothering of weeds. Irrigated barley with high fertilization usually suffers from severe weed competition.fatua (wild oat), Chen

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The use of weed-free seed and thoroughly prepared seed-bed are essential for controlling the weeds effectively. One hoeing or hand weeding immediately after first irrigation takes care of weeds in barley. For control of broad-leaved weeds, application of 2,4-D sodium salt (80%) amine salt (72%) at 0.75 kg/ha + 3% urea solution in 700-800 litres of water at 30-50 days after sowing the crop is recommended. Under rainfed condition, slightly lower dose of herbicide i.e., 0.5 kg/ha is recommended. Isoproturon or methabenzthiazuron or metaxuron @ 1.5 kg/ha (post-emergence) have been found effective to control grasses.

Cropping systems Owing to drought resistance and short duration, barley find place in several inter and sequential cropping systems. Under rainfed conditions, barley is inter or mixed cropped with pea, rajmash, chickpea, linseed etc. In crop rotations, it follows kharif cereals (rice, maize,

d. Under adequate irrigation, short duration pulse or fodder succeeds barley.

Threshing

aw serves as

pearlmillet, jowar), legumes (pigeonpea, cowpea, groundnut) and commercial crops (cotton, potato, sugarcane). In diara lands of eastern Uttar Pradesh, vegetable-barley rotation is followe

Harvesting andThe crop is harvested by cutting at the ground level when the plants dry up, grains become hard and stem breaks down with slight touch. Delayed harvesting results in lodging and shattering of grains. The harvested crop is bundled and placed in threshing yard and allowed to dry. The dried crop is threshed either by trampling by bullocks or mechanical threshers. The produce is winnowed to clear chaff and unwanted materials. The strimportant feeding material for livestock. In recent times, combines are used to do all the 3 operations in a single step.

Yield: Barley yields 3-5 t/ha of grain and equal amount of straw depending on variety and management.

11

Agronomy – Rabi Crops

French Bean

Dr. I.P.S. Ahlawat Head,

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

FRENCH BEAN Botanical Name: Phaseolus vulgaris L.

Chromosome Number: 2n=22

French bean also known as rajmash or rajma (Hindi) or haricot bean or kidney bean or common bean or snap bean, navy bean. It is valued for its protein rich (23%) seeds. Seeds are also rich in calcium, phosphorus and iron. The fresh pods and green leaves are used as vegetable. The antimetabolites of dry beans needs removal by cooking and soaking in water.

Origin French beans have evolved in the highlands of middle America and Ander from a wild vine over a period of 7000-8000 years. Vavilov (1951) reported Mexico and Central America as

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the primary and Peruvian-Ecquadrion-Bolvian region of South America as the secondary center of French bean.

Various kinds of Ph. vulgaris

Geographic Distribution Globally French bean is cultivated on about 28 m ha with a production of 19 million tonnes. Brazil is the leading producer of French beans. Columbia, USA, Canada, Ethiopia, China and Turkey are other leading countries producing French bean.

In India, it is grown on an area of about 1 lakh ha mainly in the states of Maharashtra (60,000 ha), Jammu and Kashmir (10,000 ha), Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh Hills, Nilgiri (Tamil Nadu) and Palni (Kerala) hills,Chickmagalur (Karnataka) and Darjeeling hills (West Bengal).

Classification The genus Phaseolus has over 50 species and Rajmash (Phaseolus vulgaris L) is one of them accounting for 90% of cultivated species worldwide. In India, both bushy and trailing types rajmash are found.

Climate Major rajmash producing areas are located in tropical and temperate regions with a temperature around 21oC. The optimum temperature for better growth is 16-24oC. Growth of plant ceases if temperature falls below 10oC. Temperatures above 35oC cause dropping of buds and flowers resulting in poor yield. It is highly susceptible to frost. The crop is generally raised in areas receiving 50-150 cm annual rainfall. Waterlogging at any stage adversely affects its yield. Rains cause flower drop and spread of leaf spot diseases.

Soil and its Preparation Rajmash grows on a variety of soils ranging from light sand to heavy clay, but well drained loams are the best. The crop is sensitive to salinity. Soil pH around 5.2-5.8 is optimum. An electrical conductivity of 1 dS/m is threshold limit for frenchbean. Soil having high amount of organic matter promote more vegetative growth.

Crop requires fine seedbed and adequate soil moisture for good germination. A deep ploughing followed by 2-3 harrowings and planking is adequate to obtain required tilth.

Time of Sowing Rajmash is grown in kharif and rabi seasons in different parts of the country. The optimum time of sowing in rabi season varies from state to state. It is first and second fortnight of November for central Uttar Pradesh and north Bihar. However, mid October is optimum for Vidarbha region (Maharashtra). For early varieties, October end is the optimum, while late

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varieties can be sown up to mid November. In kharif, mid May – mid June is ideal. The spring crop can be sown from February – early March.

Seed Rate and Spacing Seed rate varies with seed size. Bold seeded varieties with a test weight of 350-450 g need 120-140 kg seed/ha, while in small seeded varieties, it varies from 80-100 kg/ha. The seed rate in intercropping may vary with row proportions.

Rajmash is generally sown in rows 30 cm apart. In northern plain, rabi rajmash is sown in rows of 45 cm. The plant-to-plant spacing is 10-12 cm. For obtaining good yield, its plant population should be 2.5-3.0 lakh plants/ha. 8-10 cm is the optimum depth of sowing.

Manures and Fertilizers French bean lacks biological N fixation because of poor or no nodulation. Hence, it needs liberal N fertilization (100-120 kg/ha). The crop requires 60 kg P2O5/ha and response to potassium and other micronutrients are rarely observed.

Irrigation Rajmash has shallow root system and hence moisture stress at any stage is detrimental to its performance. As a rainy season crop, it does not require irrigation, when rainfall distribution is even throughout crop cycle. However, rabi crop requires irrigation. Irrigation at 25 days after sowing (DAS) is critical. In north-east plains zone, 3 irrigations at 25, 75 and 100 DAS and in central zone 4 irrigations at 25, 50, 75 and 100 DAS are necessary for optimum crop performance.

Weed Control Rajmash suffers severe competition from weeds in initial stages. First 30-40 days after planting is the critical period for crop weed competition. One hand weeding at 30-35 days after sowing is found beneficial. Pre-emergence application of pendimethalin @ 1.0 kg/ha or pre-plant incorporation of 1.0 kg/ha of fluchloralin have been found effective in controlling weeds.

Cropping Systems In north India it is grown in spring season after potato or mustard. In the hills, it is intercropped between maize and soybean. In rabi, intercropping of potato + rajmash (3:2 ratio) is being practiced in central and eastern Uttar Pradesh and northern Bihar. Rajmash + linseed (2:1) is also found to be an efficient cropping system.

Pests and Diseases Bihar hairy caterpillar, blister beetle, bean bug and aphids are important insect pests of the crop. Rot (collar, stem and pod) and bean golden mosaic virus are important diseases limiting rajmash productivity.

Harvesting and Threshing At maturity, leaves and pods turn yellowish brown and majority of leaves drop. Delay in harvesting may cause shattering. Selection of shattering resistant varieties like HUR 137 is necessary to overcome this problem. The harvested crop is kept for sun drying for 5-7 days, and thereafter threshed.

Yield Under optimum conditions, 2.0-2.5 t/ha of grain and 3.0-3.5 t/ha straw yield can be obtained.

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Agronomy – Rabi Crops

Gram

Dr. I.P.S. Ahlawat Head,

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

GRAM Botanical name: Cicer arietinum Family: Fabaceae (Leguminosae)

Chromosome number: 2n=14 (Deshi) 2n=16 (Kabuli)

Gram commonly known as chickpea or Bengal gram is the most important winter (rabi) pulse crop in India. In India, gram accounts for more than one third of the area and about 50% of the production of pulses. India accounts for 65% of the world acreage and 67% production of gram at present (2004).

Dal, besan (flour), crushed or whole gram, boiled and parched, roasted or cooked, salted or unsalted, sweet preparation, green foliage and grain as vegetables are the important forms in which it is consumed by the people. Germinated seeds are recommended to cure scurvy. Malic and oxalic acids collected from green leaves are prescribed for intestinal disorders. Soaked grain and husk are fed to horses and cattle as concentrate and roughage, respectively. Straw forms an excellent fodder for cattle. Gram is considered to have medicinal effects, and is used for blood purification. Gram contains 21.1% protein, 61.5% carbohydrates and 4.5% fat. It is also rich in calcium, iron and niacin.

Origin and History Gram is said to be one of the oldest pulses known and grown from ancient times in Asia. Based on presence of closely related annual species Cicer reticulatum and C. echinospermum, Vander Maesen (1987) opined that south eastern parts of Turkey, adjoining Syria is the center of origin of chickpea. C. reticulatum is believed to be the wild progenitor of cultivated chickpea. There are 43 species of Cicer [34 wild perennials, and 9 annuals (8 wild, 1 cultivated)] of which only one is cultivated. Ethiopia is secondary center of chickpea, and Kabuli types have evolved in

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Mediterranean region. Archaeological evidences from Uttar Pradesh indicate their existence in 2000 BC. Gram is mentioned in Sanskrit, as chanaka indicating that it is grown in India from a longer period than any other country in the world.

Geographic Distribution

Globally chickpea is cultivated in over 40 countries with Asia accounting for 91.8% and 90.4% of global area and production, respectively in 2004. India Turkey, Pakistan, Mexico, Ethiopia, Australia and Spain are the major chickpea producers of the world. Globally Deshi chickpea accounts for over 85% of the area and chickpea productivity was the highest in Mexico and Myanmar (Table 1). In India, Madhya Pradesh is the largest producing state. The important states of India producing chickpea, their acreage, and productivity are given in Table 2. In the

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country, the area (10.34 m ha), production (7.02 m t) and productivity (853 kg/ha) of chickpea was the highest in 1959-60, 1958-59 and 1994-95 respectively.

Table 1. Area, production and productivity of chickpea in major producing countries of the world (2004)

Continent/country Area (m ha) Production (m t) Productivity (kg/ha)

Africa 0.482 0.324 672

Ethiopia 0.168 0.136 809

Malawi 0.088 0.035 398

Morocco 0.072 0.042 583

Tanzania 0.070 0.032 457

N.C. America (Mexico) 0.189 0.291 1545

Asia 10.049 7.771 773

India 7.100 5.770 813

Iran 0.755 0.310 411

Myanmar 0.208 0.230 1106

Pakistan 0.982 0.611 622

Turkey 0.660 0.620 939

Europe 0.103 0.089 862

Spain 0.080 0.057 709

Oceania (Australia) 0.113 0.116 1027

World 10.943 8.597 786

Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004

Table 2. Area, production and productivity of gram in important states of India (2004-05)

State Area (000 ha) Production (000 t) Productivity (kg/ha)

Andhra Pradesh 341.0 345.0 1012

Assam 2.1 1.1 524

Bihar 72.1 60.2 835

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State Area (000 ha) Production (000 t) Productivity (kg/ha)

Chattisgarh 210.5 114.1 542

Gujarat 122.7 98.5 803

Haryana 107.0 91.0 850

Himachal Pradesh 3.0 4.0 1333

Jammu & Kashmir 0.2 0.1 500

Karnataka 418.0 224.0 536

Madhya Pradesh 2746.5 2548.9 928

Maharashtra 830.0 466.0 561

Orissa 32.8 19.9 607

Punjab 5.1 4.4 863

Rajasthan 1035.2 773.0 747

Tamil Nadu 6.7 4.4 657

Uttarakhand 3.0 2.0 667

Uttar Pradesh 738.6 672.2 910

West Bengal 38.0 38.9 1024

India 6714.6 5469.4 815

Source: Fertilizer Association of India, 2006

Classification

Chickpea belongs to the tribe Cicereae and genus Cicer. The Indian grams have been classified in 2 broad groups.

1. Deshi or brown gram (Cicer arietinum L.): This is the most widely grown group. Plants are small, erect with good branching. The chromosome number is 2n=14, 16, 24 and 32. In this group, the colour of the seed ranges from yellow to dark brown. Seed size is usually small (5-12 mm) with irregular shape having a test weight of 170-260 g.

2. Kabuli or white gram (Cicer kabulium): It is grown in lesser area than the brown gram. Plants are erect taller than brown gram with moderate branching. The chromosome number is 2n=16. Grains are bold (test weight >260 g) and attractive. The colour of grain is usually white. Yield potential of this group is poorer than brown gram.

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Source: commons.wikimedia.org/

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Both these types produce about 50-100 pods/plant and each pod having up to 2 seeds.

Climatic Requirements Chickpeas requiring cool climate for growth and high temperature for maturity are grown between 10-32oN latitude in the country in the winter season. However, it is a crop of spring season beyond the sub-continent. The crop performs better at 24-32oC temperature. Pod set and seed filling are curtailed both at low (<5oC) and high (>30oC) temperatures. Germination and pollination are adversely affected at low temperature. It can not tolerate frost. This crop with deep root system can be grown on residual soil moisture in areas with 600-1000 mm annual rainfall. Heavy rains at germination and flowering are detrimental to the crop. Hailstorms at maturity are not desirable. Chickpea is quantitatively long-day plant requiring photoperiod >12 hours.

Soils and its preparation Gram is grown practically on a variety of soil types ranging from very light to heavy ones. In north India, it is cultivated on sandy loam to clay loam soils whereas in south on Deccan plateau and central India or Maharasthra, gram is raised on black cotton soils. The clay loams are the best. The optimum soil pH varies from 5.7-7.2. Soils with an electrical conductivity of >2 dS/m, exchangeable sodium percentage >15 and rooting depth <25 cm are not suitable for chickpea. Soils with high water storage (200-250 mm) are preferred for raising crop on residual moisture.

Gram needs cloddy and rough seed-bed for good aeration in root zone. Hence, a little land preparation is required. Desired seed-bed may be obtained by a deep ploughing followed by 2 harrowings. In diara lands, 1 ploughing by country plough brings about desired condition for sowing of crop. A deep summer ploughing is essential for higher retention of moisture in soils, where the crop is grown on residual soil moisture as in Haveli system of Madhya Pradesh.

Varieties A large number of varieties (over 130) were evolved in chickpea using pure line selection (~45), hybridization (~80) and mutation (four) breeding approaches. In recent times, there has been increased emphasis on evolving Kabuli chickpeas. The introduced Kabuli germplasms were used in cutlivar development in the country. C 104, L 550, L 144, BG 1003 (from Rabat cv of Morocco), BG 244 (from P 922 of Spain), BG 267 (from USA 163 of USA), BG 1053 (FLIP 88-120 of Syria), BG 391 (from ICC 3955 of Iran) are some of the Kabuli cultivars developed. For chhollia (green seeds) purpose ICCV 96029 and ICCV 96030 were found promising. Pusa 408, Pusa 413, Pusa 417 and RSG 2 are the varieties evolved through mutation breeding. The varieties recommended for different states (zones) are given below.

Varieties recommended for different stages and agroclimatic zones of India

State Variety

Uttar Pradesh Type 3, K 468, Pant G 114, K 4, K 5, Surya, Avrodhi, Pant G 186, Pragati (K 3256), Radhey, Sadabahar, Sadbhawana (WCG 1).

Punjab C 214, G 24, G 130, G 543, L 144, JK 92337, Puhle G 9531, Haryana channa 3, GL 769, Hare chhole 1, PBG 1, PBG 3

Haryana H 208, H 355, Gora Hisari

Madhya Pradesh JG 1, JG 5, JG 221, Ujjain 24, JG 322, JGG 1, Dahod yellow, JG 218, JG 74

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State Variety

Bihar and Jharkhand ST 4, BR 65, BG 77, BR 78, RAU 52

Rajasthan RS 10, RS 11, RSG 44

West Bengal B 110, B 124, B 104, Mahamaya 2 (B 115)

Tami Nadu Co 2, Co 3, Co 4

Maharashtra BDN-93, Chaffa, Dahod yellow, Hirwa Chaffa (AKGS-1), Phule G 12, Sweta (ICCV 2)

Karnataka Annegiri

Gujarat Dahod yellow, Gujarat Gram 2 (GCP-107), ICCC 4

Andhra Pradesh Sweta (ICCV 2)

NWPZ Alok (KGD 1168), Chamatkar, DCP 92-3, Gaurav (H-75-35), GNG-146, GPF-2, Haryana Channa-1, ICCV 6, K 850, Karnal channa-1 (CSG 8962), L 550, PBG-1, Pusa 256, Pusa 267, Pusa 329, Pusa 362, Pusa 372, Samrat (GNG 469), Surya (WCG 2), Udai (KPG 59), Vardan (GNG 663)

Central Zone BGD-72 (Dharwad Pragati), Gujarat Gram 2 (GCP 101), ICCV 6, JG 315, KAK-2, Kranti (ICCC 37), Pusa 372, Pusa 391, Vijay Phule (G 81-1-1), Vikas (Phule G2), Vishal (Phule G 87207), Vishwas (Phule G5)

South Zone Bharati (ICCV 10), JG-11, Kranti (ICCC 37)

NEPZ Gujarat Gram 4 (GCP-105), KWR 108, Pusa 256, Pusa Kabuli 1003, Uday (KPG 59), Vishwas (Phule G5)

Seed rate and Spacing

The seed rate varies from 80-100 and 50-70 kg/ha in kabuli and deshi chickpeas. Under late sown conditions, the seed rate may be increased by 25-40%. Kabuli types are sown in rows 45 cm apart, while deshi types and late sown chickpea are sown in 30 cm rows. The plant to plant spacing vary from 10-12 cm.

Seed should be treated with agrosan GN or thiram @ 2.5 g/kg seed to protect against seed borne diseases. Seed should be inoculated with Rhizobium and phosphate solubilizing bacteria.

Time of Sowing The optimum time of sowing vary from mid-October to mid-November. Rainfed crop should be sown at the earliest in October. Under irrigated conditions, second fortnight is the best. The sowing time in different states vary as is given below.

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State Rainfed Irrigated

Punjab and Haryana Second to third week of October

Fourth week of October to 15 November

Rajasthan First to 15 October

15-30 October in south and south-eastern Rajasthan; 25 October-15 November in Ganganagar distrist

Bihar and Gujarat 15 October to first week of November

First fortnight of November

Madhya Pradesh Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Jammu-Kashmir and Tamil Nadu

First fortnight of October

End of October to first week of November

Method of Sowing Broadcast of seeds should be avoided especially under rainfed conditions. The seeds should be sown in furrows behind the country plough, but the best method is to drill the seeds either by seed drill or by malabasa at a depth of 8-10 cm. Under irrigated conditions, shallow sowing (5-6 cm) is recommended.

Manures and Fertilizers Chickpea removes about 122 kg of primary (67.3 N + 6.6 P + 48 K), 34.7 kg of secondary (18.7 Ca, 7.3 Mg + 8.7 S) and 1000 g of micronutrients/ha (868 Fe + 70 Mn + 38 Zn + 11.3 Cu + 1.5 Mo) for every tonne of grain produced from the soil. Of these, the deficiency of N, P, Fe, B and S was found to limit yields to the tune of 10%, 29-45%, 22-90%, 100% and 16-30%, respectively.

Being a legume, it fixes atmospheric nitrogen in association with Mesorhizobium ciceri. In order to meet the initial N requirement of the crop between exhaust of seed N and effective nodule formation, a starter dose of 20 kg N is applied at the time of sowing. However, the crop may require high dose of N (40 kg/ha) when grown after rice, maize, jowar, and under late sown (December) conditions. The chickpea grown after potato and intercropped in autumn sugarcane would not require starter dose of N.

Phosphorus is the most critical nutrient limiting chickpea production. In general, kabuli types require more P fertilizer than deshi chickpeas. Further, the crop responses to P fertilization are greater in a vertisol (black) than alfisol (red soil) due to higher water holding capacity. The crop requires 0, 30 and 60 kg P2O5/ha in soil with available P of >22.5, 15.0-22.5 and <15.0 respectively in India. Placement of P fertilizer 5 cm below the soil is better than broadcast application.

The crop rarely responds to K fertilization. However, in red and alluvial soils, 15-30 kg K2O/ha is necessary for higher yields. In acidic soils, Ca and Mg deficiency may limit crop performance. Liming of such soils (with pH 5.5) is promising. Application of 20-30 kg/ha of S as gypsum (acidic soils) and sulphur (non-acidic soils) is also necessary. Soil application of 20 kg ZnSO4/ha is necessary for better crop performance in Zn deficient soils. Boron deficiency is also reported in the states of Orissa, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat. In such areas 0.5 kg B/ha application is necessary for arresting flower drop and enhancing yield. Similarly, Mo is found

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deficient in vertisols of Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. Seed treatment with 3.5 g sodium molybdate or 1 kg Mo/ha as soil application is necessary to overcome its adverse effects on yield. Its toxicity is common in saline and alkali soils.

Water Management Gram is mostly grown as a rainfed crop and is capable of extracting moisture from deeper layers. Most of its roots are usually confined within upper 2 feet of soil. However, where irrigation facilities are available, one pre-sowing irrigation (palewa) may be given for proper germination and better crop growth. In absence of winter rains, one irrigation each at pre-flowering and pod development stage may be applied. In no case, first irrigation should be given earlier than 4 weeks after sowing. No irrigation should applied at flowering time of crop. The crop should always be given light irrigation (50-60 mm) because heavy irrigation is harmful to crop. The water requirement of the crop varies from 250-400 mm. At present 30.6% of total chickpea acreage of the country is under irrigation.

Nipping Under irrigated condition, crop may sometimes make vigorous vegetative growth adversely affecting the development of reproductive structures. The practice of nipping may be required under such conditions. In this process, the apical buds of the crop are plucked, when the plants get a height of 15-20 cm i.e., 50 days after sowing. This helps in developing more lateral branching bearing flowers and pods. Nipping can also be attained through spraying of 75 ppm TIBA (Tri-iodo-benzoic acid).

Weed Control Gram, being a dwarf statured crop suffers severely by weed infestation. Uncontrolled weeds may limit chickpea yields by 40-87%. The initial 2 months period is critical for crop-weed competition. Of the 60 species invading chickpea, the dominant weeds include:

Chenopodium album L., Melilotus indica Pers., Lathyrus aphacas L., Medicago denticulata Wild, Trigonella polycerata, Polygonum phlebilium, Asphodeluc tenuifolius Cavan, Euphorbia dracunculoides Lamk, Trichoderma indicum, Phalaris minor Retz., Cyperus rotundus L.

The best time for weeding and hoeing is between 25-30 days after sowing. If the weeds persist after first weeding, another weeding should be done at about 60 days aftr sowing. Weeds can also be controlled effectively by herbicides for which fluchloralin @ 1.0 kg/ha should be used as pre-plant incorporation or pendimethalin @ 1.0 kg/ha as pre-emergence of oxadiazon @ 0.75 kg/ha as pre-emergence may be used. Intercropping chickpea with mustard reduces weed menace drastically.

Cropping Systems Gram is grown mixed with wheat, barley, rapeseed and mustard crop. It is grown mixed with toria in tarai region. The promising intercropping systems in different parts of the country are:

Intercropping system Row ratio

Chickpea + mustard 6:1

Chickpea+wheat 2:1

Chickpea+safflower/linseed 3:1

Chickpea+autumn sugarcane 2:1

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Gram is grown after the harvest of kharif crops like paddy, maize, sorghum, pearlmillet etc. Gram in rotation with several crops also helps in controlling soil-borne diseases. The most common rotations are:

• Paddy-gram (irrigated lowland) Pearlmillet-gram (irrigated uplands)

• Sorghum-gram (irrigated uplands) Maize-gram (irrigated upland and lowland)

• Cotton-gram (rainfed upland)

Harvesting and Threshing Crop becomes ready for harvest when leaves turn reddish-brown and start shedding. Plants are either plucked out by hand or cut with sickle. The crop is allowed to dry in sun on threshing floor for about 5-6 days. Thereafter threshing is done either by beating the plant with stick or by trampling by bullocks.

Yield A well managed deshi chickpea crop yields about 2.0-2.5 t grain/ha, while kabuli types yield 2.5-3.0 t/ha under irrigated conditions. Under rainfed conditions, the crop yields are generally 30-50% of the irrigated crop. The major yield attributes of chickpea were given below:

Attributes VALUE

Pods/plant 38.9

Seeds/pod 1.2

1,000 seed weight(g) – deshi

Kabuli

<250

250-400 g

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Agronomy – Rabi Crops

Lentil

Dr. I.P.S. Ahlawat Head,

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 01

LENTIL Botanical Name : Lens culinaris Medik

Chromosome Number : 2n=14

Lentil is one of the important and most nutritious rabi pulses. It has the potential to cover the risk of rainfed farming. It is also used as a cover crop to check the soil erosion in problem areas. The plants are ploughed back into the soil as green manure also. It derives the name Lens from the lens shaped seeds.

It is mostly eaten as ‘dal’. The dal is made by splitting the grain in 2 cotyledons, which are deep orange red or orange yellow in colour. The whole grain is also used in some of the dishes. It is also rich in calcium (560 ppm), iron, and niacin. It has the lowest content of lectins and trypsin inhibitors among legumes. Since it is a leguminous crop, it improves the fertility of soil biological nitrogen fixation. Lentil seeds also provide a source of starch for textiles and printing. Lentil residues form important livestock feed. Lentil floor is used for thickening of soups. It is mixed with wheat flour in bread and cake production.

Origin and History Lentil is considered to have its primary area of diversity in south-west Asia and Mediterranean region. The archaeological proofs indicate near-east Arc as place of primary domestication.

Geographic Distribution The important lentil-growing countries of the world are India, Canada, Turkey, Bangladesh, Iran, China, Nepal and Syria (Table 1).

Table 1. Area, production and productivity of lentil in various countries of the world

Continent/country Area (m ha) Production (m t) Productivity (kg/ha) Africa 0.118 0.078 653 North-central America 0.891 1.161 1304 Europe 0.058 0.055 947 Asia 2.758 2.366 858 India 1.450 1.100 759 Canada 0.751 0.962 1282 Turkey 0.439 0.540 1230 Bangladesh 0.155 0.122 789 Iran 0.250 0.125 500 Nepal 0.187 0.159 847 Syria 0.137 0.125 912 China 0.069 0.150 2174 Australia 0.119 0.083 698 World 3.958 2.753 948

Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004

India ranks first in the world in respect of production (0.99 m tonnes) as well as acreage (1.47 m ha). In India, lentil is mostly grown in northern plains, central and eastern parts of India. The major lentil producing areas are situated in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal (Table 2).

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Table 2. Area, production and productivity of lentil in different states of India (2004-05)

State Area (lakh ha) Production(lakh tonnes)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Assam 0.205 0.115 561

Bihar 1.787 1.270 711

Chhattisgarh 0.172 0.044 256

Haryana 0.086 0.082 953

Jammu & Kashmir 0.002 0.001 500

Madhya Pradesh 4.977 2.477 498

Maharashtra 0.055 0.014 255

Punjab 0.033 0.016 485

Rajasthan 0.288 0.286 993

Tripura 0.004 0.002 500

Uttar Pradesh 6.130 5.014 818

Utttarakhand 0.142 0.079 556

West Bengal 0.627 0.379 604

India 14.730 9.942 676

Source: Departmant of Agriculture and Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture, India Classification There are two cultivated species of genus Lens i.e. Lens esculenta Moench and Lens culinaris Medik. The wild species include L. orientalis (Boiss) Hand-Mazz, L. nigricans, L. erroids and L. montbretti. The cultivated species L. esculenta are classified into 2 sub groups according to size of the seed.

1. Sub-species microsperma: They have small seed of 2-6 mm diameter and are produced in India, Africa and Asia. Pods are complex and small.

2. Sub-species macrosperma: They have large seeds of 6-9 mm diameter and are grown in Mediterranean region and North America. Mostly pods are flat and large.

Botanical Description

Lentil is a herbaceous annual plant, mostly erect and bushy type with 4-6 primary branches. Lentil has well developed root system including a central tap root with several lateral branches spread out in all directions. The stem is weak and quadrangular. The leaves are small, compound and pinnate. The end of leaflets sometimes forms tendrils. The inflorescence is a receme of 2-4 flowers. Flowers are small, white tinged with blue violet or

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pink. Flowers consist of 5 sepals, 5 petals comprising of 1 standard, 2 wings and 2 keels, 10 stamens, 9 fused to form a staminal column. Ovary is short with 1 or 2 ovules, style curved and hairy on its inner surface. Pods are short, flattened, 1-1/2 cm long with curved beak. Pods contain mostly 2 seeds. Seeds are often light brown in colour and lens shaped. The crop is generally self-pollinated.

Source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Illustration_Lens_culinaris0.jpg

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Climatic Requirement The growth of lentil crop is adversely affected at temperatures above 27ºC. Hence, it is grown as a winter season crop in semi-arid tropics. It can be raised successfully from sea level to an elevation of 3,000 m. Unlike gram, it remains unaffected by rain at any stage of its growth including flowering and fruiting. It can be raised successfully with the moisture conserved in the soil during the monsoon season. The plant is hardy and can tolerate frost and severe winter to a great extent. It is moderately drought tolerant crop. Lentil requires cold temperature during its vegetative growth and warm temperature at the time of maturity. The optimum temperature for growth is 18o-30oC,

Soils and its Preparation Lentil is raised on light loams and alluvial soils in upper India, and on well-drained, moderately-deep, light-black soils in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. It is also grown on low-lands, poor soils. In Punjab, it is often cultivated on inundated lands. The crop can withstand moderate alkalinity. It con not tolerate waterlogging.

Soil should be made friable and weed free so that seed could be placed at a uniform depth. In case of light soils, less tillage is required to prepare an ideal seed-bed. In heavy soils, one deep ploughing followed by 2-3 cross harrowings should be given. After harrowing, the field should be leveled by giving a gentle slope for easy irrigation. There should be proper

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moisture in the soil at the time of sowing for proper germination of seeds. In utera/paira cropping system of rice-lentil in eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, seeds are sown in standing rice crop and therefore no tillage is done.

Varieties The bold and small seeded varieties suitable for different states/zones and their characteristics are given in Table 3 and Table 4.

Table 3. High yielding bold seeded varieties of lentil recommended for different states Variety Duration

(days) Yield (q/ha)

Recommended for Special characteristics

Pant L 234 130-150 15-20 Tolerant to wilt and rust diseases

NFL 92 (Narendra Masoor 1)

120-130 15-20

Uttar Pradesh

Resistant to rust and tolerant to wilt

JLS 1 120-130 10-15 Central plateau region

Tolerant to wilt

Bombay 18 130-140 10-12 Maharashtra, Punjab and Haryana

DPL 15 (Priya) 130-140 14-16 North-western plains zone

Resistant to rust and tolerant to wilt

DPL 62 (Sheri) 130-140 15-20 North-western plains zone

Resistant to rust and tolerant to wilt

L-4632 North western plains zone

Extra bold seeded variety

IPL 81(Noori) 110-120 10-15 Central zone Tolerant to wilt and rust K 75 (Malika) 120-125 14-16 North-eastern plains

zone and central zone

Pusa 4076 (Shivalik)

130-135 25-28 North-western plains zone and central zone

Resistant to rust and less affected from drought in comparison to deshi masoor

Pusa 1 100-110 15-20 Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana and Orissa

Pusa 4 130-140 20-25 Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal

Pusa 830 120-125 20-25 U.P. and Uttarakhand Disease susceptible variety

LL56 12-13 L-9

150-160 7-10

Delhi Good cooking quality

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Table 4. High yielding small seeded varieties of lentil recommended for different states

Variety Duration

(days) Yield (q/ha)

Recommended for Special characteristics

BR 25 125-130 15-20 Bihar and Madhya Pradesh

L 4147 (Pusa Vaibhav)

130-135 17.8 North-western plains zone

Resistant to rust and tolerant to pod borer

T 36 130-140 16-18 Uttar Pradesh Highly susceptible to wilt

Pusa 6 130-135 20-25 Delhi, UP, Haryana, Punjab, Bihar and West Bengal

Pant L 406 125-130 20-25 UP, Bihar, Punjab, North-eastern hills and north-western plains

Resistant to rust and some races of wilt

L 4584 L 830 120-125 8-12 PL 81-17 (Pant Lentil 4)

130-140 14-18 Resistant to rust and wilt

LH 84-8 130-140 14-16

North-western plains zone

Resistant to rust VL 4 150-160 10-12 Hilly areas of

northern, western and eastern states

Tolerant to wilt

Asha 125-130 14-16 B-17 120-125 15-20 B 177,S 256, S 177 125-130 15-20 B-235, C31,Ranjan 116-120 16-18

West Bengal

Pant L 639 130-140 18-20 North western plains Zone, north-eastern plains zone and central zone

Moderately resistant to shattering, resistant to rust and wilt complex

LH 82-6 (Garima) 130-140 12-15 Haryana Tolerant to rust and blight

PL 77-12 (Arun) 125-130 12-15 Bihar Tolerant to wilt BR 26 125-130 20-25 North Bihar LL 147 135-140 12-16 Resistant to rust L-9-12 125-130 15-20

Punjab

VL-1 165 10-12 Hilly areas of Uttar Pradesh and other states

VL-3 160-165 10-12 Tolerant to Ascochyla blight

T8 120-125 18-20

Uttar Pradesh

Susceptible to rust

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Other varieties: JLS 3, Sehore 74-3, VL Masoor 44, VL Masoor 103

Seeds and Sowing Seed rate: The optimum seed rate for normal sown crop is 30-40 kg/ha. Seed rate should be increased to 50-60 kg/ha in case of late sowing.

Treat the seed with benomyl or agrosan GN @ 2 g/kg of seed before sowing.The lentil seed should be treated with Rhizobium culture before sowing. After wetting the seed recommended for 1 ha with minimum amount of water, mix it thoroughly with 3 packets Rhizobium inoculant, dry in shade and sow the seed thereafter immediately.

Time of sowing The optimum time of sowing is the second fortnight of October. Delay in planting causes reduction in yield, but the magnitude of reduction is greater after 15 November. The reduction in yield could be minimized up to a certain extent by relatively closer spacing and use of higher seed rate. In central zone, where moisture is a limitation, early planting in mid-October is recommended to ensure proper germination. In north-west plains zone, end of October and in north-east zone, second fortnight of November is the optimum time of sowing under adequate moisture.

Method of sowing The crop should be sown in lines 30 cm apart by pora method. It can be sown by seed broadcast after the rice crop, where shortage of time and excess moisture condition do not allow good land preparation. Under late-sown conditions, the row spacing should be reduced to 20 cm. Lentil seed should be sown at a depth of 3-4 cm.

Manure and Fertilizers Generally lentil is raised without manure and fertilizers under rainfed conditions. There may be a need for small quantity of fertilizer N to serve as starter dose for a few weeks of initial growth or till the nodules are developed. In soils deficient in N and P2O5, significant responses of starter N (20-25 kg/ha) and moderate level of P2O5 (50-60 kg/ha) have been obtained. If soil test is not possible, apply 20-30 kg N and 50-60 kg P2O5/ha in medium to low fertile soils as basal. The crop also responds to 20 kg S/ha under both rainfed and irrigated conditions. Favourable crop responses to B and Mo have been reported in non-acidic and acid soils, respectively.

Lentils are often grown in rotation with rice. It is well known fact that rice fields are deficient in zinc. Therefore, it could be worthwhile watching the lentil crop for likely zinc deficiency. In initial stages of zinc deficiency, the leaflets start fainting-off. The deficiency can be rectified by spraying a solution of 0.5% zinc sulphate and 0.25% lime at the appearance of early symptoms.

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Water Management The crop is mostly grown in rainfed areas. Pod formation followed by flower initiation is critical stages for irrigation. Irrigation is important especially under late sown conditions due to poor root development. The crop requires 200 mm of water depending on soil and climate. Lentil requires 1-2 irrigations depending upon the rains during the growing season. First irrigation is applied 6 weeks after sowing and the second at flowering or pod formation stage.

Weed control Lentil, being slow in growth in early stages, suffers adversely from competition with weeds. The period from 30 to 60 days after sowing is most critical for competition with weeds. The major weeds found in lentil fields are Chenopodium album (Bathua), Lathyrus spp. (chatrimatri), Vicia sativa (ankari), Melilotus alba (senji) and Cirsium arvense (kateli), Convolvulus arvensis L. and Pluchea lanceolata. Maintenance of weed free period of 45-60 days from sowing is important. Two weedings 30 and 60 days after sowing are adequate.

Weedicides like fluchloralin (pre-palnt incorporation) and pendimethalin (pre-emergence) @ 0.75-1.0 kg/ha can be used for effective weed control.

Cropping Systems Lentil is grown mixed with barley, toria, rape and mustard crops. It is also raised as an intercrop in autumn sugarcane. Two lines of lentil may be sown 30 cm apart in the center of 2 sugarcane rows. The distance between sugarcane and lentil rows should be 30 cm. Intercropping of linseed+lentil (2:1), lentil+mustard (4-6:1) in Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh is also promising. Lentil is relatively more shade loving than gram. Hence, it performs better in mixed and intercropping systems.

Generally lentil is grown after the harvest of kharif crops or as the sole crop of the year. Rice-lentil is the most common rotations. The other lentil-based rotations are given below:

Groundnut – lentil Sorghum – lentil

Pearlmillet – lentil Maize – Lentil

Cotton – lentil Kharif fallow – lentil (rainfed areas)

Rice – lentil + mustard – maize (fodder)

Harvesting and Threshing Lentil should be harvested when the plants dry up and pods are matured. The plants should not be allowed to become over ripe as large quantity of produce may be lost due to shattering. Threshing is done either by beating the plants with sticks or trampling by bullocks. After threshing, seed is cleaned and dried in sun to bring moisture content to 12% for safe storage.

Yield A well-managed crop yields about 1.8-2.0 tonnes grain and 3.0-4.0 tonnes/ha of straw.The mean yield attributes of lentil are:

Attributes Value Pods/plant 55 1,000 seed weight (g) Small seeded Bold seeded

<26 >30

Fat% 1.8 Carbohydrate% 60.8

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10

Agronomy – Rabi Crops

Linseed

Dr. I.P.S. Ahlawat Head,

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

LINSEED Botanical name: Linum usitatissimum Linn.

Family: Linaceae Chromosome Numaber: 2n=30

Among the oilseed crops raised during rabi, linseed is next in importance to rapeseed-mustard in area as well as in production. In technical oil production, it ranks first in the country.

Every part of the linseed plant is utilized commercially, either directly or after processing. Seed contains 33 to 47% of oil. On a very small scale, the seed is directly used for edible purposes. About 20% of the total oil produced is used at farmer’s level, and the rest 80% oil goes to industries in various forms, such as boiled oil, borated oil, eposidized oil, aluminated oil, urethane oil, isomerized oil etc. The oil is rich (> 66%) in linolenic acid, and is a perfect drying oil. Hence it is utilized in the manufacture of paints, oil cloth, varnish, pad-ink, printed ink, linoleum etc.

The oil cake is a good feed for milch cattle and poultries and hence priced 50% higher than rapeseed-mustard cake. It is good in taste and contains 36% protein, 85% of which is digestible. It is also used as organic manure. It contains about 5% N, 1.4% P2O5 and 1.8% K2O.

Linseed is globally cultivated for its fibres and is called flax. Fibres are used for the manufacture of linen. The stem yields fibre of good quality having high strength and durability. The weather resistant fibre is lustrous and blends very well with wool, silk, cotton etc. Strong twines, canvas, suitings, shirtings and various indispensable products for defence purposes are manufactured from it. Woody matter and short fibres may be used as raw pulp for making paper of quality comparable with that of currency notes. The rough and strong

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linseed fibre can effectively be used for low-cost roofing tiles based on convertible polymers and for fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP).

Origin and History The genus Linum has 20 species spread in warm temperate Europe and Asia and 50 species spread in America. Most of the investigators are of the opinion that the wild flax (Linum angustifolium) which is a native of Mediterranean region may be the ancestor of the cultivated species Linum usitatissimum.According to Vavilov linseed or flax had two centres of origin.The small seeded type: These are grown mainly for oil purpose, and appear to have originated in south-western Asia comprising, India, Afghanistan and Turkey.The bold seeded type: These are grown for fibre purpose, and seem to have originated in the Mediterranean region including Asia Minor, Egypt, Algeria, Spain, Italy and Greece.

Geographic Distribution Linseed is one of the most important crops of the world cultivated in over 2.6 million ha. The important linseed growing countries are India, Canada, China, USA and Ethiopia. India ranks first in the world in respect of acreage accounting for 23.8% of the world total and third in production contributing of 10.2% of the world total. Canada and China are other main linseed producers in the world (Table 1). The productivity is the highest in Romania (1751.4 kg/ha). Table 1. Area, production and productivity of linseed in important countries (2004) Country Area

(m ha) Production (m tonnes)

Productivity (kg/ha)

India 0.630 0.200 317.5 Canada 0.528 0.517 978.8 China 0.550 0.460 836.4 USA 0.208 0.266 1273.7 Ethiopia 0.150 0.077 514.0 Bangladesh 0.070 0.050 714.3 Francce 0.080 0.054 677.9 United Kingdom 0.031 0.054 1741.9 Russian Federation

0.074 0.058 778.5

World 2.645 1.956 739.5 Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004

In India, it is cultivated on 0.53 m.ha with a production of 0.21 mtonnes. Its cultivation is mostly confined to Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Chattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Madhya Pradesh occupies 1st position in India in respect of both area and production (Table 2).

Table 2. Area, production and Productivity of linseed in different states of India (2003-04)

State Area

(000 ha)

Production (000 tonnes)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Andhra Prdaesh 5.2 1.3 250Assam 9.6 5.0 521Bihar 35.0 25.0 714Chattisgarh 86.0 24.2 281Himachal Pradesh 2.0 1.0 500

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State Area

(000 ha)

Production (000 tonnes)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Jammu & Kashmir 0.6 0.3 500Jharkand 18.0 5.0 278Karnataka 13.0 1.0 77Madhya Pradesh 156.8 70.8 452Maharashtra 87.0 22.0 253Nagaland 6.7 5.0 746Orissa 18.2 7.2 396Punjab 0.4 0.4 100Rajasthan 2.3 1.9 826Uttar Pradesh 78.7 39.9 507West Bengal 6.0 1.9 317India 525.5 211.9 403

Source: Hegde and Damodaran, 2005

Classification Howard and Rahman (1924) classified the Indian linseeds into three main groups based on colour of seed as Yellow or white coloured; Fawn coloured, and Brown coloured.

The above 3 groups are again sub-divided according to the colour of corolla, mainly white, light blue or purple.

In India, 6 species of Linum namely, L. usitatissimum, L.mysorense, L. angustifolium, L. grandiflour, L. perenne and L. strictum. Of these 6 species, angustifolium and grandiflour have been introduced into the country as ornamental types.

Botanical Description It is herbaceous annual plant growing to a height of 30-120 cm. Cultivars grown for seed (oil) are usually shorter than those grown for fibre production. The root system is usually shallow. The main tap root is slender and having numerous small lateral roots, that develop in the top 30 cm soil. Stems are narrow and may branch from the base. Seed varieties possess more branches than flax. The leaves are narrow and short, alternate on the stem and sessile. The leaves are linear to lanceolate and blunt at the apex. The inflorescence consists of a terminal panicle that bears numerous flowers. Flowers are usually white or blue, complete and perfect with 5 petals, 5 sepals and fine stamens. Linseed is normally a self-pollinated crop. The fruit is capsule, which is globular in shape. These are divided into 5 locules where seeds are borne. The seeds are flat, shiny and relatively small. The seed colour ranges from white to shining yellow or light brown.

Climatic requirements Linseed is a cool season crop. The temperature during the vegetative development of the crop should be moderate or cool. Temperature above 32oC accompanied with drought during the flowering stage reduces the seed yield, oil content in seed and also the quality of the oil. Moderate temperatures (21o-26oC) are ideal. At the time of flowering, frost is very harmful to the crop.

The crop is well suited to tracts of low rainfall and is generally raised where the average annual rainfall ranges from 45 to 75 cm.

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(Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flax)

Soils and its preparation Linseed can be profitably raised in places where the other crops may fail. Hence, it is often grown on marginal and sub-marginal rainfed soils as pure crop, mixed crop, intercrop and paira or utera crop. Linseed can be raised in almost all types of soils, where sufficient moisture is available, but it also does better on heavier soils having greater water-retention

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capacity. It is also tolerant to wide range of soil pH (5.0-7.0). However, it grows best on well drained loam to clay loam soils rich in humus. In Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, linseed is largely raised on black cotton soils having high clay and lime content. It is also raised on light alluvial soils of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal.

Land should be ploughed 2-3 times followed by 2-3 harrowings to bring a fine tilth. To conserve moisture, it is advisable to create a soil mulch with the help of a hoe after each good shower. Utera cropped linseed needs no land preparation, as it is broadcast in standing rice crop.

Seed and Sowing Seed rate, seed treatment, time of sowing and spacing Linseed is usually sown by broadcast or by drilling in rows. The seed requirement is more in bold seeded varieties and in utera cropping system. Treat the seeds with capatan or agrosan GN @ 2.5 g/kg seed before sowing. This ensures a good stand by protecting seedlings against seed borne diseases.An inter-row spacing of 20-30 cm and intra-row spacing of 7-10 cm are ideal. The time of sowing varies from early October to mid November in different states. Rainfed crop requires early sowing. Early sowing also helps the crop to escape from powdery mildew, rust and podfly menaces. The row spacing, seed rate and optimum time of sowing are given in Table 3.

Table 3. State-wise row-spacing, seed rate and optimum time of sowing of linseed State Rainfed /

Irrigated Row spacing (cm)

Seed rate (kg/ha)

Optimum time of sowing

Bihar Rainfed 25 20 Around 15th October Uttar Pradesh excluding Bundelkhand

Rainfed Irrigated

25 25

25-30 30

First fortnight of October Up to second fortnight of October

Bundelkhand

Rainfed Irrigated

25-30 30

30 25

First fortnight of October Up to second fortnight of October

Madhya Pradesh Rainfed Irrigated Utera

25 35 Broadcast

30 20 35

First to third week of October First week of October to first week of November Second to third week of October

Punjab Rainfed Irrigated Utera

25 25 Broadcast

30 30 40

Mid-October Mid-October to mid-November Mid-October

Karnataka Rainfed 25-30 20-25 First fortnight of October West Bengal Rainfed 25-30 20 First week of October Himachal Pradesh

Utera Broadcast 35 October

Maharashtra Rainfed 25 30 First fortnight of October

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Depth of seeding Depending upon the soil moisture, the seed should be placed 2-3 cm below the soil. However, shallow sowing is always advantageous if there is adequate moisture in the soil.

Varieties The linseed varieties recommended for different states are given in Table 4. Table 4. Linseed varieties recommended for different states

State Variety

Madhya Pradesh Jawahar-1, Jawahar-17, Jawahar-18, Jawahar-552, Jawahar-7, Jawahar linseed-9, Jawahar-23, T-397, Sheetal, Pusa-2, Padmini (LMH-62), Kiran (RLC-6), Parvati (LMH-16-5)

Uttar Pradesh BAU-204-1, Garima (LHCK-39), Gaurav, Hira, Jawahar-23, Jeevan (DLP-21), T-397, Swetha (LHCK-131), Subhara (LHCK-21), Shekhar (LCK-9313), Mukta, Sheetal, RL-993, Padmini, Neelum, Meera (RL-933), Shikha (LCK-8528), Laxmi-27, Rashmi (LCK-9216), Parvati

Bihar BAU-204-1, Gaurav, Jeevan, T-397, Swetha, Subhara, Sekhar, RL-993, Shikha, Rashmi, RL-914

Orissa Jawahar-23, Sheetal, Pusa-2, Padmini, Kiran

West Bengal BAU-204-1, Gaurav, Jeevan, Swetha, Subhara, Sekhar, Neela, RL-993, Meera, Shikha, Rashmi

Assam Gaurav, Jeevan, T-397, Swetha, Subhara, Sekhar, RL-993, Meera, Shikha, Rashmi

Maharashtra C-429, Jawahar-23, S-36, Jagadamba (RLC-4), NL-97, Sheetal, Pusa-2, Kiran

Rajasthan Jawahar-23, Triveni, T-397, Surabhi, Sheetal, RL-993, Pusas-3, Pusa-2, Padmini, Meera, Kiran, LC-54, Rashmi

Punjab Jeevan, Surabhi (KL-1), Pusa-3, LC-185, LC-54, Sheela (LCK-9211), K2

Haryana Jeevan, Surabhi, Pusa-3, Pusa-2, LC-54, Sheela, K2

Himachal Pradesh

Janaki, Himalini, Jeevan, Surabhi, Pusa-3, Pusa-2, LC-185, LC-54, Sheela, K2

Karnataka Jawahar-23, Sheetal, Pusa-2, Kiran

Manures and Fertilizers Linseed crop is generally grown without manuring. Application of 8-10 tonnes of FYM or compost/ha at the time of final field preparation is beneficial. In vertisols of Madhya Pradesh and alluvial soils of Bihar, best crop is raised with use of FYM and castor cake.

Improved varieties of linseed respond to fertilizers. Seed purpose crop require 60-90 (irrigated) and 40 (rainfed) kg N/ha, whereas, dual purpose crop needs still higher N dose (120 kg/ha). Similarly higher P fertilization (50 kg P2O5/ha) of dual purpose crop is necessary in comparison to rainfed (20 kg/ha) and irrigated (40 kg/ha) seed crop. Response to 20 kg/ha

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each of S and Zn is increasingly observed in irrigated crop under intensive cropping systems. Under irrigated conditions, half the dose of N with full amount of P, S and Zn should be applied as basal at sowing. The remaining N is applied with the first irrigation 35 days after sowing. The state-wise recommended fertilizers are given in Table 5.

Table 5. Statewise recommended dose of fertilizers (kg/ha) for linseed

State Situation N:P2O5:K2O

Bihar Rainfed 40:20:0 Uttar Pradesh excluding Bundelkhand

Rainfed irrigated

40:20:0 70:30:0

Madhya Pradesh Rainfed irrigated

30:15:0 70:30:0

Punjab Utera, rainfed irrigated

20:0:0 40:0:0 65:0:0

Karnataka Rainfed 40:20:0 West Bengal Rainfed 40:20:0 Himachal Pradesh Utera 20:0:0

Maharashtra Rainfed 40:20:0

Water management Linseed is a crop of rainfed areas (> 90%). However, it responds well to irrigation. Branching, flowering and capsule formation stages are critical for irrigation. Two irrigations are sufficient to obtain good yields. First irrigation should be applied 30-40 days after sowing and the second just before flowering. However, 3 irrigations (35, 55 and 75 days after sowing) have proved very effective.

Weed control This crop is usually dwarf statured, and therefore suffers severe competition by weeds. Initial 3-6 weeks after sowing is critical period of crop-weed competition. The uncontrolled weeds can reduce yields by 25-40%. The losses are more in rainfed and utera cropping systems primarily due to competition for moisture followed by nutrients.

The important weeds of linseed include Anagallis arvensis, Vicia hirsuta, Fumaria parviflora, Melilotus spp., Chenopodium album, Phalaris minor etc. The crop is parasitized by Cuscuta sp. leading to heavy losses of yield. Post emergence (2-3 weeks after sowing) application or Pronomide @ 1.5 kg/ha and crop rotation with cereals have been recommended for its effective management. Weeds can also be controlled by 2 weedings after 3 and 6 weeks of sowing. When crop is 8-15 cm tall or just before branching, post-emergence application of MCPB @ 0.5 kg/ha can effectively control annual broad leaved weeds.

Cropping systems

Linseed is a component of various sequential and intercropping systems. Higher monetary returns can be realized if linseed is grown as a pure crop instead of a mixed or intercrop. It is usually grown in rotation with hybrid maize, sorghum, pearlmillet, soybean, groundnut, cowpea etc. The intercropping systems suitable for different states are listed below.

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Cropping system Row ratio States

Linseed + chickpea 2-3:1 West Bengal, Bihar, Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Maharashtra, Karnataka

Linseed + wheat 2-3:1 West Bengal, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh

Linseed + sunflower

Linseed+ potato

3:1

Karnataka

Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh

Piara or utera cropping This system has been in practice for efficient use of residual moisture in rice fields, where tillage is a problem. About 25% of the linseed area (0.5 million ha) is under utera cropping. The area under linseed is increasing with the decline in khesari (Lathyurus) cultivation. In this practice, linseed is broadcast in the standing rice fields, when the rice crop is between flowering and dough stages. Linseed is allowed to complete its life-cycle under moisture stress, with inadequate nutrients and plant protection measures, resulting in poor yields. To raise the yield levels, the following package of practices should be adopted.

Improved varieties should be raised for the purpose of more productivity and good quality oil. Heavy textured soils with good water-retention capacity are ideal for this system. Adequate FYM or green manure should be applied along with phosphate fertilizers to rice. A dose of 20 kg N/ha should be applied 2 or 3 days before linseed is sown using a seed rate of 35-40 kg/ha. In cuscuta infested areas cuscuta seeds should be removed from the seed lot before sowing. Sowing linseed when rice is at the dough stage proves to be the best. Manual weeding should be given once or twice.Crack system of sowing is a new method, which can be followed in areas where sufficient water is available. In this method 5 cm deep cracks are allowed to develop in the field, when the rice crop is at the boot-leaf or panicle formation stage and the field is irrigated. After keeping the water standing for 5-7 days, the normal practice of utera is followed. This method has been found to give 50-100% more yields and has no adverse effect on rice yields.

Harvesting and Threshing The crop takes about 130-150 days to mature. At maturity, the leaves become dry, capsule turns brown and the seed becomes shiny. After harvesting, bundle the plants and leave them on threshing floor for 4-5 days for drying. Threshing is done by beating the plant with sticks or trampling by bullocks.

Yields The crop yield varies from place to place depending on the climate, soil, technology and variety. A well managed crop may yield 1.5-2.0 tonnes of seeds/ha.In linseed; oil to seeds crushed is 33% while cake to seeds crushed is 67%.

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Additional Links http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flax http://www.missouriplants.com/Bluealt/Linum_usitatissimum_page.html

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Agronomy – Rabi Crops

Niger

Dr. I.P.S. Ahlawat Head,

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

NIGER Botanical name: Guizotia abyssinica (L.f.) Cass

Family: Asteraceae (compositae) Chromosome Number: 2n=30

Niger, a minor oilseed crop i.e. important under rainfed conditions, coarse textured, poor soils especially on hill slopes.Niger seed is used as a human food. The seed contains 37-47% oil, which is pale yellow with nutty taste and a pleasant odour. The oil and seeds are free from any toxin and oil taste is similar to desi ghee. The oil is readily subject to oxidative rancidation rendering its keeping quality poor due to high content of unsaturated fatty acid (oleic acid 38% and linoleic acid 51.6%). The oil is used for culinary purposes, anointing the body, manufacturing paints and soft soaps and for lighting and lubrication

The niger oil is good absorbent of fragrance of flowers due to which it is used as a base oil by perfume industry.

Niger oil can be used for birth control and treatment of syphilis. Niger sprouts mixed with garlic and ‘tej’ are used to treat coughs.

Niger seed cake is a valuable cattle feed particularly for milch cattle. Niger meal with 30% protein and 17% crude fibre in India could replace linseed cake in calf ration. It can also be used as a manure. Niger is also used as a green manure for increasing soil organic carbon.

Geographic Distribution India is the most important country accounting for more than 50% of world niger area and production. Niger constitutes about 50-60% of Ethiopian oilseed production, with an area of nearly 2 lakh ha and production of about one lakh tonnes with a productivity level of 500 kg/ha. In Ethiopia, it is cultivated on water logged soils where most crops and all other oilseeds fail to grow and contributes a great deal to soil conservation and land rehabilitation.

In India, niger is grown on an area of 0.52 million ha mainly during kharif. However, in Orissa it is a rabi crop. Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Orissa contribute more than 80% of area and production. Other states where niger is grown are Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Karnataka and West Bengal (Table 1).

Table 1. Area, production and Productivity of Niger in different states of India (2003-04) State Area

(000, ha) Production

(000 t) Productivity

(kg/ha)

Andhra Pradesh 17.0 7.0 412

Assam 9.7 5.0 515

Chattisgarh 70.8 12.5 177

Jharkhand 27.5 5.3 193

Karnataka 7.0 1.0 143

Madhya Pradesh 112.2 25.8 230

Maharashtra 54.0 17.0 315

Orissa 130.2 31.9 245

West Bengal 8.0 5.0 625

India 437.0 111.0 253

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Origin and History The evidences suggest that niger originated in the highlands of Ethiopia, north of 10'N latitude. Cultivated niger might have originated from the wild species Guizotia scabra subsp. schimperi due to selection by Ethiopian farmers thousands of years ago. The genus Guizotia has 6 species. All species except G. abyssinica are wild and are endemic to East Africa especially Ethiopia (Table 2). From Ethiopia, the cultivated niger is believed to have spread to India during third millennium BC along with other crops, such as finger millet. Niger's wide dispersal in India is indicated by the great variety of local names for the plant and seed.

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The Plant Niger is an annual dicotyledonous herb. with epigeal germination. The root system is well developed , with a central tap-root and its lateral branching.

The stem of niger is usually round, smooth to slightly rough, hollow and moderately branched.

The fruit is an achene, small, 3-5 mm in length and 1.5mm in width, almost lanceolate in shape, without pappus. There are usually between 15 and 30 mature seeds/head; occasionally more, and a varying number of immature seeds or pops at the centre.

Crop Adaptation Niger is a crop of the cooler parts of the tropics. It grows well in mid altitude and highland areas (1600-2000 m), 500 and 2290 m above mean sea level in Ethiopia but can be found at lower (500-1600 m) and higher (2500-2980 m) altitude with adequate rainfall. Ethiopian niger types are short day and the Indian types are quantitatively short day in photoperiodic response. Ethiopian types flower best at 18oC day and 13oC night temperatures and 12 hours day length. Day length > 12 hours and temperatures of 23oC and above delay flowering. No such effect of temperature on Indian types was observed on flowering.

A rainfall of 1000 - 1300 mm is considered as the optimum. Growth is adversely affected in areas receiving rainfall above 2000 mm, but the plants can withstand high rainfall during vegetative phase. Hence it is most suitable crop for hilly regions of high rainfall and humidity. The peak flowering period of the crop should not coincide with the rainy period as this would affect pollination by honey bees, resulting in poor seed setting. High wind or hail, when the seed is mature, it will cause severe shattering. The crop can also withstand drought.

Soils Niger can grow on a wide range of soil types, but thrives best on clayey loams or sandy clays. The crop prefers well drained soils in the pH range of 5.2 to 7.3. Niger tolerates waterlogged soils, since it grows equally well on both drained soils or waterlogged clays. Niger is a salt tolerant but its flowering is delayed with increasing salinity.

Varieties

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The breeding work carried out at different locations under All India Coordinated Research Project on Oilseeds - Sesame and Niger (JNKVV, Jabalpur) since 1967, has resulted in the release of several varieties suited to different agroecological conditions (Table 3).

Table 3. Niger varieties recommended for different states

State Variety

Madhya Pradesh Birsa Niger-1, N-5, Ootacamund, Jawahar Niger Composite-1

Andhra Pradesh KRN-1 (No. 71)

Bihar Birsa Niger 1, N-5, Ootacamund

West Bengal KRN-1, Sahyadri

Orissas GA-10 (Shiva) (Deomali), Bhavani (GA-5), Sahyadri, KRN-1

Rajasthan/Maharashtra/ NEH/Uttar Pradesh

Sahayadri (IGP-76)

Karnataka Shrilekha Gujarat RCR-317 Tamil Nadu Paiyur-1, KRN-1 Land Preparation Niger being a small seeded crop require friable and levelled seed-bed to ensure uniform depth of planting and subsequent emergence. Good tilth for sowing is obtained by one or two ploughings followed by two harrowings wherever feasible. It is essential that the furrows run across slope to avoid soil erosion in the hill tops and slopy areas.

Seeding

Time of sowing

Optimum sowing time for kharif crop is from mid of June to early August whereas rabi crop can be sown from September (semi rabi) to December (rabi). Appropriate sowing period for niger in different states in India is given in Table 3.

Table 4. Sowing time for niger in different states

State Optimum time of sowing

Andhra Pradesh Second week of August Bihar Second fortnight of August-September (After kharif crop) Karnataka June-August Madhya Pradesh Second-third week of July Maharashtra July to early September (after kharif crop) Orissa Third week of July – first week of August

Second fortnight of August-September (after kharif crop)

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Seed rate and spacing Niger is a small seeded crop and seed rate varies from 5-8 kg/ha for sole cropping. Row widths varies from 20 to 30 cm and intra-row spacing from 10-20 cm. In Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh, a spacing of 30 x 10 cm is adopted. However, in Bihar and Maharashtra, wider intra row spacing (15 cm) is adopted keeping a row spacing of 30 cm. In Orissa, 20 x 20 cm spacing is recommended.

Method of sowing The most usual method of sowing is broadcast. However, line sowing using seed drills is recommended. When mechanical planters or drills are used, the seed should be sown 1-3cm deep, depending on soil type and the amount of soil moisture. Seed could be placed in soil up to 10 cm depth in loose soils provided the drill furrow should not be completely filled. The seed should not be mixed with fertilizer, nor placed in contact with it in the seed-bed. Seed must be sown into moist soil.

Seed treatment Seed treatment is recommended to protect the crop from seed borne or to some extent soil borne diseases. The seed should be treated with thiram, captan or any other mercurial fungicide at the rate of 3g/kg of seed prior to sowing.

Nutrient management It is generally grown on residual fertility in rabi or on fertilizers applied to associated crops. Nitrogen application seldom exceeds 50 kg/ha. At higher N application rates, seed oil content decreases.

Since niger is usually grown on the same land for many years either in pure stands or intercropped, 40 kg P2O5/ha is recommended. However. Lower level of 10 kg P2O5/ha would be sufficient, when niger follows well fertilized crops in a rotation.

Generally, entire quantity of P and half of N is applied at the time of sowing and the remaining half of N is topdressed 30-35 days later plants are about 30 cm in height or when the first bud is noticed.

Cropping Systems

Niger is sown as a sole or mixed crop with finger millet, castor, groundnut, soybean, sorghum, mungean, chickpea, sunflower etc. Niger is generally grown as the only crop in a year. In certain situations, this crop is rotated with little millet (Panicum miliare), early finger millet, common millet (Panicum miliaceum) etc. as given below:

State Sequential cropping Intercropping

Bihar Little millet – Niger; Early fingermillet – Niger

Niger + fingermillet (2:2); niger + pigeonpea (3:2); niger + soybean (2:1); niger + urdbean (2:2); niger + groundnut (2:2)

Maharashtra Fingermillet-niger horsegram-niger

Niger + urdbean (3:3); niger + mungbean (2:2); niger + fingermillet (2:2); niger + groundnut (6:3); niger + pearl millet (3:3)

Orissa Little millet – Niger; Niger + soybean (1:1, 2:2); niger +

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State Sequential cropping Intercropping

Common millet - Niger Finger millet – Niger

pigeonpea (2:2); niger + finger millet (6:3); niger + nroundnut; niger + castor

Karnataka Niger + sunflower (4:2); niger + groundnut (6:3); niger + finger millet (1:1)

Madhya Pradesh

Niger + soybean (1:1, 2:2); niger + mungbean (1:1); niger + groundnut (4:2, 6:3); niger + sorghum

Weed management Niger grows rapidly once the seedlings are established, and its vigorous growth allows it to compete with annual weeds, provided majority of weeds are removed in pre-planting operations. Two weedings are generally adequate. The first weeding should be done at the time of thinning (15 days after sowing), and if required, second weeding is done before top dressing of N or just before appearance of first bud.

In Orissa, dodder (Cuscuta chinensis L.) has become a problematic parasitic weed bringing down the seed yield by 60-65%. As a precautionary measure, seeds should be obtained from cuscuta free areas. A 90% control of dodder has been achieved using propyzamide @ 1.5-2.0 kg/ha as post-emergence (20-25 days after sowing). The cuscuta can also be controlled by pronamide @ 2 kg/ha) as pre-emergence soil treatment on the next day of sowing and as post-emergence foliage treatment at 20 days after sowing.

Water Management Niger, a kharif crop, is seldom irrigated. Seedling stage is most critical for irrigation. However, established niger plants can withstand high soil moisture levels and recover to produce a good seed yield. Irrigation must be given at the seedling stage for proper growth of the crop. Check basin or border strip system of irrigation is ideal for niger.

Harvesting and Threshing Niger normally matures in about 80-145 days after emergence. Correct time of harvesting of niger is important to avoid shattering.

In India, the crop is harvested when the leaves dry up and the head turns blackish. After drying in the sun for about a week by stacking on the threshing floor, the crop is manually threshed or threshed by bullocks.

Yield

As a pure crop, a seed yield of 0.4-0.5 tonnes/ha while as an intercrop 0.15-0.30 tonnes/ha can be obtained depending on the crop and the row ratio.

The oil to seeds crushed is 28% and cakes to seeds crushed are 72%. The main yield attributes of niger are given below.

Attribute Value

Seeds/head 15-30

1,000 seed weight (g) 3-5

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Table 2. Distribution and Characteristics of niger species

Species Distribution Characteristics

Annual

Guizotia abyssinica (L.F.) Cass

Cultivated in East African & Indian sub-continent

-

G. scabra (Vius.) Chiov. Ssp.

Schrni peri (Sch. Bip. In Walp.) Bogg

Native to Ethiopian highlands Moderastely branched weed especially in niger cultivation, with outer involural leaves ovate, shorter than disc center

G. villosoo Sch. Bip. Distributed in Northern and South-western Ethiopian highlands

Highly branches, weed of open palces

Perennials

G. scabra (Vis.) Chiov. Ssp. Scabra

Distributed widely from Ethiopia to Ziumbabwe in the south to the Nigerian highlands in the west

Moderately branches, scabrous, suffrutescent herb and differentiated from annual ssp. Schimperi in having outer involucral leaves lanceolate

G. reptans Hutch A rare species with distribution restricted in Mount Kenya, the Aacberdares and Mount Elgon region in East Africa. It is only sp. not reported in Ethiopia

Sparsely branches, a creeping, meet foming herb

G. zavattarii – Lanza Endemic in distribution around Mount Mega in Southern Ethiopia and Hari Hills of Northern Kenya

An erect, glandulous predominantly shrub habit

G. arborescens L. Frcis.

Endemic to South West of Ethiopia and Imontong mountain on the border between Sudan and Uganda

A rare arboreal species

Additional Resources

http://www.bioversityinternational.org/publications/pdf/136.pdf

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Agronomy – Rabi Crops

Potato

Dr. I.P.S. Ahlawat Head,

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

POTATO Botanical name: Solanum tuberosum L.

Family: Solanaceae

Chromosome Number :2n=12 (Diploid)

2n=24 (Triploid)

Potato is the most important food crop of the world. It is being cultivated in the country for the last 300 years. For vegetable purposes, it has now become one of the most popular crops in India. Potato is an economical food, as it provide a source of low cost energy to human diet. Potato is rich source of starch, vitamins specially C and B1 and minerals. It possesses 20.6% carbohydrates, 2.1% of protein, 0.3% fat, 1.1% crude fibre and 0.9% ash. It also contain a good amount of essential amino acids.

Potatoes are used for several industrial purposes such as production of starch and alcohol. Potato starch (farina) is used in laundries and sizing yard in textile mills. They are also used for the production of dextrin and glucose. As a food product itself, they are converted into dried products such as potato chips, sliced or shredded potatoes and potato flour etc.

Source: http://personales.ya.com/botanical/Solanum_tuberosum.jpg

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Origin and History There is a controversy about the origin of potato. According to some scientists it originated in the bresslessalti plane of higher Andean region of Peru and Bolivia, South America at an elevation between 3500 to 4500 m above sea level. Other group of scientists opined that potato is originated in Chile and on islands of the coast of Chile, on western coast of South America.

Potato is believed to have been introduced in India from Europe in early 17th century. Since 1830, it is being grown as a commercial crop. With the establishment of the Central Potato Research Institute, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh in 1949, the area, production and productivity of potato have increased by 385, 1147 and 157% respectively. Today India ranks fifth in area and production in the world.

Geographic Distribution Globally potato is cultivated on an area of 18.95 million ha with total production of 330.3 million tonnes (2004). The important potato growing countries are China, Russian Federation, India, Ukraine and USA (Table 1).

Table 1. The area, production and productivity in major potato growing countries (2004)

Country Area

(m ha)

Production

(m tonnes)

Productivity

(t/ha)

China 4.50 70.03 15.55

Russian Feb. 3.13 35.91 11.47

Ukraine 1.56 20.75 13.34

Poland 0.71 13.99 19.63

India 1.40 25.00 17.86

Belarus 0.51 9.90 19.45

USA 0.47 20.69 43.80

Germany 0.30 13.04 44.17

Romania 0.27 4.23 15.93

Peru 0.25 2.99 11.96

World 18.95 330.30 17.43

Source: FAO Production Year Book, 2004

In India, potato is grown in almost all the states of India under diversified agroclimatic conditions. The major potato growing belts are:

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State Areas of state

Himachal Pradesh Shimla, Lahaul Spiti and Mandi

Punjab Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Ludhiana and Patiala

Uttar Pradesh Farukhabad, Etawah, Mainpuri, Barabanki, Allahabad, Badaun, Moradabad, Agra, Aligarh, Mathura, Faizabad

Madhya Pradesh & Chattisgarh

Sindri, Satna, Rewa, Sarguja, Raigarh, Sagar, Tikamgarh

Rajasthan Bharatpur, Dholpur

Gujarat Khera, Dissa, Banaskantha, Jamnagar, Vadodara, Mehsana

Orissa Cuttack, Dhenkanal, Puri and Sambalpur and West Bengal

Maharashtra Pune, Satara, Kolhapur, Nasik

Karnataka Belgaum, Hassan, Kolar and Dharwad

Andhra Pradesh Medak, Chitture

Bihar/Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu

The Nilgiris, Dhindigul

About 90% of the total potato area is located in the sub-tropical plains, 6% in the hills and 4% in the plateau region of peninsular India. Indo-Gangetic plains account for major (> 80%) potato production in the country. Uttar Pradesh has the largest area and production of potato, followed by West Bengal and Bihar (Table 2).

Table 2. Area and production in major potato growing states of India in 2004-05

State Area

(000 ha)

Production

(000 tonnes)

Jammu & Kashmir 7.1 117.4

Chattisgarh 12.9 130.2

Meghalaya 18.0 149.4

Himachal Pradesh 14.1 151.9

Maharashtra 17.4 163.3

Orissa 12.9 165.1

Haryana 18.4 441.7

Uttaranchal 22.1 448.5

Assam 73.1 589.0

Karnataka 60.0 603.2

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Madhya Pradesh 52.2 782.5

Gujarat 43.3 978.2

Punjab 72.9 1470.2

Bihar 318.0 5656.7

Uttar Pradesh 440.0 9821.7

West Bengal 320.6 7106.6

India 1542.3 29188.6

Source: National Horticultural Board, 2005

Classification The genus Solanum consists of 7 cultivated and about 154 wild species. However, the commercially viable potato has only 2 species Solanum andigenum (The plants are characterized with thin and long stems, small and narrow leaflets having profuse flowering and long stolons. The tubers are mostly covered with deep sunken eyes on them. The yield potential is very low, and therefore it is not grown on large scale) and Solanum tuberosum (It is more common having shorter and thicker stem, larger and wider leaflets). In addition to the above 2 species, Solanum lemissum and S. stenotonum are also of some importance, but not being cultivated commercially.

Botanical Description Stem: The upper most part of the sprout develops into the aerial stem or haulms. The aerial stems are angular, pubescent or glabrous, green or purple. These haulms may have anthocyanin pigment in them when the tuber is green coloured. The axillary branches may spread erect giving a close appearance or may spread out giving an open appearance.

Leaves: The leaves of potato are alternate and compound (occasionally bi compound). There are 3-4 pairs of leaflets arising in succession along the rachis. The leaflets are more or less opposite. As 12-15 leaves present in an undeveloped bud (about 28 on a sprout of 2 cm long) and possibly 40 is the maximum produced on any one axis.

Root: The root of potato is adventitious arising from the base of a sprout. The root growth is usually restricted to top layers, at a depth of about 20-25 cm from soil surface.

Flower: The flowers are the terminal clusters. Each flower normally has 5 stamens, two called pistil, 5 sepals and 5 petals united for about half their length. Most varieties bear infertile pollens and hence fruits or berries are not generally formed. In some of the varieties, fruits or berries are formed. The inflorescence is a compact recemose type born on the apex.

Tuber:The tubers are morphologically an underground stem which bear eyes or buds that sprout and develop into haulms or branches. These tubers are formed on the stolon (appearing from the base of haulm or underground side shoots which are very similar to roots in early stage).

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Flowers & Tuber

Climatic requirements Potato is a cool season crop grown in areas, where mean temperature does not normally exceed 18oC. Optimum temperature for potato growth and development ranges between 15 and 25oC. Minimum night temperature is of great significance for tuberization and yield. Temperature below 21oC is favourable for tuber formation. The tuberization ceases at temperatures above 30oC. Under high temperature, the plants are elongated, leaves become wrinkled and plants have silky appearance. Cloudy days, rains and high humidity are conducive for spread of fungal and bacterial diseases. At low temperatures, the vegetative growth of the plant is restricted, and at temperatures near freezing point there is a permanent and often irrecoverable injury to potato. That is why potato is grown as a summer crop in hills and as a winter crop in tropical and subtropical regions of the country. Potato prefers long day conditions for its growth. However, in India, most of the crop is cultivated under short days in plains during winter (rabi) season.

Potato zones in India

Based on soil and climate, potato growing areas are grouped into 5 zones.

Western Himalayan zone

It comprises hills of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand. In general, the soils are acidic with varying textures and depth of soil. The crop experience moisture stress at early stages and excess moisture at tuberization. Based on altitude, it is divided into 3 sub-zones (a) very high hills zone: comprising areas with 2500-3000 m altitude. The crop

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is grown during summer and kharif (b) high Himalayan region: comprising areas with 1800-2500 m altitude. The crop is raised in summer as rainfed and (c) Mizo-hills: having areas with 1,000-1,800 m altitude falls. The crop is raised during spring season.

Plains zone This zone extends from Punjab to West Bengal divided into sub-zones. (a) north-western plains (Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan), the crop is grown mainly in rabi and spring seasons. It is important for seed potato production, (b) north-central plains (western Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh) and (c) north-eastern plains (eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Orissa and West Bengal). The later 2 zones account for major potato acreage and production in the country. The potato is grown as winter (rabi) crop.

North-eastern hills zone It comprises of hilly areas of West Bengal, Sikkim and 7 north east states. In this sub-zone, crop is grown from January-August (high hills) and from August-December (low hills).

Low hills and Plateau zone It comprises potato growing states of Central and Peninsular Indian states of Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Orissa, parts of Madhya Pradesh. Potato is grown as a rainfed (July-September) as well as irrigated (November-February) crop. In shrink and swell soils (vertisols), tubers are exposed to light.

Nilgiri and Kodaikanal hills zone (Tamil Nadu) The potato is cultivated all the year round i.e. summer (March-Septemebr), autumn (August-January) and winter (January-May). The first two season crops are rainfed whereas the last is irrigated and grown in valleys.

Varieties A large number of high-yielding varieties of potato suited to different agro-climatic conditions have been evolved and released for cultivation on farmer’s fields. Characteristics of some of the important new high yielding varieties are given below.

For Plains Early varieties

Variety Duration

(days)

Yield (t/ha)

Special features

Kufri Chandramukhi 80-90 25-30 The variety is susceptible to early blight

Kufri Alankar 75 (plains) 130 (hills)

35 Poor keeping quality and ideal for multiple cropping

Kufri Shakti 95-110

Kufri Navtal (G-2524

90-100 20-25

Kufri Bahar 100-110 25-26

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Kufri Badshah 120 25-30 Moderately resistant to early and late blight

Kufri sheetman 100-110 25 Drought tolerant crop

Kufri Chamatkar 110-130 25-30 Resistant to early blight and susceptible to mosasic and leaf curl

Kufri Navjot 125-130 20 Resistance to late blight

Medium to Late Varieties

Kufri Sindhuri 120-140 30-35 Plains of northern India

Kufri Red 120

Kufri Kisan 95-110 Plains of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi

Kufri Navtal (G-2524

90-100 20-25 Suitable for both plains and hills

FOR HILLS

Kufri Jyoti 110-120 18 Hills of Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal and Khasi (Assam)

Susceptible to cracking

Kufri Jeevan 160 17.5 Hills of Himachal Pradesh

Resistant to late blight and wart

Kufri Naveen 150 20-30 Hills of Assam Resistant to blight and rotage diseases

Kufri Neelmani

150 25-40 Nilgiris in south India Excellent cooking quality and pleasant flavour

Kufri Moti 100-110 25-26 Nilgiris Resistant to blight

Kufri Lauvkar 70-80 Deccan plateau

Kufri Lalima 90-105 25 North Indian plaisn Susceptible to late blight and scab. Has large round red tubers

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Kufri Kumar 150-160

Kufri Kundan 120 Northern hills

Kufri Navjot 100-110 (plains)

120-130 (hills)

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Latest varieties of potato Kufri Jawahar; Kufri Ashoka; Kufri sutlej; Kufri Pukhraj; Kufri Chipsona 1 (for making chips); Kufri Chipsona 2 (for making chips); Kufri Giriraj; Kufri Anand.

The varieties recommended for different states and zones are given below.

State Varieties

Madhya Pradesh Kufri Chandramukhi, Kufri Kissan, Kufri Jawahar, Kufri Badshah, Kufri Neelmani, Kufri Lauvkar

Maharashtra Kufri Chandramukhi, Kufri Kissan, Kufri Kuber, Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Ashoka, Kufri Red, Kufri Naveen, Kufri Lauvkar

Uttar Pradesh Kufri Kissan, Kufri Chamatkar, Kufri Badshah, Kufri Bahar, Kufri Navtal, Kufri Shakti, Kufri Kundan, Kufri Seetman, Kufri Chandramukhi, Kufri Ashoka, Kufri Jawahar, Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Kundan, Kufri Deva, Kufri Sutlej, Kufri Chipsona-1, Kufri Chipsona-2

Delhi Kufri Kissan, Kufri Badshah, Kufri Bahar, Kufri Chandramukhi, Kufri Alankar, Kufri Chamatkar

Himachal Pradesh

Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Jeevan, Kufri Navtal, Kufri Kundan, Kufri Chandramukhi, Kufri Jawahar

Assam Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Naveen, Kufri Megha, Kufri Khasigaro, Kufri Jeevan

Punjab and Haryana

Kufri Chamatkar, Kufri Kissan, Kufri Kuber, Kufri Chandramukhi, Kufri Jawahar, Kufri Ashoka, Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Sutlej, Kufri Badshah, Kufri Sindhuri

Rajasthan Kufri Chamatkar, Kufri Alankar, Kufri Badshah, Kufri Bahar, Kufri Sindhuri, Kufri Jeevan, Kufri Naveen, Kufri Kanchan

Bihar Kufri Kissan, Kufri Kuber, Kufri Ashoka, Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Red, Kufri Chandramukhi

Gujarat Kufri Jawahar, Kufri Kuber, Kufri Alankar, Kufri Pukhraj, Kufri Chamatkar, Kufri Kissan

Karnataka Kufri Jawahar, Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Chandramukhi, Kufri Sindhuri, Kufri Kuber, Kufri Alankar, Kufri Safed, Kufri Anand, Kufri Badshah, Kufri Bahar, Kufri Deva, Kufri Chamatkar

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Meghalaya Kufri Naveen, Kufri Megha, Kufri Ashoka, Kufri Kuber, Kufri Lalima, Kufri Pukraj, Kufri Sutlej, Kufri Chopsona-1, Kufri Chipsona-2

West Bengal Kufri Red, Kufri Naveen, Kufri Kanchan, Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Lalima, Kufri Badshah, Kufri Bahar, Kufri Sindhuri, TPS C-3, HPS 1/13

Tamil Nadu and Nilgiri Hills

Kufri Neelmani, Kufri Pukhraj, Kufri Kundan, Kufri Chamatkar, Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Neela, Kufri Navajat, Kufri Kanchan, Kufri motum

Indian Plains Kufri Chandramukhi, Kufri Sheetman, Kufri Badshah, Kufri Lalima, Kufri Kissan, Kufri Pukhraj, Kufri Kuber, Kufri Safed, Kufri Sindhuri, Kufri Alankar, Kufri Sutlej, Kufri Jawahar, Kufri Deva

Southern hills Kufri Swarna, Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Chandramukhi, Kufri Giriraj, Kufri Kundan, Kufri Jeevan, Kufri Kumar

Plateau region of Peninsular India

Kufri Chandramukhi, Kufri Badshah, Kufri Jawan, Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Kuber, Kufri Pukhraj, Kufri Lauvkar

Northern, western and eastern hills

Kufri Kundan, Kufri Sheetman, Kufri Kumar, Kufri Giriraj, Kufri Navtal, Kufri Lalima, Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Jeevan, Kufri Kumar, Kufri Megha, Kufri Naveen

Soils Potato can be grown on a variety of soils, but prefers a friable, well drained, fertile soils. Well-drained sandy loam and medium loam soils are ideal. Light textured soils with high humus content favour tuber development and harvesting becomes easier. With adequate fertilization, potato grows well even in sand. Excellent potato crop is grown under river bed system as cultivastion in Deesa (district Banaskantha) in Gujarat. The potato plant prefers soils which are acidic to neutral range (pH 5.5-7.5). Black soils are, however, prone to cracking on drying and expose tubers to sun and tuber moth infestation. Non-sodic and non-saline soils are best for potato.

Land preparation Tuberization prefers to have pulverized tilth, which may be obtained by giving two ploughings with mould board plough followed by two harrowing, planking and removal of weeds and plant residues or stubbles. Before planting the tubers, it must be ensured that the soil has sufficient moisture required for quick and uniform germination.

Seed rate and sowing Prime requisite to obtain maximum production of potato depends on the selection of potato seed. Hence, pure and healthy seed is necessary for successful cultivation of crop. The seed tuber should be purchased from trusted agency.Select medium size (25-55 mm, weighing 35-45 g) unshrivelled tubers of uniform shape and colour for cultivation. Seed tubers infected with diseases like wart, scab, brown rot and nematode must be separated before planting.

Seed treatment The seed tubers should be treated with aretan or tefaran or agallol or captan or dithane M-45 (1 kg in 45 litres of water) for protecting them from various fungal diseases. The tubers should be dipped in solution for 20-30 minutes. To break dormancy, the whole seed tubers

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must be given a vapour treatment of ethylene chlorohydrin (1 litre/2.0 tonnes of seed tubers), but the cut tubers should be treated with 10% aqueous solution of thiourea (1 kg thiourea /tonne of seed tuber) by dipping for an hour. The treatment should be followed by a treatment with GA (1 ppm gibberelic acid for 10 minutes) for successful breaking of dormancy of tubers.

Seed tubers should be used for sowing just after taking out from cold store. These must be spread in cool, shady and ventilated place having diffused light for accelerating the sprouting of tubers as sprouted tubers give higher yield than unsprouted ones.

Sowing time It is essential to plant potato at the optimum time so as to ensure proper growth and provide longer period for tuberization. The best time of planting is when the maximum and minimum temperatures ranges from 30 to 32oC and 18 to 20oC, respectively. The planting time for different potato zones are given in the Table 3.

Table 3. Optimum time of potato planting in different zones

Zone/State Sowing time (season)

Western Himalayas

Mid hills January-February

High and very high hills March-April and May

North western plains Mid-September – Early October

North central plains Mid-September – October (Autumn)

December-January (Spring)

North-eastern plains

Bihar End of September

West Bengal October-November

North-eastern hill zone

Darjeeling hills Mid-December – mid January (Spring)

Shillong hills February-March (Summer)

Low hills and Plateau zone

Madhya Pradesh Last week of October-First fortnight of November

Maharashtra and Karnataka Last week of June – Early July (kharif)

IIIrd week of October – Ist week of November (rabi)

Nilgiri and August-September (Autumn)

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Kodaikanal hills zone January (rabi)

March-April (summer)

Seed size, spacing and seed rate The ideal tuber size for planting should be 3.5-5.0 cm in diameter and approximately 30-50 g in weight. It is established fact that potato yield increases with increase in seed size and decrease in spacing. However, the seed size and spacing depend upon the variety and the purpose for which the crop is grown. Higher seed rates are used for raising a good seed crop, but lower seed rate (preferably cut pieces) for ware potatoes (Table 4).

Table 4. Seed size, spacing and seed rate in potato

Crop Seed size Spacing Seed rate (q/ha)

Early crop 2.5 cm x 3.0 cm in diameter 45 cm x 15 cm 10

Seed crop 4.0 cm x 5.0 cm in diameter 50 cm x 20 cm 25

Ware crop 2.5 cm x 4.0 cm in diameter 60 cm x 25 cm 20

Method of planting There are 4 popular methods of planting potato tubers in India.

Flat bed planting: This method is common in areas having light sandy soils. Planting of tubers is done on flat surface in very shallow furrows and planking is done. Two earthings, first 25-30 days after sowing, and the second 40-50 days after sowing are required.

Planting on ridges: After preparation of field, the ridges of 30 cm height and 60 cm width are made at a distance of 45-60 cm. Planting of potato is done on the ridges at a distance of 15, 20 and 25 cm in early, seed and ware crops, respectively.

Planting in furrows: This method is adopted in irrigated and light sandy soils, where also 2 earthings as in flat bed planting is done. Potatoes are planted in furrows and immediately after planting tubers, small ridges are made.

Planting by potato planter: recently potato crop is planted mechanically by planters.

Manure and Fertilizers Potato is a heavy feeder of nutrients due to its shallow root system. Hence, it needs adequate fertilization for good growth and yield of tubers.

Role of organic matter is well established. According to organic matter content of the soil, a dose of 20-30 tonnes/ha of well decomposed FYM, leaf mould or compost should be applied. An application of 0.3-0.5 tonnes/ha of well powdered neem cake helps to control the insect pest and also supplies plant nutrients. The fertilizer needs of potato varies with planting material, purpose of the crop raising and soil characteristics. The recommended dose of fertilizer for different crops and zones is given in Table 5 and 6.

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Table 5. Fertilizer scheduling for potato crop

Rate of nutrients to be

applied (kg/ha)

Time of application Type of the potato crop

N P2O5 K2O Basal Top dressing

Early crop 80-100 60-80 80-100 50N+P+K 50 N

Main crop 100-120 60-80 80-120 60N+P+K 60N+30K

Late crop 100-120 60-80 100-150 60N+P+120K 60N+30K

Hill crop 100-120 60-80 100-150 60N+P+120K 60N+30K

Mid hill crop 80-120 80-120 100-150 Whole amount -

Table 6. Fertilizer needs of potato in different zones

Fertilizer dose (kg/ha) Zones Soil

N P2O5 K2O

Plains Alluvials 180-240 80-100 100-180

Low hills and plateau zone Vertisols 100-120 60 60

Nilgiris & Kodaikanal hills Acidic hill soil 90-120 135-150 90

Western Himalayan zone Acidic hill soil 100-150 100-150 60-120

Entire P and K fertilizers along with 50% N are applied at the time of planting. The remaining N should be top dressed at the time of earthing up.

Ammonium sulphate, CAN and Ammonium sulphate nitrate are better sources than urea. Superphosphate and DAP are the sources of phosphorus. Sulphate of potash is the best source for potassium. Potassium chloride should not be applied.

The fertilizer needs for rabi crop are relatively higher than kharif crop. Adequate potassium fertilization in Punjab is essential to arrest frost and late blight losses. For processing, large sized tubers are preferred by industry and application of higher N and P doses are required for this crop.

In acidic soils of Tamil Nadu and Meghalaya, liming with 2.5 t/ha and application of MgCO3 @ 30 kg/ha is necessary to avoid Ca and Mg deficiency.

Among micronutrients, Zn, Cu and Fe deficiency are more often encountered in potato. The deficiency of these micronutrients are more in sandy soils with alkaline pH (>8.5) and free CaCO3. The rates and methods of micronutrients fertilization in potato are given in Table 7.

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Table 7. Micronutrient fertilizer scheduling for potato crop

Micronutrient salts Soil application (kg/ha)

Spray application (g/100 litres of water)

Tuber soaking treatment (g/100 litres of water)

Zinc sulphate 25 200(0.2%) 50(0.05%)

Manganese sulphate

25 200(0.2%) 50(0.05%)

Ferrous sulphate 25 200(0.2%) 50(0.05%)

Copper sulphate 25 200(0.2%) 50(0.05%)

Ammonium molybdate

2 100(0.1%) 20(0.02%)

Sodium borate 2 100(0.1%) 20(0.02%)

Water Management Potato crop is very responsive to irrigation. It requires frequent and light irrigations at low moisture tension irrespective of the varieties. Furrow method of irrigation is main system of irrigation. In no case water should reach more than two-thirds height of ridges. The lengths of the ridges depend upon the soil type, slope and source of water. The frequency of irrigation also varies with water table and soil type. In medium to heavy soils, 3-4 irrigations would be sufficient. On the other hand, sandy soils having low water table would require 8-12 irrigations.

Over flooding results in soil compaction of the ridges which results into poor aeration and poor tuber development. The most critical stages for irrigation in potato are stolonization followed by tuberization, which generally coincide with 30-35 and 55-60 days after sowing. Since potato crop can not tolerate waterlogging, removal of excess water is essential to get good yield.

Under soil related constraints (undulating topography, very high/poor infiltration soils) pressurized irrigation may be beneficial. In sprinkler and drip system, fertilization is advised. The former method is also useful in protecting crop from frost.

Earthing Proper development of tubers depends upon proper aeration, moisture availability and proper soil temperature. Therefore, earthing up is most essential operation. Potato tubers are modified under ground stems, which use to synthesize anthocyanin and chlorophyll, if exposed to sunlight. Therefore, it is essential to cover the tubers fully with soil because with chlorophyll formation the tubers stop accumulation of starch and remain smaller, and the solanin formation in green tubers results into bitter taste of tubers. Number of earthing and height of ridges after earthing depends upon the method of planting and soil type. In case of flat bed planting, two earthings at 25-30 days and 45-50 days after sowing are given. In case of furrow planting method, light ridging is done up to a height of 10-15 cm soon after sowing and second earthing is done about 30-35 days after sowing. Earthing should be done when the plants are 15-22 cm high. Generally earthing is done at the time of top-dressing of nitrogenous fertilizers. A ridger may be used for earthing up in large area.

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Weed control Weed infestation in potato causes a drastic reduction in tuber yields. Initial 4-5 weeks after emergence of seedlings is critical period of crop weed competition. Frequent irrigations, coupled with heavy fertilization offer favourable conditions for weed growth. The important weed flora of potato is given below.

Zone Grasses Dicots Sedges

Plains Poa annua/pratensis

Phalaris minor

Polypogon monspeliensis

Amaranthus viridis

Avena fatua

Anagallis arvensis

Chenopodium murale

Coronopus didymus

Fumaria parviflora

Trianthema portulocastrum

Spergula arvensis

Cyperus rotundus

C. iria

Hills Digitaria spp.

Eleusine spp,

Erogrostis spp.

Pennisetum clandestinum

Amaranthus spp.

Cannabis sativa

Spergula arvensis

Chenopodium album

Oxalis latifolia

Melilotus indica

Rumex spp.

Cynodon dactylon

Weeding in potato should be done as soon as weeds emerge, but preferably when potato plants are about 8-10 cm high. When manual and mechanical hoeing are not feasible, use of herbicides are inevitable.

The most common pre-emergence herbicides used to control weeds in potato crop are atrazine (0.3-0.5 kg/ha), simazine (0.3-0.5 kg/ha), 2,4-D (0.5 kg/ha), metribuzin (0.7-1.0 kg/ha), oxyfluorfen (0.15 kg/ha), dichloromate (1-2 kg/ha) and pendimethalin (1.0 kg/ha). Fluchloralin (0.7-1.0 kg/ha), EPTC (1.5-2.0 kg/ha) as pre-planting may also be used to check the weeds in potato crop.

For controlling perennial weeds like Cyperus (motha) and Cynodon (doob) grass paraquat may be sprayed @ 0.4-0.6 kg/ha. Spraying should be done at a stage when potato plants are emerging to the extent of only 5-10% and weeds have germinated on the ridges.

Cropping System

Potato can be raised as companion crop in autumn-planted sugarcane crop where 2 rows of potato can be taken between 2 rows of sugarcane. A companion cropping with mustard, wheat, barley can be done without much reduction in the tuber yield of potato.In potato + mustard cropping, seed tubers of 4 rows are planted in 3 rows by reducing plant-to-plant spacing and fourth row is used for sowing mustard. In potato intercropped with barley, wheat or maize, the later crops are grown in every alternate furrow of potato after an early

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earthing up of potato (25 days sowing). The important intercropping systems are given below.

Intercropping Row ratio Location

Potato-rajmash 3:2 Central & eastern Uttar Pradesh and north Bihar

Potato+cotton 1:1 Dharwad ( Karnataka)

Potato+maize 1:1 North Bihar and Madhya Pradesh

Onion/garlic+potato 1:2 Shimla (Himachal Pradesh)

In the irrigated areas, many crop rotations involving potato are feasible. Being a short duration crop, it fits well in many intensive crop rotations. Some of the important rotations are given below.

Maize-potato-sugarcane Soybean- potato-okra

Maize- potato-greengram Sesame-potato-groundnut

Cowpea-potato-wheat Maize-potato-wheat

Maize-potato-maize Maize-potato-potato

Maize-potato-onion Rice-potato-sesamum

Potato-jute-rice Rice-potato-greengram

Rice-cabbage-potato Rice-potato-wheat

Harvesting Crop should be harvested when haulms start yellowing and falling on the ground. At this stage, haulms should be removed from the ground level. The crop should be harvested about 15 days after removing the haulms. Suitable tractor operated potato diggers are available now for digging the potatoes in larger areas. There should be optimum moisture in the soil at the time of harvest. After digging the tubers, these may be allowed to dry on the ground for some time in shade.

Yield By adopting the recommended package of practices, an yield of 30-40 t/ha can be obtained. However, in hills except lower valleys, the yields are less than 25 t/ha.The growth and yield attributes of potato are as follows:

Attribute Value

Plant height 30-45 cm

Number of stems/hill Number of stems/hill

Number of stems/hill Number of tubers/hill

5-9

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Tuber yield/hill 0.2-0.5 kg

Post-harvest care The irrigation in the crop should be stopped about 20-25 days before digging the tubers. This helps in proper skin curing of tubers so that they do not get bruised off their skin while digging or during transport. After harvesting, tubers should be brought in cool shady place and spread in thin layers. After a week, these tubers are stored and graded. The cut tubers should not be brought to the store from the field as they are the first to start rotting and affect other tubers also.

Grading of Tubers In order to assure uniform quality of superior grade tubers and to get remunerative returns, it is essential to grade them according to their respective sizes. The potatoes of the plains may be graded as follows:

Seed size tubers

large size tubers

chats (tubers with <20 g weight)

The potato tubers obtained from hills are graded as:

Special size with a diameter of 8 cm and above

Phool size with a diameter of 3-5 cm

Ration size with a diameter of 2.5 cm or below

The tubers separated by mechanical graders are classified into 4 grades based on tuber weight as below:

Grade Tuber weight (g)

A >200

B 150-200

C 100-150

D 50-100

Seed production

A healthy seed crop may be taken with the help of seed plot technique. For seed production, healthy seeds (tubers) free from viral infection and other diseases should be obtained and treated with Avtar 0.25% solution. Tubers should be planted from 15 October to 25 October at a row-to-row distance of 60 cm and plant-to-plant distance of 15-20 cm. A lower dose of nitrogen (80-100 kg/ha) should be applied to check excessive plant growth. The crop should be carefully examined and protected at least 3-4 times from diseases and pests infestation. The crop should be given light irrigation. Towards 15 December when the crop has tuberized well, restrict irrigation and withheld completely later on, so that haulms dry up and consequently escape aphid build up towards 15 January. Remove tops between 12-20 January. Leave the tubers underground till 30 January so that they mature and their skin hardens.

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Additional Reading Material: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potato<a href="http://www.britannica.com/eb/art-30550"> potato</a> http://www.potato2008.org/en/potato/index.htmlhttp://www.niir.org/books/book/zb,,131_a_0_0_a/Potato+and+Potato+Products+Cultivation,+Seed+Production,+Manuring,+Harvesting,+Organic+Farming,+Storage+and+Processing/index.htmlhttp://research.cip.cgiar.org/confluence/display/wpa/India

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Agronomy – Rabi Crops

Rapeseed And Mustard

Dr. I.P.S. Ahlawat Head,

Division of Agronomy Indian Agricultural Research Institute

New Delhi – 110 012

RAPESEED AND MUSTARD Botanical Name: Brassica spp

Family: Brassicaceae (Cruciferae)

Rapeseed and mustard are the third most important edible oilseed crops of the world after soybean and oil palm. ‘Rape’ is a Latin word means turnip. ‘Mustard’ also a Latin term ‘must’/‘mustum’ denotes expressed juice of grapes and ‘ardens’ means hot and burning. Rapeseed and mustard comprise of 6 species as given below.

1. Indian mustard [Brassica juncea (L.) Czern. & Coss.]

Brassica juncea (L.) Czern. (Source:USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A.

Brown. 1913. An illustrated flora of the northern United States, Canada and the British Possessions. Vol. 2: 193.

2

Brassica juncea

Source: Tennessee Vascular Plants Atlas Source: www.oardc.ohio-state.edu/.../single.asp?strID=51

3

2. Toria (B.rapa L. ssp. toria); Yellow sarson (B.rapa L. ssp. Yellow sarson); Brown sarson (B.rapa L. ssp. Brown sarson). B.rapa is synonym to B. campestris

http://www.svlele.com/rapeseed.htm

Brassica rapa L. (Source : http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/ © Br. Alfred Brousseau, Saint Mary's College.)

4

Brassica rapa Source © 2004 Robert E. Preston, Ph.D.

Brassica rapa seeds: Source: Carole Ritchie. Provided by ARS Systematic Botany and Mycology Laboratory. Sweden, Svalof.

5

3. Gobhi sarson (B. napus L.) www.missouriplants.com/

B. napus L (Source: Wikipedia) Canola seeds

Brassica napus

6

4. Karan rai (B. carinata Brown)

B. carinata Brown (Source: http://cpi.blogfa.com)

5. Black mustard (B. nigra (L.) Koch)

Brassica nigra L.: (Source: Wikipedia)

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Brassica nigra L. (Source: http://tenn.bio.utk.edu/vascular/database)

Black Mustard seeds

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6. Taramira (Eruca sativa Mill.).

Eruca vesicaria (L.) Cav. ssp. sativa (P. Mill.) Thellung

Source : uvalde.tamu.edu/herbarium/erve.htm

Eruca vesicaria (L.) Cav. subsp. sativa (Mill.) Thell. Seed Pods

. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arugula

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These crops are grown under a wide range of agro-climatic conditions. Indian mustard is the most important member of the group, accounting for more than 70% of the area under rapeseed-mustard, followed by toria, yellow sarson and brown sarson. Taramira is raised on very poor sandy soils with low rainfall. Mustard and sarson group of plants, however, are grown both on sandy and heavy soils under irrigated as well as rainfed conditions. These crops are commonly cultivated in areas of marginal and submarginal productivity, either mixed or intercropped with wheat, barley, gram, pea, sugarcane, lentil etc. In areas of advanced agronomy, they are chiefly grown as pure crop.

The oil content varies from 37 to 49%. The seed and oil are used as condiment in the preparation of pickles and for flavouring curries and vegetables. The oil is utilized for human consumption throughout the northern India, in cooking and frying purposes. It is also used in the preparation of hair oils and medicines. It is used in the manufacture of greases. The oil cake is used as feed and manure. Green stem and leaves are a good source of green fodder for cattle. The oil cakes contain ‘sinirgin’, that causes palatability problem due to its bitter taste, and glucosinolate that limits use of oil cake as protein supplement. The leaves of young plants are used as green vegetables as they supply sulphur and minerals in the diet. In the tanning industry, mustard oil is used for softening leather.

Origin Brassica juncea is the oldest cultivated amphidiploid, and is believed to have originated from B. rapa and B. nigra in Asia minor and southern Iran. Song et al. (1988) based on RFLP (Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism) studies suggested two centres of origin viz. Middle-East and China. B. rapa (rapeseed) is grown as leafy vegetable (China and Japan), oilseed (India) and as turnip-rape (Europe). Want et al. (1995) suggested Anhui Province (South China) as the center of origin of B. rapa. based on erucic acid content. However, Reiner et al. (1995), based on taxonomic studies, advocated Europe as its center of origin. Brown sarson is the oldest

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form of B. rapa from which yellow sarson (mutant for seed colour) and toria (selections for early materials) have been evolved. B. napus has recently evolved in the South-West Europe and Mediterranean region by repeated hybridization between B. rapa and B. oleracea. It contains both oilseed and swede types.

B. carinata has originated in East African plateau by hybridization between B. nigra and B. oleracea. It is widely cultivated in North-East Africa particularly in Ethiopia.

B. nigra called “Sarshap” (in Sanskrit) is cultivated as spice since 3000 BC. It is closely related to Sinapis arvensis. It is widely distributed in Europe, Africa, Asia minor, Afghanistan, India, Palestine and Syria.

Eruca sativa is native to South Europe and North Africa and is a recent introduction into India.

Geographic Distribution Rapeseed and mustard are grown in 53 countries of the world on 26.09 m ha area with a production of 46.84 m tonnes Of this rapeseed accounting for 25.21 m ha area and 46.12 m tonnes production is thus more important than mustard. The area and production of rapeseed (Table 1), mustard (Table 2) and rapeseed and mustard (Table 3).

Table1.Area, production and productivity of rapeseed in important countries (2004)

Country Area (m ha)

Production (m tonnes)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Asia 13.405 20.000 1492.5 Australia 1.351 1.496 1107.5 Bangladesh 0.279 0.211 756.3 Belarus 0.124 0.143 1153.2 Canada 4.937 7.728 1565.1 China 7.330 13.182 1798.4 Chechoslovakia 0.351 1.197 3411.7 Denmark 0.121 0.468 3843.2 Europe 5.075 16.125 3176.9 France 1.126 3.994 3546.8 Germany 1.283 5.276 4111.4 Hungry 0.104 0.290 2775.1 Lithuania 0.100 0.204 2034.8 Oceania 1.353 1.500 1108.6 Pakistan 0.386 0.401 1038.9 Poland 0.538 1.632 3033.9 Russian Fed. 0.231 0.275 1190.7 Ukraine 0.107 0.148 1387.7 United Kingdom 0.558 1.609 2883.5 USA 0.338 0.608 1797.5 USSR 0.675 0.951 1409.0 World 25.212 46.120 1829.5

Source: FAO Production Yaer Book, 2004

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Table 2.Area, production and productivity of mustard in important countries (2004)

Continent/Country Area

(m ha) Production (m tonnes)

Productivity (kg/ha)

Asia 0.286 0.195 679.8 Canada 0.304 0.305 1004.9 Europe 0.263 0.193 735.1 Myanmar 0.063 0.040 634.9 Nepal 0.186 0.132 711.5 Russian Federation

0.093 0.055 592.1

Ukraine 0.100 0.070 700.0 World 0.884 0.721 815.4

Source: FAO Production Yaer Book, 2004

Table 3. Area, production and productivity of rapeseed and mustard in important countries (2004)

Country Area

(m ha) Production (m tonnes)

Productivity (t/ha)

India 5.400 6.200 1.15 Australia 1.351 1.496 1.11 Canada 5.241 8.033 1.53 China 7.350 13.197 1.80 Czech Republic 0.301 0.978 3.25 Denmark 0.121 0.468 3.84 Ethiopia 0.028 0.031 1.08 France 1.127 3.996 3.55 Germany 1.286 5.280 4.11 Hungary 0.104 0.290 2.78 Lativia 0.054 0.103 1.91 Lithunia 0.101 0.205 2.20 Nepal 0.187 0.133 0.71 Pakistan 0.386 0.401 1.04 Poland 0.538 1.633 3.03 Romania 0.066 0.112 1.71 Russian Federation

0.325 0.331 1.02

Slovakia 0.095 0.266 2.78 Sweden 0.084 0.228 2.71 Ukraine 0.207 0.219 1.06 UK 0.558 1.609 2.88 USA 0.366 0.633 1.73 World 26.096 46.848 1.79

Source: FAO Production Yaer Book, 2004

In India, it is grown in 23 states and union territories. Of the total production (5.08 m tonnes) of the country, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana accounts for over 71%

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(Table 4). The area (7.04 mha) and production (6.66 mt) and productivity of rapeseed and mustard reached its peak in 1997-98 and 1996-97 respectively.

Table 4. Rapeseed and mustard production in major states of India in 2001-02 State Production

(m tonnes) Rajasthan 1.943 Uttar Pradesh 0.845 Haryana 0.796 West Bengal 0.337 Madhya Pradesh 0.459 Gujarat 0.292 Assam 0.137 Others 0.273

India

5.083

Source: Department of Agriculture and Co-operation, Ministry of Agriculture, GOI.

Classification There is a lot of confusion and misunderstanding about the nomenclature and kinds of rape and mustard that are raised in India. Singh (1958) tried to remove this confusion by giving the following nomenclature of Indian rape and mustard (Table 5).

Table 5. Classification of rapeseed and mustard grown in India Indian group

International commercial name

Common name

Local name Chromosome No.

Sarson Indian colza, colza rape

Turnip rape Yellow sarson 20

Turnip rape Brown sarson 20 Indian rape Yellow toria or

lahi 20 Toria Indian rape

Indian rape Black toria or lahi 20 Indian mustard Rai or raya or lahi 36 Rugosa Pahari rai 36

Rai Mustard

Black mustard Banarsi rai 16

Dhauli rai (B. hirta

White sarson Ujli sarson

Taramira Rock cress Duan, garden rock salad

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Botanical Description Rapeseed (Brassica campestris var. sarson and toria) It is a herbaceous annual plant. The plant is shorter in height (45-150 cm) than mustard (rai). The roots are more or less confined to surface layers with an extensive lateral spread. The stem is usually covered with a waxy deposit. In rape, leaves are borne sessile and are glabrous and hairy. Fruits are thicker than those of mustard (rai) and are laterally compressed, with a beak one-third to half their length. Seeds are either yellow or brown with

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a smooth seed coat. Rape is self-pollinated, but cross pollination also takes place to some extent.

Mustard (Brassica juncea) It is known as rai, raya or laha. The plants are tall (90-200 cm), erect and more branched. The plant bears normally long and tapering roots. The leaves are not dilated at the base and clasping as in the case of rape, but are stalked, broad and pinnatified. The fruits (pods) are selender and only 2.0-6.5 cm long strongly ascending or erect with short and stout beaks. The colour of seed is brown or dark brown. Seed coat is rough. Mustard is self-pollinated, but cross-pollination also takes place to some extent.

Yellow mustard seeds

Flowers of both the species have 4 sepals and 4 petals of deep yellow to pale yellow colour. Each flower has 6 stamens; 4 with long and 2 with short filaments. The pistil is compound, which is separated by a false septum, thus providing 2 chambers.

The main characteristics of three main types of rapeseed are given below:

Difference between yellow and brown sarson Character Yellow sarson Brown sarson

Lower most first 2 leaves

Lamina prominent up to base of the leaf

Lamina partially absent in basal half

Colour and texture of leaves Dark, glaucous, fleshy Pale, glaucous, thin

Branching Branches erect, ascending, straggling plants absent. The primary branches arise from 10-20o angle of shoot

Rather erect to spreading, straggling plants occasionally present. The primary branches arise at 23-43o L of shoot

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Character Yellow sarson Brown sarson

Corolla Diameter 14 x 15 to 17 x 16 mm. Average length of claw blade is 10.2 mm. Length of claw is 3.2 mm and width of petal is 5.1 mm. Petals narrow with spaces between adjacent ones

Diameter 15 x 16 to 20 x 19 mm. Average length of claw blade is 11.4 mm. Length of claw is 3.6 mm and the width of blade 7.1 mm. Petals broad, generally overlapping

Anthers All the 6 anthers introrse in the bud and in open flower

All the 6 anthers are introrse in the bud but in the open flower the anthers of 4 medium stamens are extrorse

Pods Thick and broad, never torulose Thin and narrow, sometimes torulose

Seeds Dingy white or yellow, non mucilaginous

Dark brown, brown or reddish brown and are mucilaginous

Fertility Self fertile Highly self fertile

Maturity One week later in flowering & maturity

At least a week earlier in flowering and maturity

Difference between brown sarson and toria Character Brown sarson Toria

Leaves and stems At least lower leaves and lower part of stem are more or less hairy, leaves thin

Leaves and stem glabrous, leaves somewhat fleshy

Seeds Dark coloured, mucilaginous Light coloured, non-mucilaginous

Maturity Flowers and matures at least a fortnight later than toria, if sown at the same time

Flowers and matures atleast a fortnight earlier than brown sarson when sown at the same time

Period of sowing It is sown in Oct.-Nov. and harvested in March-April as rabi crop

It is a late kharif season crop, sown in September and harvested in Decmeber

Cultivation and uses May be grown mixed mostly as rainfed. It is used as oilseed, fodder, vegetable oil and preferred for culinary purpose

Grown pure with irrigation for oil purpose; plants are not good for vegetable purpose and oil is used for ordinary purpose only

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Climatic requirements Rapeseed and mustard are crops of temperate climates, but these can also be cultivated at higher elevations in the tropics. Crop requires about 18-25oC temperature, low humidity, practically no rains specially at the time of flowering. The crop growth is optimum at <25oC, while it ceases at <3o and >35oC. Rainfall, high humidity and cloudy weather are not favourable for the crop during winter, as such conditions would invite aphids. However, under rainfed conditions, 1 or 2 pre-flowering rains help in boosting the grain yield. Excessive cold and frost are harmful to the crop. Toria is more liable to suffer from frost and cold. Therefore, it is usually sown earlier, and harvested before the onset of frost. Rapeseed and mustard are long day in photo-periodic response. They require an annual precipitation of 40-100 cm. These crops also do not tolerate waterlogging. Soils Generally these crops thrive best in medium or heavy loam soils, except taramira which is raised on lighter soils. Very light soils usually cause a severe moisture stress resulting in a poor crop growth. Rape is tolerant to salinity and can be grown as first crop in reclaimed lands. Soils with an electrical conductivity (EC) of >4 dS/m and exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP) > 15% are not suitable. Soils with pH <5.0 and >9.0 are not suitable for these crops. Soils having pH 6.0-7.5 is ideal for their proper growth and development.

Land preparation These crops require a fine, firm, moist seed-bed so that adequate moisture is assured for germinating seeds and young seedlings. To achieve this, field should be given one pre-sowing irrigation (palewa). The field should be given a deep ploughing soon after the kharif crop in the middle of September. Thereafter, it may be ploughed 3-4 times with country plough followed by planking after each ploughing. Weeds and stubbles should be removed from the field.

Seeds and Sowing Maintenance of optimum plant population is essential for getting good harvests. The seed rate depending on type of crop varies from 4-10 kg/ha. Seed rate and spacing recommended for different states are presented in Table 6.

Table 6. Seed rate (kg/ha) and spacing (cm) recommended for rapeseed, mustard and taramira in different states

Mustard Toria Brown sarson Yellow sarson Taramira State

Seed rate

Spacing Seed rate

Spacing Seed rate

Spacing Seed rate

Spacing Seed rate

Spacing

Assam 10.0-15.0

West Bengal

6.0* 30x10 6.0* 30x10 6.0-7.5

30x10 6.0-7.5

30x10 45x10

Orissa 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0

Bihar 5.0-6.0

30x22 5.0-6.0

30x22 5.0-6.0

30x10 5.0-6.0

30x10 5.0-6.0

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Mustard Toria Brown sarson Yellow sarson Taramira State

Seed rate

Spacing Seed rate

Spacing Seed rate

Spacing Seed rate

Spacing Seed rate

Spacing

Uttar Pradesh

5.0-6.0

45x15 4.0 30x10-15

5.0 5.0

Madhya Pradesh

5.0-6.0

45x15 4.0 30x10

Gujarat 3.0 45x15 3.5 45x15

Rajasthan 4.0-5.0

30x10 4.0-5.0

30x10 4.0-5.0

30x10 4.0-5.0

30x10 5.0 30x10-15

Delhi 4.0-5.0

45x15 5.0 30x10 5.0 30x10 5.0 30x10 5.0 30x10

Haryana 5.0 30x10-15

5.0 30x10 5.0 30x10 5.0 30x10 5.0 30x10

Punjab 3.5-4.0

30-45 x 10-15

3.5-4.0

30x10-15

3.5-4.0

30x10-15

3.5-4.0

30x10-15

4.5 30x10-15

Jammu & Kashmir

10.0

Tripura 6.0 20x10

*7.5 kg for broadcast sowing

Seed Treatment: Before sowing seed should be treated with thiram or captan @ 2.5 g/kg of seed. An integrated disease management strategy for white-rust affected areas to control leaf and stag head phases of the rust includes seed treatment with apron 355D at 6 g/kg of seed.

Time of Sowing The sowing is done when the maximum temperature is around 30oC. If the temperature is high, sowing could be delayed. The optimum time of sowing in different states is given in Table 7. Table 7. Optimum time of sowing of rapeseed, mustard and taramira in different states State Mustard Toria Brown

sarson Yellow sarson Taramira

North-Eastern Hills Region

Mid Oct. to Nov.

Mid Oct.- Nov. Mid Oct. to Nov.

Assam Mid. Oct.- mid Nov. West Bengal Mid Oct. to

early Nov. End of Sep. to early Oct.

Mid Oct. to early Nov.

North Bengal End of Oct. -end of Nov.

Mid-Oct. to early Nov.

Last week of Oct.- last week of Nov.

Orissa End of Sep. to mid End of Sep. to

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State Mustard Toria Brown sarson

Yellow sarson Taramira

Nov. mid Nov. Bihar Second-third

week of Oct. 25 Sep. to 10 Oct. First fortnight of

Oct.

Uttar Pradesh First fortnight of Oct.

Early to mid-Sep.

Madhya Pradesh

Early Oct. Early Sept.- third week of Sep.

Gujarat Second week of Oct.

Second week of Oct.

Rajasthan Mid Sep. to early Oct.

End of Aug. to early Sep.

Mid Sep. Mid Sep. Nov./Dec.

Delhi Second-third week of Oct.

Early Sep. to third week of Sep.

End of Sep.- mid Oct.

First fortnight of Oct.

Early Nov.

Haryana Mid-Oct. End of Aug. to mid. Sep.

End of Sep.- early Oct.

End of Sep. to early Oct.

Nov.

Punjab Second fortnight of Oct. to Nov.

First fortnight of Sep.

End of Sep.- early Oct.

End of Sep. to early Oct.

Oct.

Himachal Pradesh

First fortnight of Oct.

Before 20 Sep. Last week of Sep.

Jammu & Kashmir

Mid Sep. - mid Oct.

Sowing Practices Under dryland conditions, seed should be sown in furrows with ridge seeder for maintaining a perfect crop stand and better conservation of moisture. While sowing, care should be taken that the seed does not come in contact with drilled fertilizer as it affects germination. The seed should be sown 4-5 cm deep, whereas fertilizer should be drilled at 7-10 cm depth. To ensure good germination and early seedling vigour, seed must be soaked in water before sowing. This is best done by covering the seeds with a moist gunny bag or directly with damp earth overnight.

Thinning Crop should be thinned 15-20 days after sowing to maintain plant-to-plant distance of 10-15 cm.

Varieties

The important varieties recommended for different states are given below.

Varieties of rapeseed recommended for different states State Varieties Assam TS-29, TS-36, TS-38, M-27 Orissa M-27 Punjab ITSA, JMT-689, TH-68, TL-15 Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan T9, T-36 Haryana Sangam Bihar BR-23 Himachal Pradesh DK-1

* Latest varieties: Parbati [ORT (m) 2-4]; Anuradha [ORT (m) 6-2]

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Varieties of taramira recommended for different states

State Variety All India Karan Tara (RTM-314) Punjab ITSA Haryana T-27 Madhya Pradesh Jawahar Toria 1 Uttar Pradesh T-42

Gobhi sarson varieties recommended for different states

State Variety

Punjab, Rajasthan, Haryana

GSL-2, Hyola 04-1, PGSH-51, Suman (TH-63), Kiran (PBC 9221), Tara-52 (TMH-52), Neelam

West Bengal YSB-19-7-C

Himachal Pradesh Sheetal (HPN-1)

Yellow sarson varieties recommended for different states

State Variety

Uttar Pradesh T-151, Narendra Sarson-2 (NDYS-2), K-8

West Bengal, North East Bency-B9, Indira (PYS-6), Subinoy (YSB-19-7-C)

Bihar Jhumka (YBNC-1), 66-1973, Rajendra sarson-1

Orissa Jhumka, Subinoy

Gujarat Gujarat sarson, Patna sarson-66, YsPb 24

Latest variety: Ragini (MYSL-203)

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Brwon sarson varieties recommended for different states

State Variety

Uttar Pradesh BS-2, BS-70, Pusa Kalyani (PN-15-5/19)

Jammu & Kashmir Gulechin (KOD-100), KOS-1, KBS-3

Himachal Pradesh KBS-1, KBS-3

Gujarat GS-1

West Bengal B-65

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Mustard varieties recommended for different states

State Varieties

Uttar Pradesh Jagannath (VSL-5), Urvashi (RK-9501), Vardhan (RK-1467), Vaibhav (RK-1418), Shekhar, Rohini (KRV-24), RL-1359, PT-30, Narendra Ageti Rai-4, NDR-8501, Latha-101, Kranti (PR-15), Krishna (PR-18), PT-303, Basanti (RK-8501), Bhawani, Karishma (PR 8988), Kiran (PBC-922), CS-52 (DIRA-343), Maya (RK-9902), Swarn Jyoti (RH-9801), Vasundhara (RH-9304), Kranti (RK 9807)

Rajasthan Jagannath, Saulabh, Aravali (RN-393), Pusa Jai Kisan (BIO-902), Rajat (PCR-7), Krishna, Durgamani, Kiran, CS-52, Maya, Geeta [RB-9901 (RB-24)], RGN-13

Punjab TLC-1, RLM-619, RLM-514, RL-18, RL-1359, Saulabh (RH-8113), Pusa Agrani, PBR-91, PBR-97, Krishna, Kranti, PT-303, Aravali, Karishma, Kiran, Geeta, Hyola PAC-401, RCC-4

Haryana TH-65, TH-68, TL-15, RL-1359, RH-819*, Saulabh, Laxmi (RH-8812), RH-781, RH-10, Pusa Agrani, Prakash, Rajat, Krishna, Kranti, PT-303, Aravali, Karishma, Kiran, CS-52, Geeta, Swaran Jyoti, Vasundhara

Delhi Agrani (SEJ-2), Saulabh, Pusa Bold (PR-45), Pusa Agrani, Kranti, Kiran, Geeta

Madhya

Pradesh

Vardhan, Rohini, NDT-8501, Krishna, Jawahar-1 (JMWR-93-39), Maya, Swaran Jyoti, Vasundhara, Jawahar mustard, Jhumba

Assam TM-4*, TM-2*, PT-303, B-54, Pusa Bahar

Bihar RAUTS-17, Pusa Bold, Krishna, Kranti, BR-40, Pusa Basant (DIRA-367), Pusa Bahar (DIR-247), Maya

West Bengal Seeta, Sarma, RW-4C-6-3-11, Pusa Bold, Panchali (TWC-3), Kranti, PT-303, B-54, Bhagirathi (RW-315), Pusa Basant, Pusa Bahar

Andhra Pradesh Surya (RBL-428)

Maharashtra Pusa Jai Kisan, PR-15, Rajat

Gujarat RSK-10 (GM-1), Saulabh, Pusa Jai Kisan, Patan-67, Rajat Gujarat mustard, Gujarat mustard-2

Orissa Pusa Bold, Krishna, Kranti, PT-303, Bhagirathi, Pusa Basant, Pusa Bahar

Jammu & Kashmir

Pusa Swarmin (IGC-01)

Himachal Pradesh

Rohini, Saulabh, PT-303, Pusa Swarmin

All India Varuna, RLM-198

* Rainfed

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Manures and Fertilizers Rapeseed and mustard respond well both to organic and inorganic manures. If available, apply 15-20 tonnes/ha of FYM or compost at the time of field preparation.

These crops are very sensitive to nitrogen nutrition. Nitrogenous fertilizer in the form of ammonium sulphate is beneficial for the crop. Effect of N fertilizer can be optimized by combining soil and foliar application. Half of the recommended dose must be applied (preferably drilled) at the time of sowing. The remaining half must be applied in the form of foliar spray (1.5-2.0% high volume or 10-15% low volume micronet-35 sprayer). The first spray should be given at the time of flower initiation. The dose of 40 kg N/ha as soil application and 20 kg N/ha as foliar spray proves as good as 80 kg N/ha applied to soil. This method saves 25% of the N fertilizer without affecting the yield.

Rainfed yellow sarson with 30 kg N/ha fertilization only, in Punjab and Delhi. Under irrigated conditions of Gujarat, it is fertilized with 50:50 kg/ha P2O5-K2O. The optimum fertilizer doses recommended for rainfed and irrigated conditions are given in Table. 6.

Table Recommended fertilizer doses (kg/ha) for different states

State Rainfed/ Irrigated

Mustard Toria Brown sarson

N P K N` P K N P K North-eastern Hilly region

Rainfed 50 30 30 50 30 30

Assam Rainfed 40 35 15 West Bengal Irrigated 80-120 40 40

Rainfed 40 20 20 40 20 20 North Bengal Irrigated 60 40 40 Rainfed 40 20 20 40 20 20 Orissa Irrigated 60 30 30 Rainfed 30 15 15 30 15 15 Bihar Irrigated 80 40 40 60 40 40 60 40 40 Rainfed 40 20 20 30 20 20 30 20 20 Uttar Pradesh Irrigated 120 40 40 90 30 20 50 30 30 Rainfed 60 20 20 40 20 30 20 20 Madhya

Pradesh Irrigated 60 30 20 60 30 20 Rainfed 30 20 10 40 20 10 Gujarat Irrigated 50 50

Rajasthan Irrigated 60 40 40 20 60 40 Rainfed 30 20 20 10 30 20 Delhi Irrigated 60 40 40 Rainfed 40 20 40 20 20 Punjab Irrigated 100 50 60 20 60 20 Rainfed 40 20 40 40 Himachal

Pradesh Irrigated 60 40 40 60 40 40 60 40 40 Jammu & Kashmir

Rainfed 30 20 20 30 20 20 30 20 20

Crop should be supplied with 20 kg sulphur and 1 kg boron/ha as basal dose, wherever the deficiency of these nutrients is noticed. The maximum seed yield of mustard in tarai region

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was obtained with the recommended NPK + 5 tonnes of FYM (in seed furrows) + 40 kg S + 25 kg ZnSO4 + 1 kg boron/ha + Azotobacter (seed treatment).

Water management Mustard requires about 30-40 cm of water and the consumptive use of water varies from 200-300 mm. In general, mustard crop requires 2 irrigations, first at branching stage (30 DAS) and the second at pod formation stage (60-65 DAS).

In Gujarat, however, 6 irrigations have given better monetary returns. These should be given on 1, 5, 33, 50, 63 and 79 days after sowing. The requirement is 400 mm of irrigation water. The first 2 irrigations should be light and the remaining with 75 mm water each. This helps the plants to branch well, which in turn results in profuse flowering and fruiting. The best time for first irrigation is 25 days when flowering has sufficiently advanced. The second irrigation should be given at fruiting stage, i.e. 55 days of toria and 60 days in mustard. In toria and yellow sarson, one irrigation at pre-flowering stage is sufficient for optimum crop performance.

Weed control The most common weeds of rape and mustard crop are Chenopodium album (bathua), Lathyrus spp. (chatrimatri), Melilotus indica (senji), Cirsium arvense (kateli), Cyperus rotundus (motha) and Fumaria parviflora (gajri). The invasion of Orobanche (broom rape) has devastating effect on its cultivation in Rajasthan. Initial 45-60 days after sowing is critical period of crop weed competition. Uncontrolled weeds in these crops may cause 20-70% reduction in yield. Weeding should be done soon after thinning. This, besides creating soil mulch and reducing moisture losses, helps in better growth and proper development of crop plants. Under rainfed conditions, one hand weeding 25 DAS, while under irrigated conditions, 2 hand weedings 25 and 40 DAS are necessary for effective weed control. Pre-plant incorporation of fluchloralin @ 1.00 kg/ha or pre-emergence application of pendimethalin @ 1.00 kg/ha are quite effective in controlling weeds. If the weeds emerge after planting, isoproturon @ 0.75 kg/ha may be sprayed 30 days after sowing. Application of nitrofen @ 1.0 to 1.5 kg/ha in 800-1000 liters of water as pre-emergence spray is also found effective to control the weeds.

Cropping Systems Rape and mustard are raised in rotation with other crops like maize, pearlmillet, cotton, pulses etc. Brown sarson and mustard (rai) are usually cultivated as pure crops in rainfed areas. In these areas, no other crop is sown during rainy season, and moisture is conserved by ploughing.

Table 8. Cropping sequences in major rapeseed mustard cultivated states

State Rainfed Irrigated

Assam Rice-toria-jute Jute/summer rice-toria Rice-toria-greengram Rice-toria-green manure

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State Rainfed Irrigated

West Bengal Jute-toria/mustard-spring greengram Maize-toria/mustard Upland rice/jute-mustard/yellow sarson Cowpea-mustard (fodder) Maize (fodder)-sorghum/ cowpea – yellow sarson/mustard

Rice-toria-summer rice Rice-mustard/jute-yellow sarson Rice-mustard-rice Aman rice-toria-boro rice Rice-mustard/yellow sarson-jute

Maize/pearlmillet/greengram/sesame-mustard/yellow sarson

Greengram/blackgram-toria-wheat

Uttar Pradesh (UP) Early rice-toria/mustard Cowpea (fodder)-toria-mustard/

yellow sarson-spring greengram Maize-toria-wheat-greengram Maize-mustard/yellow sarson-greengram Upland rice-toria-spring greengram

Central UP Maize/sesame-mustard/yellow sarson

Blackgram/greengram-toria-wheat

Western UP Fallow-toria/mustard Maize-mustard-greengram/ Fodder-mustard Blackgram-mustard Maize-toria/mustard Upland rice-toria-sugarcane

Diara lands Wheat-mustard-cheena (Panicum miliaceum) Gram + mustard/toria – cheena/ summer mungbean/ vegetable

Fallow-toria-wheat/summer moong-field pea

Madhya Pradesh

Fallow-toria/mustard

Fallow-toria-gram Pearlmillet/groundnut/sesame-mustard Greengram/blackgram-mustard

Gujarat Fallow-mustard

groundnut/sesame-wheat+mustard Maize/greengram/pearlmillet/ cowpea - mustard

Rajasthan Fallow-toria/mustard Pearlmillet/cowpea-mustard

Toria-wheat Maize-toria-wheat Groundnut-mustard Fallow-toria-wheat

Haryana Pearlmillet-mustard Fallow-mustard/brown sarson

Early fodder-mustard

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Intercropping Mustard+chickpea: Under rainfed conditions, chickpea intercropped-with mustard in row ratio of 4:1 in the central and western Uttar Pradesh, 3:1 in tarai region of Uttarakhand and Rajasthan and 2:1 in Haryana proves remunerative.

Mustard+potato: Potato intercropped with mustard is more remunerative than potato alone. The states where potato and mustard crops are grown simultaneously can follow this practice.

Three ridges are planted with potato, and then on every fourth ridge mustard is sown. However, the seed rate of potato (both number and quantity) is kept similar to that of pure crop. Mustard crop should receive the first irrigation after earthing of potato. The subsequent irrigations to potato should be given after closing furrows on both sides of the ridges on which mustard is planted.

Toria/mustard+autumn planted sugarcane: Autumn planted sugarcane may be intercropped with toria/mustard. The production practices are similar to that of pure crop of sugarcane, except that 1 row of toria/mustard is planted between 2 rows (60-70 cm apart) of sugarcane.

Mustard+wheat: Line sowing of wheat and mustard in 6:1 and 8:1 row ratio gives higher net returns over the traditional farmers practice of broadcast mustard in wheat.

Toria being a catch crop, maturing in 90-100 days, can easily be adjusted in the following crop rotations.

Maize-toria-barley Maize-toria-cotton Maize-toria-sugarcane Maize-toria-wheat Maize-toria-sugarcane-ratoon

In areas with irrigation facilities, the following crop rotations may be adopted.

Maize-sarson or rai Clusterbean (green manure)-sarson or rai Early paddy-sarson or rai Greengram-brown or yellow sarson or rai

Harvesting and threshing Usually rapeseed-mustard crops are harvested as soon as the pods turn yellowish and moisture content of the seed is around 40%. The crop should be harvested preferably in the morning hours, when the pods are slightly damp with night dew to minimize the shattering losses.

Bundles of the harvested plants are staked and dried in the sun for a few days. Threshing is done by the usual method of threshing by bullocks or running a tractor over the dried plants. Seeds are separated by winnowing. Moisture content of the seed must be less than 8% at the storage time.

Yield Under normal conditions, rapeseed yields about 1.4-2.0 tonnes/ha of seed, while mustard may give 2.0-2.5 tonnes/ha.

Average yield in various conditions Mixed crop - 2-3 q/ha Pure crop - 10-15 q/ha Toria - 12-15 q/ha Yellow or brown sarson - 12-15 q/ha Rai - 15-20 q/ha

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Oil % in rapeseed and mustard seed Yellow or brown sarson - 43-48% Toria - 42-44% Rai - 38-40%

26