Only with irrigation: rain gives too little of its water to count on
- Doesn't suit: Too dry without irrigation
- Suits: Ideal temperatures
- Needs care: Soil 7/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Too dry to grow on rain alone. It would need irrigation.
Needs about 1,580 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 670 mm it can use in a normal year, and 440 mm in a dry year.
Temperature
Grows best at 23–33 °C on average, and survives 12–42 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Jun 34 °C / 24 °C
- Jul 33 °C / 24 °C
- Aug 33 °C / 23 °C
- Sep 33 °C / 23 °C
- Oct 32 °C / 23 °C
- Nov 30 °C / 22 °C
- Dec 30 °C / 21 °C
- Jan 30 °C / 21 °C
- Feb 32 °C / 21 °C
- Mar 34 °C / 23 °C
- Apr 35 °C / 24 °C
- May 35 °C / 25 °C
- Jun 34 °C / 24 °C
Soil
Soil for Banana: 7 out of 10 (okay).
- The pH here suits it.
- Many fields here are short of zinc, which it needs a lot.
- Many fields here are short of boron, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of nitrogen.
Likes pH 5.5–7.5.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 253 quintals an acre here in this season (district figures).
Rain gives it too little of the water it needs, so there's no income figure on rain alone: grow it only with irrigation.
Mandi price through the year (December 2025–November 2026): about ₹4,375 a quintal across mandis in your state.
This week: about ₹5,875 a quintal, the middle of 8 mandis in your state (latest 13 Nov).
- ₹4,100 2024
- ₹5,000 2025
Prices are usually best in November.
Typical costs are about ₹2.1 lakh an acre: about half of what a usual harvest earns (2023–2025), as in farm cost surveys. They are spent whatever the harvest.
How to make it work
The better districts with similar soil, rain and warmth get 160 quintals an acre. That's a realistic target.
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Short of nitrogen Your soil is likely short of nitrogen.
Add about a quarter more urea than the usual dose, in two or three splits. A pulse crop in rotation also adds nitrogen.
About 100% of local fields of this crop get it.
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Short of organic carbon Your soil is likely short of organic carbon.
Add 4 tonnes of compost or farmyard manure per acre before sowing, and plough crop leftovers back in instead of burning them.
Few local farmers add it to this crop, so it's an easy place to get ahead.
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Short of sulphur Your soil is likely short of sulphur.
Use single super phosphate instead of DAP, or add about 100 kg of gypsum per acre before sowing.
Few local farmers add it to this crop, so it's an easy place to get ahead.
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Short of zinc Your soil is likely short of zinc.
Mix 10 kg of zinc sulphate per acre into the soil before sowing. One dose lasts two or three seasons.
Few local farmers add it to this crop, so it's an easy place to get ahead.
What local farmers put on it (share of fields):
- Urea 100%
- Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) 93%
- Muriate of Potash (MOP) 90%
- Single Super Phosphate (SSP) 8%