Chillies (Dry)
Sow in July, harvest around December
This season's sowing time (July–August) is over.
Grown on 362 acres here. Sold at 2 mandis in your district.
Only with irrigation: rain gives too little of its water to count on
- Needs care: Risky: 6 irrigations short
- Suits: Ideal temperatures
- Suits: Soil 8/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Rain falls about 6 irrigations (5 cm each) short in a normal year, so it's risky without water.
Needs about 580 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 300 mm it can use in a normal year, and 200 mm in a dry year.
Temperature
Grows best at 17–30 °C on average, and survives 8–35 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Jul 30 °C / 21 °C
- Aug 30 °C / 21 °C
- Sep 30 °C / 21 °C
- Oct 29 °C / 20 °C
- Nov 27 °C / 18 °C
- Dec 27 °C / 16 °C
Soil
Soil for Chillies (Dry): 8 out of 10 (good).
- The pH here suits it.
- Many fields here are short of potassium, which it needs a lot.
- Many fields here are short of sulphur, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of nitrogen.
Likes pH 6.0–7.5.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 7.2 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 at last season's harvest (January 2026): about ₹8,325 a quintal at mandis in your district.
This week: about ₹16,216 a quintal, the middle of 10 mandis in your state (latest 13 Nov).
Prices are usually best in October.
Typical costs are about ₹1.1 lakh an acre: about half of what a usual harvest earns (2024–2026), 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 17 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.
What local farmers put on it (share of fields):
- Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) 100%
- Urea 100%