Cowpea (Lobia)

Water

Rain is enough, even in a dry year.

Needs about 170 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain in its months gives about 60 mm it can use in a normal year (40 mm in a dry one), and the soil holds about 200 mm from the monsoon at sowing.

Temperature

Grows best at 25–35 °C on average, and survives 15–40 °C.

Here, in its growing months (day / night):

• Oct 27 °C / 18 °C (outside its best range)
• Nov 23 °C / 13 °C (outside its best range)
• Dec 20 °C / 8 °C (outside its best range)
• Jan 19 °C / 7 °C (outside its best range)

Soil

No soil score here: the soil tests don't say enough about nitrogen, phosphorus or potassium.

Likes pH 5.5–7.5.

Money

Yield: about 2.8 quintals an acre, the typical figure across India (no figures for your state).

Mandi price at last season's harvest (January–February 2026): about ₹6,592 a quintal across India's mandis.

This week: about ₹8,965 a quintal, the middle of 22 mandis across India (latest 13 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹15,000 a season after typical costs.

Prices are usually best in November.

Typical costs are about ₹10,000 an acre: about half of what a usual harvest earns (2024–2026), as in farm cost surveys. They are spent whatever the harvest.