Cowpea (Lobia)

Water

Rain falls about 2 irrigations (5 cm each) short in a normal year, so it's risky without water.

Needs about 330 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 280 mm it can use in a normal year, and 200 mm in a dry year.

Temperature

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

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

• Jul 33 °C / 25 °C
• Aug 33 °C / 25 °C
• Sep 33 °C / 24 °C
• Oct 33 °C / 23 °C

Soil

Soil for Cowpea (Lobia): 8 out of 10 (good).

• The pH here suits it.
• Low nitrogen matters less: it makes its own.
• Most fields here are short of organic carbon.
• Most fields here are short of zinc.
• Most fields here are short of boron.

Likes pH 5.5–7.5.

Money

Yield: about 3.7 quintals an acre here (district figures).

On rain alone it gets about 84% of the water it needs, so the money here is worked at 84% of this yield.

Mandi price at this season's harvest so far (October 2026): about ₹5,829 a quintal across mandis in your state.

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 ₹19,000 a season after typical costs.

Prices are usually best in January.

Typical costs are about ₹9,000 an acre: about half of what a usual harvest earns (2023–2025), as in farm cost surveys. They are spent whatever the harvest.