Fenugreek (Methi)

Water

Rain falls about 1 irrigation (5 cm) short in a normal year, so it's risky without water.

Needs about 200 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain in its months gives about 30 mm it can use in a normal year (0 mm in a dry one), and the soil holds about 150 mm from the monsoon at sowing.

Temperature

Grows best at 13–27 °C on average, and survives 5–32 °C.

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

• Nov 27 °C / 11 °C
• Dec 22 °C / 7 °C
• Jan 18 °C / 6 °C (outside its best range)
• Feb 23 °C / 10 °C

Months in orange are outside its best range.

Soil

Soil for Fenugreek (Methi): 7 out of 10 (okay).

Not in the score: nitrogen and boron.

• 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 organic carbon.

Likes pH 7.0–7.5.

Money

Yield: about 6.7 quintals an acre, the typical figure across India (no figures for your state).

On rain alone it gets about 88% of the water it needs, so the money here is worked at 88% of this yield.

Mandi price at last season's harvest (February–March 2026): about ₹5,254 a quintal across India's mandis.

This week: about ₹7,336 a quintal, the middle of 20 mandis across India (latest 13 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹24,000 a season after typical costs.

Prices are usually best in November.

Typical costs are about ₹19,000 an acre: about half of what a usual harvest earns (2024–2026), as in farm cost surveys. They are spent whatever the harvest.