Ginger
Sow in May, harvest around January
This season's sowing time (April–May) is over.
Grown on 1,977 acres here. Priced from mandis across your state.
₹2.3 lakh–₹3.4 lakh
per acre a season, before costs
After typical costs: ₹1.2 lakh–₹2.4 lakh an acre a season
- Suits: Rain is enough
- Needs care: Very hot in May
- Suits: Soil 8/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Rain is enough in a normal year. Keep one irrigation ready for a dry year.
Needs about 880 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 880 mm it can use in a normal year, and 810 mm in a dry year.
Temperature
Grows best at 19–29 °C on average, and survives 13–35 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- May 40 °C / 27 °C (outside its best range)
- Jun 36 °C / 27 °C (outside its best range)
- Jul 31 °C / 25 °C
- Aug 31 °C / 25 °C
- Sep 31 °C / 25 °C
- Oct 31 °C / 22 °C
- Nov 29 °C / 17 °C
- Dec 27 °C / 13 °C
Months in orange are outside its best range.
Days in May get hotter than it likes. Time sowing so it flowers before then.
Soil
Soil for Ginger: 8 out of 10 (good).
- The pH here suits it.
- Many fields here are short of potassium, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of nitrogen.
- Most fields here are short of organic carbon.
Likes pH 6.0–7.0.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 57 quintals an acre here in this season (district figures).
Mandi price at last season's harvest (February 2026): about ₹5,000 a quintal across mandis in your state.
- ₹4,090 2021
- ₹3,980 2022
- ₹12,260 2023
- ₹11,750 2024
- ₹7,100 2025
Prices swing a lot from year to year, so income can be well above or below this range.
Prices are usually best in September.
Typical costs are about ₹1.0 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 35 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.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.
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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.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.
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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.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.
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Short of boron Your soil is likely short of boron.
Mix 4 kg of borax per acre into the soil before sowing.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.