Horse Gram (Kulthi)

Water

Rain falls about 3 irrigations (5 cm each) short in a normal year, so it's risky without water.

Needs about 420 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 310 mm it can use in a normal year, and 180 mm in a dry year.

Temperature

Grows best at 20–28 °C on average, and survives 17–35 °C.

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

• Jul 33 °C / 24 °C (outside its best range)
• Aug 33 °C / 24 °C (outside its best range)
• Sep 33 °C / 23 °C (outside its best range)
• Oct 32 °C / 23 °C

Months in orange are outside its best range.

Soil

Soil for Horse Gram (Kulthi): 8 out of 10 (good).

• The pH here suits it.
• Low nitrogen matters less: it makes its own.
• Many fields here are short of phosphorus, 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 5.5–7.0.

Money

Yield: about 3.1 quintals an acre here in this season (district figures).

On rain alone it gets about 73% of the water it needs, so the money here is worked at 73% of this yield.

Mandi price at last season's harvest (December 2025): about ₹3,935 a quintal across India's mandis.

This week: about ₹4,963 a quintal, the middle of 12 mandis across India (latest 13 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹4,000 a season after typical costs.

Prices swing a lot from year to year, so income can be well above or below this range.

Prices are usually best in October.

Typical costs are about ₹8,000 an acre: about half of what a usual harvest earns (2023–2025), as in farm cost surveys. They are spent whatever the harvest.