Jowar (Sorghum)
Sow in September, harvest around January
This season's sowing time (September–October) is over.
No figures for your district: its government crop records list no area or yield for this crop. Priced from mandis across India.
₹10,000–₹16,000
per acre a season, before costs
At typical costs, from a loss of ₹2,000 to a profit of ₹3,000 an acre a season
- Needs care: Risky: 1 irrigation short
- Needs care: Cool in November
- Needs care: Soil 7/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Rain falls about 1 irrigation (5 cm) short in a normal year, so it's risky without water.
Needs about 250 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 220 mm it can use in a normal year, and 140 mm in a dry year.
Temperature
Grows best at 22–35 °C on average, and survives 8–40 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Sep 27 °C / 20 °C
- Oct 27 °C / 19 °C
- Nov 24 °C / 14 °C (outside its best range)
- Dec 22 °C / 11 °C (outside its best range)
Months in orange are outside its best range.
Soil
Soil for Jowar (Sorghum): 7 out of 10 (okay).
Not in the score: salt, sulphur, zinc and 4 more.
- The pH here suits it.
- Many fields here are short of nitrogen, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of potassium.
Likes pH 5.5–8.0.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 4.6 quintals an acre, the typical figure across India (no figures for your state).
On rain alone it gets about 89% of the water it needs, so the money here is worked at 89% of this yield.
Mandi price at last season's harvest (January–February 2026): about ₹3,183 a quintal across India's mandis.
This week: about ₹3,675 a quintal, the middle of 123 mandis across India (latest 13 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹3,000 a season after typical costs.
Minimum support price: ₹4,023 a quintal (2026-27), if you sell to government procurement.
- ₹1,820 2021
- ₹2,180 2022
- ₹3,330 2023
- ₹2,760 2024
- ₹2,590 2025
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 ₹12,000 an acre (seed, fertiliser, labour and hired machines, from the government's cost survey). They are spent whatever the harvest.
How to make it work
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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.
-
Short of potassium Your soil is likely short of potassium.
Add about a quarter more potash (MOP) than the usual dose.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.