Linseed
Sow in October, harvest around February
Still sowing time: sow by the end of November.
Grown on 1,321 acres here. Sold at 2 mandis in your district.
₹4,000–₹6,000
per acre a season, before costs
Likely a loss at typical costs: ₹2,000–₹4,000 an acre a season
- Needs care: Risky: 2 irrigations short
- Suits: Ideal temperatures
- Needs care: Soil 7/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Rain falls about 2 irrigations (5 cm each) short in a normal year, so it's risky without water.
Needs about 310 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain in its months gives about 20 mm it can use in a normal year (10 mm in a dry one), and the soil holds about 200 mm from the monsoon at sowing.
Temperature
Grows best at 16–24 °C on average, and survives 5–30 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Oct 29 °C / 19 °C (outside its best range)
- Nov 27 °C / 14 °C
- Dec 24 °C / 10 °C
- Jan 24 °C / 10 °C
- Feb 28 °C / 13 °C
Months in orange are outside its best range.
Soil
Soil for Linseed: 7 out of 10 (okay).
Not in the score: phosphorus.
- The pH here suits it.
- Many fields here are short of sulphur, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of nitrogen.
- Most fields here are short of organic carbon.
Likes pH 6.0–6.5.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 1.3 quintals an acre here in this season (district figures).
On rain alone it gets about 71% of the water it needs, so the money here is worked at 71% of this yield.
Mandi price at last season's harvest (February 2026): about ₹6,000 a quintal at mandis in your district.
This week: about ₹10,000 a quintal, the middle of 17 mandis across India (latest 12 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹908 a season after typical costs.
Prices are usually best in February.
Typical costs are about ₹8,000 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 2.6 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.
About 100% of local fields of this crop get it.
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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.
Few local farmers add it to this crop, so it's an easy place to get ahead.
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Short of sulphur Your soil is likely short of sulphur.
Use single super phosphate instead of DAP, or add about 100 kg of gypsum per acre before sowing.
Few local farmers add it to this crop, so it's an easy place to get ahead.
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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.
Few local farmers add it to this crop, so it's an easy place to get ahead.
What local farmers put on it (share of fields):
- Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) 100%
- Urea 100%