Linseed
Sow in October, harvest around February
Still sowing time: sow by the end of November.
Grown on 5,845 acres here. Sold at 3 mandis in your district.
₹13,000–₹20,000
per acre a season, before costs
After typical costs: ₹5,000–₹12,000 an acre a season
- Needs care: Risky: 3 irrigations short
- Suits: Ideal temperatures
- Suits: Soil 8/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Rain falls about 3 irrigations (5 cm each) short in a normal year, so it's risky without water.
Needs about 350 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 31 °C / 19 °C (outside its best range)
- Nov 29 °C / 13 °C
- Dec 27 °C / 10 °C
- Jan 26 °C / 10 °C
- Feb 30 °C / 12 °C
Months in orange are outside its best range.
Soil
Soil for Linseed: 8 out of 10 (good).
- The pH here suits it.
- Many fields here are short of boron, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of nitrogen.
- Most fields here are short of iron.
Likes pH 6.0–6.5.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 2.4 quintals an acre here in this season (district figures).
Mandi price at last season's harvest (March 2026): about ₹7,000 a quintal at mandis in your district.
This week: about ₹10,000 a quintal, the middle of 14 mandis in your state (latest 12 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹15,000 a season after typical costs.
- ₹5,810 2022
- ₹6,230 2025
Prices are usually best in October.
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
-
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 53% of local fields of this crop get it.
-
Short of iron Your soil is likely short of iron.
Spray ferrous sulphate, 5 g per litre of water, when young leaves turn yellow.
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):
- Urea 53%