Maize
Sow in October, harvest around January
Still sowing time: sow by the end of November.
Grown on 5,999 acres here. Priced from mandis across your state.
₹21,000–₹31,000
per acre a season, before costs
At typical costs, from a loss of ₹1,000 to a profit of ₹9,000 an acre a season
- Needs care: Risky: 3 irrigations short
- Suits: Ideal temperatures
- Needs care: Soil 7/10
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 260 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain in its months gives about 10 mm it can use in a normal year (0 mm in a dry one), and the soil holds about 150 mm from the monsoon at sowing.
Temperature
Grows best at 18–33 °C on average, and survives 10–47 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Oct 32 °C / 22 °C
- Nov 29 °C / 15 °C
- Dec 25 °C / 10 °C (outside its best range)
- Jan 22 °C / 9 °C (outside its best range)
Months in orange are outside its best range.
Soil
Soil for Maize: 7 out of 10 (okay).
- The pH here suits it.
- Many fields here are short of nitrogen, which it needs a lot.
- Many fields here are short of zinc, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of organic carbon.
Likes pH 5.0–7.0.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 12 quintals an acre here in this season (district figures).
Mandi price at last season's harvest (January–February 2026): about ₹2,094 a quintal across mandis in your state.
This week: about ₹2,239 a quintal, the middle of 22 mandis in your state (latest 13 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹6,000 a season after typical costs.
Minimum support price: ₹2,410 a quintal (2026-27), if you sell to government procurement.
- ₹1,600 2021
- ₹1,980 2022
- ₹2,110 2023
- ₹2,230 2024
- ₹2,360 2025
Prices are usually best in December.
Typical costs are about ₹22,000 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
The better districts with similar soil, rain and warmth get 9.9 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 73% 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.
-
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):
- Urea 73%
- Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) 29%
- Zinc Sulphate Heptahydrate / Monohydrate 1%
- Calcium Ammonium Nitrate 1%