Maize
Sow in October, harvest around January
Still sowing time: sow by the end of November.
Grown on 38,593 acres here. Priced from mandis across your state.
Only with irrigation: rain gives too little of its water to count on
- Needs care: Risky: 6 irrigations short
- Suits: Ideal temperatures
- Suits: Soil 8/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Rain falls about 6 irrigations (5 cm each) short in a normal year, so it's risky without water.
Needs about 340 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain in its months gives about 50 mm it can use in a normal year (20 mm in a dry one), and the soil holds about 20 mm from the monsoon at sowing.
About 43% of Maize in Kurnool, the nearest district with figures, is grown on rain alone. Your district has no figure of its own.
Temperature
Grows best at 18–33 °C on average, and survives 10–47 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Oct 32 °C / 24 °C
- Nov 31 °C / 21 °C
- Dec 30 °C / 19 °C
- Jan 32 °C / 19 °C
Soil
Soil for Maize: 8 out of 10 (good).
- 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.
Likes pH 5.0–7.0.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 21 quintals an acre here in this season (district figures).
Rain gives it too little of the water it needs, so there's no income figure on rain alone: grow it only with irrigation.
Mandi price at last season's harvest (January–February 2026): about ₹1,928 a quintal across mandis in your state.
This week: about ₹2,300 a quintal, the middle of 5 mandis in your district (latest 13 Nov).
Minimum support price: ₹2,410 a quintal (2026-27), if you sell to government procurement.
- ₹1,440 2021
- ₹1,850 2022
- ₹1,980 2023
- ₹2,230 2024
- ₹2,280 2025
Prices are usually best in November.
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 19 quintals an acre. That's a realistic target.
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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.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.