Niger Seed

Water

Too dry to grow on rain alone. It would need irrigation.

Needs about 200 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 0 mm it can use in a normal year, and 0 mm in a dry year.

Temperature

Grows best at 18–26 °C on average, and survives 11–34 °C.

Here, in its growing months (day / night):

• Nov 28 °C / 11 °C
• Dec 23 °C / 7 °C (outside its best range)
• Jan 19 °C / 6 °C (outside its best range)
• Feb 23 °C / 9 °C (outside its best range)

Months in orange are outside its best range.

Nights in December can bring frost while the plants are young. Sow a little later, or cover the seedlings on cold nights.

Soil

Soil for Niger Seed: 7 out of 10 (okay).

• 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 potassium.

Likes pH 5.5–6.5.

Money

Yield: about 1.3 quintals an acre, the typical figure across India (no figures for your state).

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 (February–March 2026): about ₹9,350 a quintal across India's mandis.

Minimum support price: ₹10,052 a quintal (2026-27), if you sell to government procurement.

Prices are usually best in August.

Typical costs are about ₹8,000 an acre (seed, fertiliser, labour and hired machines, from the government's cost survey). They are spent whatever the harvest.