Onion
Sow in July, harvest around November
This season's sowing time (July–August) is over.
Grown on 988 acres here. Last recorded in 2010-11. Sold at 2 mandis in your district.
₹1.1 lakh–₹1.6 lakh
per acre a season, before costs
After typical costs: ₹4,000–₹57,000 an acre a season
- Needs care: Risky: 4 irrigations short
- Needs care: Warm in July
- Suits: Soil 8/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Rain falls about 4 irrigations (5 cm each) short in a normal year, so it's risky without water.
Needs about 540 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 390 mm it can use in a normal year, and 250 mm in a dry year.
Temperature
Grows best at 12–25 °C on average, and survives 4–33 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Jul 33 °C / 26 °C (outside its best range)
- Aug 32 °C / 25 °C (outside its best range)
- Sep 33 °C / 25 °C (outside its best range)
- Oct 36 °C / 22 °C (outside its best range)
- Nov 34 °C / 17 °C (outside its best range)
Months in orange are outside its best range.
Soil
Soil for Onion: 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 sulphur, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of iron.
Likes pH 6.0–7.0.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 114 quintals an acre, the typical figure in your state (your district's own figure looked wrong).
On rain alone it gets about 72% of the water it needs, so the money here is worked at 72% of this yield.
Mandi price at last season's harvest (December 2025): about ₹1,600 a quintal at mandis in your district.
This week: about ₹4,000 a quintal, the middle of 17 mandis in your state (latest 13 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹2.3 lakh a season after typical costs.
- ₹1,080 2022
- ₹1,330 2023
- ₹2,530 2024
- ₹1,480 2025
Prices swing a lot from year to year, so income can be well above or below this range.
Prices are usually best in September.
Typical costs are about ₹1.0 lakh an acre: about half of what a usual harvest earns (2023–2025), 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 125 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.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.
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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.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.
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Short of iron Your soil is likely short of iron.
Spray ferrous sulphate, 5 g per litre of water, when young leaves turn yellow.
Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to add for this crop.