Rapeseed & Mustard
Sow in October, harvest around February
This season's sowing time (October) is over.
Grown on 16 acres here. Priced from mandis across India.
₹23,000–₹35,000
per acre a season, before costs
After typical costs: ₹3,000–₹15,000 an acre a season
- Needs care: Risky: 2 irrigations short
- Suits: Ideal temperatures
- Needs care: Soil 7/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Rain falls about 2 irrigations (5 cm each) short in a normal year, so it's risky without water.
Needs about 370 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain in its months gives about 240 mm it can use in a normal year (150 mm in a dry one), and the soil holds about 60 mm from the monsoon at sowing.
Temperature
Grows best at 15–28 °C on average, and survives 7–40 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Oct 32 °C / 23 °C
- Nov 30 °C / 22 °C
- Dec 30 °C / 21 °C
- Jan 30 °C / 21 °C
- Feb 32 °C / 21 °C
Soil
Soil for Rapeseed & Mustard: 7 out of 10 (okay).
- The pH here suits it.
- Many fields here are short of sulphur, which it needs a lot.
- Many fields here are short of boron, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of nitrogen.
Likes pH 6.0–8.0.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 6.0 quintals an acre, the typical figure across India (your district's own figure looked wrong).
On rain alone it gets about 81% of the water it needs, so the money here is worked at 81% of this yield.
Mandi price at last season's harvest (February–March 2026): about ₹5,975 a quintal across India's mandis.
This week: about ₹8,226 a quintal, the middle of 176 mandis across India (latest 13 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹20,000 a season after typical costs.
Minimum support price: ₹6,613 a quintal (2027-28), if you sell to government procurement.
- ₹6,280 2021
- ₹6,220 2022
- ₹5,210 2023
- ₹5,400 2024
- ₹6,200 2025
Prices are usually best in November.
Typical costs are about ₹20,000 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 1.7 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 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.
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 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.