Sesame (Til)
Sow in June, harvest around September
This season's sowing time (June–July) is over.
Grown on 1.6 lakh acres here. Sold at 3 mandis in your district.
₹12,000–₹19,000
per acre a season, before costs
At typical costs, from a loss of ₹2,000 to a profit of ₹4,000 an acre a season
- Needs care: Risky: 2 irrigations short
- Needs care: Warm in June
- Suits: Soil 8/10
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 360 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 300 mm it can use in a normal year, and 170 mm in a dry year.
Temperature
Grows best at 20–30 °C on average, and survives 10–40 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Jun 40 °C / 28 °C (outside its best range)
- Jul 35 °C / 26 °C (outside its best range)
- Aug 32 °C / 25 °C
- Sep 34 °C / 24 °C
Months in orange are outside its best range.
Soil
Soil for Sesame (Til): 8 out of 10 (good).
Not in the score: nitrogen and boron.
- The pH here suits it.
- Most fields here are short of organic carbon.
- Most fields here are short of zinc.
- Most fields here are short of iron.
Likes pH 5.5–7.5.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 1.3 quintals an acre here in this season (district figures).
On rain alone it gets about 83% of the water it needs, so the money here is worked at 83% of this yield.
Mandi price at last season's harvest (October 2026): about ₹14,000 a quintal at mandis in your district.
This week: about ₹14,500 a quintal, the middle of 13 mandis in your state (latest 12 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹1,000 a season after typical costs.
Minimum support price: ₹10,346 a quintal (2026-27), if you sell to government procurement.
Prices are usually best in November.
Typical costs are about ₹15,000 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 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 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.
-
Short of iron Your soil is likely short of iron.
Spray ferrous sulphate, 5 g per litre of water, when young leaves turn yellow.
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 21%
- Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) 8%
- Zinc Sulphate Heptahydrate / Monohydrate 1%