Sweet Orange (Mosambi)

Water

Rain is enough in a normal year. Keep one irrigation ready for a dry year.

Needs about 930 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 960 mm it can use in a normal year, and 690 mm in a dry year.

Temperature

Grows best at 20–30 °C on average, and survives 13–38 °C.

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

• Jun 31 °C / 21 °C
• Jul 28 °C / 21 °C
• Aug 28 °C / 21 °C
• Sep 28 °C / 19 °C
• Oct 26 °C / 15 °C
• Nov 22 °C / 10 °C (outside its best range)
• Dec 18 °C / 7 °C (outside its best range)
• Jan 17 °C / 6 °C (outside its best range)
• Feb 20 °C / 8 °C (outside its best range)
• Mar 25 °C / 13 °C (outside its best range)
• Apr 31 °C / 17 °C
• May 33 °C / 19 °C
• Jun 31 °C / 21 °C

Months in orange are outside its best range.

Nights in January can bring frost. When frost is forecast, water the field lightly in the evening.

Soil

Soil for Sweet Orange (Mosambi): 7 out of 10 (okay).

Not in the score: organic carbon.

• Soil here is often more alkaline than it likes.
• Many fields here are short of zinc, which it needs a lot.
• Many fields here are short of iron, which it needs a lot.
• Most fields here are short of nitrogen.

Likes pH 5.0–6.0.

Money

Yield: about 67 quintals an acre, the typical figure across India (no figures for your state).

A new planting gives its first real harvest after about 4 years. The money here is for plants already bearing.

Mandi price through the year (January 2026, May–June 2026): about ₹4,500 a quintal at mandis in your district.

This week: about ₹2,525 a quintal, the middle of 6 mandis in your state (latest 13 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹44,000 a year after typical costs.

Prices are usually best in May.

Typical costs are about ₹1.3 lakh an acre: about half of what a usual harvest earns (2023–2025), as in farm cost surveys. They are spent whatever the harvest.