Tobacco
Sow in October, harvest around February
Still sowing time: sow by the end of November.
Grown on 12,034 acres here. Priced from mandis across India.
₹19,000–₹29,000
per acre a season, before costs
At typical costs, from a loss of ₹4,000 to a profit of ₹6,000 an acre a season
- Suits: Rain is enough
- Suits: Ideal temperatures
- Needs care: Soil 7/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Rain is enough in a normal year. Keep one irrigation ready for a dry year.
Needs about 380 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 360 mm it can use in a normal year, and 210 mm in a dry year.
Temperature
Grows best at 15–30 °C on average, and survives 7–35 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Oct 33 °C / 25 °C
- Nov 30 °C / 23 °C
- Dec 29 °C / 21 °C
- Jan 30 °C / 20 °C
- Feb 32 °C / 21 °C
Soil
Soil for Tobacco: 7 out of 10 (okay).
- The pH here suits it.
- Most fields here are short of nitrogen.
- Most fields here are short of organic carbon.
- Most fields here are short of zinc.
Likes pH 5.0–6.5.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 6.0 quintals an acre here in this season (district figures).
Mandi price at last season's harvest (February–March 2026): about ₹3,978 a quintal across India's mandis.
This week: about ₹2,300 a quintal, the middle of 7 mandis across India (latest 13 Nov). At that price an acre would lose about ₹9,000 a season at typical costs.
- ₹4,650 2021
- ₹4,490 2022
- ₹4,570 2023
- ₹5,130 2025
Prices are usually best in December.
Typical costs are about ₹23,000 an acre: about half of what a usual harvest earns (2022–2026), as in farm cost surveys. They are spent whatever the harvest.
How to make it work
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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.
About 90% of local fields of this crop get it.
-
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.
-
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 boron Your soil is likely short of boron.
Mix 4 kg of borax per acre into the soil before sowing.
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):
- Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) 90%
- Single Super Phosphate (SSP) 63%
- Urea 37%
- Ammonium Sulphate 10%