Turmeric
Sow in May, harvest around January
This season's sowing time (May–June) is over.
Grown on 60 acres here. Priced from mandis across India.
₹1.3 lakh–₹2.0 lakh
per acre a season, before costs
At typical costs, from a loss of ₹5,000 to a profit of ₹62,000 an acre a season
- Suits: Rain is enough
- Doesn't suit: Too cold in november
- Suits: Soil 9/10
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 750 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain gives about 850 mm it can use in a normal year, and 570 mm in a dry year.
Temperature
Grows best at 20–28 °C on average, and survives 18–32 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- May 33 °C / 20 °C
- Jun 32 °C / 21 °C
- Jul 28 °C / 21 °C
- Aug 28 °C / 21 °C
- Sep 27 °C / 20 °C
- Oct 26 °C / 15 °C
- Nov 22 °C / 10 °C (outside its best range)
- Dec 18 °C / 6 °C (outside its best range)
Nights in December can bring frost. When frost is forecast, water the field lightly in the evening.
Soil
Soil for Turmeric: 9 out of 10 (good).
- The pH here suits it.
- Many fields here are short of potassium, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of nitrogen.
Likes pH 6.0–7.0.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 12 quintals an acre, the typical figure in your state (your district's own figure looked wrong).
Mandi price at last season's harvest (January–February 2026): about ₹13,513 a quintal across India's mandis.
This week: about ₹20,813 a quintal, the middle of 22 mandis across India (latest 13 Nov). At that price an acre would leave about ₹1.2 lakh a season after typical costs.
- ₹7,100 2021
- ₹6,250 2022
- ₹7,250 2023
- ₹13,200 2024
- ₹11,770 2025
Prices swing a lot from year to year, so income can be well above or below this range.
Prices are usually best in November.
Typical costs are about ₹1.4 lakh an acre: about half of what a usual harvest earns (2024–2026), 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 17 quintals an acre. That's a realistic target.
-
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.