Wheat
Sow in November, harvest around April
Sowing time is now.
Grown on 3.4 lakh acres here. Sold at 2 mandis in your district.
Only with irrigation: rain gives too little of its water to count on
- Needs care: Risky: 7 irrigations short
- Suits: Ideal temperatures
- Suits: Soil 8/10
Why, and how to make it work Hide details
Water
Rain falls about 7 irrigations (5 cm each) short in a normal year, so it's risky without water.
Needs about 350 mm of water here in its growing months. Rain in its months gives about 10 mm it can use in a normal year (0 mm in a dry one), and the soil holds about 10 mm from the monsoon at sowing.
Temperature
Grows best at 15–25 °C on average, and survives 5–27 °C.
Here, in its growing months (day / night):
- Nov 28 °C / 12 °C
- Dec 23 °C / 7 °C
- Jan 19 °C / 7 °C (outside its best range)
- Feb 24 °C / 10 °C
- Mar 29 °C / 15 °C
Months in orange are outside its best range.
Soil
Soil for Wheat: 8 out of 10 (good).
Not in the score: nitrogen.
- The pH here suits it.
- Many fields here are short of zinc, which it needs a lot.
- Most fields here are short of organic carbon.
- Most fields here are short of boron.
Likes pH 6.0–8.0.
How the soil score worksMoney
Yield: about 19 quintals an acre here in this season (district figures).
Rain gives it too little of the water it needs, so there's no income figure on rain alone: grow it only with irrigation.
Mandi price at last season's harvest (April–May 2026): about ₹2,585 a quintal at mandis in your district.
Minimum support price: ₹2,610 a quintal (2027-28), if you sell to government procurement.
Prices are usually best in April.
Typical costs are about ₹19,000 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 18 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 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):
- Urea 100%
- Di-Ammonium Phosphate (DAP) 99%