Niger Seed

A winter crop. Sow in Oct–Nov, harvest in Jan–Feb.

Check it on your land
Season
Rabi
JJASONDJFMAM
100% of its area.
Ready in
100 days
about 3½ months
Water
250–260 mm
over its season
Temperature
18–26 °C
0° survives 11–34 °C 40°

When to sow and harvest

Rabi 100% of its area
Today: rabi sowing time
J J A S O N D J F M A M
Sow Growing Harvest
The year starts in June, with the monsoon. Your district can shift a few weeks.

Will it grow on your land?

Water
Season

Pick your place and water to see:

  • Whether Niger Seed suits your land Good fit, possible or won't work, with the reasons.
  • What it could earn an acre From yields near you and mandi prices.
  • Water and fertiliser it needs Irrigations for your water, and bags for one acre.

What it needs

Temperature

18–26 °C
0 °C40 °C

Survives 11–34 °C. Frost hurts it.

Water

250–260 mm over its season

Rain and irrigation together, worked out where most of it grows:

Nadia Murshidabad Paschim Medinipur North 24 Parganas Purba Bardhaman

Soil pH

4 acidic7 neutral9 alkaline

Likes slightly acidic soil. Grows from pH 5 to 7.5.

Soil

  • No salty soil
  • Ordinary farm soil is fine
  • S Needs plenty of sulphur and boron
How the soil score works

Source: FAO ECOCROP crop requirements (via OpenCLIM/ecocrop); FAO-56 crop coefficients (Allen et al. 1998); IMD gridded daily rainfall (0.25°); IMD gridded daily max/min temperature (1°).

Fertiliser for one acre

Not covered yet. Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra for the dose.

Watch out for

Not covered yet. Ask your Krishi Vigyan Kendra what to watch for.

Mandi price, month by month

Best month
September, ₹8,050
Lowest
February, ₹7,000
₹7,000
₹8,050
J F M A M J J A S O N D

Rupees a quintal, typical across India's mandis.

Government minimum support price (MSP): ₹10,052 a quintal for 2026-27.

Source: Agmarknet daily prices and arrivals (India Data Portal).

Where it grows in India

Area grown in India
49,928 ha
2024-25
Average yield
0.3 t/ha
2024-25
Most area
Jashpur
Chhattisgarh
Best yield
Simdega
0.7 t/ha

Districts with the most area (recent figures)

The map colours each district by yield, for districts growing it on at least 100 ha.

  1. Jashpur, Chhattisgarh 14,892 ha
  2. Koraput, Odisha 11,181 ha
  3. Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh 6,345 ha
  4. Dindori, Madhya Pradesh 6,007 ha
  5. Rayagada, Odisha 3,231 ha
  6. Surguja, Chhattisgarh 2,707 ha
  7. Balrampur-Ramanujganj, Chhattisgarh 2,328 ha
  8. Bastar, Chhattisgarh 2,307 ha
  9. Jhabua, Madhya Pradesh 2,001 ha
  10. Shivpuri, Madhya Pradesh 1,986 ha

Niger Seed yield

  1. 0.1–0.2 t/ha
  2. 0.2–0.3 t/ha
  3. 0.3–0.4 t/ha
  4. 0.4–0.6 t/ha
  5. 0.6–0.7 t/ha
No data

Source: Crop area, production & yield – district-wise (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare); Crop area, production & yield – UPAG (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare). 1999-00 to 2024-25.

Where yields are highest

  1. Simdega, Jharkhand 0.7 t/ha
  2. Goalpara, Assam 0.7 t/ha
  3. Saraikela Kharsawan, Jharkhand 0.6 t/ha
  4. Dhubri, Assam 0.6 t/ha
  5. Kokrajhar, Assam 0.6 t/ha
  6. East Singhbum, Jharkhand 0.6 t/ha
  7. Chatra, Jharkhand 0.6 t/ha
  8. Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh 0.6 t/ha
  9. Darrang, Assam 0.6 t/ha
  10. Barpeta, Assam 0.6 t/ha

Only districts growing it on at least 100 ha.

Source: Crop area, production & yield – district-wise (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare); Crop area, production & yield – UPAG (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare). 1999-00 to 2024-25.

Across India over the years

Yield (t/ha)

0.0 0.2 0.4
1999-00 2024-25
Latest 0.3 t/ha in 2024-25

Area (ha)

0.0 277K 554K
1999-00 2024-25
Latest 49,928 ha in 2024-25

Only years in which most of the usual districts reported are shown.

Source: Crop area, production & yield – district-wise (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare); Crop area, production & yield – UPAG (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare). 1999-00 to 2024-25.

Soil and yield

How district soil tests line up with this crop's yields across India.

Niger Seed yields tend to be higher in districts with

  • More soil high in phosphorus moderate 85 districts
  • More soil that is acidic moderate 85 districts
  • More soil short of boron moderate 85 districts

Niger Seed yields tend to be lower in districts with

  • More soil low in nitrogen moderate 85 districts
  • More soil that is alkaline moderate 85 districts
  • More soil that is neutral moderate 85 districts

A pattern is not proof that soil causes the difference.

Source: Soil Health Card – soil nutrient analysis (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare); Crop area, production & yield – district-wise (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare); Crop area, production & yield – UPAG (Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare).