EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING PROGRAMME

EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING
ELCPPROGRAMME
4207
ELCP 4207
COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION OF SEEDS OF PULSES
COMMERCIAL
AND FORAGEPRODUCTION
LEGUMES (0+10) OF SEEDS
OF
PULSES AND FORAGE LEGUMES (0+10)
IMPORTANCE OF PULSES
• Pulses are considered the cheapest and most accessible source of protein,
with an average protein content ranging between 17–25% and an energy
value of about 372 kcal per 100 g.

• They are widely acknowledged as “super foods”, containing nearly twice

the protein of wheat and three times that of rice.

• Pulses are also rich in lysine, vitamins (A, B1, C, and folates), and minerals
such as calcium, iron, magnesium, zinc, and potassium.
• They serve as a valuable source of fodder and fuel for farm families while
contributing positively to soil fertility and environmental health

• Being legumes, they efficiently utilize limited soil moisture and nutrients, and
more importantly, they fix atmospheric nitrogen through symbiosis with
Rhizobium bacteria

• Pulses also contribute to soil and water conservation. Their dense canopy reduces
the impact of raindrops on the soil, thereby minimizing splash erosion

• Their strong tap root system binds soil particles, reducing erosion risks, while
certain species such as pigeon pea and moth bean reduce wind erosion
• In addition to these general benefits, Black gram (Vigna mungo) holds a special

place among pulses

• It is an important pulse crop in India, extensively cultivated both as a food and

fodder crop

• Black gram is highly nutritious, containing approximately 25% protein, along

with essential amino acids, vitamins, and minerals

• It is widely consumed as dal and also used in the preparation of various

traditional food items

• Agronomically, it is well-suited to diverse agro-climatic conditions and is

often grown as a short-duration crop under rainfed conditions

CULTIVATION ASPECTS

• Black gram is an important pulse crop from the legume family

• Rich in protein, minerals, and vitamins

• Seeds: black outside, creamy white inside

• Used for dal, idli, dosa, papad, and traditional foods

• Nitrogen-fixing crop → improves soil fertility

• Often grown as an intercrop with cereals

• Short-duration and drought-tolerant

• Suitable for tropical and subtropical regions

Climate requirement

• Season: Thrives in warm, humid tropical climate

• Temperature: Optimum 25–35 °C.

• Rainfall: Requires 600–800 mm; excess rainfall during flowering reduces yield

• Season of Cultivation in Kerala:

• Virippu (April–May, pre-monsoon)

• Mundakan (September–October, post-monsoon)

• Puncha (December–January, irrigated crop)

• It can be grown as pure or mixed crop throughout the year

Soil Requirement

• Grows in a wide range of soils – sandy loam to clay loam

• Best suited in well-drained loamy soils with neutral pH (6–7.5)

• Avoid waterlogging
Varieties
T-9, Co-2, S-1, TAU-2, TMV-1, KM-2, Syama and Sumanjana

 T-9 - moderately tolerant to drought condition

 CO-2 - photoinsensitive but susceptible to pests and diseases

 S-1 -Suitable for pappad making

 TAU-2 - suited for partially shaded condition in coconut garden during rabi season
in southern region
TMV-1, KM-2 - Suited for Onattukara tract during late kharif
Syama -Suited for the summer rice fallow of Onattukara
Sumanjana -High yielding and early maturing variety, suitable for summer
rice fallows of Trivandrum district
Seeds and Sowing
Seed rate
Pure crop - 20 kg ha-1
Mixed crop - 6 kg ha-1
Spacing: 25 cm x 15 cm
Sowing

• Plough the land 2-3 times thoroughly and remove weeds and stubbles

• For seed treatment in black gram, two Rhizobium cultures viz. KAU-BG-2 and
BG-12 are recommended
Land preparation
Plough the field 2–3 times to achieve a fine tilth.

Remove weeds, crop residues, stones, and other debris.

Level the land properly to facilitate uniform germination and drainage.

Create raised beds (1 m wide, 5 cm high) if sowing early or in heavy soils.

Make furrows between rows for better water movement in irrigated conditions.

Provide drainage channels (30 cm wide × 15 cm deep, every 2 m) to avoid water

stagnation, especially during rains.
Manuring
• FYM 20 t ha-1 (as basal)

• Lime 250 kg ha-1 (or dolomite 400 kg ha-1 )

N - 20 kg ha-1 P2O - 30 kg ha-1 K2O -30 kg ha-1

• Apply lime during the first ploughing (if required, based on soil pH)
• At the last ploughing, apply:
 Half the nitrogen dose
 Full dose of phosphorus
 Full dose of potash
Water Management
Grown mainly under rainfed conditions; irrigation is optional but beneficial.

Provide 2 irrigations if rainfall is inadequate:

First at 15 days after sowing (DAS)

Second at flowering stage

Avoid waterlogging — especially critical during early growth and flowering

Use raised beds in the rainy season to improve drainage and prevent seed rot
Weed Management

• Weed flora : Echinochloa colona, Cyperus rotundus, Cynodon dactylon,

Digitaria sanguinalis , Commelina benghalensis

• Weeds compete heavily during the first 30–35 days of growth.

Cultural practices

• 1–2 hand weedings or intercultivation (at 20–25 DAS and 40 DAS)

• Pre-planting: 1 deep ploughing to bury weed seeds
Chemical control
• Pre-emergence: Pendimethalin @ 1.0 kg a.i./ha (within 2 days of sowing)
• Post-emergence: Imazethapyr @ 50 g a.i./ha at 20 DAS (when weeds are
young)
Echinochloa colona Cyperus rotundus Cynodon dactylon

Commelina benghalensis Digitaria sanguinalis

Pest Management
1. Hairy caterpillar

• Defoliation of leaves.
Hairy
• Spray Chlorantraniliprole 18.5 SC @ 0.3 ml/L or Quinalphos caterpillar

25 EC @ 2 ml/L.

2. Whitefly (vector of Yellow Mosaic Virus)

• Yellowing and stunted growth.

• Spray Neem oil 2% or Thiamethoxam 25 WG @ 0.25 g/L. Whitefly

3. Aphids & Jassids

• Sucking sap, reducing vigor.

Aphid
• Imidacloprid 17.8 SL @ 0.3 ml/L.

4. Pod borer (Helicoverpa armigera)

• Boreholes in pods, seed damage.

• Spinosad 45 SC @ 0.5 ml/L or Indoxacarb 14.5 SC @ 1 ml/L. Pod Borer

5. Pod bug (Riptortus pedestris)

Spray Imidacloprid 17.8 SL @ 40 ml/ac

Pod bug
Disease Management
[Link] Mosaic - Yellow Mosaic Virus (YMV)
• Spread by whitefly. Yellow Mosaic Virus (YMV)

• Grow resistant varieties (PU 31, VBN 6, LBG 645).

• Control whiteflies with Thiamethoxam/Imidacloprid.

[Link] Leaf Spot

• Brown spots on leaves.

Cercospora Leaf Spot
• Spray Mancozeb @ 2 g/L or Carbendazim @ 1 g/L.
[Link] Mildew (Erysiphe polygoni)

• White powdery patches on leaves.

Powdery Mildew
• Spray Wettable Sulphur 2 g/L.

[Link] Rot/Stem Rot (Macrophomina phaseolina)

• Seed treatment with Trichoderma viride @ 4 g/kg seed.

• Avoid waterlogging

Root Rot
Harvesting

• Crop is ready in 70–90 days depending on variety

• Harvest when 80% of pods turn black/brown

• Early harvesting → immature seeds; late harvesting → shattering losses

• Plants are uprooted/cut and sun-dried for 2–3 days, then threshed.
Yield
• Rainfed crop: 6–8 quintals/ha
• Irrigated crop: 10–12 quintals/ha
Market potential
• High nutritional value

• Rich in protein, iron and dietary fibre

• Used in every day diets

• India : largest producer and consumer

• Rising demand of protein rich food

• Can be used as staple and processed products

Demand and supply

• Demand higher than its supply

• Annual domestic consumption : 4.5-5 million tonnes

• Production : 3.5-4 million tonnes

• Create a supply gap of 1 million tonnes - import from Myanmmar, Indonesia

Market strategy
• High yielding and short duration varieties shall be encouraged.

• Post harvest infrastructure like dal mills, storage and processing units must be
developed.

• Promote value added products – pappad, protein bar etc.

• Branding of organic and region specific varieties for export.

• Maintaining buffer stocks , timely imports and strengthening price stabilisation

mechanism.
 SEED PRODUCTION

• Area: 300m2

• Crop: Blackgram

• Variety: Vamban 6

• Seed rate: 0.6kg for 300m2

• Germination percentage: 75%

• Spacing: 25cm x15cm

Layout
 Calender of Operation
Activity Date of operation
Marking layout 10/05/25
Application of lime 17/05/25
Bed preparation 24/05/25
Application of FYM 25/05/25
Date of sowing 04/06/25
Application of fertilizers 19/06/25
Weeding 19/06/25, 25/07/25
Days to 50% of flowering 25/07/25
Day of pod formation observed 06/08/25
Harvesting 28/08/25
 Land Preparation

• Land ploughed using tractor

• Prepared 15 beds, each bed with 3m length 2m width

15cm height and 30cm between the beds

• To Neutralize the pH, 8 kg of lime was applied

• After liming, add a total of 600 kg of FYM.

Lime application
Soil test result
• pH = 5.21
• EC = 0.05 ds/m

Quartering Soil testing

• Sowing: dibbling 2-3 seeds per hole

• Irrigation: Rainfed (June – August)

• Manuring: 3kg factomfos and 1.5 kg MOP were applied 15 days after sowing

• Weeding: Done twice, First before fertilizer application and second one after
flowering

• Problems faced: Pest, Diseases and heavy rainfall

Fertilizer application Hand weeding Alley clearing
 Cost Estimation
Item Quantity Unit Rate (INR) Amount (INR)
Seed (Vamban 6) 2.00 kg 120.00 240.00
Lime 8 kg 50 400
FYM 20 kg 12 240
Urea 5.43 kg 6.00 32.61
Muriate of Potash (MOP) 4.17 kg 34.00 141.67
Rajphos (Rock phosphate) 17.86 kg 12.00 214.29
Land preparation 1 lot 1500.00 1500.00
Sowing labour 1 lot 800.00 800.00
Intercultural operation - I 1 lot 800.00 800.00
Intercultural operation - II 1 lot 800.00 800.00
Plant protection 1 lot 600.00 600.00
Harvesting & threshing 1 lot 1500.00 1500.00
Miscellaneous 1 lot 300.00 300.00
Growth stages of Blackgram

Seedling Flowering Pod formation