Climate and Soil

• It needs an average of 20⁰C for seed germination and below 32⁰C for vegetative growth and development.
• Needs >18⁰C for grain filling.
• Loamy and sandy loam soil of 6.5-7 pH.
• Can tolerate acidity upto 2.5-5.5 pH but highly sensitive to alkaline soil.
• Critical temperature is 15 ⁰C and a temperature of 10 ⁰C, germination does not take place.
• Temperature lower than critical minimizes photosynthetic rate resulting stunted growth.
• Successfully grown up to elevation of 2000masl. As elevation increases, flowering is delayed due to lower ambient temperature.
• Grown best in area with annual rainfall of 500-700mm.
• Soil temperature of 30 ⁰C for better for optimum germination and plant stand.