Climate and soil

• Cold season crop and can be grown at an altitude of 3800 masl.
• Grown as rabi crop from Oct.- April.
• Optimum temperature 10-15 ⁰C for growth.
• For vegetative growth: 10-19⁰
• Maximum production at 19-20⁰
• Well drained, clay loam, sandy loam or silty loam soil is suitable.
• PH: 7

Recommended varieties

Land Preparation

• Consider 2-3 ploughing and planking.
• For sole cropping 25-30 cm deep tillage by MB plough and 2-3 harrowing at depth of 10-15 cm is ideal.
• In relay cropping, it can be directly broadcasted into rice field 2 weeks before harvesting of rice.

Seed selection and treatment

• Pure, viable, vigorous growth habit, physically and genetically pure (>95%) Seed is selected.
• Seed with high germination %, free from any mechanical injury and pest and disease is selected.
• Treated with Captan or 1% Agrosan GN @ 2.5 g/kg seed.
• Inoculate seed with efficient strain of bacteria ( leguminosarum).

Sowing time

• In terai: 1st-15th Nov
• In hills and valley: 15th Oct-5th Nov
• Yield declines after 5th of Dec.

Sowing Methods

a. Broadcasting:

• Non-uniform depth of sowing, irregular distribution thus reduce yield.

b. Line sowing:

• RR- 20-30 cm, PP- continuous.
• Normal sowing at wider spacing (RR 30cm)
• Late sowing at narrower spacing (RR 20cm)

Sowing depth:

• 8 to 7.6 cm (Optimum: 4-5 cm).

Seed rate

• 20-80 kg/ha for normal cropping.
• 20-40 kg/ha for mix cropping.
• 70-80 kg/ha for sole cropping.
• Optimum plant density: 90-120 plants/m².
• Gypsum or slaked lime improve the establishment and early root development of legume crop in puddled soils.