Pigeon Pea (Arhar) Cultivation Guide India 2026

Grow arhar with a plan, not guesswork

India’s average pigeon pea yield is only about 8 quintals per hectare (roughly 3.3 quintals per acre). Pod borer, wilt, sterility mosaic and waterlogging cause much of the loss, and most of it can be managed. This guide gives you the full season plan in one place, in simple language and in units farmers use: kg, quintals, acres and ₹.

Who this guide is for

• Farmers growing arhar (tur, red gram) in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Telangana and other states
• Agri input dealers, FPOs and extension workers who advise growers
• Agri students and entrepreneurs planning a pulse crop

What is inside (15 chapters)

• Climate, soil and field selection: the right site, drainage and wilt-free fields
• Varieties by zone: duration and reported yield of ICAR, ICRISAT and state-released varieties, with wilt and sterility mosaic resistance
• Sowing windows, seed rate and spacing: with plants per acre
• Seed treatment: fungicide or bio-agent, Rhizobium and PSB in the right order
• Fertiliser plan: N-P2O5-K2O in kg/ha, with a worked DAP, urea and MOP example per acre
• Weed and water management: which herbicide or hand weeding, and when to irrigate
• Intercropping and rotation: including pigeon pea with greengram
• Pod borer and other pests: scouting thresholds, neem, HaNPV and pheromone traps before spraying
• Diseases and troubleshooting: wilt, sterility mosaic, Phytophthora blight, with a symptom, cause and fix table
• Crop calendar: a day-by-day checklist from sowing to harvest
• Harvest, threshing and storage: protecting grain from bruchids
• Yield and MSP planning: average vs good-farm yield, and gross value at MSP in ₹ per acre

Why growers trust it

• Built from ICAR, ICRISAT, state agricultural university and KVK recommendations, not guesswork
• Honest numbers: research yields are labelled as research, and farm averages as averages
• Chemical doses are quoted only from official packages of practices, with the reminder to check the label and CIB&RC registration

Try before you buy: download the free 5-page sample to see the layout and two full chapters.

This guide is general information. Confirm sowing dates and varieties with your local KVK.