Brief understanding of crop

1. Pearl millet/Bajra
Dr. Saikat Biswas,
Assistant professor (Agronomy),
RKMVERI, Ranchi

2. Pearl millet/ cattail millet/ dark millet/ candle millet is the fifth
important crop of India and Africa after rice, wheat maize and
jowar.
It is known for its drought tolerance.
Scientific name: Pennisetum glaucum
Family: Poaceae
Origin: Africa
It is a dry land crop which is used as staple food for poor, resource
less people of Africa and India.
It is also grown in Pakistan, Russia, Australia, USA etc.
In India, major pearl millet producing states are Rajasthan,
Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Kerala. T.N.,
Karnataka etc.

3. Uses/importance
• It is mostly used for human consumption. Its grain is
used for preparation of multiple food products like
roti/chapati, bread, biscuits, cakes etc.
• Various other dishes like laddu, momo, cookies, noodles,
desserts can also be prepared from bajra.
• The vegetative parts can be fed to the livestock as fodder.
• The grains contain 65-70% carbohydrates, 10-14%
(average 11.5%) protein (low in lysine content), 2-4%
minerals, carotene, vitamins like niacin, riboflavin. It
supplies maximum energy (361 Kcal) among the cereals.
• It is a staple food for poor people living in drought prone
areas.

4. Botanical description
• It is adroughtescaping, cross pollinated cropgrownin arid and
semiaridareasoftropical andsub-tropicalregions.
• The crop is tall (1-3 m), stout, grassy in habit, annual, short-day
innature.
• The leaves are narrow, grown from nodes covering the culm
(leaf sheath). Stems are cylindrical. The entire plant is covered
withveryfinehairs.
• Leaves contain very small auricle and ligule. Roots are fibrous
andarisefrombasalnode.
• Eararises justabovetheflag leaf.
• The panicle is covered with small hairs and ice-cream stick
shaped (base is thick and top is thin). It contains numerous small
seeds/grains,ovalin shape(oneendelongated/taperedandflat).
• Grains aregrey/off-white/light yellowish in colours.

5. Soil and climatic requirements
It prefers warm, dry climate.
It grows well in areas having 400-750 mm annual rainfall (can be
grown even under very less rain fall).
hampers
It can tolerate drought by shortening the vegetative phase.
It prefers clear sunny days during flowering. Rainfall
flowering and grain formation.
It prefers 28-32⁰C temperature for its optimum growth.
It can not tolerate water stagnation.
It grows in wide range of soils from sandy to red and laterite soil.
Well drained loamy soil is most suited for pearl millet.
It does not grow well on saline soil.

6. Land preparation
• It prefersfineseedbed.
• 1-2deepploughing+ 2-3crossharrowing+ planking/levelingis needed.
• Thefield shouldbefreefromweedsandpreviouscropstubbles.
• It shouldhaveirrigationanddrainagechannels.
• Summerploughingis recommended.
Sowing time: Kharif: JuneendtoJuly 15(CanbesownuptofirstfortnightofAugust).
Canalsobegrownduringsummer(March-April) andwinter(October-November)
Seed rate: 4-5kg/ha(directsowing),2kg/ha(transplanting)
Spacing: 45cmx 10-15cm Depth of sowing: 2.5-3cm
Seed treatment: Done with Captan/Thiram/Carbendazim@ 2.5-3 g/kg of seeds to prevent
fungaldiseases.
Method of sowing:
Direct line sowing (most preferred), Seed drilling, Transplanting, Broadcasting etc. N-S direction
sowingis preferredtoharnesssunlightproperly.
Transplanting: Under late sowing condition, transplanted pearl millet is a common practice
(500m2 nursery area is suitable for 1 ha main field transplanting). 21-30 days old seedlings are
transplantedtomainfield.

7. Nutrient management
10-15 t/ha FYM/compost at basal depending on soil fertility status and
quality of manure.
RDF: 60-80: 30-40: 30-40 kg N: P2O5: K2O/ha.
50% N, 100% P and 100% K at basal and remaining 50% N is top
dressed after one month of sowing.
ZnSO4@ 25 kg/ha at basal.
Biofertilizers like Azotobacter/Azospirillum (600 g/ha) through seed
inoculation can help in bajra growth.

8. Water management
It is a rainfed crop grown during kharif season in India.
If delay in rain/break in rain/ low rain occurs, supplemental irrigation
may be given.
It requires 250-350 mm water.
The most moisture sensitive stages are flowering and grain formation.
4-5 irrigations may be required under no rainfall conditions.
Moisture conservation practices can help the crop during drought.

9. Weed management
Critical crop-weed competition period is 35-40 DAS.
Trianthema portulacastrum, Digitaria sanguinalis, Dactyloctaneum
aegyptium, Cynodon dactylon, Cyperus rotundus, Striga sp. etc. are
commonly found in bajra field.
Hand weeding at 15-20 DAS and 35-40 DAS can be effective.
PPI of Fluchloralin@ 1 kg ai/ha is effective.
PE of Atrazine@ 0.5 kg ai/ha/ simazine @ 1-1.5 kg ai/ha is effective.
POE of 2, 4-D ethyl ester @ 0.25-0.5 kg ai/ha at 25-30 DAS is
effective.

10. Cropping systems
Bajra- wheat/barley/mustard/chickpea/lentil/pea
Groundnut/cowpea/pigeon pea-bajra-wheat/chickpea
Bajra+ green gram/black gram/soybean/sesame/arhar/cowpea/groundnut
Bajra+ cluster bean/sunflower

11. Ergot: Claviceps fusiformis
• Cream to pink droplets of "honeydew" ooze out.
• Within 10 to 15 days, the droplets dry, turns black and
harden.
Management:
• Seed treatment with 10% salt solution.
• Mixture of Ziram @ 0.1% + benlate @0.1%
Diseases

12. Downy mildew: Sclerospora graminicola (green ear disease)
• Pale, chlorotic, broad streaks extending from base to tip of
leaves.
• The rapid growth of fungal pathogen is favoured by rainy
and humid environment.
Management:
• Spray of Dithane Z 78 @0.2% or copper oxychloride @0.4%
• Destruction of infected plants.

13. White grub: Holotrachia sp.
Damage symptoms:
•Yellowing and wilting of leaves.
•Drying of entire crown.
•Affected canes come off easily when pulled.
•Cause extensive damage to roots and base of shoot.
Management:
• Seed treatment with chlorpyriphos 20 EC @12.5 ml/kg seed
• Soil application of phorate 10 G or carbofuran 3 G@ 12 kg/ha
Insects

14. Termite: Odontotermis obesus
Damage symptoms:
• Pest feed root and lower part of the stem
• Plants dries up.
Management
• Use of well decomposed FYM

15. Harvesting
When grains are hard enough when pressed; leaves are turning to
brown or straw in colour, harvesting is done at 15-20% moisture
level by cutting the ear head or the entire plant.
It requires around 3.5-4 months to be matured.
After harvesting, the harvest are sundried for 2-3 days, followed by
threshing through beating with stick or bullock trampling.
Threshed grains are winnowed, sundried to reduce moisture to 10-
12% during storage.
Yield: Grain: 12-15 q/ha (rainfed), 20-30 q/ha (irrigated)
Fodder: 70-75 q/ha (rainfed), 100-120 q/ha (irrigated)

16. Varieties
HB-1 (First hybrid: Tift 23-A and BIL -3 B) , 2, 3, 4, 5, BD 111, HHB
67, ICMH 356, BJ 104, HHB 45, NHB 3, 4, 5, GHB 1399, GHB 27,
MH 180, 182, 143, MBH 118, 136, 149, MLBH 301, BGH 50, Pusa
415, 444, 605, HHB 146, 117, Nandi 61, 65, 64, 30, Prabhani
Sampada, Anantas, Raj 171, Sangam, HC 4, ES 1, ICMV 155, PCB
15, WCC 75, PHB 10, Pusa Moti etc.