Castor

Crisis Management

Hints for high yield of Castor

    i.    Whenever castor plantings are delayed for one month or more beyond the recommended planting       schedule in drylands, adopt close spacing of 60 x 15 cm in place of 90 x 20cm or 60 x 30 cm to curtail       excessive growth. Grow short duration varieties like DCS-9 and Bhagya.
    ii.   Creation of dust mulch by blade harrowing during moisture stress prevents water loss through       evaporation.
    iii.  Apply 20 kg N/ha immediately after rains to exploit subsequent sequential order i.e. secondary and       higher order spikes and compensate losses from primary order spikes.
    iv.  Give one or two protective irrigations between 50 to 75 days coinciding with primary/secondary/tertiary      sequential order spike developmental phases. Since primary and secondary spikes together contribute      more than 60% of the total yield in dry lands, apply irrigation preferably between 50 to 75 days.
    v.  Occurrence of continuous cloudy and wet weather during the first 40 to 90 days results in blasting of      male flowers and abortion/premature dropping of flowers and developing capsules. Under such a      situation apply 20 kg N/ha as top dressing immediately after the recession of rains to compensate the      losses from primary and secondary order racemes.
    vi.  Whenever water levels in the reservoirs are low and the paddy plantings are delayed in the command      areas, castor can be taken up successfully as a contingent crop in August or September either with one      or two protective irrigations or under rainfed conditions.

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Telangana

Castor

Castor Management