Crop Production and Management
What this domain covers
Crop Production and Management tests the field-level decisions that determine yield: variety, seed rate, sowing time, seed treatment, spacing, nutrient and water management, weed control and harvesting. Haryana's dominant systems are rice–wheat, cotton–wheat, mustard and sugarcane, with bajra and gram in drier areas.
Core rules and concepts
- Choose a recommended variety for the district and season; use certified seed and treat it with a fungicide or bio-agent before sowing.
- Seed rate and sowing time are linked. Timely wheat sown in the first fortnight of November needs about 100 kg/ha; late sowing needs a higher seed rate, around 125 kg/ha, to compensate for reduced tillering.
- Rice transplanting is normally done in mid-June to early July with 20–25-day-old seedlings; delayed transplanting exposes the crop to heat and pest pressure.
- Apply fertilizer on soil-test basis. Split nitrogen into basal and top-dressings; do not apply all urea at sowing.
- Weed control is most critical in the first 30–45 days. Use stale seedbed, mechanical weeding or recommended herbicide at the correct stage.
- Follow crop rotation to break pest cycles and improve soil health; include a legume where possible.
Worked example
A farmer sows wheat on 25 December instead of the first week of November. Reasoning: late sowing shortens the vegetative period, so tillering and yield fall. The farmer should use a higher seed rate (about 125 kg/ha) and a shorter-duration variety, but should not simply double nitrogen-excess nitrogen increases lodging and does not recover the lost growth period. Irrigation timing should be adjusted to the delayed crop stage.
Traps that cost marks
Do not use the same seed rate for timely and late sowing. Do not sow wheat too deep; 5–6 cm is adequate. Do not ignore seed treatment, and do not apply herbicide at the wrong crop stage.