What Is Kharif Crop 🌟 🆒

reflecting the season in which they are typically harvested. Key Characteristics Sowing Season:

• Cereals: Paddy (Rice), Maize, Jowar, Bajra.
• Pulses: Arhar (Pigeon Pea), Moong, Urad.
• Cash Crops: Cotton, Sugarcane, Jute, Tobacco.
• Vegetables: Okra, Bitter Gourd, Bottle Gourd.

• Erratic monsoons: Long dry spells followed by intense rainfall are becoming common, disrupting Kharif sowing.
• Temperature rise: Night temperatures above 30°C during the growing season reduce rice yields (sterility in pollen).
• Salinity intrusion: In coastal areas (Bangladesh, West Bengal), rising sea levels push saltwater into paddy fields during the monsoon.
• New varieties: ICAR (Indian Council of Agricultural Research) is developing drought-tolerant and flood-resistant Kharif crop varieties. For example, "Swarna Sub1" rice can survive 14 days of complete submersion.

• Rice: The dominant kharif staple; needs standing water and warm temperatures.
• Maize (corn): Versatile crop for food, feed and industry; tolerant of varied soils.
• Millets (e.g., pearl millet): Drought-tolerant, nutritious, and resilient in low-rainfall zones.
• Sorghum (jowar): Another drought-hardy staple used for food and fodder.
• Pulses (e.g., pigeon pea/tuar): Important protein source and soil nitrogen fixers.
• Cotton: Cash crop needing warm temperatures and moisture during growth.
• Soybean, sugarcane, groundnut, sesame: Key oilseed, sugar and cash crops in different zones.

Key takeaway: Kharif = Monsoon sown = Autumn harvested = Rice, cotton, maize, and more.

Major kharif crops

Maize:

Known as the "queen of cereals," it is versatile and grows well in varied soil types. what is kharif crop

Pulses (Protein Sources)