Castor is cultivated as a medicinal oil during the Kharif season. First, its plant develops in the form of a bush. Then, it is cultivated commercially to earn more profit. Castor seeds ripen for a long time, with 40 to 60 percent oil content. Its oil is used to make cloth, soap, plastic, cloth dyeing, hydraulic brake oil, varnish, and leather. Apart from this, this oil is also used for digestion, stomachache, and baby massage, and the oil cake is used as organic fertilizer while extracting the oil. Therefore, we are giving you complete information about Castor farming for higher profits, resulting in the improved living of the farmers.
Requirements For Castor Farming
Castor Farming Suitable Soil And Climate
- It can be cultivated in any fertile soil.
- The land must have proper drainage in its cultivation.
- Castor can be cultivated in a barren land.
- Do not cultivate it in alkaline soil at all.
- The land's pH value should be between 5 and 6.
- It can be cultivated in any climate, but the plants grow well in a dry and humid environment.
- Winter frost damages the plants to some extent.
- Initially, an average temperature is required for the growth of plants.
- Plants require high temperatures during crop ripening.
Castor Field Preparation
The roots of castor plants go deeper into the ground. Therefore, the soil in castor farming should be friable. For this, the field is first ploughed deeply. Due to this, the remains of the old crop present in the field are completely destroyed. After ploughing the field with a tractor, it is left open like this for some time, due to which the sunlight gets properly in the soil of the area, and the harmful elements present in the soil are destroyed.
Then, for the first ploughing of the field, 15 to 20 carts of old cow dung manure have to be put in it as natural manure. After applying manure, mix the manure properly in the soil by ploughing. After this, use water in the field and make it friable. When the water in the watered field dries up, it is ploughed two to three diagonally. Due to this, the soil of the field gets friable. After this, the land is levelled by putting a pad in the field.
There is no problem with water logging on flat land. However, if you want to use chemical fertilizers in castor cultivation, you have to apply 200 kg gypsum and 20 kg sulphur per hectare at the time of the last field ploughing. Apart from this, 40 K.G. NPK is given in the field through a Mahindra tractor. Therefore, the quantity has to be given on the basis of per hectare.
Castor Planting Season And Method
The drill method is used for sowing castor seeds. For this, rows are prepared to keep a distance of four feet in the field. In these rows, the seeds are planted at a distance of two to two and a half feet. Apart from this, if you want, you can also do seed transplantation by hand.
In one hectare field, 11 to 15 kg seeds of hybrid variety and about 20 kg seeds of ordinary varieties are required. Before planting the seeds, they are treated with the proper amount of Carbendazim. The months of June and July are best for planting castor seeds.
Irrigation In Castor Farming
Castor seeds are sown in the rainy season, due to which it does not require the first irrigation. But after the rainy season, the plants have to be watered at an interval of 18 to 20 days. Moreover, Castor farming does not require much irrigation. Therefore, its plants have to be watered only when needed.
Weed Control In Castor Farming
Its plants need more weed control in the beginning. For this, when weeds appear in the crop in the beginning, they must be removed by hoeing immediately. However, its plants require only two to three hoeings. If you want, you can also use chemical methods for weed control. In the chemical method, a proper amount of Pendimethalin has to be sprayed in the field before sowing the seeds.
Castor Farming Diseases And Prevention
Scorch Disease
This is the common type of disease seen in plants in the middle stage. First, different-sized spots start appearing on the leaves of the plants affected by this disease, and after some time, these spots increase further, due to which the plants are unable to do photosynthesis, and after some time, the plant dries up and perishes. To prevent this disease, a proper amount of Mancozeb has to be sprayed on the plants.
Castor Harvest, Yield and Benefits
Improved varieties of castor start giving yield after 120 to 150 days. The plants should be harvested when the colour of the seeds on the plants starts appearing brown or yellow. After harvesting it, they dry well in the sun. After this, the seeds are separated with the help of a machine.
About 25 quintals of production are obtained from one hectare of farmland. The market price of castor is 5 thousand rupees per quintal, due to which farmer brothers can easily earn up to Rs. 1.25 lakh from its one-time crop.
Stay tuned with us for more information about different profitable crops in India.
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