Agronomy of
Field Crops:
Lecture 9
Classification of Field Crops
• Rice
• Non-rice cereals (maize, sorghum, millets)
• Grain legumes (soybean, mung bean, cowpea, black
gram)
• Tuber crops (potato, cassava, yams)
• Oil seed crops (sesame, sunflower, groundnut)
• Condiments (chilli, onions)
• Fiber crops (cotton, jute)
• Sugar crops (sugarcane, sugar beet)
Lecture 9 – Black gram
Introduction
• Scientific name: Vigna mungo
• Originated in South Asia, and largely cultivated in India,
Nepal and Sri Lanka
• One of the highly priced legumes in the market
• Extensively used in South Indian culinary preparations
(dosa, idli, vadai)
• Has high content of protein (25g/100g) including essential
amino acids, minerals and vitamins
Black gram in Sri Lanka
• Another important grain legume crop
• Mainly cultivated under rainfed farming system in dry and
intermediate zones
• Mainly cultivated in Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu, Batticaloa, Jaffna,
Anuradhapura, Polonnaruwa, Vavuniya, Kurunegala and Puttalam
• Cultivated extent and production of black gram vary annually
• The national average yield of black gram is around 0.7-0.8 t/ha, far
behind the yield under research environment (1.5-2.0 t/ha)
• Large quantities of black gram are imported annually
Climate requirements
• The suitable temperature for growth and development
ranges 25-35 °C
• Rainfall requirement 600 – 750 mm per annum (well-
distributed rainfall is good)
• Heavy rains during flowering is not preferable
• Maturity period should be coinciding with the dry
weather condition to ensure high yield and quality of
seeds
Soil requirements
• Well-drained sandy loam soils are best suited to grow
• However, can be grown in wide range of soils (sandy
loam to heavy clay soils)
• Saline and alkaline soils are not suitable
• Preferred soil pH range 6.5 – 7.5
Recommended varieties in Sri Lanka
• MI – 1
• Anuradha
Land preparation
• Ploughing followed by harrowing
• Make ridges or flat beds depending on the water
supply
Planting, spacings and seed rates
• Space between rows 30 - 40 cm
• Space between plants in a row 10 cm
• Plant two seeds/hill, and thin out weaker plant after
10 – 12 days
• Planting depth 1 – 1.5 cm
• Seed rate is 30 kg/ha
Time of planting
• Maha season: Mid September – October
• Yala season: March – April
• Late planting may increase the risk of drought and
mung bean yellow mosaic virus (MYMV)
Weed control
• Need to maintain the crops free from weeds during
first six weeks (until canopy established)
• Two-time manual weeding
• 20 – 25 days after seeding
• 35 – 40 days after seeding
• Chemical weed control may be recommended based
on the intensity of weeds
Fertilizer application – DOA, Sri Lanka
• Basal dressing – during seeding/planting
Urea (kg/ha) TSP (kg/ha) MOP (kg/ha)
35 100 75
• Top dressing – at flowering
• Urea: 30 kg/ha
Irrigation
• Required especially in the Yala season
• Adequate soil moisture is required for germination and
uniform crop establishment
• Every 4 days during first 3 weeks and then every 7 days
• Critical water requirement stages are germination, flowering
and seed filling
• Stop irrigation near pod maturity
Diseases
• Mung bean Yellow Mosaic Virus(MYMV)
• Cercospora leaf spot
• Powdery mildew
Pests
• Bruchids – stored grain pest
Harvesting
• Harvest the pods when 90% of the pods turned black
colour
• Over maturity may result in shattering losses of grains
• Plants are uprooted or cut with a sickle, dried on the
threshing-floor for a week, and threshed by beating with
sticks, and are winnowed with baskets
• Tractor or thresher also can be used to separate the seeds
– large scale
Crop rotation with Black gram
• Rice – Black gram – Rice (Sri Lanka)
• Rice – Mustard – Black gram (India)
• Rice – Vegetables – Black gram (India)
• Rice – Potato – Black gram (India)
