Preface
Mustard is an important oilseed crop of India. Mustard plants are also used as leafy vegetables. They are mostly cultivated as intercrops with wheat, barley, gram, potato, etc.
Selection of Land
- Loam and sandy loam with good drainage for excess of water
- Deep soil with high water holding capacity
- Application of Gypsum as per requirement which could be as low as 1.5t/ha and high as 20t/ha in and alkali soil before rain. Store rain water in the problem field for leaching the salt
- After harvesting Kharif crops irrigate the fields, plough 2-3 times followed by planking.
- Pulverize the soil before sowing using cultivator.
- Disc harrowing after every effective shower in monsoon helps in conserving moisture. On cessation of rain planking should invariably be followed after each harrowing to avoid clod formation and moisture loss.
- Pulverize the soil before sowing using cultivator.
- Planking in both irrigated and non irrigated land is essential to avoid clod formation / and prevent moisture loss.
The optimum time of sowing to realize high yielding in the states involved in the program is as follows:
Haryana: Within October for normal sowing and first week of November for late sowing.
Himachal Pradesh: Late October to the end of November.
Madhya Pradesh: Last week of September to Mid October for timely sowing and up to mid November for late sowing.
Chhattisgarh: Second fortnight to October to first fortnight of November for irrigated and within October for rain fed.
Punjab: For normal sowing mid-October to mid-November and up to November end for late sowing.
Rajasthan: Within October for irrigated and mid-September to mid-October for rain fed.
If sowing delays heavy infestation of White rust and Aphid in crop and consequently considerable yield reduction and hence low reduction on investment.
To obtain optimum plant stand for higher yield, the recommended seed rate should be followed as per the list mentioned bellow:
| State | Mustard | |
| Seed Rate kg/ha | Spacing (cm) | |
| Haryana | 5.0 | 30 x 10-15 |
| Himachal Pradesh | 6.0 | 30 x 10-15 |
| Madhya Pradesh | 5.0-6.0 | 45 x 15 |
| Punjab | 3.5-4.0 | 30-45 x 10-15 |
| Rajasthan | 4.0-5.0 | 30 x 10 |
| Uttar Pradesh | 5.0-6.0 | 45 x 10 |
To protect the crop in early stages from white rust and powdery mildew, treat seed with Apron 35 SD @ 6g / kg seed.
To control the root rot and wilt the seed is treated with either Mancozeb @ 3-4g/kg seed or Thiram / Captan / Carbendazim 2 g/kg seed as protection against seed-borne diseases.
Test the soil to know the nutrient status for application of proper dosage of fertilizers.
To control soil from insects such as Termites, cut worm as well as saw flies apply Quinalphos dust 1.5% @ 25kg/ha at the time of final ploughing.
Apply fertilizer dosage as per the recommendation given in the table:
Irrigated: half of the recommended dosage of N and full dosage of P and K should be applied at the time of sowing. Remaining half dosage of nitrogen should be top dressed immediately after first irrigation i.e. 35-40 days after sowing.
Rain fed: Total recommended dosage of N, P and K should be thoroughly incorporated in soil just before sowing or at the time of sowing.
Note: It is always better to apply the mixture of urea and other fertilizer immediately after mixing to avoid clod formation and nutrient loss.
The best time of top dressing of urea is late afternoon.
| Mustard | ||||||
| State | Rain fed | Irrigated | ||||
| N | P | K | N | P | K | |
| Haryana | 40 | 20 | 0 | 60 | 30 | 0 |
| Himachal Pradesh | 30 | 20 | 20 | 60 | 40 | 40 |
| MP | 30 | 20 | 10 | 60 | 30 | 20 |
| Punjab | 40 | 20 | 0 | 100 | 50 | 0 |
| Rajastan | 40 | 20 | 0 | 80 | 40 | 0 |
| UP | 60 | 20 | 20 | 120 | 40 | 40 |
Organic Fertilizers
Irrigated:Before sowing incorporate thoroughly FYM/compos (100 qtls/ha) in the soil.
Rain fed:Apply FYM @ 40-50 qtls/ha before monsoon and incorporate thoroughly in the soil by ploughing during rains.
Weed Control: The most common weeds which grow in the fields of Rapeseed and Mustard are deep rooted broad leaved weeds like Bathua (Chenopodium album), Chattari mattari (Lathyms spp.), Kateli (Cirsium arvense), Gajri (FumariapalVijlora) etc. Weeds are removed mostly by hand-hoeing with Khurpi. This method is advantageous since it removes the weeds thoroughly during early stages of growth. It pulverizes the soil and creates mulch over the soil and reduces moisture loss. Use Fluchloralin (pre sowing incorporation) @ 1.25 kg/ha and Isoproturan (post emergence) @0.75 kg/ha to control weeds.
Irrigation: Two irrigations, one at pre-bloom stage i.e. 35-40 DAS and second at pod-filling stage (75-80 DAS) are most beneficial.
Disease Control
The important diseases of rapeseed and mustard along with their suitable control measures are discussed here.
Management
- Use healthy seeds for sowing
- Collect and burn the crop debris of previous year
- Remove weeds
- Spray Iprodione or Mancozeb @ 2% as soon as the symptoms start developing on the plant and repeat twice at intervals of 15-20 DAS
Management
- Destruction of the diseased plant debris
- Use seed from stag head free plant to avoid carryover of the oospores through seeds
- Apply seed treatment (Apron 35 SD @ 6g/kg seeds)
- Spray Redomil MZ 72 WP or Mancozeb 0.2% as soon as the symptoms appear on the plant, repeat twice at the interval of 15-20 DAS
Management
- Destruction of the diseased plant debris
- Use seed from stag head free plant to avoid carryover of the oospores through seeds
- Apply seed treatment (Apron 35 SD @ 6g/kg seeds)
- Spray Redomil MZ 72 WP or Mancozeb 0.2% as soon as the symptoms appear on the plant, repeat twice at the interval of 15-20 DAS
Management
- Timely sowing of the crop
- Destruction of the diseased plant debris
- Spray Karathane @ 0.1 % or wettable Sulphur@ 0.2 %.
Management
- Destruction of the diseased plant debris
- Follow crop rotation with non-susceptible host
- Use clean and healthy seeds which are free from the sclerotial bodies
- Spray Carbendazim @0.05% at the time of appearance of disease
Management
- Early sowing of the crop is recommended
- Three spray of Metasystox 25 EC or Rogor 30 EC @ 625, 875 and 1000 ml in 625, 875 and 1000 liter of water for 1 ha, at 15 days interval
- Removal of infected planted
Management
- Dust Quinalphos (1.5 %) @25 kg/ha
- Spray Malathion 50EC in 500 liter of water for 1 ha
Management
- Dust Quinalphos (1.5 %) @25 kg/ha
- Spray Malathion 50EC @500 ml in 500lt of water/ha
Management
- Destroy affected leaves
- Spray Nuvan 70EC @ 300ml in 600 liter water/ha
Continuous cropping with same crop year after year affects the yield and quality of the produce and causes great incidence of pests and diseases. The adoption of a crop rotation which incorporates a legume for one or two seasons preceding mustard crop is the best recommendation. The important crop rotations for rapeseed and mustard crops are given.
- Paddy -Mustard -Paddy
- Maize -Mustard -Paddy
- Beans -Mustard -Maize
- Cabbage -Mustard –Knol-khol
| Type of R&M | Period of Maturity at Harvesting |
| Indian Mustard | 110-160 days |
| Yellow Sarson | 90-120 days |